Cryptomining Supervillain

Chapter 240: 240 WHO TOOK DOWN LIBERTY’S SHIELDS?

240 WHO TOOK DOWN LIBERTY'S SHIELDS?

But Eryn has changed much recently.

She could handle herself in most situations.

"She's probably at school," Damen replied casually after a moment's thought.

"Eryn is going to school… in her situation? What if the Nuralith finds out about it?" Liorea asked, incredulously.

"It got boring with nothing to do at GenSyn," Damen said. "She's been using my appearance to attend classes in my place from time to time. She probably had some extracurricular activity and couldn't message us while we were all busy here in Liberty City."

Liorea smirked. "So, she's doing your schooling for you."

Damen shrugged. "It's win-win. She cures her boredom, I get attendance."

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[Downtown Liberty City]

Agrop waved his duster over the table where his fresh fruits were neatly displayed. The street market bustled with life in the newly liberalized city, freed at last from the autocracy of the powerful families.

This…this….was freedom for the common people of Liberty City.

"Ah, I do enjoy a peaceful day that the Church has finally brought us. Hail to the Church," Agrop sang casually among the customers and passersby.

Suddenly, someone interrupted him.

"Haven't you heard about the large mecha attacking Liberty Station a month ago? Our city isn't as safe as we believe… the old families are looking to return," said Hasma, the vegetable seller at the neighboring stall.

Agrop lightly punched his chest before replying, "There's nothing to worry about as long as we have faith in the Church of Rejuvenation."

Hasma frowned. "I wouldn't put all my vegetables in the Church's basket…" She lowered her voice. "The major families won't leave us alone for very long. One day, they'll return."

Agrop spat at the mention of the major families. "Those bastards had better stay away from our city."

Suddenly, their conversation was cut short by a loud siren echoing across Liberty City.

The city had entered red alert.

"What's happening?" Agrop asked.

"I told you—our peace wouldn't last forever," Hasma said anxiously.

"There's nothing to worry about. Let's hurry to the nearest assembly point. You know the drill," Agrop replied.

Hasma nodded.

Both of them grabbed their cash and ran, abandoning their stalls and wares behind. This was an emergency…they couldn't afford the time to pack.

The cost could be their lives.

Soon, Agrop and Hasma reached the entrance to an underground station recently built beneath the city. Every citizen knew the procedure: in an emergency, they were to assemble beneath Liberty City.

But Agrop didn't descend immediately. He stared at the sky in horror.

Enormous warships hovered above Liberty City—vast, intimidating silhouettes blotting out the sun.

"Oh my goodness… Hasma, you were right. The old families are coming to reclaim the city," Agrop said.

A powerful energy beam fired from one of the warships toward the city. Agrop and Hasma raised their hands, shielding their eyes. A second passed…but nothing happened.

Agrop slowly opened his eyes.

The city's force field had absorbed the blast.

More beams followed, each one crashing harmlessly against the glowing shield. This was Liberty City's greatest defense- Its Dome Shield.

"Agrop, we should get into the shelter now," Hasma urged.

Agrop turned…and then stopped.

"The Church bless us," he whispered.

Both of them looked back into the sky as a dark presence emerged.

A surge of energy erupted from the being's chest, tearing through a warship's wing. The massive vessel spiraled downward, crashing toward the city's outskirts.

The dark figure rose higher, moving to confront the remaining warships. Agrop and Hasma recognized him instantly.

"Dark Halo," Agrop said in awe.

"The superhero of Melrose… is back."

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"Damn it—where did all these warships come from?" Damen shouted into the comms.

Dozens of warships surrounded him—huge, menacing constructs of state-of-the-art technology.

Even during the Corrosiver invasion of Melrose City, he had never seen machines like these deployed in battle.

"These are warships from Silver City's arsenal," Kail said over the channel. "They've finally come to reclaim Liberty City."

"If they'd sent these ships last time, liberating the city wouldn't have been so easy," Damen muttered as he fired another plasma beam. It slammed into the hull of a nearby warship—but the vessel held firm, its force field flaring as it absorbed the impact.

"Silver City was never interested in Melrose," Liorea added. "That's why they didn't send a single ship during the Corrosiver uprising."

"Then why now?" Damen asked as he veered sharply, narrowly dodging a retaliatory blast.

There was a brief silence.

"Because they want something," Liorea finally said.

"What could Silver City possibly want now?" Kail asked.

Damen hesitated before answering. "This has to be connected to Godfather…somehow."

"Godfather?" Liorea echoed. "Is he still hunting Sienna and her band of psychics? Are they really worth mobilizing an entire city's worth of firepower?"

Kail's voice grew tense. "There must be something else… something far more valuable than killing a few psychics."

Then it clicked.

"Argent," Damen said grimly. "They believe Argent has returned to Liberty City. A Quantum Mind would be worth the cost of this invasion."

Then Kail had an idea.

"I can help," Kail offered quickly. "I could immobilize some of the warships' systems. You can defeat the enemy much easier that way, Big Brother."

Damen considered it for a moment. "No. Stay in the background. If Godfather is hunting a Quantum Mind, it's better they keep looking for Argent…and not you."

Kail exhaled slowly. "Understood, Big Brother. I'll stay invisible."

Liorea interjected, "But Argent isn't back. He's been gone for a month—ever since Damen rescued him. Where would Godfather even get the idea Argent is in Liberty City?"

"They might think Iam Argent," Kail said. "Last time, I immobilized the Hermes outside Liberty Station. They could've assumed that was his doing."

Damen frowned. "Something's not right." He twisted midair, evading another plasma beam. "The timing doesn't match. When you took down the Hermes, Argent was still in Godfather's custody."

Realization dawned on Liorea.

"I know what Godfather is really after," she said slowly. "This attack on the city… it's for Kail."

The comms fell silent.

"If that's even remotely true," Damen said at last, "then both of you need to disappear…now."

"But where can we hide in Liberty City?" Liorea asked.

"The subway assembly point, its near GenSyn. We could reach there in a few minutes," Kail replied.

"Good," Damen said. "Go to the subway and find Sienna. She will get you out safely."

"What about you, Big Brother?" Kail asked.

Damen glanced at the warships encircling the sky, energy cannons glowing as they charged.

"Don't worry about me," he said calmly.

"These iron ships won't kill me."

A thunderous boom erupted across the city—then another, and another—echoing through Liberty City like rolling thunder.

"What the hell was that?" Damen demanded over the comms.

"The force field generators," Kail replied breathlessly as he rushed out of the GenSyn Building with Liorea at his side. "They're spread across the city. Someone just took down the Dome Shield."

"How is that even possible?" Damen said, eyes snapping towards the city's protective barrier which flickered violently.

"Who could disable that many generators at once? Has Sienna's network been infiltrated by elite operatives?"

Liorea shook her head as they sprinted across the street, her breath ragged. "This isn't the work of operatives."

"Then who?" Damen asked.

Beneath him, the Dome Shield began to fracture….light splintering into shards before dissolving completely.

"The only ones capable of collapsing the Dome Shield so quickly," Liorea said grimly, "are people like Kail… or Argent."

She hesitated for a fraction of a second before finishing,

"Quantum Minds."

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