He could not move.

“Didn’t you hear me?!” Alice snapped.

Whatever was coming was drawing closer. And taking into consideration the way the ground shook and trees fell, Rain had an idea of what it was.

A Chimera.

Had they wandered into its territory unknowingly? Rain glanced over the scenery of a derelict roadside with a mix of fallen houses and over-the-top forestry. He doubted it. Even though his Navigator Skill was still obviously of a low level, Alice’s wasn’t. There was no way she would have blindly thrown herself into harm. There was also the fact that there was no notification from the Plexus regarding the incoming beast’s animosity. In other words, their presence was not yet known to the Chimera.

So why was it hastily drawing closer…

Wait! Is it running away from something? What could possibly make it do that?

His thoughts, though, were not the reason for him standing still.

There was the option of them all running away, but if his thoughts were wrong and the Chimera was really coming for them, then there was only so much distance that they could cover before it caught and trampled them. The best thing was to kill it here and now to prevent future troubles.

“I’m not leaving you to it alone,” Rain voiced through the hectic pounding of his heart. Then he turned to Sean and pointed at J. “Get on her back and get out of here. Hurry!”

Alice grabbed him by the scruff of his neck. “What the fuck in hell are you saying? Have you lost your mind, boy?”

His face remained plain. “Maybe. But I’m not leaving you here to fight whatever is coming alone. If push comes to shove I can just—”

“Don’t you dare,” Alice interjected. She pushed him back as she released the collar of his hoodie. “You’ll leave with Sean. That’s final.”

Rain said nothing but simply looked at the shivering boy. “Didn’t you hear me? Leave… Now.”

Sean’s forehead wrinkled as he began to look from side to side, his gaze a frantic rollercoaster of emotions. Then they froze, after which they sharpened. “No.”

Huh? Rain narrowed his eyes with a grimace. “What did you just say?”

“Shut it, both of you!” Alice was fuming now. Rain began to reconsider. “You guys are going to be a hindrance to me. Get out of here now, so I can fight without worrying about protecting you guys!”

When she put it that way, Rain’s previous conclusion had no choice but to change. He’d thought she was telling them to leave so as to sacrifice herself so that they could escape. If it had been that, he would have remained adamant. But from her gaze and words, she really did feel confident in defeating the approaching Chimera.

This was good. And besides, she was right. The only way he could stand toe to toe with a Chimera was by summoning the Mark of Caduceus, and there was no way he could do that.

“Fine.” As the hindrance that he was, Rain squatted and gestured for Sean to climb onto his back. This here was now the problem.

“No,” Sean refused. “I’m not leaving Alice here alone.” Traces of tears appeared within his lower eyelids. His timidity had intertwined with his fervidness. And this was a bad time for that.

“Sean—”

“Sean,” Rain was who had been about to talk, but Alice was faster. Her voice was gentle too. Maybe she realized that harshness wouldn’t work well for tense situations. “I’m not telling you to leave me here, I’m just asking you to go with Rain and hide. Remember what you called me: the Angel of Death. I’ll kill it in a flash and follow behind you.”

Rain took advantage of Alice’s words and held Sean by the shoulders. “I’ll not let Alice fight it alone, you know?” Liar! “I’ll get you somewhere safe and come back for her.” At the utterance of those words Rain felt a piercing chill stab into his back. He knew of its origin.

Sean sniffed, nodded, and climbed onto Rain’s back. But just as they were about to scurry into the forest on the opposite side, all the trees that had been blocking their view of what sort of Chimera was running riot fell to the ground, and from their boundary emerged a freak of nature that should have never once existed—at least in such a manner.

Rain fell agape as cold sweats rushed out of his pores. The Chimera pounding onto the main road of Cumbernauld was even mightier than the Anaconda he’d slain. The beast was a formidable and bulkier version of what its natural form might have been. It had pure white fur, from its stocky cheeks emanated a pair of canines in the form of pincers, and on its forehead was the same black jewel of a horn every physically mutated animal possessed.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Sean shivered at the sight, while J pounced in front of Rain instinctively despite the dim glow in her eyes.

Rain could see that his Companion was scared, he too was no different, but his responsibility was to protect her, so he could not let her do the protecting. And furthermore… He looked at Alice, her chin was shivering… His previous thoughts had been wrong. Maybe if it was the Anaconda it would have been different, but this bear before them… there was no way Alice could handle it alone.

