Gabriel arrived at the concentration camp where Friedemann Adler was being held, accompanied by a small unit of Revenant Knights he trusted the most.
This wasn't an official mission, but a personal one. Because of that, he could only rely on their loyalty rather than formal orders.
Automated sentry turrets swept their sights across the road ahead as Gabriel and his team approached the outer gate.
Before they could move any farther, a squad of uniformed guards emerged from the checkpoint. From their insignias alone, it didn't take long for them to recognize Gabriel's group as Revenant Knights.
"Knights," one of the guards called out. "State your business. This facility is under full lockdown."
"What's the situation inside?" Gabriel asked. "We were sent as reinforcements."
"Reinforcements? I wasn't informed of any additional deployment." The guard frowned, then added, "The situation is being dealt with. Three of our men were found poisoned."
"Poisoned?" one of the Revenant Knights repeated.
The guard nodded. "Indeed. Which is why we can't permit any visitors or outside personnel at the moment. I advise you all to turn back."
Gabriel took a step forward "Sir, we've received intel that the recently transferred juvenile, Friedemann Adler, may be targeted for assassination tonight."
The guards exchanged uncertain glances. The one in charge frowned.
"That information hasn't been verified. And even if it were, we have strict orders. No one enters until clearance from Central Command."
Gabriel exhaled. His patience was running thin. "By the time you get clearance, it'll already be too late."
"Orders are orders," the guard replied. "No exceptions."
"At least have your personnel checked too."
"They already are," the guard replied sharply. "Don't interfere or tell us how to handle our operations, Sir Knight. The situation is under control. But if what you said has any truth to it, I'll inform the warden to assign additional eyes to Adler—"
Before he could finish, the earpiece on his collar resounded
——Alert! Alert! Unidentified assailant detected inside Block C!
The guard's words died in his throat. His expression changed instantly from annoyance to alarm as the message repeated, louder this time.
——Multiple hostiles confirmed! Block C security breached!
The guards turned toward Gabriel and his squad.
"The situation has changed," one of them said quickly. "We're locking down the entire perimeter. No one gets in or out."
Gabriel's visor pulled up the transmission feed. "Where's the breach?"
"Block C," the guard said, already signaling to his men. "That's the sector where Adler's being held."
Gabriel turned to his squad. "Form up. Full combat sync."
"Yes, Knight Gabriel!"
"Wait!" the guard shouted. "We've got procedures for this—"
"You'll need all the help you can get," Gabriel said, striding past the gates. The guards hesitated but didn't stop him. "We knights were trained for this."
Truth be told, Gabriel didn't care whether Friedemann Adler lived or died. What he wanted was to determine if there was any link between this assassination attempt and the one behind the string of serial suicides.
"Fine," the guard finally relented. "But once you step inside, none of you leaves until the situation is fully assessed."
"Of course." Gabriel nodded, and moments later, they were escorted past the gates and into the concentration camp.
Inside, the atmosphere was surprisingly calm. Prisoners continued their assigned labor, hauling crates, cleaning corridors, and sorting materials under the eyes of guards.
Despite the supposed lockdown, there were no blaring alarms or visible panic. The truth was, the commotion was being contained.
The officers were conducting an internal investigation, discreetfully trying to identify whether a traitor existed among them. The prisoners had been deliberately kept in the dark to prevent unrest and maintain the illusion of control.
Gabriel took in the sight with a detached expression. This wasn't his first time inside a concentration camp.
These places were where extremists, rebels, socialists, terrorists, and Glasshearts were sent to die. The purpose of such camps was containment and erasure.
The administration showed little regard for human life. Disease, malnutrition, and overwork were common, and tens of thousands had already perished behind these steel walls.
Gabriel walked deeper into the facility.
On one side, a line of prisoners wearing uniforms marked with serial numbers, sorted piles of scrap metal and discarded magi-tech parts. Others scrubbed the walls and polished the floors under armed supervision.
A group of guards passed by, dragging an unconscious man toward a service corridor. His face was pale and streaked with blood. None of the other inmates even looked up.
They simply kept working, afraid that a glance would earn them the same fate.
Gabriel's gaze settled on a set of massive furnaces at the far end of the chamber. Prisoners were feeding debris into the glowing mouths of the incinerators.
It didn't take long before they arrived at Block C. The atmosphere there was tense.
Guards were clustered around a makeshift checkpoint, inspecting the food supplies that had just been delivered. Crates were opened one by one with its contents being scanned and tested under portable analyzers.
Barely any of the rations were meant for the inmates. These provisions were mostly reserved for the guards. Those underfed men and women were still hard at work in the adjoining chambers.
The officers were in communication with the food suppliers through their terminals. Several rookies from the logistics division, too, were already under questioning.
Gabriel watched in silence as the inspection continued.
They must have suspected that something had gone wrong with the supply line, and it was a reasonable guess.
