Endless Evolution: Last Star

Every fair had to have some ending, and it wasn't about hours of work, but something meaningful after which the visitors could smile a bit, forever engraving this day in their memory as something good and interesting.

The organizers tried to make sure that people would not be bored all day long, which was quite a challenge considering that the Scarlet Light Fair was held in the First Ring.

People who lived here saw a lot of things, and it was hard to surprise them, as well as those who went to First Ring for something special.

The burning of the crimson tree was the solution to the finale.

Nothing special, no contests, tournaments, or auctions, but beautiful and majestic!

Moreover, it was a symbolic gesture towards the Phantoms, for the basis of their power was also a tree, only a little different... of a completely other level.

"How much longer do we have to wait?" Katrin asked with a frown, looking around. She wanted to see the crimson tree burn, but it was hard for her to be there because the amount of people was huge!

Katrin felt uncomfortable in such a large crowd. She didn't like being in crowds and wanted to get out of there as soon as possible, but her desire to see the burning crimson tree was even higher.

"It's going to start soon. Just wait a little longer." Silvana said coldly, "However if you want, you can leave. I'll be here as long as my Phantom stays."

Katrin's eye began to twitch as she gritted her teeth.

"By the way, Katrin, Kody, you have Operators, don't you?" Adam asked.

Not every Phantom got their personal Operator, only squad leaders and especially capable ones. However, this rule only worked for K0-Phantoms.

Regardless of a Phantom's previous accomplishments, if they reached K1, they were given a personal Operator. It was a rule with no exceptions.

Adam had heard Katrin's Operator once before when they were trying to survive in Desolate Forest before Damien came to their rescue. However, he knew nothing about Kody's Operator.

Kody scratched the back of his head.

"Well... My Operator recently broke her leg, so she decided to stay home."

"What the hell...?" Katrin muttered wide-eyed, staring at Kody, "The same thing happened to Alan... He said some girl ran into him. They fell down the stairs together... Remind me... what's your Operator's name?"

Kody gulped. He knew that not only his Operator was hurt in that situation, but some other young man as well.

"Herna... Her name is Herna." Kody said uncertainly.

"You bastard!" Katrin exclaimed, sharply taking Kody by the collar.

Everyone was shocked by this abrupt change in Katrin's behavior.

"Where was Herna in such a hurry that she hurt my Alan?" Katrin narrowed her eyes, burning Kody with a glare.

Kody flinched. He was confused, not knowing what to do. Even though he had known Katrin for a while, this was the first time he had seen her so angry.

Tap.

Zera placed a hand on her shoulder, jerking her away abruptly, releasing Kody and allowing him to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Calm down. Sometimes these things happen. Instead of attacking each other, you'd better visit your Operators after the fair!"

Katrin clenched her fists and stepped aside. She was usually irritable but calm, however, when it came to her Operator, she easily lost control over her emotions. It was both cute and dangerous at the same time.

Adam and Trici were just looking at the crimson tree, licking ice cream. Adam's was vanilla, and Trici's was chocolate, covered in thick caramel.

Crimson tree was a huge origami because it was made of paper, very dense, and soaked in a special liquid for increased durability.

Sure, the organizers could have chosen a different material, but they wanted nothing left of the crimson tree at the end - showing that this was the finale.

Crackle. Crackle. Crackle.

Several sparks appeared around the edges of the circle, quickly aiming for crimson tree roots. Within seconds, the fire reached the tree, quickly rising upward and traveling toward the long branches.

Trici's eyes went wide with excitement, as did all the onlookers. She even stopped eating her ice cream, though it hadn't seemed possible before.

"How beautiful..." Trici muttered looking at the intense red flame that was getting bigger by the second.

"Yeah. It was worth our expectations and coming here." Adam muttered with a slight smile on his face.

Soon, all the sounds fell silent, only the burning flame remained, under the gaze of hundreds of people.

Some looked at the crimson tree because it was beautiful, some remembered important parts of their lives, and for some, it was a good opportunity to share the moment with their family and friends.

Adam watched the fire that gradually dissipated, leaving only a pile of ashes behind.

'Well... Even something that big and great can be turned to ash in just a few seconds, isn't it?' Adam inwardly muttered with a slightly sad look.

Then, he closed his eyes, moving into his space.

Unlike ordinary people who could only observe the crimson tree, Adam had his tree - the Evolution Tree.

Adam blinked and saw what his Evolution Tree used to be - much smaller, without the two mighty branches, Power Gene and Elemental Root.

'Hah, I hope you never burn, because if you do, it would surely mean I'm dead.' Adam smiled bitterly before returning to the real world.

"Bye, everyone!" Zera exclaimed vigorously, waving her hand and running off, seeming like she was in a hurry to get somewhere.

Kody and Katrin looked over at each other.

"Yeah, we should get going too. I think we better listen to Katrin's advice and pay a visit to our Operators." Katrin said calmly, nodding her head.

"I'll see you around!" Kody smiled, following her.

Adam glanced at Alexia.

"You're on your way out too, right?"

Louis nodded, "There's one more place we want to go before the fair closes completely, so we should hurry since we only have one hour left."

"Bye. I hope we get to fight someone strong someday! Maybe even at the next Eclipse!"

Jena walked over to Adam, kissed him gently on the cheek, whispered something, and walked away with a slight smile on her face.

Silvana sighed, turning to Adam.

"Should I call a car, or is there anything else you haven't done?" Silvana asked.

Adam hesitated, rubbing his chin. Obviously, he hadn't been to all the interesting places at the fair, as even ten days wouldn't be enough time to visit every single one of them.

"Brother, I've seen one place! I want to get a toy!" Trici uttered, tugging Adam's by the hair.

"Hmm? Isn't that enough for you?" Adam pointed to the dragon statuette in Silvana's purse.

Trici quickly shook her head with puffed-up cheeks.

"I want another one! The gold slime one! He's super cute! I saw him in one game. I want to get one here!"

"Agh..." Adam sighed heavily, "Well, show us the way. We have less than an hour, let's see what we can do."

"Yes!" Trici exclaimed, pointing west.

In fact, it took five minutes to get to their desired location, but Trici kept confusing turns and leading them in the wrong direction, so only after fifteen minutes did they reach a small shooting range where they could win stuffed toys!

"Here! I want this!" Trici exclaimed, pointing to a massive golden slime with a cute smile.

For this, Adam needed to knock off a certain number of points. Good thing he'd been in a shooting range before, and this was his opportunity to test his skills.

Silvana frowned, for she, like Louis, felt that someone was always following them and they were going to show up soon.