Two years had passed since Alex, Venedikt, and Andrei ventured into the Ancestral Realm, while in the real world, only two months had slipped by, and as agreed, they were back in the real world for a day.
The trio sat quietly in the training chamber cantine area, eating their food in a heavy silence with unspoken tension.
Their emotional state was understandable, given that this was only their second meeting in two years, and each of them knew it would end before they knew it, only for them to wait another year before they saw each other again.
"I wonder how much we will be changed when all this ends?" Andrei, ever the open book, was the first to speak.
"We will still be who we are, just a bit more mature, maybe a bit colder, and much stronger, but at our core, we will remain the same," Venedikt replied in a measured tone.
"I am not complaining as I love the ancestral realm, but it's also tough not seeing our families for an entire year,"
"I miss my mom and little Sophia so much, and sometimes I worry that she's growing up without her big brother around, and if she needs our help, we will not be there to provide it," Andrei said, a hint of melancholy in his voice.
"Zero will alert us if something goes wrong, and we also have so many automatons guarding our family, so they are safe."
"We are not just growing stronger for power, money, or influence, but we are doing this so that when the world changes and it will, we will have the means to maintain the peace for the people close to us," Venedikt said, his expression calm and reassuring.
"I already told you guys that you can go offline every few weeks for a few hours," Alex said, understanding that it was mentally draining to spend an entire year doing nothing but living in another world, knowing you had your real life outside of it.
It was not like he did not miss his family, but he had put enough measures in place to know that they were safe, and as for his own emotions, he could deal with them, knowing that too much depended on his success for him to slow down or slack off for even a moment.
"Brother, The one who should be taking breaks is you so that we can catch up and don't look bad standing by your side when all this ends, but since you are not going to do that, we are forced to play along," Andrei said, with a chuckle.
"If you did decide to slack off, then I might need to knock some sense into you," Venedikt said, making the trio laugh and easing the tension in the room.
The boys ate their food while discussing matters related to the ancient world and the ancestral realm.
The ancient world was at peace for the time being, as more than three months had passed since the failed demon invasion, and there were no new signs of devourer beast incursions on Dragon mainland, nor were the Eldravian forces invading the Dwarven continent, so it seemed Ahrimon had postponed his plans.
For now, it appeared Alex had successfully halted their war efforts by closing the portal connecting the Human and Demon Continents, delaying the full-scale war.
While the saleswoman was making her pitch, two other female staff members stood nearby, talking in hushed tones.
"He is so handsome," The staff member with blonde hair whispered, her eyes fixed on Venedikt.
"Look at those piercing blue eyes, that chiseled jawline, and his raven-dark hair. And that body, You can tell he's sculpted like a marble statue under those perfectly tailored trousers and shirt." The blonde hair whispered to her colleague.
"Do you think he will give me his number if I offer to help him get an employee-exclusive discount?" The other woman asked.
"Do you think he will worry about a few dollars when he's wearing clothes like those and has picked the most expensive projector? The older model with similar features is going for 40% less," The blonde scoffed.
"DOWN!" The blonde heard a roar, but before she could react, her vision darkened, and she fell to the ground with blood spilling from her head.
Venedikt pushed the saleswoman next to him away, saving her from a bullet to the head, as he rushed toward the three men who had entered the shop together and, without hesitation, took out their guns and began dropping the staff like trained killers.
Venedikt was moving on instincts, realizing that he was not dealing with low-life robbers but rather with trained professionals who had come with a purpose.
He instantly realized that unless something of great value was hidden in this shop, their target was none other than him.
Venedikt was confident in his strength, but he was no fool, as he knew that if they were after him, then these men would be aware of awakened individuals like himself and would have come prepared.
His instincts screamed at him to break through the glass window and regroup with Alex, but his mind made him stay calm and first test whether he could deal with them or not because if he left, it would mean the death of the six people still alive in the shop.
Reluctantly, Venedikt moved with all his strength, catching one of the assailants by the arm and elbowing him in the jaw, shattering it and dislocating his shoulder while crushing his arm bone.
In a flash, he moved to the second man, grabbing him by the face and slamming him into the floor, while with a swift kick, he crippled the third man before immobilizing his gun hand.
Venedikt felt a brief sense of relief, seeing that the three killers were just ordinary humans, yet the encounter still bothered him since things did not add up. However, before he could think further, he heard a voice from behind.
"You are coming with us," A man speaking Russian said as Venedikt felt a mask covering his face, and before he could struggle, darkness engulfed his senses.
It was unknown who these people were or what their plan entailed, but it was clear they knew who Venedikt was and what he was capable of, so they had come prepared.
Now, the only question was whether Alex and Andrei had suffered a similar fate or not and if they did what these unknown people wanted.