The Spare's Second Chance in Apocalypse-Chapter 254: Ch 253: Pulled In - Part 1

Selene paused just short of the government building as the familiar voice of the system echoed in her mind.

[Alert: Subject Selene is being followed. Identified individuals: Ethan and Noah.]

Her jaw clenched. She had expected Ethan to be stubborn—but Noah too?

’Noah’s not even supposed to be here. Didn’t I make it clear that I wanted to go alone? Ugh, I want to call out to him and call him an Idiot, but that would just cause more problems.’

She thought with irritation.

The urge to turn around and confront them boiled under her skin, especially with Noah being involved.

She didn’t have the energy to babysit someone so impulsive. But just as she was about to spin on her heel, she realized how close she was to the government office.

Too close. The last thing she needed was to cause a scene in front of the officials.

That’s when the other voice—the other presence—stirred within her.

[Do you need help? I can remove them for you. Quietly.]

The voice asked, smooth and tempting.

Selene’s fingers twitched at her side. The voice made her skin crawl, not because it was loud or threatening, but because of how casually it offered destruction.

"No"

She muttered under her breath, ignoring it.

’Don’t feed it. Don’t answer. Don’t give it space.’

Pretending she hadn’t heard anything, Selene walked forward and entered the government office.

The official in charge—a young man with heavy bags under his eyes and worry practically etched into his skin—immediately ushered her inside.

There were no unfamiliar faces this time, only a collection of exhausted and anxious-looking officials seated around a rectangular table.

"Miss Shadow, thank you for coming on such short notice."

The man said,

"I’m here. What’s the situation?"

She said flatly.

The officials exchanged glances. One of them—a woman in her forties—spoke first.

"Things are unraveling fast. We’ve lost control of dungeon activity. Awakeners are breaking into dungeons illegally, hunting for resources like addicts chasing a fix."

She said, fingers steepled.

"They’re not listening anymore. Our regulations mean nothing. Half of our enforcers have already joined the chaos."

Another added.

Selene remained still, her expression unreadable.

"So you expected this? You don’t look surprised."

The original man asked, narrowing his eyes.

"I’m not. This was bound to happen."

Selene replied simply.

There was a heavy silence. Some of the officials looked uncomfortable.

"Then tell us. What do we do now?"

The woman said.

Selene took a breath.

"Stop trying to force order. You’re not strong enough to maintain it."

"Excuse me?"

Someone snapped.

"You asked for a solution, so here it is—stop trying to restrict dungeon access. Let them go in. But keep detailed records of who enters and leaves. And then—cut them off."

Selene said calmly.

"Cut them off?"

The older man repeated.

Selene nodded.

"Bounty Seed. Equipment channels. Access to training facilities. Stop helping them. Make them realize that breaking rules has consequences."

"Starving them won’t solve this. They’ll just riot."

Another argued.

"They’re already doing that,"

Selene shot back.

"But you still have leverage. Use it before it’s gone. This is a temporary measure. In the long run, you need to form alliances. Strengthen ties to powerful groups. Use their influence to pull things back into place."

The room was quiet again, some officials scribbling notes, others simply watching her with unreadable expressions.

Eventually, the official sighed.

"We’ll consider it. For now... let’s move on. You came here to learn more about the dungeon."

"Yeah. Tell me about it."

Selene crossed her arms.

A map was pulled up and an address was handed over. The official gave her a pointed look.

"It’s near a volcano. Still semi-active. We haven’t gotten anyone close enough to inspect it. Anyone who tries turns back almost immediately."

"Noted. I’ll go myself."

Selene said, taking the address.

"Do you want an escort?"

"No. I prefer going alone."

’Especially with two idiots tailing me already’

She thought, suppressing a sigh.

She arrived at the base of the volcano a few hours later, the terrain rocky and scorched, the sky above tinted a dull gray from smoke and ash.

The dungeon entrance loomed ahead, carved naturally into a jagged cliff face. It pulsed with a subtle energy—dangerous and unfamiliar.

Selene stood still for a moment.

"I know you’re there. Come out."

She called without turning.

There was a pause. She didn’t hear any movement. Typical Noah.

"Ethan. Noah. I said come out. I’m not in the mood."

Another long silence.

Then, finally, footsteps.

Ethan emerged from behind a charred boulder, brushing ash off his sleeves like he’d just been casually strolling around.

"Hey. Nice weather, huh?"

He said, offering a sheepish smile.

Selene narrowed her eyes.

"Where’s Noah?"

Ethan shrugged.

"Still hiding, I guess. Doesn’t want to admit you caught him."

Selene crossed her arms.

"You two think I wouldn’t notice?"

"Honestly? No, we knew. Just hoped you’d be too distracted to say anything."

Ethan scratched his cheek.

She gave him a tired look.

"This is why I didn’t bring anyone."

"And this is why we followed you. You were acting weird. You looked—off. And this dungeon? Something’s not right about it."

Ethan said.

Selene hesitated. He wasn’t wrong. Something was off. The dungeon felt like it was humming—calling to her in a language she didn’t understand.

Still, she glanced toward the trees, where Noah was presumably still crouched.

"You too, Noah. I’m not going to pretend you’re not there."

She said, raising her voice.

No response.

Selene sighed.

"Fine. Stay there."

Ethan stepped beside her, gaze fixed on the dungeon.

"So... you going in?"

"Yeah. I came here for a reason."

She said.

"You want backup?"

Selene looked at him. For a second, her usual armor cracked and something vulnerable flickered behind her eyes.

"No."

She said softly.

Ethan didn’t push. He just gave a nod.

She turned back to the dungeon, her thoughts spinning. The voice inside her had gone quiet again, but its silence felt more like waiting than peace.

And something deep in the dark called her name.