As they got encircled, a deafening and heavy silence fell inside the dense forest. Neither side made a move, each sizing the other up.

Most of the enemies' gazes were directed toward Sam, making him feel a creepy chill crawling up his spine. It felt as if numerous predators were poised to pounce, ready to tear him apart. Sam racked his brain, desperately trying to formulate an escape plan while maintaining his alertness at its peak.

After what felt like an eternity, someone approached them from behind the encirclement. The figures parted to make way for this man and then closed the circle once more when he passed.

The unidentified man walked closer to Sam's group and stopped about five meters away. He opened his mouth and demanded,

"Hand the Meat Dealer to us and we'll let the rest of you go."

Jason answered first, his voice steady. "What do you want to do with him?"

The man cast a cold glance at Jason. "It's none of your business. The leader will decide his punishment."

He continued, his tone growing impatient. "Don't waste any more of my time. Now choose whethe—"

"Choose what?" Kaya's voice cut him off, filled with suppressed, boiling anger.

She continue, "If we don't hand him over, what are you going to do? kill us?"

It was at this very moment, Kaya snapped.

Before the whole matter about uniting the survivors, back in the cave, Kaya still felt angry and frustrated regarding the blank eyed human incident.

She might look okay on the outside, ensuring that because she respected her sister's effort to calm her down and didn't want her to worry. But if someone asked whether her emotions were in turmoil, the answer would be a resounding yes.

Her anger and frustration kept gnawing at her. Why wouldn't they? Kaya lost her people; they trusted her, but she failed to meet their expectations and couldn't make their hope a reality. She had failed as a leader.

Many people died under her watch because she wasn't good enough or strong enough. Their eyes, filled with hope and trust toward her, were still embedded in her mind. They truly believed she would protect them and return them safely to Earth. Now, their warm and hopeful gaze felt like poison in her mind.

She felt like their gazes were constantly judging her, reminding her that she failed and abandoned them. The guilt kept crawling and gnawing at her heart.

Even now, it was a miracle she hadn't broken down with all the constant pressure in her mind and heart. But in the end, she's still human after all.

All it takes is one bad day to reduce the sanest person alive to the point of snapping.

Unfortunately, today was that day.

At first, she constantly reminded herself and believed that she could at least try to amend her sins, to let her people die unjustly by saving other survivors. She knew she couldn't wash away all the blood on her hands, but she would try her hardest to make amends and find peace within herself.

Unfortunately, it's not that simple and easy. The saying that the world is not a fairy tale is the harsh, bitter truth she experienced and saw today. Or more accurately, it started when the man who claimed to be the leader of Heaven's Gate appeared.

That man.. he didn't care about saving other people's lives, she saw it in his eyes. He only wanted the privilege of the strong to do whatever he wanted with his power, a tyrant.

Call her judgmental, but that kind of person is not fit to be a leader. She refused to acknowledge him as one. His unsightly behaviors also worsened his image to her.

She could maybe accept the fact that he refused her alliance proposal, but when he looked at her with a lecherous gaze and uttered the words "kill" and "torture" to a fellow human being without a care in the world, her rage reached a boiling point.

And his reasoning? It's just because he's strong, he can do whatever he wants.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

At that moment, she felt she was on the verge of exploding. The feelings she tried so hard to suppress inside her, such as guilt mixed with the anger she accumulated over time, were knocking on the door, eagerly waiting to come out. But still, she tried to suppress it as best as she could.

And then, when all seemed to settle down, they got surrounded by enemies, and this unidentified man came out of nowhere, threatening them with death or whatnot. It was her last straw. She couldn't take it anymore.

Her spear and her whole body crackled with blue lightning, sparking the air. Her amber eyes showed intense rage, and her red hair began to float.

She then shouted, "Oi, Bastard! Do you know how much I tried to control myself?"

Her voice was filled with fury and hostility as she walked slowly, step by step, closer to the unidentified man. Seeing this, the unidentified man suddenly felt his danger sense flared and he took a step back every time she stepped forward.

As she continued, she said, "Do you know how hard it is to keep yourself sane?"

Blue lightning continued crackling around her, growing more dangerous with each step.

Sam, Jason, and Gabby looked at each other, puzzled. They didn't know or even understand what was happening.

