Endless Evolution: Last Star

What happened when the Phantom died?

For starters, it was to find out if it was possible to retrieve Phantom's body from Dead Lands, or at least some of his things. Quite often it was impossible to bring back the Phantom's body because the squad ran away from dangerous threats, leaving the bodies of their comrades behind.

Sometimes it was unable to return the body simply because monsters or anomalies destroyed it, there were cases when not even Phantom's clothes were left behind.

Then, upon returning to the Citadel, the Phantom's body would be sent to the military in their medical department. This was to check that the Phantom's body was not dangerous to others, viruses, unstable energy, the effects of some monster ability, and many other things that could cause problems.

When the Phantom's body was safe, the government would inform the Phantom's family. Most of the Phantoms had families so it was not uncommon for government employees to have to deliver such news, making it the worst day for the family.

After condolences and words of encouragement from a government employee, the family would be given financial aid, tuition for their children if they were in any academies, and all sorts of benefits.

It was worth realizing that although Adam was most often in contact with Phantoms, they were really few compared to ordinary people. Having a Phantom in the family was a great happiness, which one day could become an equally great tragedy.

If the Phantom had no family, the money was used to sponsor projects that for one reason or another lacked funding.

Usually, the family didn't learn the tragic news until ten to fifteen days after the Phantom died in Dead Lands.

Phantoms could often spend days or even weeks training or preparing for a mission with their squad, so it was not uncommon for the families of a dead Phantom to not know until the last day.

However, even if the family became suspicious and worried, the military and departmental personnel would simply tell them that the situation was being investigated and they would give them the details later.

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At the very end, there is a funeral that puts an end to the story of the fallen Phantom.

"Adam... Why did you ask me to take Lero's Nexus from the military? I could only do it because I said you wanted to personally visit their family and offer your condolences. After all, you were the one who carried Lero's body out of Fume Cathedral."

Silvana asked, biting her lip.

Adam changed a lot as a person and became much more experienced as a Phantom, but... the reality was that he wasn't even twenty yet, though he was close to that milestone in his life.

He had to tell the people that were several times his age about the death of their son, that was the Phantom, and the hope for a bright future for their entire family. Silvana realized that even she would have a hard time doing that, it was a lot of moral stress.

If Lero hadn't died, it was possible that in the future he would have children between the ages of 16 and 18 who would become Phantoms, and his parents would be the first generation in their new great lineage.

This was not the dream of a mere family but a possible reality, since bloodlines had to start somewhere.

"Well, because I'm going to do it, today, right now I'm going to head over to Lero's family. I assume they already know what happened and are getting ready for the funeral, right?" Adam asked, walking over to the booth and taking the red book in his hands.

He did it slowly and carefully, feeling every moment.

Silvana nodded with a serious face.

"Yes... Lero was a sociable and friendly person who always took care of his family. He kept in contact with his parents and little sister almost every day. So they quickly realized something bad had happened and turned to the military for answers."

Adam raised an eyebrow, turning to Silvana.

"Little sister...?"

Silvana sighed heavily.

"Glara Fratto, the second child of the Fratto Family, she is two years younger than her older brother." Silvana's gaze darkened, "In fact, just a month ago she had a birthday when she turned seventeen."

Adam lowered his gaze to the book.

"I see... I hope Lero had time to buy her a gift, as I doubt she'll be happy to see anyone other than her brother holding that book." Adam said before heading towards the exit.

Before he left the storage room he turned around and looked at the Plague Reaper floating serenely in the bright blue liquid, even after his death he appeared majestic.

"You weren't the only one in whom Lero's actions awakened respect for him..." Adam whispered walking outside.

Silvana was going to follow Adam, but before she did she glanced at all the memory items that were in Adam's storage, now including the Plague Reaper, there were eleven.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

'I wonder... If I gave him something, would that thing eventually end up here or would he just forget about it...?' Silvana internally muttered with a slightly sad look.

...

As Adam said, he headed towards the Fratto Family, they lived in Third Ring, this ring was Adam's house, but the Fratto Family's house was on the opposite side, so their journey took a while.

"So... just knock, right?" Adam muttered looking at Silvana for confirmation.

She just nodded, standing behind him.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Adam knocked lightly on the door, enough to be heard by the residents of this two-story house that didn't boast any luxury, but was filled with the comfort and care of its owners. They clearly appreciated what they had, even if they weren't rich.

Though Lero was a Phantom, it didn't mean that his family had an endless amount of money, money should be earned over time and not wasted on frivolous things, spending should have a purpose and Lero's parents understood that, especially now...

Crackle.

The door opened revealing a girl with shoulder-length brown hair and a dark look with heavy bags under her eyes either from lack of sleep or intense grief.

"Did you want something...? This is not a good time, our family is in a difficult situation..." Glara said calmly, her green eyes were lowered to the ground.

She didn't want to talk to anyone, but she acted respectful and well-mannered.

"Glara... My name is Adam Vinter and I was one of the Phantoms fighting alongside Lero, on his last mission..." Adam said in a confident voice, but gentle, not wanting to upset Glara any further.

He had a younger sister too, though the age gap between him and Trici was far more significant than between Lero and Glara, but he understood how Glara might feel.

Even in his worst dream, he wouldn't want Trici to be in Glara's place, not only because it would mean his death, but also because Glara's gaze seemed to contain all the sorrow of this world.

"Ah...?" Glara looked up to see Adam.

Before she could say anything else, Adam reached into his belt and pulled out a red book holding it out to Glara.

"Here, take it, this Nexus must not disappear, you should keep it."

Glara's eyes went wide when she instinctively reached out her hands before touching the book which on the other side was still held by Adam.

No one noticed it, but then, a slight shiver went through their hands, coming from the book that ended up in Glara, causing a glint to appear in her eyes that disappeared faster than an instant.