Chapter 1919: Kidnapping P̶e̶n̶e̶l̶o̶p̶e̶ : Part-4

When the car landed on the other side of the bridge, she knew driving it any farther was no longer safe. She could see more lights gathering near the far end of the bridge. Staying inside the vehicle would only make it easier for them to be found.

Lily stopped the car and tapped her fingers against the steering wheel, her eyes narrowing as she quickly considered their remaining options.

"This isn’t going to work... We have to go on foot," she mumbled.

Just then, she remembered something. She immediately unbuckled herself from the seat and looked around the edges of the bridge’s railing, searching through the darkness below.

And there... she saw a ladder attached to one of the pillars.

"That might be our only chance, but can she move?" she mumbled, glancing back at Penelope before returning to the vehicle.

Lily unstrapped Penelope from the seat and carefully guided her out of the car. Penelope remained completely unresponsive.

Then Lily took the knife from her boots and cut through the thick, long seatbelt.

"We need them to look somewhere else," she muttered as she stared at the car.

If she simply climbed down without doing anything, they might reach the vehicle and check it before she had enough time to get away.

So she gathered some broken pieces of rock and several rods from the remains of the old, damaged bridge. She forced the steering wheel into a straight position and secured it with the rods. Then she turned the engine back on, shifted the gear into first, and slowly released the clutch.

The car began to move.

Lily immediately placed the rock against the clutch at the right angle, keeping it depressed enough for the car to continue moving forward.

Then she leapt out of the car.

Vrr....

The vehicle continued forward quietly, disappearing farther across the bridge without any trouble.

Satisfied that her plan was working, Lily immediately guided Penelope toward the railing and looked over the edge.

"Can you get down?" she asked, hoping that Penelope might finally react.

But again, there was no response.

Lily sighed and looked at her for a moment before shaking her head.

"Guess I’ll have to take you with me," she mumbled.

She took the strap and wrapped it securely around Penelope before tightening it around her own body like a baby carrier. She made sure it was firmly fastened before holding the strap around her waist and securing her shoulders against the weight behind her.

"Let’s see if I can lift you," she muttered.

Lily held Penelope firmly, clenched her fists, took a deep breath, and tried to lift the adult woman.

For a thirteen-year-old, lifting an adult wasn’t impossible if she had trained enough. But Lily hadn’t.

Her muscles were nowhere near strong enough for something like this, and she expected Penelope’s weight to pull her straight back down.

Instead, something completely unexpected happened.

"Wait... I don’t feel her weight at all," Lily muttered in utter shock.

She adjusted her grip and tried again, but the result was the same. Penelope felt almost weightless against her back.

Lily frowned.

’What’s going on here?’

The question lingered in her mind, but there was no time to figure it out. Whatever was happening to Penelope, they still needed to escape.

Lily immediately climbed over the railing and slowly lowered herself onto the rusted ladder attached to the bridge pillar. She placed one foot onto the first rung and then carefully shifted her weight downward.

Crckkk.

The ladder creaked beneath her weight, the old metal protesting against every movement.

Lily froze for a moment before continuing.

As she descended, the strain on her body gradually became more noticeable. Her hands began to tremble from gripping the cold metal, while her legs tightened with every step. Sweat slowly gathered along her forehead despite the cool air around her, but she refused to stop.

She kept moving down, one rung after another.

Even though Penelope herself seemed almost weightless, she was strapped against Lily’s back and dangling behind her. Her body shifted slightly with every movement, making Lily’s balance difficult to control as she descended.

"Damn it!" she groaned as the pain in her fingers intensified. Sweat covered her palms, making the rusted ladder even harder to grip.

"Just how long is this going to keep going?" she muttered through clenched teeth.

She finally looked down, and her expression eased slightly when she saw the ground below.

She had almost reached it.

Her face brightened immediately as she climbed down faster, eager to finally reach the ground.

Thud!

She landed firmly on the solid ground, her legs bending slightly from the impact.

She gasped, breathing heavily with an exhausted expression. "Thank goodness..." she muttered before turning her attention toward the scattered, broken houses surrounding the area.