Why was Kaya suddenly acting like this? The Kaya they saw right now was entirely different from the Kaya they usually knew. It felt like she was a different person. Out of the three of them, Gabby was really worried about Kaya, and it showed all over her face. What's happening to her? Why did she suddenly act like this?

The unidentified man stumbled on the ground as he took a step back from the approaching Kaya. Though there was still some distance, Kaya was slowly but surely getting closer.

Kaya continued, "Kill this, kill that, torture him or whatnot, choose life or death..." She murmured, though her murmurs were clearly audible through the crackling lightning.

She continued stepping closer, closed her eyes, and then laughed while shaking her head slightly.

Her laughter sounded low and devoid of any joy. Rather, her laughter contained unmistakable madness within it.

She opened her eyes and said one word, "Ridiculous." Her voice revealed genuine disappointment mixed with her rage.

The unidentified man backed away desperately on the ground, not daring to look away from the approaching woman. His legs couldn't muster any strength. This was a feeling he had experienced before when the leader unleashed his strength. It was unmistakably a terrifying oppressive pressure coming from that woman!

No matter how desperately he backed away, the woman closed the distance faster than he could retreat. Her spear, coated with crackling blue lightning, felt like death itself, and her entire body, covered with blue lightning, felt like she was the grim reaper approaching to take his life away.

Sensing he couldn't retreat faster than she advanced, and seeing his allies not daring to save him, he chose the only logical option he could think of: groveling.

He immediately grovelled in front of the approaching woman and said,

"Wait! I surrender! I'm just an envoy to deliver a message!" His voice was filled with fear.

After he said that, there was no immediate response. There were only the sounds of footsteps and crackling lightning getting closer and closer.

Finally, the source of that crackling lightning stood right in front of him. He prayed and hoped he would be spared if he groveled and pleaded.

Suddenly, the woman's chilly voice sounded out, "Surrender, huh?"

Still groveling, he replied, "Yes! I surrender! If you want, I can even be your subordinate if you want!"

At this point, he gambled, trying everything he could say and do to avoid being killed by this woman. But unfortunately, and unknowingly for him, the dice he rolled showed no chances of him escaping this. In fact, it made the situation worse.

She then said, "Raise your head."

He complied and immediately raised his head but quickly looked at the ground, not daring to look at her.

Kaya looked at the unidentified man, her eyes piercing through him.

She said, "You remind me of someone. That person left a deep impression on me, you see..."

Sensing a green light, the unidentified man raised his gaze to look at her and enthusiastically said,

"I will be your subordinate if you—"But then he suddenly stopped abruptly. He saw her gaze—those amber eyes filled with boiling yet cold rage. Her gaze made it clear that he was a dead man; he couldn't escape this.

Panicking, the man frantically raised his hand and said, "Wait! I really surrend—"

Suddenly, a movement so quick, accompanied by the sounds of crackling lightning tearing through the air with a loud crack, cut him off. The unidentified man felt a burning sensation and the cold steel on his neck. Then the world turned upside down. Just like that, he was dead.

The body of a headless man fell on the ground and the blood coming from his lifeless corpse slowly creating a pool of blood.

The air grew heavier, and everyone, especially Gabby, was shocked when she saw Kaya's ruthlessness. No, this was not the Kaya she knew. There must be something wrong.

Gabby tried to call out to Kaya, "Kaya, wha—"

But Kaya interrupted, her voice chilling and without remorse. "The only ones who should kill are those who are prepared to be killed."

She then quickly swung her spear to rid it of the blood that clung to the spearhead.

"I don't fancy the idea of killing another human being ever in my life," she said.

She then cast her gaze toward the enemies that encircled them. "But all of you, I don't consider you to be humans."

She then appeared as a blur, moving so fast that she headed toward the encirclement with her spear ready to strike. But as she got close, her danger sense flared up. She abruptly stopped herself by stabbing her spear into the ground, halting her momentum and then jump back. Soon after, a blonde hair man descended from the sky, landing on the ground and causing it to crack.

"Impressive, I thought I could kill you with that, but it seems you're not all bark, eh?" The man said, his voice condescending. It was Emanuel.

Relief washed over the faces of the attackers, while Sam and his group tensed up. Emanuel's sudden appearance made them realize something, this is not a fight they could easily win without a scratch.