The World Is Mine For The Taking-Chapter 614 - 97 - Creating A Portal To Another World (7)

We finally returned to the apartment. The moment we stepped inside, the warm scent of freshly cooked food filled the air. Anne stood by the doorway, wearing a neatly tied apron, her long hair cascading over her shoulders. She greeted us with a graceful bow, her voice smooth and composed.

"Welcome back, Master. And Miss Zoey."

She must have just finished preparing dinner. A faint wisp of steam curled from the kitchen, the aroma rich with spices.

"The food is ready," she said, her eyes briefly scanning us, as if assessing whether we were injured or exhausted.

"Has Chloe eaten yet?" I asked.

"She hasn't moved from where she was sitting," Anne replied. "I brought her food, but she hasn't touched it."

"I see..."

So she had been frozen in place all this time, her mind consumed by her research. It was almost unsettling how deeply she was immersed in it.

"Leon, I don't think it's safe to stay here anymore," Zoey said, her voice tense, eyes darting toward the window as if expecting soldiers to burst through at any moment.

"Yeah..."

We couldn't afford to linger. Our location was likely already compromised. The military would be moving in soon, and when they did, we'd be completely surrounded. The duel had allowed me to escape from the military camp without interference, but that didn't mean they wouldn't come after me once I was out. To them, I was a walking disaster—a potential catalyst for war between worlds. They weren't going to let me slip through their fingers.

A voice called from deeper within the apartment.

"You're here, Leon? Did you bring what I asked for?"

It was Chloe. Her words carried an edge of impatience.

"Yes, but we need to relocate immediately. We don't have time to waste," I said.

"There's no time for that," she countered, stepping out from her workspace. "Where is the portal particle?"

Zoey pulled the device from and handed it over. Chloe's eyes gleamed the moment she took it. She turned and strode back to her workstation with almost unnatural urgency.

The room she had claimed for her research was a mess—scattered tools, open notebooks filled with hasty scribbles, glowing monitors displaying shifting patterns of code. The floor was covered with metal components, tangled wires, and what looked like bits of failed prototypes. The air itself crackled with a strange energy, as if reality itself was bending to her will.

Zoey frowned, eyeing the chaos. "What the hell is all this?"

"Implements," Chloe answered without looking up, her fingers already flying over her keyboard. "They're necessary for my portal reconstruction attempt. If I'm right, I might actually be able to create a working portal."

She plugged the device into a larger mechanism that was linked to her computer. The moment she did, the machine hummed to life, emitting a faint, pulsating glow.

"If not for the fact that I'm free to experiment under your custody, Leon, I wouldn't have had the chance to accomplish something this groundbreaking in just a few days!" she exclaimed, excitement practically radiating from her. Her pupils were dilated, her breath quickening, as if the very thought of discovery sent a thrill through her.

Zoey crossed her arms, irritation clear in her posture. "This isn't the time for that. We need to leave before the soldiers come for us."

I raised an eyebrow at her. It was curious how she was more concerned about avoiding capture than returning home. She was technically in my custody, yet she had every opportunity to escape if she wanted to.

"Isn't this your best chance to get away from me?" I asked, watching her reaction carefully. "Those soldiers are your father's subordinates, after all. Wouldn't it be safer for you to stay here and wait for them? Why are you in such a rush to leave?"

Zoey stiffened, her expression momentarily faltering before she scoffed. "What are you even saying? There's no reason for me to do that." She flicked her hair over her shoulder, her lips pressing into a thin line. "If anything, this freedom exhilarates me. Getting out of my father's grasp… I never thought I'd get this chance. I don't think I'd ever feel this kind of thrill if I had stayed behind."

I smirked. "Sounds like you've fallen for me."

Zoey's entire face turned red. "Stop making ridiculous assumptions!" she snapped, glaring daggers at me.

I chuckled, but inwardly, I noted something important. Whether she wanted to admit it or not, something in her had shifted.

She seemed to genuinely care about me, perhaps even harbor feelings for me, though she refused to admit it. Well, I could live with that.

As a side note, I had successfully gained their attention and fulfilled some of their domination requirements. However, since this world's inhabitants lacked any unique abilities, there was nothing for me to copy from them.

