"AAAAAAAARRRRRGGGGHHH!!! HELP ME!!!"
A 17-year-old teenager with spiky red hair ran as fast as he could, panting heavily. The scar on his forehead throbbed in pain, but he didn't care.
Behind him, the heavy footsteps of the monsters chasing him grew closer, adding to the fear that was pressing in on him.
"I DON'T WANT TO DIE YOUNG!! I HAVEN'T EVEN FULLY EXPERIENCED THE PLEASURES OF THIS WORLD!!!"
The teenager hid in the gaps between the collapsed buildings, holding his breath, hoping the monsters wouldn't hear him.
The monsters searched for the teenager around the area.
"Phlease go, phlease go, phlease go!"
After they no longer sensed the presence of the teenager, the monsters finally left the area.
"Have they left?"
The teenager checked his surroundings, hoping that the monsters had truly gone.
"Huufftt. I'm safe. What were those creatures? I just came out of the bathroom after eating something wrong..."
"... I didn't even have time to zip my pants, and suddenly that monster entered the bathroom while I was doing my business..."
"... Is there an alien invasion on Earth or something?"
Before that teenager could make sense of his surroundings, a strange sound began to approach him from behind.
KRIGH, KREGH, KHAGH…
"Hm? What the hell is that?"
The teenager looked back and saw a monster crawling on the wall, devouring the intestines of a human it had killed with relish.
"HIIK…!"
Before the teenager could scream in fear, a hand appeared, covering his mouth to prevent any sound from escaping.
"Shh!"
Ilyas covered the teenager's mouth and told him not to move and stay quiet.
The monster left, despite both Ilyas and the teenager being right in front of it.
"Phew! That was close. Thanks for saving me earlier. But why did you cover my mouth?"
"That's a Crawler."
"Huh?"
"An evolved Demigon species. They possess abilities more terrifying than the previous Demigon, such as the ability to crawl on walls, speed equal to that of a car, sharp claws capable of piercing through 10 layers of thick iron, and hearing twice as sensitive as a bat's.."
"... If you had made even the slightest noise earlier, say goodbye to your intestines."
"Then what's a Demigon?"
"The monster that chased you until you wet yourself earlier."
"I DID NOT WET MYSELF! Ahem, once again, thanks for saving me earlier..."
"... My name is Khai. 17 years old and still single."
Hearing that name, Ilyas seemed a little confused.
"Khai? Why have I never heard of that name?"
"Hello. Are you okay?" Khai asked, noticing Ilyas was daydreaming.
"Ah. It's nothing."
"So... what's your name?" Khai asked.
"Ilyas"
"Where are you from? I've been living in Antara Gapi for a while, but I've never seen your face before."
"I'm from Serendah, on my way to Teluk Intan."
"Ah! In that case, how about I come with you..."
"No need," Ilyas replied.
"That was quick to answer."
"I don't need a companion. I can go alone."
Khai tried to convince Ilyas to let him join.
"We may have just known each other for 5 minutes, but that can still count as friends, right? As friends, we need to look out for each other."
"You watch out for me, or I'll watch out for you."
"You watch out for me," Khai replied nonchalantly.
"You shameless bastard."
Ilyas continued his journey to Teluk Intan, with Khai still begging to join him. Ilyas ignored Khai's chatter throughout the journey.
"Ilyas. Can I come with you?"
"No."
"Even though I screamed like a girl earlier, I'm actually strong, you know."
"don't care."
"I also need to go to Teluk Intan. My sister lives there for work. I just want to know how Sister Eliz is doing."
Ilyas stopped in his tracks after hearing that name and asked Khai.
"Who did you say your sister's name was?"
"Hm, Eliz. Her full name is Elizabeth. Why?"
Ilyas remembered his past life, where one and a half years after the Armageddon, he found himself in a state of complete despair, walking over piles of monster corpses.
Elizabeth, who at that time was the leader of the rescue team, along with her squad, came to search for any survivors.
They were shocked by the sight before them, where a teenager was walking among the monster carcasses with a blank expression on his face.
"Who is that kid?" His voice filled with surprise, his eyes wide open and his mouth slightly agape.
"Is he one of 'them'?" His voice trembled, anxiety clearly evident in his restless gaze.
At the moment they hesitated to take Ilyas, Elizabeth, who was observing, ignored their concerns and continued to bring Ilyas to the shelter.
After three days in the shelter, Ilyas, who was sitting, was approached by Elizabeth with a glass of water in her hand.
"Hey, kid. Here."
"Thank you..."
"Elizabeth. Just call me Eliz."
"Okay."
Elizabeth then sat beside Ilyas to keep him company, as he looked gloomy and drained.
"What's wrong with you? You've been looking down for the past three days."
"I'm tired of all this. My hands are stained with the blood of both humans and monsters..."
"... I just want to die to end all this suffering. But, it feels like someone is toying with my life and destiny..."
"... I feel like I'm not allowed to die. Why..."
"... Why... Why!"
Elizabeth slapped the back of Ilyas's head, causing him to fall silent for a moment.
"You, seriously. You're just a teenager, and you're thinking all these negative things. You should be grateful that you're still alive until now..."
"... Don't waste the sacrifices of those who have saved you all this time. How do you think they would feel if they knew the person they saved with all their heart is wishing they were better off dead than alive?"
Ilyas could only remain silent, listening to Elizabeth's words.
"You know, I used to have a younger brother."
"I'm very sorry to the person who was born as the younger brother of someone as fierce as a lion."
"I really wish I had some chili in my hand right now..."
"... Sigh... his personality is the complete opposite of yours..."
"... I don't even know if he's still alive out there. If he is, you two would definitely become close friends."
"Eliz…"
Ilyas looked at Khai while letting out a long sigh.
"All right, you can follow me. One thing I'll tell you though: Don't delay my journey."
"WOO…!"
Ilyas quickly covered Khai's mouth.
"And don't make any noise during the journey. Understood?"
"Ofh."
Ilyas removed his hand from Khai's mouth. They continued their journey to Teluk Intan.
This was the first meeting between someone known as the 'Strongest Creatures' and someone who would soon be known as the 'Strongest Human.'