Matt’s scan came in contact with mana. Without waiting to confirm whether it was the alpha’s or not, he fired his orb before immediately rushing the hundred or so feet separating the two of them.

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  He was on the back foot, no matter how he looked at it. He wasn’t even used to his boosted stats yet, and he already had to fight a tough opponent while missing two of his senses. It might come back to bite him in the ass, but there was a risk he had to take.

  His other senses were working overtime to make up for his inability to see nor hear. Simply running without the two crucial senses had been disorienting enough. A fight, where he had to make sure of every opening and be aware of his surroundings at all times, while missing both would make a tall task impossible.

  It did mean he would now be susceptible to the alpha wolf’s howl, but in that case, all he had to do was make sure it was too occupied to cast it.

  Sounds simple enough, Matt thought as he made up his mind, dispelling the mana marbles blocking his ear canal.

  Sound came flooding in from all directions, as if he'd just resurfaced after being stuck underwater for days. He could hear birds chirping, the wind slamming against room doors from balconies left open, but most importantly, he could hear the growl a few feet away from him. A low, angry, threatening growl that promised to rip him to shreds. But Matt did not back down. He finally felt ready, excited even. Focused on only one task: taking down the alpha.

  An explosion echoed through the halls as his mana orb collided with… something.

  A breath later he felt a shockwave’s impact, stopping him in his tracks as it pushed back against his running momentum.

  He soon continued his sprint, his mind working overtime to try to figure out what had happened. His orb hadn’t hit the wolf, of that he was sure. The explosion had sounded slightly muffled, and there was no pained groans coming from the large monster. It meant either his opponent was incredibly tough, or it had more tricks up its sleeve.

  Matt had hoped to at least injure it with the mana orb since the large wolf couldn’t dodge in the cramped hallway. Unfortunately, it seemed it wouldn’t be the case. And if what he feared was true, he might not even be able to use his mana orb as freely as he would like.

  It was another snag, but he had no time to dwell on it as he could hear the shuffling of legs as the wolf too rushed towards him.

  Sensing he was close enough, Matt slid on the smooth carpeted floor, hearing a swoosh as claws swiped right where his head had been, before the earthy, musky scent of wolf hit his nose.

  He immediately shoved his hand upward, towards the exposed belly of the alpha he was sliding under, releasing all the mana he’d been channeling in his palm.

  A surprised yelp came from atop him, as the mana wave pushed the alpha into the ceiling.

  Matt immediately followed with two rapid mana orbs, not to damage, but to confirm the alpha’s position and the nature of its ability.

  This time, the orbs found their target, signaling to Matt his next move. He positioned himself underneath the large creature, squatting, while putting as much tension on his thigh and calf muscles before finally jumping with a swing of his scepter into whatever part of the canine he could come in contact with.

  A loud crunch filled the halls as Matt’s weapon collided with the unmoving body of the wolf, breaking bone and opening a wound that caused blood to rain on Matt.

  Matt landed on his feet and was about to start blasting the vulnerable and injured beast when something slammed into his chest with the weight of a wrecking ball, sending him flying across the hallway.

  Matt felt himself slam into the stone balustrade on the right side of the hallway, feeling a few ribs crack from where the hit had landed.

  He immediately got back up on his feet, not wanting to give the wolf an opening, only for a spiked and rigid object to slam into his chest, knocking the wind out of him and pinning him against the balustrade for a second, before dissipating as if it was never there.

  Matt fell to a knee, wheezing and coughing a couple mouthfuls of blood. His health had taken a serious hit, but even if things weren’t dire just yet, they were definitely not going his way.

  He tried casting a quick [Repair] but the sound of something barreling towards him forced him to jump to the other side with all his might, hoping to find himself in a room.

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  His prayers went unanswered as he slammed into a wall instead, but it was enough to dodge the attack as he could hear a crash into the white stone of the balustrade.

  Matt instantly got back up to his feet, charging his scepter with mana as he readied himself to clash once more, when everything went still.

  A cold bead of sweat ran across his back as he felt the wrongness in the air. Everything had gone deathly silent. No birds chirping, no wind… howling.

  His eyes widened as realization dawned on him. He raised both hands towards his ears as fast as humanly possible, hoping that he had enough time, but it was too late.

  The sensation traveled through his bones before his ears, or even brain, could register it.

  Multiple howls.

  Not from the wolf in front of him, but from the resort garden to his left.

  Shit, was the only thought Matt had time for before the mind-breaking agony took over.

