Chapter 109
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Chapter 109: The Token
Whenever Luke wanted to compare his abilities with his father’s or seek some advice, his father would always gently decline, urging him not to be so competitive.
Over time, Luke harbored a faint resentment toward his father.
This kind of resentment toward a father might be an emotion every man feels in his youth.
It was a pure feeling, akin to a challenger’s bitterness toward an unbeatable opponent.
But when his only family member passed away, he truly felt that indescribable grief.
Before he could fully reflect on all the moments he had shared with his father, Luke, with the help of his teammates, had already stepped out of the vehicle, exited the elevator, and entered the suite.
By then, the room had been inspected three times by the research institute, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the logistics personnel from the direct superpowered group.
Thus, no one dared to stop Luke from touching his father’s body.
After witnessing the two share one final embrace, everyone quietly left the suite, leaving the last moments for them alone.
Inside the room, Luke gazed at his father, overwhelmed by a flood of emotions.
The room was in disarray, as if a fierce battle had taken place.
Yet his father remained unharmed, a serene smile gracing his face.
Luke couldn’t understand it, but he believed someone would eventually explain it to him.
He sat on the bed, bidding farewell to his father, who sat in a wheelchair across from him.
Outside, the setting sun cast its golden rays onto the shattered glass on the floor, creating shimmering reflections on the walls and ceiling.
In the warm, tranquil atmosphere, Luke suddenly remembered something—a promise made long ago in his childhood with his father:
In the military, many standard items are said to have a lifespan; once the equipment reaches its expiration, it must be replaced.
However, the discarded items often still have some life left in them.
As a young boy, Luke had two broken communicators that he cherished; during his free time away from training, he would take them outside and dream of becoming a great general.
After some time, perhaps when they had reached their limit, both communicators broke down within a short period.
Deeply saddened, Luke sought out a rather outcast classmate nearby, someone rumored to be incomprehensible to other children, yet praised by adults as a genius.
Using a package of what could be considered rare beef jerky as payment, he had the classmate help him repair the two communicators. In return, Luke received two stickers.
According to that kid, those were the change.
In any case, Luke eventually gave one of the repaired communicators to his father, who promised to carry the child’s gift with him always.
In the days that followed, Luke often caught sight of that old communicator on his father.
The stickers on it had long since worn away, and the grayish-green paint had chipped off bit by bit.
The whole device had aged like an archaeological relic.
But now, that item seemed to be missing from his father.
Taking a deep breath, the chubby boy began to search his father’s belongings.
A minute later, he confirmed his suspicions.
His spirit seemed to return to him, and his intuition told him that this matter was far more complicated than he had imagined.
After calming his mind and body, he took the initiative to open the door to the suite.
The people waiting outside, though visibly tired, refrained from commenting upon seeing the young man’s swollen eyes.
"You can go in, go…" Luke gestured towards the suite, struggling to find the right words.
However, the group was well-prepared and entered the room in an orderly fashion to perform the final rites for Lucas.
Luke was aware that he would never see his father again, not even as a body.
As a Fourth Level superpowered individual affiliated with the military, Lucas’s body was considered public property in Hope City.
Whether it was burial or cremation, it would constitute a significant waste of resources.
This was a fact that Luke, like all families of powerful superpowered individuals, had long understood.
As for a funeral, it was considered a luxury in Hope City.
Luke graciously declined the caring invitations from his teammates and returned home alone.
After locking his door, he began to recall the location of his communicator.
It wasn’t an easy task.
A child’s temperament is ever-changing, and nearly a decade had passed; Luke had long forgotten where he had placed that communicator.
He strained his memory and finally remembered a corner where he used to hide things as a child.
Soon, he found his communicator there.
After dusting it off, he connected it to a power source and activated the device that had lain dormant for nearly ten years.
Then, in the voicemail, he discovered a twenty-second recording sent three hours prior.
He pressed play and held the speaker close to his ear:
"Son, I’m sorry to tell you this now…
"Live well, for humanity and for yourself."
Lucas’s recording was brief, with a steady beeping sound in the background, occurring roughly every second.
Luke could discern his father’s concern and reluctance to part, but he also detected a deliberate concealment, as if Lucas hadn’t fully decided whether to speak those words before recording.
Time must have been pressing.
The chubby boy collapsed onto his bed, clutching the communicator, forcing himself to detach from his emotions and began to analyze the day’s events.
Strangely, as if the shock was too overwhelming, Luke didn’t feel as sorrowful as he had anticipated and instead felt unusually clear-headed.
At that moment, he utilized this clarity to methodically review the day’s unexpected occurrences.
Undoubtedly, the communicator should have been with his father.
Most items in the suite were damaged, indicating the enemy’s formidable destructive power.
Yet, there were no signs of injury or destruction near his father, suggesting his abilities remained intact until the end.
If he didn’t want the communicator to fall into someone else’s hands, with his immense power, he could have easily crushed it with a mere thought.
However, there were no fragments or dust from any broken communicators on the suite floor.
This suggested…
The communicator was likely delivered to someone else by his father.
At this thought, Luke’s body trembled slightly.
Why the smile?
Were the others present at the scene enemies or friends?
Why deliver the communicator to someone else?
And why did his father depart so abruptly?
With a whirlwind of thoughts, Luke, who had believed he would remain awake, drifted into a deep sleep.
