I Die to Rise: Resurrection System-Chapter 107: The Estate!

Kurt awoke to the sound of the blimp’s engines humming steadily beneath him. He opened his eyes to see Lena and Razor looking down at him like a pair of particularly nosy vultures with varying degrees of concern and amusement.

Riley stood by the corner, arms folded, close to Cassandra who was still at the cockpit driving, her hands steady on the controls.

"You fell from the sky," Riley said flatly.

"You don’t say," Kurt groaned, trying to sit up as he pushed himself up on one elbow. Every muscle in his body protested the movement, aching like it had been tenderised by a god with a grudge. "Must’ve been quite the show."

From the soft golden light pouring through the windows, only about four hours had passed since he’d blacked out mid-flight, and the blimp was currently heading toward the B-rank district.

A soft chime sounded in his head. Private and only for him.

[Primary Quest: Successfully Escape The Circle - COMPLETE]

[Reward: +25 Points]

[Sub-Quest: Escape with Riley - COMPLETE]

[Reward: +10 Points]

[Sub-Quest: Defeat Black Heaven - FAILED]

[Sub-Quest: Conclude the fight with a minimum of three deaths - COMPLETE]

[Reward: +10 Points]

[Available Points: 80]

Kurt’s lips twitched. ’Failed the big one, huh?’ He could live with that. Black Heaven was most likely scrap metal now anyway.

"You had me worried there, man," Razor said, then added with a grin, "I thought I wasn’t going to get paid what I was owed."

Kurt grinned back at him, and they both chuckled.

Lena, meanwhile, kept staring at Kurt in a way that began to make him feel genuinely uncomfortable. Her tail swished slowly behind her, eyes locked onto him with unblinking intensity.

Then she stopped abruptly and placed both hands beside her neck. "You know what? I’m fine not knowing."

"You’re probably right," Kurt said with a tired smile, then looked around. "Where’s the Warden?"

"Gone," Cassandra said from the cockpit without looking back.

Kurt raised an eyebrow. "Gone as in...?"

Lena rubbed beneath her nose with her index finger, one eye closed in a mischievous expression. "Let’s just say he’ll forever be going green."

"She tossed him into the Garden," Cassandra’s voice came from the cockpit, calm and matter-of-fact.

Kurt barked out a laugh. "Brilliant."

"No. Not brilliant." Riley pointed at Lena. "Cat-girl here was impulsive. Not that I’d expect anything less."

Lena scoffed. "Coming from the person who got thrown into the hole because she couldn’t manage her temper?" She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, you’re a real impulse control expert."

There was silence in the cabin for a few seconds then Cassandra’s eyes shifted toward Kurt, meeting his gaze through the reflection in the cockpit glass. "What was that thing that rose from the ocean and moved toward the sky?"

"You saw that?" Kurt asked, surprised.

"Honey, everyone saw that," Lena said, tail swishing with curiosity. "It’s kind of hard to miss a giant Lovecraftian nightmare climbing out of the ocean."

Kurt went silent for a moment, head bowed like he was thinking. And he was. He recalled what the System had said earlier about his death triggering the emergence of predators seeking the Resurrection System and didn’t care how many bodies it had to chew through to get it.

He raised his head and met Cassandra’s eyes. "Add that to the ever-growing list of things I have no bloody clue about." Then his expression shifted, becoming more serious. "But I believe it’s high time I had a lovely chat with a friend who’s currently rotting in a cage."

Everyone exchanged confused glances except Cassandra, who simply gave the smallest, sharpest nod of understanding.

The blimp touched down in what looked like a private estate. A sprawling mansion sat at the center, surrounded by manicured gardens and tall iron gates that screamed wealth and security.

They had finally arrived at the B-rank district. Specifically, Cassandra’s new home.

Kurt leaned on Razor for support as they descended from the blimp and the rest followed closely behind.

Lena took in a deep breath, closed her eyes, and twirled before collapsing dramatically onto the grass. "I can’t believe we actually pulled that off," she said, eyes still closed, grinning at the sky.

"I can’t believe you came for me," Riley said quietly, ears perked up as she stared at Cassandra, then at Kurt. "Even after everything."

Cassandra gave her an icy smile. "You should thank Eli. He had information I wanted."

Riley’s ears drooped. "Oh..."

"That’s bollocks and you know it," Kurt said, letting go of Razor now as he tried to stand on his own, already feeling the damage fading. "We both know Eli had very little to do with this."

