Midnight arrived not with a chime but with silence.
At first, it was subtle.
A single flake drifted past a streetlamp along the coastal road. Then another. And another. Soft white specks spiraled lazily downward, dissolving against warm pavement.
Within minutes, the sky over the city shifted.
Clouds gathered thick and low, swallowing the moonlight. The wind changed direction, colder now, sharper—carrying with it the faint metallic scent of deep winter.
Snow began to fall in earnest.
Across rooftops and cathedral spires, over narrow stone streets and glittering waterfront docks, white descended like a quiet decree.
By the time the clock struck twelve and the sound of the caring clock indicated.
The entire city was being swallowed by snowfall.
In the grand hall of AXILE, the change was first noticed through the towering glass windows that framed the sea-facing wall. Guests turned their heads as pale flakes streaked past the panes, illuminated gold by interior light.
"Snow?" Alois muttered, dabbing his forehead again despite the cold outside. "In this quantity?"
Stephenson glanced toward the glass with narrowed eyes. "Forecast mentioned nothing."
Mahito, however, did not move.
He had felt the shift long before the first flake touched ground.
On stage, Ian paused momentarily as he lifted the lid of the first black box. He glanced toward the windows, a faint smile touching his lips as if the timing amused him.
"Well," he said smoothly, "even the heavens choose tonight as you can witness the effect of the first division."
Polite laughter followed, though some guests exchanged uneasy looks.
Outside the compound, the snow thickened rapidly. Within half an hour, hedges were dusted white. Security paths blurred at the edges. The coastal rocks beyond the walls vanished beneath a rising blanket.
The delivery van carrying Oscar and Halden slowed as visibility dropped.
Halden grunted. "This wasn't in the report." although he could tell the reason why it was so.
Oscar stared through the windshield, watching flakes strike and melt. The fall was too sudden. Too dense.
Through his ear plug, Yunli's voice crackled softly. "Oscar… do you see it?"
"Yes."
"It wasn't forecast," she murmured. "And it began exactly at twelve."
Back at the bakery, Vincent noticed it too. The window behind Clara had turned into a canvas of swirling white.
Clara stepped closer to the glass, her playful demeanor fading slightly. "That escalated quickly…"
Snow piled along the sill almost unnaturally fast, as though the sky were pouring it rather than letting it fall.
Across the harbor, ship horns sounded low and distant—muted by thickening air.
Within AXILE's hall, Raphael stepped quietly to Ian's side. A subtle exchange passed between them—unspoken but understood.
This was either extraordinary coincidence really made things get interesting and intense.
Or deliberate theater.
Mahito finally rose from his seat, walking calmly toward the window. He extended one hand toward the glass not touching it, merely hovering near the surface.
The snow beyond seemed to swirl more violently for a brief second before settling again.
His expression remained unreadable.
" The first division helps speed things up with the right condition. Although the snow came as a catalyst. The device when powered cam either raise the temperature conditions of an area" Ian explained and his words couldn't help but amaze the crowd .
" If the prototype had this much effect then what about the original effect" most thought.
Meanwhile, at a light house within AXILE, a device the size of a car engine was being powered thereby spreading the effect of snow along with the help of the sea temperature.
Back among the serving girls, Yunli felt it in her bones, the pressure in the air, the faint tingling against her skin. Her ability remained dormant, but her instincts were alert.
Something about the snowfall didn't feel right.
As if the city had been placed inside a snow globe.
And someone had just shaken it.
By half past midnight, rooftops were completely white. Streets emptied. Sound dulled. The world outside AXILE grew quiet beneath its frozen shroud.
Inside, the bidding for Division One began.
But beneath the glittering chandeliers and raised glasses, an unspoken awareness crept into the room.
The night had shifted.
The bakery lights glowed warmly against the storm outside.
Snow clung thickly to the glass windows now, the flakes swirling endlessly beneath the dim streetlamp across the narrow road. What had begun as a gentle fall had turned into something heavier, quieter, almost oppressive.
Inside, the ovens hummed steadily, radiating a comforting warmth that fought back the cold creeping through the walls.
