In another part of the quiet city, there was a relatively lively estate—the one where Mira and her new best friend, Lilian, lived together with Mira’s mother.
Outside, the ruined streets were dimly lit, yet a few young people could still be seen going about their lives with quiet determination.
Thanks to the presence of several supernaturals in the area, Mira’s estate was one of the few relatively intact parts of the otherwise devastated Woodstone City.
And now, with a few days having passed since the chaos, people had begun to slowly come to terms with their new reality.
Though it was hard to say the city had regained its vitality, at the very least, more residents were starting to adapt.
Inside the estate, Mira’s sitting room was filled with activity.
Boxes were stacked in corners, bags lined the walls.
The living room looked more like a temporary camp than a home, but it was organized chaos—efficient in its own way.
Mira sat on the couch beside Lilian, discussing what they still needed when her phone suddenly buzzed in her pocket.
She reached for it instinctively, expecting another useless notification—only to frown when she saw the name.
Michael.
But just for a moment, her heart had dropped, thinking it was Brian.
That thought alone made her mood sour.
Brian was one of their strongest classmates—undeniably powerful—but his attitude had always rubbed her the wrong way. She admired his strength, sure, but his arrogance and the way he looked down on others made it hard to tolerate him.
What truly made both her and Lilian distance themselves from him was what he tried to do after their visit to Michael’s home.
He had tried to bring down Michael’s image in subtle ways—never direct, but always lingering just under the surface.
Brian often made comments about how Necromancers were usually weak in the early stages, that their true potential only revealed itself much later, and even then, only under specific conditions.
He claimed that age were often key factors in unlocking the class’s power.
Mira and Lilian had always wondered where he got all his information from, or how he even knew such things in the first place.
While he sounded like he was simply discussing the class in general, it was clear to both girls that he was targeting Michael—indirectly, but deliberately.
It felt like he was trying to say he was the better option.
That moment had been the final straw. Since then, even the mention of Brian’s name left a bitter taste in their mouths.
The fact that his presence became increasingly uncomfortable the more time one spent around him only made things worse.
So when she saw it was actually a message from Michael, her expression softened slightly.
She tapped on it, eyes scanning the brief text. Her lips twitched into a faint, conflicted smile.
“He finally messaged,” she muttered under her breath.
Lilian, catching her tone, leaned over. “Michael?”
Mira nodded. “Yeah… says he’s heading to another city. Hopes I’m safe.”
She paused, eyes narrowing slightly at the screen. “He ignored all the messages I sent before this though.”
“Typical guy,” Lilian scoffed, though her tone was more teasing than annoyed.
Mira didn’t say anything more, but she stared at the screen for a moment longer before pocketing the phone.
Her heart felt a little lighter.
As for why she hadn’t responded to the message, it was simple.
She had been almost certain she wouldn’t get a reply—so she didn’t bother trying.
Now, reading the message, Mira’s thoughts drifted to the city Michael mentioned he was moving to, and a small smile tugged at the corner of her lips.
“To think we’d end up in the same place… I wonder what he’ll do when he sees me. Maybe that cold face of his will crack a little. Haha.”
She leaned back, chuckling to herself.
“Hopefully he doesn’t think I’m stalking him or something ridiculous like that. That city’s just a great place to settle down—especially if you have the money.”
Like Michael, Mira had also become a small-time millionaire, having sold the monster parts from her kills during the chaos to the Supers Association.
But what lingered most in her mind was…
“I wonder how strong he is now.”
“Surely… it can’t be that absurd, right?”
That was Mira’s train of thought.
Back on Michael’s end, after flying at full speed for some time, he finally arrived at the outskirts of the city his family had relocated to—Brightgate City.
According to his aunt, Brightgate was a major trade hub, and from what she’d heard, it was quite well-developed.
A decent three-bedroom house there went for around $800,000, and renting a similar one cost about $40,000 per year.
Even from a distance, Michael could tell—Brightgate looked far more prosperous than Woodstone.
“I wonder how long it’ll take to find them… or should I just call her?”
His family’s arrival in Brightgate had also marked the beginning of a new chapter—a new home.
Not a rental, but a house they actually bought.
It had cost around $950,000, taken from the $1 million Michael had given his aunt—money she insisted on refunding right after the purchase.
The house was fully furnished, and according to the agent, it didn’t need repairs—just a bit of renovation.
By now, Aunt Mia should have finalized everything, which meant the house was officially theirs.
On Aurora, unlike Earth, internet scams were nearly non-existent.
There were systems in place to verify transactions and identities with precision.
If anyone still scammed people nowadays, it was usually corporations.
As several thoughts flashed through Michael’s mind, he dismissed his undead griffin back into his storage space.
In truth, he was still far from the actual outskirts of the city.
With normal human vision, one would only be able to make out distant city lights.
Michael had landed early on purpose—he didn’t want to cause a scene.
Who knew if there was another mage like Lian in this place?
Although the Federation had begun loosening its grip on information about the supernatural world, Michael wasn’t sure just how far that freedom stretched—or whether each city had its own set of rules.
All he knew for certain was that he definitely didn’t want to be detained by some powerhouse on his first visit and bombarded with questions.