Still, this confirmed my suspicion—my domination ability worked on women from the other world as well.

As I mulled over my thoughts, Chloe remained hunched over the monitor, her fingers dancing across the keyboard with swift, mechanical precision. The glow of the screen reflected in her eyes, a sharp contrast to the dimly lit room. Meanwhile, I turned to Anne.

"Get ready," I ordered, my voice steady but firm. "We might have to leave at any moment."

The air in the room felt heavy, like a storm was brewing just beyond these walls. I stood still, listening to the rhythmic tapping of Chloe's fingers against the keys, each keystroke bringing us closer to either salvation or catastrophe.

"How long will it take?" I asked.

"About half a minute—no, more or less twenty minutes," she replied, her eyes never leaving the screen.

Twenty minutes. It wasn't long, but under these circumstances, it might as well have been an eternity. Still, I had chosen the right researcher for this job, and if anyone could pull this off, it was her.

Just as that thought settled, my instincts flared—something felt off. A shift in the air, faint but unmistakable.

Then, a sound.

A deep, rhythmic chopping that sent vibrations through my bones.

No… This was familiar. It had been so long since I last heard it, but back on Earth, this sound was unmistakable.

A helicopter.

The low hum grew louder, more distinct, as it neared.

Then came the thunderous pounding of boots against concrete.

They had already found us? It hadn't even been a full hour!

"Leon! They're coming!" Zoey's voice rang with urgency.

"I know that," I replied, my pulse steady despite the rising tension. My mind was already calculating the next move. I turned to Chloe. "Can you finish this in under ten minutes?"

"That's impossible, even for me," she said without hesitation.

So we had no choice. A fight was inevitable.

"Is it guaranteed to work? Are you absolutely certain you can create a portal?"

"Huh? Well, this is my first attempt, so there's a chance I won't get it right immediately. But if we're talking about probability, I'd say about 50%."

A coin flip.

Ordinarily, I wouldn't put my faith in such odds. But right now, I had no other option.

"That'll have to do," I said, exhaling slowly.

Summoning Ayuru into my grasp, I felt a familiar, ravenous pull as the weapon siphoned my mana. A chill crept up my arm, spreading through my veins like wildfire.

"Leon, what are you planning to do?" Zoey asked, her voice tense.

"I'll buy Chloe some time to finish the portal," I answered, tightening my grip. "Stay with her. Tell Anne to do the same."

With that, I stepped out of the apartment.

The night air was thick with tension. The apartment complex had four floors, and we were on the third. Below, the rhythmic march of soldiers reverberated up the stairwell.

Beyond them, the sky was filled with movement.

Black silhouettes sliced through the night—helicopters, their searchlights cutting through the darkness, their rotors kicking up gusts of wind that whipped against my skin. The soldiers aboard them moved in tandem, their weapons gleaming under the artificial light. Then, in a synchronized motion, they took aim.

A rain of bullets tore through the air.

My instincts screamed. Ayuru moved before my mind could fully register the attack.

A blur of steel—then a cacophony of metallic shrieks as bullets split in half, their fragments cascading onto the floor like raindrops.

I barely had a moment to breathe before the soldiers reached the third floor. Their rifles locked onto me.

Then—fire.

Gunfire erupted, drowning the hallway in deafening blasts. The storm of bullets came faster, a relentless barrage meant to tear me apart.

Ayuru danced through the chaos, cutting through each round with deadly precision. Sparks ignited mid-air as metal clashed against metal. The rhythmic clang of severed bullets hitting the floor echoed in the narrow space.

I considered using the Guardian, but the moment I summoned it, the first bullet shattered it instantly upon impact.

My eyes narrowed.

The source of this c𝓸ntent is frёeweɓηovel.coɱ.

Why? These bullets weren't made of power dampeners, so why did the Guardian break so easily?

Then, it dawned on me.

This world wasn't governed by the same rules as mine. Here, abilities weren't part of the natural order. No matter how powerful they were, they could still be destroyed by conventional means.

And that realization sent a cold chill down my spine.

If war ever broke out between our worlds—

Our world might not win.