Getting out of bed was a sudden and unpleasant experience for everyone in StoneHaven, including Halo. The threat of Chaos Eaters had grown more exhausting for the locals than it used to be.

Morning routines were already hard enough without brain-eating monsters.

Those who had eased the burden were no more. Now, they were no different from ants without a queen. Chaotic, confused, and probably screaming internally.

Two-thirds of StoneHaven's population had relocated since Halo killed Kahn. The land was deserted now, but somehow, Halo felt glad for it.

Not only could he casually stroll the streets from time to time, but today also was the perfect opportunity for it.

Sinners swarmed the streets, and it had all started with one kill. It jumped on a person, cracked their skull open, and ate their brains whole.

The people panicked and fled, but within minutes, more than a dozen had been slaughtered and transformed into Chaos Eaters.

Halo and his clones ran through the streets. These Chaos Eaters were strangely weak compared to the ones Halo had fought in the past. The question hung…

Was the virus truly contagious now? Or perhaps this was all part of Hex's schemes. Worse still, his injuries were nowhere near healed.

Nothing says "bad timing" like a world-ending threat during recovery.

With a few rusty potions and barely enough rest, he looked like a seventy-year-old man with back pains. And emotionally, he felt ninety.

Still, they ran across the entire land. At one point, he thought Hex was simply toying with him. These humanoids were cowards—they hid, and even those with the courage to face Halo head-on attempted to flee after one failed attempt.

Peak embarrassment: your typical fraud villain.

It was a mockery.

But he needed to see this through. Leto didn't care, and with Iris still in the prince's custody, whatever might be happening was hidden from him.

The gods loved keeping him uninformed.

Yet, he couldn't sit back and let the Chaos Eaters spread any further. That could jeopardize their Purpose.

He moved from shadow to shadow, the sun scorching like never before, and managed to slay about forty in a matter of hours. Still, he couldn't tell if that was the end of them.

Before nightfall could approach, however, Halo gave up. A single Chaos Eater left unattended could repeat the entire catastrophe, but in his condition, he needed rest.

Self-care was important, even during apocalyptic outbreaks.

Besides, not once did he see the land's guards, Arlen, or the Prince take responsibility for protecting the land from the Chaos Eaters.

If the Sinners ended up destroying everything, he wouldn't be the only one answering for it.

Something about this entire thing nagged at him, though…

However, his thoughts were immediately replaced with darker ones the moment he returned home. The house was empty, candles out, and there was no sign of body heat anywhere.

Leto wasn't around. Which was suspicious, Leto loved making his presence painfully obvious.

Halo shrugged it off at first, but then found himself checking Leto's room and all the others. There were no signs of him.

He wasn't on particularly friendly terms with Leto, but his absence stirred something sad in him. The room was as cozy as a hidden cave. Leto hadn't been around for quite some time.

It was weirdly emotional, for someone he mentally insulted daily.

Had he abandoned Halo, too? It could've been just the bastard running errands, but given how Iris had plotted an entire plan without letting him in on it, if Leto had taken a similar approach, it could only damage Halo's self-esteem even more.

Being excluded twice in one lifetime was excessive.

Highly praised in his past life, being treated like nothing wasn't something he ever thought could happen to him, but now he felt it every day.

But that wasn't what his wandering mind latched onto. What if the entire ordeal had been to capture Leto too?

Halo leaned into his seat, eyes lifted toward the ceiling, hands folded across his chest, lost in thought.

This had been bothering him for quite some time. He didn't have the wits of Iris or Dark Saint or even the perseverance of Seraphim, but he had his instincts, and they hardly ever lied.

His instincts were basically the only part of him that hadn't abandoned him yet.

The Chaos Eaters had no fight in them. Unlike the previous ones, who'd aggressively hunted those with chaotic thoughts, these only hid in the shadows.

There was a theory…

Perhaps it was as he'd initially thought, Hex had put measures in place to kidnap Leto. Which, admittedly, would be a bold choice.

Not only was this out of character for Leto, as that bastard wouldn't let himself be caught that easily, even by Hex herself, but it also didn't seem like a tactic The Prince and Hex would use.

They could've devised better plans; they would've only needed people to carry them out.

But no matter how he looked at it, he was nothing but a test subject for Hex. She had the strength to make Halo her pawn with no need to spread Sinners across the land.

Hex didn't need theatrics, she was the theatrics.

Even with that, he began to believe Leto had acted on his own accord, which didn't make things any better. Neither of the two, the bitch and the bastard, cared about Halo.

It was terrifying to even think about it.

Considering it more carefully, if Hex and the Prince were indeed using him as their tester, he needed to be on guard.

Iris would've been bright enough to draw a better conclusion, but since she wasn't around, Halo would stick with the only thing he was good at: waiting around until Hex made a move.

Patience was one of his reliable talent besides stabbing things.

Lost in his thoughts, exhaustion finally claimed him, and he slept like a child, out cold.

The most peaceful he'd ever been… ironically in the middle of a crisis.

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