Cassandra stayed quiet for a second, then started walking toward the massive mansion up ahead. She’d walked a few meters ahead when she called over her shoulder, "You’re all welcome to freshen up and regain your strength until you’re ready to leave."

Kurt jogged after her despite his protesting muscles, grinning. "This is quite the upgrade. I’m guessing you were out house-hunting while I was busy rotting in a cell and making friends with the local flytraps?"

Cassandra didn’t break stride, her voice cool and clipped. "I was making investments. Unlike you, I plan ahead."

She stopped at the grand doors and turned just enough to glance at him sideways, lips curving faintly. "And when word of the Circle’s prison break gets out, the buildings in the B rank district will go up thirty percent above market value."

Kurt let out a low chuckle, dragging a hand through his hair as he slowed to a stop behind her. "So that’s the game, huh?"

Lena got up from the ground with feline grace, and they all followed, taking in the surroundings as they walked.

The estate was breathtaking—fountains, marble statues, hedges trimmed to geometric perfection. It was the kind of place that made Kurt feel underdressed just by existing in it.

Inside the mansion, Cassandra led them through a grand entrance hall with vaulted ceilings and chandeliers that sparkled like starlight. The floors were polished marble, and portraits of stern-looking ancestors lined the walls.

Riley stopped, ears perked, staring up at the interior of the mansion. "This is... all yours?"

Razor whistled low. "Fuck me. This is some old money shit."

"Four guest rooms on the second floor," Cassandra said, gesturing toward a winding staircase. "Take whichever you like. Bathrooms are attached. There’s food in the kitchen if you’re hungry."

Then she disappeared down a side hallway without another word, heels clicking against the marble.

Lena stretched her arms overhead, tail swishing lazily. "Dibs on the room with the biggest bed."

"You’re all like children," Riley muttered, but she was smiling faintly.

Razor rubbed the back of his bald head, still adjusting to the absence of his mohawk. "I’m just glad to have a real bed again."

They climbed the stairs together, and Riley got the quiet east wing suite with a view of the gardens. Razor claimed the guest wing with a balcony and Lena took the west suite, already purring about the size of the bed.

Kurt ended up in the north wing at the end of the hall. It was spacious and minimalist with a four-poster bed, thick curtains, with a massive window overlooking the estate.

He collapsed onto the bed immediately, not bothering to remove his boots, and stared at the ceiling.

His body was exhausted. His mind was exhausted. But sleep didn’t come easily.

He kept thinking about the creature that had emerged from the ocean. About Morra back at Raven’s Crow headquarters. About the Resurrection System and whatever bloody mess it was dragging him into.

Eventually, exhaustion won, and his eyes drifted shut.

***

Down the hall, Lena lay sprawled across her oversized bed, staring at the ceiling.

Four fucking years in that cage. Four years of guards leering through bars, of being treated like product, of having zero control over her own body.

And now she was free.

Her tail swished beneath silk sheets as she thought about Kurt. The way he’d looked at her in that prep room, and the way he’d grinned when she knocked the guard out.

She also recalled the moment when he grabbed her collar and stole it right off her neck.

She sat up, decision made.

***

Hours later, the mansion was quiet.

The lock on Kurt’s door clicked open with impossible silence, and a presence slipped inside.

Lena.

She locked the door again without a sound, then crossed the room and climbed over Kurt. Even though she was visible, she made Baran’s invisible death technique look like child’s play.

Kurt’s eyes immediately snapped open to see Lena straddling him, his heart beating faster.

Kurt’s Perception was 94. He could hear the flap of a butterfly’s wings a block away. And he hadn’t heard her enter.

She sat on his hips and watching him with those predatory gold eyes that tracked his every micro-movement and glowed faintly in the dim moonlight streaming through the window.

"You’ve really got to stop waking me up like this," Kurt said, voice still rough from sleep.

Lena chuckled softly, placing one finger over her lips and her other hand over his mouth. "Shhh..."

Then she leaned down, bringing her face close to his, and whispered, "I haven’t had a decent lay in four years. Was hoping you could help me out there."

Her breath was hot against his ear and Kurt’s hands moved without hesitation, grabbing her ass firmly with both hands.

The smack echoed softly in the quiet room, prompting a gasp to escape Lena’s lips as she grinned wickedly.

"I thought you’d never ask," Kurt said, already hard beneath her.