Vincent leaned against the long preparation counter, folding a cloth slowly in his hands while Clara poured tea into three ceramic cups.
Halden had taken a seat near the back wall, his boots leaving wet tracks across the tiled floor. Oscar stood nearby pretending to examine a stack of delivery receipts, though his attention drifted repeatedly toward the window.
"That snow is piling up too fast," Oscar muttered.
Clara slid a cup across the counter toward him. "You talk like you've never seen winter before."
"I've seen winter," Oscar replied, peering outside again. "Just not winter arriving like it missed the train and decided to sprint."
Halden chuckled from his chair.
"Nature doesn't follow schedules," he said casually.
Vincent glanced toward him briefly.
"Usually it at least gives warning."
Clara took a slow sip of tea before setting the cup down.
"Well," she said lightly, "at least the city will look beautiful in the morning."
Her tone was playful again, but her eyes drifted toward the storm for a moment longer than necessary. They all looked at her and sighed helplessly not saying anything.
The conversation drifted into lighter chatter and complaints about long work hours, jokes about customers who demanded fresh bread at impossible times. Yet beneath the normal rhythm of voices, the storm outside remained oddly unsettling.
Snow continued falling harder making the most use of the opportunity to run wild.
—
Inside AXILE, the atmosphere was entirely different.
The luxurious hall buzzed with rising excitement as bidding continued for Division One.
"Five hundred million."
"Five hundred point eight."
"Six hundred."
Crystal glasses clinked. Wealthy buyers leaned toward one another, whispering calculations and speculation about the prototype's potential.
Yunli moved silently through the aisles between tables, her tray balanced carefully while she refilled glasses and cleared empty plates.
Her red-dyed hair framed her face convincingly, and her uniform blended perfectly with the other hired servers. But beneath the calm exterior, every nerve in her body remained on edge.
Scarlet's security team was still patrolling the hall.
Two of them stood near the eastern balcony while scarlet lingered close to the stage.
Yunli caught a glimpse of her earlier near the private guest section, her sharp eyes scanning faces with unsettling precision.
Yunli adjusted her route again, weaving between chairs to avoid crossing her line of sight.
A man at the table suddenly grabbed her wrist.
"Another drink," he slurred with a crooked grin.
The smell of alcohol hit her immediately.
Yunli forced a polite smile while gently freeing her hand.
"Of course, sir."
She poured the drink quickly and moved away before the man could say anything else.
The constant movement was exhausting.
Smile, Serve, Move, most importantly Avoid Scarlet.
Avoid the wandering hands of intoxicated buyers.
And somehow—
complete the mission.
Hidden beneath the cuff of her sleeve, the slim recording pen Oscar had passed earlier remained active, capturing voices and conversations within range.
At the center of the hall, Ian stood beside the open prototype box, calmly observing the rising bids.
"Seven hundred million," someone announced.
Stephenson raised his paddle without hesitation.
"Eight hundred."
Soft murmurs rippled through the crowd.
Mahito remained seated near the front row, fingers loosely folded as he watched both the device and the snowfall beyond the tall glass windows.
Outside, the storm had grown even stronger.
Snow whirled violently in the darkness.
Inside the AXILE compound lighthouse, the true engine behind the phenomenon continued to hum steadily, its rotating coils pulsing with controlled bursts of energy that fed into the atmosphere.
Back in the hall, Yunli finally slipped into a side corridor carrying an empty tray.
Her shoulders sagged the moment she was out of direct sight.
She reached into her sleeve and pressed a tiny switch on the recording pen.
A faint vibration confirmed it.
The device had switched modes.
Now it was transmitting.
Her pulse quickened.
She had just activated the live feed in the middle of the auction.
From this point forward, everything happening inside AXILE would be reaching their team.
But the stress was catching up with her.
She had been moving constantly for nearly an hour—dodging Scarlet's patrol routes, avoiding attention, and maintaining her cover among dozens of unpredictable guests.
And the worst part?
The bidding was still climbing.
"Ten Hundred million," someone called.
A ripple of excitement filled the hall.
Ian smiled faintly.
The night was reaching a template stage.