Since she was trapped inside the slums, she had no choice but to remain hidden for the time being. She had no idea where another route might lead, and wandering around in the open would only increase the chances of being discovered.

Instead of letting Penelope down, Lily decided to keep carrying her. Surprisingly, it was much easier than trying to guide her while supporting her weight at the same time.

If they were chased, staying together this way would also give Lily a better chance of quickly pulling Penelope into hiding.

She quietly walked toward a nearby ruined house and slipped inside. The interior was dark and filled with dust, with several sections of the walls cracked or completely collapsed. Lily carefully settled Penelope down before reaching for the walkie-talkie attached to her strap.

She hesitated for a moment.

This was her only chance. She didn’t know where to go or whether there was another way out of the slums.

They couldn’t stay here for long, either. Sooner or later, her family would discover where she had gone and come looking for her.

Lily tightened her grip around the walkie-talkie before pressing the button.

"Lucus... can you hear me?"

For a second, only buzzing and crackling sounds echoed from the walkie-talkie. Then a voice finally came through.

"Yes, I can... Where are you, Lily?"

Lily sighed in relief.

"I don’t know exactly, but I’m inside a broken building near the left side of the bridge... Can you help me?" she asked, her voice carrying a slightly awkward tone.

She still wasn’t sure whether she should trust anyone. She had already convinced herself that trusting others was dangerous, but she had no choice this time.

Lucus was the only boy who knew about her, and he might have a chance of getting her out or at least finding a path that would allow her to escape.

That was all she wanted.

Lucus then replied, "Okay, I’ll help you... Just stay there, alright?"

Lily nodded, "Yes."

She cut the connection and immediately let out a long breath of relief, as though she had just survived something far worse than she could comprehend. Her shoulders relaxed slightly as she took a deep exhale before glancing at Penelope.

"Don’t worry... Help is on the way," she said with a hopeful smile.

Meanwhile, far away from her...

Inside a temporary tent, Lucus was kneeling on the ground, his body covered in bruises and blood. His hands trembled as he looked up fearfully.

"I-I told her exactly what you asked... P-Please don’t hurt me," he pleaded, his voice shaking with fear.

Alpha stood before him, staring down coldly while holding the walkie-talkie in her hand.

How had she found him?

It was actually quite simple.

She had merely asked about the car Lily had been driving, and before long, everyone had pointed her toward the same person.

Lucus.

At first, he had refused to accept or reveal anything. But after a few beatings, he eventually broke, unable to endure the pain any longer, and told them the truth.

Alpha simply smirked.

Her tail slowly moved toward his neck before wrapping tightly around it. With a sudden pull, she lifted him from the ground, leaving his feet dangling helplessly in the air.

"N-No... P-Please..." he strangled out in pain.

Alpha looked at him coldly.

"You should have talked when I questioned you," she said as her tail tightened around his neck.

Lucus’s eyes slowly rolled back as the pressure around his throat increased. His hands desperately clawed at the tail, but his strength was rapidly fading.

Just as he was about to pass out, Alpha suddenly released him.

Thud!

Lucus crashed onto the ground, coughing violently as he struggled to draw breath.

Alpha’s tail withdrew and moved back toward her body as she turned away.

"The President shall judge you."

She left the tent without another word.

Lucus remained on the ground, coughing and trembling in horror as those menacing words continued to echo inside his mind.

Meanwhile, in another tent, the President sat calmly in his seat, staring down at Allen, who was kneeling before him.

After hearing every detail from Allen’s mouth, the President remained silent for a moment before humming thoughtfully.

"Hmm... I always wondered why you kept her hidden from me. It seems the Goddess herself had a hand in this."

He was genuinely surprised when he heard that the Goddess herself had brought that woman to Allen and asked him to protect her.

Allen quietly stared at the President before muttering, "The reason..."

"Huh?"

"You didn’t come here for her... You came because of Aether, didn’t you?"

Allen spoke those words after carefully piecing everything together.

After all, if the President already knew about the situation, why would he suddenly come here personally instead of simply allowing others to handle the matter?

There had to be another reason behind his presence.

