Upon returning to the lobby, Alex wasted no time as he immediately returned Akame to her room, laying her on the bed as the girl panted heavily, a clear sign of how much of a toll utilizing her full capabilities took on her.

"Thanks for the help, but rest up now." He said as the girl simply nodded.

Alex would stay in the room for a few minutes to look after her before he'd finally walk out into the hallway where he was quickly greeted by Klein.

"Oh hey. Sorry for not catching up with you sooner." He said.

"Don't worry about it. Judging from your tone, it seemed that the girl's condition was urgent. Anyways, I thank the two of you for helping collect more data concerning the anomaly. I believe that once the Thunder Herrscher fully rests, the Realm should return to normal meaning anomalies such as the one you were in should cease to exist." Explained Klein.

"Is that so? That's a relief then. Something about that place just felt extremely off."

"The Herrscher stated the same feeling as well. Did you notice anything peculiar?"

As Klein asked that question, Alex initially wanted to say nothing but then he remembered that bizzare looking silhouette.

"Now that you mention it, just before me and Akame left I saw something. I'm not exactly sure if what I saw was actually there or if it was just my eyes playing tricks on me but off in the distance I was able to barely spot a faint silhouette of what seemed to be a person just standing there. It even waved at me like it knew I was staring back at them."

As Alex briefed upon what he saw, Klein remained silent for a while as she attempted to piece together this mystery.

"Hmm, a potential entity seeming to reside in that space..............it definitely is interesting but with the distorted area going away, I see no reason to worry about it any further. I shall go back to the doctor's lab. Till next time."

Klein would bow before walking away as Alex, despite being told not to worry still felt a bit uneasy about the situation.

'Knowing my luck, I sincerely doubt something like that will go away so easily. Oh well. Just gotta hope for the best I guess.' He thought.

Alex would return to the main lobby as he strangely heard a lot of commotion which was quite rare.

Upon exiting the hall, he looked to where the couch was and saw a group of people having a conversation amongst one another.

Those people being Elysia, Eden, Kevin, Sakura, Kosma, Griseo, and two new people. One he didn't recognize, and one he did.

The person he did recognize was Fu Hua, as she had her usual blue-ish hair and eyes and gauntlets on her arms.

Alex would've been surprised but seeing as he knew how long she's lived, it was to be expected that Hua would be here.

As for the person Alex didn't recognize..........

It was a tall adult man with a fair complexion as he had knee-length gray hair with teal-green highlights as he strangely had his eyes closed.

His clothing consisted of a black polo with gold details on the collar and breast pocket with a white sash over his left shoulder as the sash itself had a gold pin on the shoulder.

On his left ear were two black helix earrings and a gold hoop earring as he also wore loose gray jeans fastened with a black belt with a green detail while on his belt, he appeared to have a dream catcher hanging from his left side and two other trinkets on the right side.

On his right hand he wore a dark-gray glove while his left hand was bare but was decorated with several types of symbols, including a tattooed ring on his index finger as lastly, he wore white boots that reached up his calf.

As much as he wanted to inform Elysia on what happened with Akame, Alex figured now wasn't the best time as he walked away.

Unfortunately, he was basically immediately spotted by the pink elf.

"Hm? Oh hi Alex~!" She said. "Come join us."

Elysia would pat a hand on the couch, inviting him to sit down between herself and Eden as the red head waved hello and also extended an invitation herself.

'Yeah.............no way I'm sitting there.' Thought Alex, knowing better than to sit between two fully grown women.

Despite his refusal, he saw Griseo approach him and grab his hand, clearly wanting him to join in.

Alex saw this and admittedly was a little torn inside as Kosma sighed and got up.

"Griseo, don't force him if he doesn't want to." He said but after seeing the girl's insistence, Alex realistically had no other choice.

"It's okay Kosma. I'll just hang around for a bit." Said the boy as he walked and sat on the couch between the two close friends of Elysia and Eden.

As he sat there, he noticed how despite Elysia claiming everyone here to be one collection group, it certainly didn't feel like it since they all were in their own separate conversations.

Truth be told, the boy felt completely awkward and extremely out of place being here, especially considering where he was currently seated.

As he was deep on his train of thought, his contemplation would be snapped by the pink elf.

"Alex~?"

"Hm? O-Oh sorry."

"Is something troubling you?" Asked Eden.

"I just don't feel comfortable in crowded places." He said.

"Hmm.................and what exactly do you mean by crowded?" Said the red head in a teasing tone as she subtly inched closer.

"Certainly isn't whatever you're thinking of." Immediately retorted Alex, backing away as he caught a faint scent of alcohol coming from her.

"Okay Eden that's enough. Save it for next time~." Said Elysia, pushing her back.

'I'd rather there NOT be a next time.' Thought Alex.

Figuring that he was now at his wits end, the boy immediately stood up and grabbed Elysia's hand.

"Hm? I didn't think you'd be so bold Alex~." Said the elf.

"Excuse us Ms. Eden. This'll only take a minute." He said before getting her up and walking with her to the hallway.

"Is something the matter?" Asked Elysia, noticeably changing her demeanor and tone to one a little more serious.

"Something's up with Akame. I figured you can fill me in on all the details." He said.

Alex would arrived back at Akame's door, allowing Elysia to walk in first as he followed behind.

It only took a second for Elysia to see the state Akame was in for her to immediately recognize what it was as she sighed, sitting on the chair next to her bed before lifting her right sleeve.

This allowed Alex to see that her infection markings were actually glowing bright red.

"The hell? What's going on with her infection?"

"This is sadly normal for her. I assume she used her ability to infect some enemies, right?" Asked Elysia as Alex nodded.

"Yeah, she did. Why?"

"This is the consequence of her using even a fraction of that power. The infection flares up, rendering her immobile for a while. This power of hers is a big reason as to why the others avoid her. They fear that even with our mantis procedures, her blade at it's max potential could even render us immobile, and potentially deceased." Explained Elysia.

"Then why bring her in? Why bring her to a place where she doesn't feel welcome? Where the others even fear her?"

"Because I'm positive that everyone else will eventually see past her curse, and see the sweet girl she really is. If you were able to do that, then I have faith she can form bonds with the others too."

"Huh. You really have a lot of trust in her, not to mention me as well. Honestly, I'm quite honored." Said Alex as Elysia nodded, brushing the currently sound asleep girl's hair.

"It's because Akame..............doesn't have much time left."

When Elysia said that, Alex was immensely shut silent.

"W-What?"

"Everytime Akame used that power, the infection erodes away her mentality bit by bit, until it's all completely gone."

".............................and what happens when it's all gone?"

"....................she'll either become a mindless zombie forever, or she'll peacefully pass away from the infection."

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Chapter 16: Complete