“Are you certain? Did you clearly see who the perpetrator was?” Miles asked in shock. He couldn’t believe it. He couldn’t! “Can it be some sort of superpower or ultimate that allowed them to change their appearance?”

“Sir, no sir!” The soldier firmly answered. Miles felt his heart stop beating for a second. “When Ms. Stoll left through the portal, we confirmed her identity. As you know, to prevent monsters or spies from infiltrating our base, we built advanced devices that can cancel all sorts of energy techniques that can hide a person. When Ms. Stoll walked through the portal, we all clearly saw it was her.”

“Where is Alex?” Miles asked after freezing for a second. He didn’t know why Val did something like this but if she really did, unless she was under control, it didn't matter. If she acted with her free will, even if she was forced, Miles wouldn’t forgive her.

Now his biggest concern was Alex. He got hurt while protecting his property. Something that Val could freely take away. Miles wouldn’t mind if Val asked him to, he would give it without batting an eye, but she didn’t. She chose underhanded methods.

The soldier took them to the hospital wing where Alex was getting his treatment. He was already heavily wounded when he tried to chase after Queen Ant. Although he was mostly healed, he still couldn’t use his ultimate and some other techniques that took a toll on him. And now, when Miles walked in, his fist clenched and his nails dig in his flesh, drawing blood. There was a fist-size hole on Alex’s right chest. That was where his seed was. If Val destroyed the seed, it would cripple Alex’s life.

“Alex, are you okay?” Miles dashed to his side as he touched his shoulder. He circulated his energy and felt Alex’s seed. Although it looked scarred, it was intact. He heaved a sigh of relief as he looked at his friend.

“Miles, I am so sorry.” Alex looked at Miles crestfallen.

“It is okay, I don’t care about the item. I am glad you are okay.” Miles brightly smiled. He really didn’t care, Alex’s health was a hundred times over worthier.

“About Val…” Alex started but didn’t know what to say.

“Was she under control?” Miles asked, in a little bit of hope. He hoped Val was under control so he could forgive her because if she wasn’t, he didn’t know if he could accept any sort of apology.

“No.” Alex shook his head, “She looked sad, remorseful in what she was doing, but she wasn’t under control.”

“I see.” Miles sighed as he walked out.

“Where are you going?” Alex asked. He knew where Miles was going, but he couldn’t let him. “Miles, Val was strong. Stronger than you and I. I have never seen anyone that strong in Form-Rank. I don’t know what her secret is, or how she acquired that much strength, but I wasn’t careless when I confronted her.

When I saw her breaking into your mansion, I was fully prepared. With my armor on and my weapon ready. Still, she punched through my chest and bested me in frontal confrontation. Even you cannot defeat me so easily.”

“I understand. Thank you, Alex.” Miles said.

“Are you still going?” Alex asked in bewilderment, “You don’t know if she is going to be merciful when you two meet. For all, we know she always had a hidden agenda. Your friendship with her might be a lie that lasts for a lifetime.”

“I still have to see her.” Miles shook his head and left the hospital. He knew where Val went. It was intuition or guess. He for sure knew where Val was.

“Miles, do you think she went there?” Coin asked.

“Yeah, she definitely went there,” Miles answered. He knew Alex had been into the pyramids, and now that he knew she had a secret power and agenda, he knew it was related to that place. There was no other alternative.

“That place is too dangerous. She can pass through traps thanks to her powers, but we cannot.” Coin warned. He knew how much Val meant to Miles and was upset to see him like this, but he still didn’t want Miles to follow Val into that dangerous place.

“I still have to go.” Miles resolutely answered.

Soon they arrived at the Monkey Bridge separating the two lands. As soon as Miles arrived there he went to see the Boss and asked him if Val passed through there. The Boss had seen Val several hours ago. So after bidding goodbye, Miles passed the bridge.

Phantom World was a dangerous place where lots of Mystic Creatures lived. The last time Miles was there, he was trapped by a weird-looking monster and almost lost himself in a dream. He saw his weak self and would lose his life while battling that weakness in that dreamscape if it wasn’t for Val.

So this time, he was extra careful. Luckily Coin was connected to his mind, thus not all illusions could affect him. Although there were some illusions that could alter the reality that even AIs couldn’t see through, with his battle-washed perception, he could still feel if there was something wrong.

Following the path they took last time, Miles soon arrived in the forest where trees could create illusions with their pollen. This time though, Miles created a bubble of wind around him to ward off the pollen. It proved effective as no tree could affect his mind, and soon, Miles saw the pyramids swimming inside a dense fog. Although they looked close by, they weren’t. It was like a mountain that could be seen from a distance. Although it looked close, it would take hours to reach there.

“This is it, buddy. There are too many secrets in that place.”

"Miles, please reconsider. That place is a dead zone." Coin warned one last time.

"Val went and came back. It means it is not as lethal as they put it to be. At worst I can run away." Miles smiled as he walked.

"This time is different. Phantom World is a strange place, but the Pyramids are even stranger. Milosh warned you time and time again." Coin floated out of the watch as he stood in front of Miles with his Virtual Body.

"Don't worry. It's going to be alright."