Gabriel himself wasn't certain how Nameless could have managed to poison the guards either.
After a brief exchange with the officers, Gabriel requested an audience with the warden. He was soon escorted through a series of reinforced corridors, past sealed gates and checkpoints, until he reached the administrative wing of Block C.
"Knight Gabriel," the warden greeted, voice clipped and formal. "Warden Reinhardt Krüger. I was informed you wished to speak with me."
"Yes. And I'll make this quick, Warden. There's a mole among your officers, and I'm led to believe the target is Friedemann Adler."
"As I've been told," Krüger replied. "We're currently sifting through the personnel we deem suspicious. Every guard and supply handler is being screened. But until we confirm who's responsible, I'm keeping this facility under full lockdown."
"Do you have any leads?"
Krüger exhaled through his nose. "None that are solid. The three guards who died didn't share a shift, weren't stationed in the same block, and didn't interact outside of duty hours."
"What about the poison?" Gabriel asked.
"It's been identified as a chemical-laced confectionery," Krüger replied. "Candy. Individually wrapped and distributed through standard supply chains. Nothing out of the ordinary except the contents. Each piece contained a delayed-release neurotoxin that activates upon digestion."
Gabriel frowned. "So, someone tampered with the rations before they got here."
Krüger shook his head. "Unlikely. The candies were imported, approved, and verified by our procurement line weeks ago. They were part of the guards' recreational supplies. Whoever orchestrated this had access to both the logistics manifest and the internal rotation schedule. That means the mole isn't low-ranking."
"And what of the unidentified assailant?"
"Dead."
"Poison?"
"The rat killed himself," Krüger replied. "Had a hidden candy in his mouth before he could speak. The same kind that killed the others. By the time we noticed, it was too late."
Gabriel's jaw tightened. "Do you know who he was?"
"We ran a scan on his identification chip. He was one of ours, Sergeant Ulrich Braun. Assigned to kitchen oversight two days ago. No prior disciplinary record, debts, or criminal ties."
"Then what's the catch?" Gabriel asked.
Krüger tapped the screen beside him, and a holographic file opened, displaying the man's photo and personnel data.
"The catch," he said, "is that Sergeant Ulrich Braun died three years ago. Officially listed as KIA during the Dresden Riot."
Gabriel's eyes narrowed. "Then who the hell did you have working for you?"
"That's what I intend to find out," Krüger said, turning toward the monitor feeds again. "But right now, our priority is Adler. If what you said is true, Knight Gabriel, then it's precarious situation."
Both men knew neither of them particularly cared whether Friedemann Adler lived or died. What truly mattered was catching the audacious infiltrator who had managed to slip past the layers of security and into a government concentration camp.
Gabriel crossed his arms, his eyes turning to the monitors. "I assume you've already reinforced Block C?"
Krüger nodded. "Every available guard has been rerouted there. Automated drones are active, but surveillance interference is spreading fast. It's almost as if something's purposefully jamming the system."
Gabriel stepped closer to the main display. The feed glitched and was distorted by static. Through the interference, a slight movement could be seen.
"Freeze that frame," Gabriel ordered.
Krüger complied. The image froze, showing what looked like a human silhouette, but its outline was as though cloaked by refracted light.
Gabriel narrowed his eyes. "A Holo…?"
Krüger adjusted the feed, enhancing the contrast. "Seems to be some kind of holographic cloaking device."
Holographic technology, commonly referred to as Holos, had become an indispensable part of daily life. By 2149, nearly every household, office, and institution incorporated holographic systems into their design.
Walls, furniture, even cityscapes were often virtual overlays projected onto minimal structural frames. Brick-and-mortar construction had become the exception rather than the rule.
Holos could be summoned or dismissed at will, functioning as assistants, interfaces, or full-bodied avatars. They were the backbone of both personal convenience and corporate efficiency.
However, this particular case was different.
The technology they were seeing wasn't ordinary, but it was reactive and self adjusting. It concealed not just the user's image but their entire physical presence, adapting to the environment like a living camouflage.
Gabriel recalled a case file from decades past. "There was someone like this before. Back in 2114… the Hanover Crash Incident."
Krüger frowned. "You mean Erich Weiss?"
Gabriel nodded. "That's the one. A serial murderer who used archived holos of children that died in the Hanover plane crash to disguise himself. He'd aged the holograms artificially, took their identities, and slipped past facial recognition for months. By the time they caught him, he'd already killed nine people."
However, that case was primitive compared to this.
Gabriel's expression darkened. "Whhoever's inside your camp undoubtedly had no intentions of escaping."
Krüger looked back at the screen, realizing the truth in Gabriel's claims.
"It seems you might be right, Knight Gabriel," he said. "They came here to erase someone."
Gabriel nodded.
"...."
Julius's deductions were correct.