“Outta my way, Klutz!” Ray growled while pushing Mei Mei aside.

She had opened the door to welcome them back upon their arrival, but had instead been met with a palm to her face.

Her reaction was still all smiles though. Which was understandable. They had been gone all day, and Jan wasn’t the best person to keep another company.

The boy was so deep in his Polish descent that despite living with children who all spoke the English language he was still unable to speak it in a satisfactory manner. It was no surprise that Mei Mei had been bored out of her wits.

Ray, on the other hand, didn’t care.

At least they’d guarded the base well.

As expected, by the way. Rain had picked them both to stay behind because they complemented each other—in battle, to be precise.

Each of the kids had their strong suit regarding their Attributes.

Mei Mei was a Perception goddess. It was why she had been able to constantly point out Nun Cathleen’s sneaky movements in their battle at Glasgow.

Apparently, she’d thrown majority of her Experience Points into Perception, spiraling it to at least a hundred digits. She believed finding out about an enemy before they attacked was the best skill to possess; of course so she could run away, not fight.

It would have seemed cowardly at first, but because of her they had been able to hold their grounds against Nun Cathleen. Otherwise, every single one of them would have been killed without knowing where she was attacking from. Klein was no exception.

Only J could have been an alternative to Mei Mei, and the Jaguar couldn’t communicate.

Incidentally, Rain had come to learn something from Mei Mei’s actions. And it was that having a Perception with a hundred points and above meant that the stealth of a Rogue was perceivable.

It was a good knowledge to possess.

As for Jan, he was what the kids had come to call ‘the ultimate sniper’.

Closed ranged battles weren’t his forte. But once he knew about a danger, and could pinpoint their location, he was guaranteed to take them out.

Sadly, he’d not had a chance to use his prowess against Nun Cathleen. For one, she had been too strong an opponent for a single one of them to even think about retreating. And secondly, his mind had been clouded. He believed he would have missed his shot and put the others at risk. That was what he’d told Rain.

Rain shifted to the side and watched the children chatting as they made their way into the house. Once they were all in, he nestled on the porch’s balustrade, planting his gaze on the scenery that spread out in front of him.

He had no memories of how the Camelot Holiday Park had once been—or if he had even ever been here. But what he was sure of was that the wild forestry it now possessed was not it.

Although, that was not what was bothering him. Or rather, J.

“How far away is the person?” Rain asked his Companion. J turned her gaze to him and chuffed. “No wonder Mei Mei couldn’t pick up their presence.”

When it came down to it, even the perception goddess’ singular enhanced skill still paled in comparison to that of a predator.

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“Is there a problem?”

Rain looked over his shoulder at the softness of the words thrown in his direction. Timothy was behind him, peeking out of the open door.

He had once considered Sean shy, but since traveling with the children from Glasgow, when it came to Timothy, Sean’s was acceptable. The boy’s shyness could be considered unhealthy. It was to the point of him being unnoticeable even among his peers.

At least, it was good that such didn’t happen in battles.

Although, Rain hadn’t found out why yet, the boy liked talking to him.

Rain smiled. “Just getting some fresh air.”

“Oh.” Timothy paused. “Geraldine’s roasting the meat.”

“Is she?” The boy nodded. “I’ll be in soon.”

Timothy didn’t leave despite those words. His brown eyes were relentless in gazing at Rain. It was as though he was waiting for something.

Whatever it was though, now was not the time.

“Is there a problem?” Rain asked again, with a tighter strain to his voice. Timothy shook his head. Rain retreated from the balustrade and approached the door. “Then go in. I’ll be there soon.” He shut the door.

J growled at the exchange, a low one.

Rain sighed. “It’ll be fine. He’ll just feel lonely for a while.”

The Jaguar snarled as though angry at Rain’s nonchalant attitude to how he had chased the boy inside.

“What? There was no other way.” Rain scratched his head when J’s gaze remained sharp. “Fine. I’ll apologize later. For now, let’s pay our stalkers a visit.”

###

There were two outcomes to leaving whoever was stalking them undisturbed. The first was them retreating since dusk was near. And the second was them taking whatever action they already had in mind.

Rain would have gladly left the strangers alone if he had any surety of the first being what they would choose. But since he had none of that, he could not let the second be the outcome.

Enemies or friends, there was no way they were getting near the kids without passing by him first.

And that was why his hand was firmly placed on Alice’s hilt as he followed behind J.

…

A soft, golden glow was what illuminated the forestry they were traversing. Shadows stretched long beneath trees. And the cool air carried the faint aroma of earth and foliage. It was a tranquil ambience that was draped over the woods, one perfect for a night of camping.

But despite the trees holding their breaths in patience for the night to unfold, Rain’s ears perked up in dire anticipation for a sound—any sound.

All of a sudden, J stopped.

“What is it?” Rain asked, startled.

The Jaguar snorted. Then it bared its fangs as its snarling slowly intensified until it disrupted the quiet woods and stretched out for miles.

Rain drew Alice and took a stance. His gaze flashed around his surroundings, but nothing aside from the overgrown trees came into his vision.

They were here, though. That he was sure of. He could feel it—through J.

A cold sweat rolled down his spine.

Was he to call out to them? Ascertain his dominance and show he was not scared? What action was he to take now? The fact that they could mask their presence meant they were no motley crew.

What was he to do? What—

Rain drew in a sharp breath suddenly.

Without wasting a single second, he twisted Alice’s hilt and dropped the blade to his waist’s height, pivoting it with near-perfect precision as he swung it in a tight arc behind him. Then he took a glance at the shiny steel settled less than an inch from his neck.

“Who are you?” Rain asked, his stance remaining poised.

Now was not the time for him to make any unnecessary movements. He’d already gauged the enemy’s strength in their brief altercation. There was not even a shred of doubt in him that his head would be off his neck in an instant if he tried anything more than he already had.

Just like him, J kept snarling but didn’t move an inch from her position. She was brave, not stupid. Although, her ferocity wasn’t directed at whoever was standing behind Rain. It was to her anterior.

“That depends.” Rain looked away from the steel near his neck, sending his eyes forward at the arrival of that voice. “You our enemies?”