Those words made the President fall silent, as if Allen had touched upon something he had no intention of revealing. His expression remained composed, but the brief silence itself seemed to answer the question.

After all, there were only a few people who would have any real interest in that woman. One was the President himself, and another... was that boy of hers.

And when he received the information about her disappearance, he... he fucking thought it was Aether.

That was why he had personally come to this location to deal with the matter himself. He could have sent someone else, but the possibility of Aether being involved had been enough to make him come personally.

"Don’t flatter yourself, Allen," the President said calmly when he noticed the corners of Allen’s lips curling upward.

Allen simply smiled, his expression carrying a quiet certainty that irritated the President.

"Even after all this... You still fear him."

It was as if Allen could see straight through the man’s heart, and the faint smile on his face made the words even more provoking.

"Fear? Me? Haha..."

The President laughed as though he had just heard the most amusing joke in the world. He leaned toward Allen, his eyes narrowing as his calm expression slowly became more threatening.

"I fear nothing, brat."

Without warning, he kicked Allen directly in the face.

"Argh!"

Allen groaned as he fell onto the ground, his body sliding slightly across the floor from the force of the impact.

The President looked down at him coldly before speaking in a low, threatening voice.

"The only reason you’re still breathing is... because you are the Arcane King. Otherwise, you would have been dead long ago."

Allen bit his lips and remained quiet, refusing to give the President the reaction he was looking for.

The President clenched his fist tightly, his expression darkening as his frustration grew.

"I fear nothing... No matter what. This time, I will kill him with my own hands... and reclaim what belongs to me. My Goddess."

***

Meanwhile, back with Lily, she remained hidden inside the broken house and tried to communicate with Lucus again. The darkness surrounding the ruined building had become increasingly unsettling, and every second she remained there made her more anxious.

"Lucus? Can you hear me? Did you come? Lucus?"

Yet there was no answer other than the buzzing and crackling sound coming through the walkie-talkie.

"Lucus?"

Still nothing came through.

Lily took a tired breath and lowered the walkie-talkie slightly.

"Maybe he’s still on the way... That’s why he hasn’t answered," she muttered, trying to reassure herself before glancing at Penelope.

"Don’t worry, Penelope... Everything will be alright... Everything will be..."

She spoke in a slightly forced tone, as though she were trying to convince herself more than Penelope.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she was beginning to realize that she should have thought this through more carefully instead of allowing her emotions to take control of her decisions.

"Lil-Lily? I-I am here... Wh... Where are y-you?"

A strange, broken voice suddenly came through the walkie-talkie.

Lily’s eyes widened with relief. She immediately stepped out of the broken house and looked toward the surrounding streets before raising her hand and waving toward the empty road.

"Can you see me? I’m waving my hand!"

She continued waving toward the empty road on the left, desperately searching for any sign of Lucus.

"Oh? I can see you very clearly. Turn around."

The strange, broken voice suddenly changed. The warmth she had expected was gone, replaced by a haughty and chilling tone that sent a sudden shiver through her body.

Lily froze.

For a moment, she could barely move. Then, slowly, she turned around like a robot, her body stiff with fear, and saw something hovering above the ground behind her.

A tailed mech-suit hovered silently in the air.

"A-Alpha?" Lily muttered in horror as she stared at the suit.

Before she could react, Alpha suddenly caught Lily by the neck and lifted her off the ground.

"Argh!"

Lily groaned as she desperately struggled, her hands grabbing at Alpha’s grip around her neck while her feet kicked helplessly in the air.

Alpha looked at her coldly, "You have a lot to say, little rat."

Lily’s expression turned pale, and tears immediately gathered in her eyes as fear overwhelmed her.

Just then,

THUD!

Alpha suddenly moved her left hand and caught a rock that had been thrown toward her. The movement was so quick that Lily barely had time to understand what had happened.

Alpha stared at the rock in her hand for a moment before the corners of her lips curled into a faint, sinister smirk.

"Oh? What do we have here?" she asked coldly as she slowly turned her head toward the left and looked into the darkness of the street from which the rock had been thrown.