With a sigh, he looked over his shoulder. “Sean, do you understand now?” The boy said nothing, just staring blankly ahead. Rain took him off his back and placed him on J’s, inciting her to turn to him. He caressed her head and said, “Get out of here—as far as possible.” She purred, hesitant to leave. “I’ll be fine. I promise.” One last purr and she moved towards the woods; Sean remained silent as though trying to process the situation.

Rain was not sure why the Plexus had not thrown any animosity message his way even now, but no way in hell was he taking any chances.

He had tripled his weaponry at the bungalow they’d stayed at in Dechmont after considering future mishaps, that was why he could dip his hand into his crossbody bag and bring out two knives.

At that moment he recalled Alice’s words and he could no longer deny it. He really was a hypocrite.

[Active Skill, Blade Saint (Low Level), activated]...

###

Alice had already inched forward after the Chimera bear’s appearance supposedly with a mind that Rain would take Sean and run, so when she turned to her side and saw him standing beside her with two little kitchen knives held firmly in his grasp it was only normal that anger flashed in her eyes.

“You!”

“There’s no time to argue. I know this wasn’t the plan, but I’ll throw half each of all my saved Experience Points into Speed and Agility, so let’s hunt down the beast together. Please.”

There was so much genuineness in Rain’s eyes that Alice was unable to fight back. She grit her teeth and nodded. Hopefully, their days of travels together would touch well upon their teamwork.

But just as Alice was about to dash forward, Rain’s thoughts on why he was yet to receive an animosity message for the Chimera were put at ease.

The beast wasn’t hunting, it was being hunted.

Alice was bamboozled, her eyes widening the biggest Rain had ever seen. “What the fuck is happening here?”

The shouts were low pitched—the shouts of children—but the little figures dressed in hooded robes of black and gold barely acted their age.

Rain counted them as some soared through the air and others sprinted through the ground. They were nine.

They had emerged from the places that still had trees, and in their hands were varying pitch black weapons swirling about in a flickering manner that seemed as though painted from faint, misty ink.

What the hell was with the kids? Where did they come from? Their movements were so slick—so quick—that he could barely keep track of what they were doing. And furthermore, they did not move like people who were scared of a Chimera; they faced it head on, inciting fear in such an apex predator.

The painful thing about this was the realization he came upon as he watched these strange children. Each of them were stronger than he was.

Dammit!

It was then, during his slight disappointment in himself that Rain saw it. Various red splotches painted the underbelly of the beast, and they were not the pulsing red of his Skill.

Don’t tell me…

“Mei Mei! You needa stab it in deeper, you klutz!” One of the children landed on the bear’s back as he screamed, and his words caused another on the ground to stop and bow as if to apologize. “Stop bowing and get a move on it!” She did.

“Formation, quickly!” Another child shouted. This one stood in front of the bear without a hint of fright in his eyes. At that moment the shadowy sword in his hand shifted its form, transforming into a black ball of flame that kept growing with each second.

The bear whimpered loudly at the sight and tried to scurry in another direction where none of the children were, but a large, imposing wall of shadow suddenly appeared, halting its movement and keeping it in place.

One of the children had flashed to that position in an instant, faster than Rain could ever imagine.

“Nice work, El!” The boy on the back of the bear, who had blonde hair, praised. “Klein, we’re all set!”

Klein, who was the kid with the roaring black flame in his right hand, surveyed his surroundings and nodded quite nonchalantly. Then he pounced backward, and, as though he had changed his mind, the fireball in his palm condensed quickly into a tiny orb that nestled at the tip of his index finger. With a deep inhale, he shot it at one of the bear’s eyes.

The beast howled in pain, swinging its head violently; although, the blonde haired boy on its back did not let that go on for long. He stretched his hands out, causing the shadow club he had been holding to vanish, and then from the bear’s shadow grew large hands which wrapped itself around its neck like a rope, subduing it.

“I can’t hold it for too long! Hurry up, guys!”

The remainder of the children on the ground moved at those words. Each one manipulated the black of their shadows or the bear’s or those of trees and stones, and, like they were dancing to the symphony of an orchestra, swiftly struck at different spots which Rain confirmed to be places that would end the bear’s life.

After a couple of seconds, the cries of the Chimera bear faded as it dropped heavily to the ground, blood spewing out of its body in various locations.

“What in the world did I just witness?” Rain muttered with a dazed look as he watched the children gather around themselves in a playful manner after their successful kill.

“That was a training drill.”

The answer was for his question, but the voice was not a familiar one.

With a quiver instantly taking over his stomach, Rain swirled around to see a figure he had never seen before standing curtly behind him.