My front door leads to a comic strip

Chapter 158, Section 157: Withstanding the "Nuclear Explosion," Clothes Slightly Soiled

Orario, a high-rise building in a corner.

Woo—

A fierce wind howled across the rooftop, carrying with it the smell of gunpowder and dust.

The Grim Reaper "Sanato" crouched on the edge of the rooftop, his gray eyes flickering with a joyful firelight as he looked down at the city below, engulfed in flames and chaos.

The deafening shouts of battle faintly brushed past my ears.

"What a beautiful lament!"

He took a deep breath of the cold air, as if savoring a fine vintage wine, his face beaming with a look of intoxication. "Erebus, don't you think so?"

"This dying melody is more moving than any celestial music."

Footsteps sounded from behind, steady and slow.

Erebus emerged from the shadows.

He did not immediately respond to his colleague's sentiments, but silently walked to the other side of the platform, keeping a distance from Sanatos.

His deep eyes surveyed the city, but instead of focusing on any particular battle, they swept across the entire battlefield as if scanning a chessboard.

"Admiration?" Erebus finally spoke, his voice light yet somewhat calm. "Thanatos, you are still so superficial."

"Death itself is worthless; what is valuable is the brilliance and ugliness, struggle and despair that humanity displays on the road to death."

He paused briefly, letting the wind carry away the emptiness in his words, "My purpose in coming is different from yours."

"I am not here to admire the result, but to witness the process—to witness how heroes are born in the mud, or—how they fall in nobility."

Thanatos raised an eyebrow, unfazed by the implied belittling in Erebus's words, and instead let out a light, snickering laugh: "Oh? Like that 'seed' you carefully selected?"

"What a pity, it seems you've gone too far with your 'Eren' identity. Now you can only watch from afar like an outsider."

This statement precisely struck at Erebus's inner turmoil.

The arrest warrant did indeed disrupt his plans, forcing him to temporarily transform from a player into an observer.

But even so—

"snort."

Erebus gave a soft hum, his hands behind his back tightening slightly, his tone remaining as calm as a deep pool: "An outsider? Perhaps, but a true chess player, even from the sidelines, can guide the course of the game."

"Valeta—my disobedient pawn—is now fulfilling her final mission as I intended."

He deliberately steered the conversation toward Valetta, both to divert Sanato's attention and to verify his own conjecture.

Thanatos yawned lazily, showing some impatience with Erebus's cryptic remarks: "You mean that crazy girl? Don't worry, she's tough. Eight years ago, she fought Finn to a standstill and didn't suffer any real injury. When it comes to survival skills, she's a master..."

Before the words had even finished—

boom!!!!!

A sudden loud bang interrupted Sanatos's words, and a blindingly bright light suddenly erupted from the distant street!

The light instantly engulfed the entire block, followed by a deafening roar that shook the heavens and the earth.

Rumble—!

A small mushroom cloud, filled with flames and thick smoke, shot into the sky!

It heralds the coming of destruction!

"This is----!"

Feeling the continuous tremors beneath his feet, Sanatos's languid expression froze instantly, replaced by deep astonishment and disbelief.

"Whoosh!"

He suddenly stood up straight, his gray pupils contracting sharply as he stared intently in the direction of the explosion.

As the chief god of Valetta, he sensed the explosion with perfect clarity at the moment it occurred.

The invisible "favor" connection between himself and her, like a taut string, snapped with a snap.

The rooftop was deathly silent, with only the mournful sound of the wind still whistling.

A few seconds later, Thanatos slowly lowered his head, then suddenly let out a low, twisted laugh from deep in his throat: "Heh—heh heh heh—interesting, very interesting!"

He suddenly looked up, staring at Erebus, his face a mixture of excitement and absurdity. "Erebus—guess what?"

"Our fiercest girl, Valetta Greider—just got killed and returned to Heaven, you know?"

"Who do you think did this?"

He tried to find a hint of unplanned panic on Erebus's face.

However, Erebus simply stood there quietly.

Countless possibilities flashed through my mind regarding the explosion.

Otto, the only one in the city confident of killing her, is protecting Freya.

So, the only person capable of doing this, the one who could prevent Valetta from even escaping, is that person.

Having figured this out, Erebus's lips curled into a barely perceptible smile, his eyes flashing with understanding and satisfaction: "Isn't this wonderful? It doesn't matter who it is, she can finally meet you in the heavens. You should be happy, Thanatos."

Upon hearing this, Sanatos was taken aback at first, then the distorted expression on his face transformed into a strange sense of relief. "Ha—"

He chuckled again, then lazily sat back down cross-legged, as if the intense emotional turmoil he had just experienced was merely an illusion: "Well—you really do understand me best."

He opened his arms, looked up at the sky obscured by dark clouds and thick smoke, and said in an aria-like tone, "Ah, my dear sister Valetta, wait for me, but don't miss me too much—"

Below, at the center of the explosion.

-

The smoke and flames had not yet completely subsided, and the air was filled with the pungent stench of sulfur and burnt matter.

The ground was blasted into a shocking, charred crater, and the surrounding building ruins presented a horrifying, molten appearance, as if they had been baptized by hellfire.

In the center of this desolate ruin, where even bacteria could not survive, a figure slowly and steadily stood up.

It is ancient Yuan.

His clothes were somewhat torn and covered with a thick layer of ash, but he seemed to be fine and still stood upright.

Whoosh—

An invisible current of energy dissipated as he raised his hand to dispel the last remaining magical protection in front of him, brushing the dust from his hair and shoulders with unhurried movements.

then.

Looking around at the hellish scene, it seemed as if the terrifying explosion that had just blasted an ordinary LV5 to pieces was just a slightly stronger gust of wind.

"Really—"

Even so, Gu Yuan still coughed twice, feeling the emptiness emanating from his body.

"A terrible explosion," he muttered to himself, commenting on his opponent's final, desperate act.

Almost at the same moment he stopped and confirmed that it was safe around him, someone shouted, "Mr. Gu!!!"

A shout filled with anxiety and worry came through the air.

Like arrows released from a bow, Alexei Rofer and Liu Leon burst through the lingering dust and appeared in his sight.

Alexie's face was filled with shock and the almost exhausting relief and excitement of seeing him safe and sound.