  “Everything is in place, my lord,” Kulgar dropped to a knee as he passed on the news to his lord, Adept Brammar.

  The situation hadn’t proceeded as smoothly as they would’ve hoped. Gaining control over one small planet was a fairly menial task, or at least it should’ve been. The empire had allotted them unlimited resources after all, citing that the planet named ‘Earth’ was AAA in priority, one of only five planets with a similar rating across the human inhabited worlds, and only behind Gargaash, the single S rated planet with any humans on it, and they were the minority, making all AAA worlds even more important, which meant it must be brought under the empire’s banner.

  No matter the cost.

  ‘Officially’ nothing above A existed. It was a means of information control, with the true rating of a planet only revealed to those entrusted with its administration, and they in turn trusted with whom they reveal that information to.

  He was unaware of why that planet had earned such a rating. It was too small for its resources to matter. Its population was too insignificant to have enough talent for the empire, and their earlier scans had shown no treasures of Mythic rarity or higher, which meant it had to be something else entirely.

  Gargaash, for comparison, held a Divine rarity item. One that had influenced the planet’s path for ages, soaking its people in blood throughout its history. Unfortunately, five different races were fighting over the only known S rated planet out of the new universe, meaning their chances there were not looking good.

  Earth, on the other hand, should’ve been easy to subdue. However, reality was much different.

  The problem was the earthborn. They were humans, like himself, Adept Brammar and almost everyone else that was part of the Kanaz Empire. However, they were also different. Very different.

  Almost every earthborn he had met was knowledgeable. Not about the system, mana, or magic, but general knowledge. Things they had no right knowing, from politics to finance to even farming and agriculture. It looked like knowledge was readily available on their planet, and education wasn’t restricted to the upper echelons of society, which proved problematic for him and his men. It made the earthborn less susceptible to manipulation. To threats. They didn’t bow down. They refused authority, adamantly fighting against it with all their might, which made controlling them extremely difficult.

  They even had to rely on other earthborn to help them come up with effective methods. As spymaster, it hurt his pride, but he was also a soldier first and foremost, and he would do what was needed to make sure orders were followed and the planet brought successfully under their control.

  The elite were the biggest headache. Many refused their help, claiming they knew better, while others didn’t mince words when showing their disdain and distrust of outsiders. There were even those who directly opposed them, like the two he’d been ordered to deal with, either by ensuring they’d fall in line and swear fealty to Adept Brammar and the Kanaz Empire, or by making sure they would stop being a headache. And while he had wanted to continue trying to bring them under the empire’s banner, the girl in particular was highly motivated, and if left to her own devices, would reach a point where dealing with her would become too costly, if not impossible.

  And so, as much as he hated for the empire to lose on promising young talent, it had to be done.

  “And why are you coming to me with this?” Adept Brammar asked, not lifting his head from the stack of papers on his desk.

  Kulgar never understood why Adept Brammar preferred ink and paper. There were plenty of system tools to assist those in a leadership position without the hassle or trail of ink and paper, but his Lord had always been adamant about using them, with everyone forced to obey.

  “I hoped you might intervene, the same way you did with the girl who wanted to be a healer,” Kulgar replied.

  “The decision has already been made,” Adept Brammar responded. “You are not one to question your orders, so what do you want?” he asked pointedly, seeing right through Kulgar’s antics.

  “The girl shows promise. Even more so than any of the other elites we’ve recruited. She would be invaluable to the empire if cultivated correctly. Also, the boy. Moaaz seems to have taken a liking to him, going as far as to order his personal guards and shadows to keep an eye on him, ensuring his well-being. He will not take this kindly,” Kulgar presented his argument to Lord Brammar, hoping it would dissuade him.

  “The girl is untamable. The only way is to utterly break her, and while breaking her spirit does sound amusing, failing would result in worse outcomes. An unnecessary risk.”

  “I assure-” Kulgar tried interjecting, but Adept Brammar wouldn’t have it.

  “As for the boy and Moaaz,” his Lord interrupted, pausing for a few seconds as he seemed to contemplate the best approach. “Why don’t we arrange for the orders to… accidentally reach his ears? He’s not foolish enough to personally interfere, but if the boy is indeed that important, then he might make a mistake in his attempts to protect him, giving us the reason we need to make a move against him and that planet of his.”

  Kulgar wanted to protest some more, but the dangerous look on Adept Brammar’s face said more than a thousand words. There was no mercy for these kids. Only death awaited.