After hearing those words, Aarav's eyes widened.
"What did you say? You better not mess with us. It'll be better for you."
"We'll see about that later. But don't disturb me now — I just want to take a quick nap," the man said.
"Just leave it, Aarav. If something happens, I'll handle it," Ross said, putting a hand on Aarav's shoulder.
"Hey! What do we do about them? They're trying to climb up here!" Mio said, looking down. The dead were clawing at the tree.
'Oh sh*t.' Aarav grit his teeth. "They're a headache too…" He broke off a thick branch to use as a stick and started shoving the climbing corpses back down.
"We just need to hold them off for a while. We're so close — I won't let anyone die here."
"Yeah, yeah, enough yapping," Mio said, closing her eyes.
"Hey, I'm not kidding right now," Aarav snapped.
"So I—" Mio chuckled but didn't finish.
Then —
The man above them suddenly jumped. Mid-air, falling headfirst, time seemed to slow.
"Sorry for the noise. But… a monster's coming," his lips moved as he dropped.
He landed on the ground between the zombies and drew his sword in one smooth motion.
Standing there, blade raised before his face, he spoke coldly:
"Forgive me for acting like this. You should thank me… I'm about to free you all. May your souls rot in hell." He smirked.
In the next instant, all the zombies were sliced to pieces — so fast, no one even saw him move.
'What just happened…?' Aarav thought, stunned.
"Is he… a monster too?" Mio whispered, shocked.
"He's dangerous… not good," Ross said, fear on his face.
The man sighed and sheathed his sword. "You all can come down now."
They climbed down slowly, eyes wide.
"So… who wants to die first?" the man asked.
"What are you planning? What will you get from killing us?" Aarav said, stepping forward.
"I told you — someone needs to die. If it doesn't happen, we all die. I'm not asking — I'm telling you. I won't die, unlike you a lot."
"What nonsense! We can survive without you. We won't die," Aarav said, anger burning in his eyes.
"Thinking like that won't change your fate," the man replied flatly. "Looks like I'll have to use force.*
"You selfish bastard. I'd rather die fighting you than let you lay a hand on them," Aarav growled, grinning defiantly.
"It's fine — it's not my first time killing humans," the man said as he vanished in an instant.
He reappeared right in front of Mio.
"Sorry, cutie. I treat everyone equally." He made a gun shape with his fingers — Boom!
A force hit Mio, throwing her into a tree. Her back slammed hard, and she coughed up blood.
'What did this bastard do? It's so fast… it hurts — it hurts so much!' Mio thought, trembling.
The man swung his leg at Aarav's face, sending him flying into a stone wall.
'Am I dead?' Aarav thought as he hit the ground. He tried to move but couldn't. 'Why can't I move? Did that one hit break my bones?'
"Now you're left…" The man turned to Ross, who just stood there staring.
"What, done already?" Ross said, taking a stance.
"What are you yapping about, brat? Me, scared of you? Don't make me laugh. Come on, then!" Ross snapped.
"You really want to die, old man?"
"Let's see who dies," Ross shot back.
The man moved in front of Ross like a ghost and kicked — but Ross crossed his arms and blocked it, sliding back.
'So powerful,' Ross thought.
"I'm shocked you survived that!" the man laughed. "You're interesting."
"It's nothing much," Ross spat.
They clashed. The man moved so fast, Ross couldn't see him. Ross tried to punch, but it never landed.
'Why can't I hit him?" Ross thought, frustrated.
The man appeared behind him and kicked him again. Ross flew back, slamming into a tree.
"This isn't fun," the man said with a bitter laugh.
...
'No! I can't end it like this! I have to fight — I'm not finished yet!' Aarav screamed in his head. 'Move, damn it! Move!'
In the next moment, Aarav stood shakily, his whole body trembling.
"Not yet… not yet!"
Mio saw him through hazy eyes.
'What is that idiot trying to do? Does he really want to die? He can't beat him…'
Mio gritted her teeth. "I just need time to recover. Before that, don't you die."
[ (HEALING)Lv.1 ]
[ ACTIVATED ]
"Oh? You're still alive?" the man laughed.
"I'm not dead yet… I can still fight…" Aarav said, though his legs shook under him.
"So you really want to die that badly…"
The man vanished again.
"Left? Right? Or…?" Aarav muttered. "Yeah… I know — behind!"
Aarav swung his leg back. He actually hit the man — but the man just stood there, catching Aarav's foot in his hand.
"You're not that bad," he said, gripping Aarav's ankle tight. "But you still can't beat me." He threw Aarav aside like a rag doll.
"I don't even need to draw my sword for scum like you. Pathetic."
'I really thought I got him…' Aarav thought, his vision blurry.
The man grabbed him again.
"Have you ever taken a punch for real? Do you know how much it hurts?"
He slammed his fist into Aarav's torso. Aarav gasped, spitting blood.
'How strong is he…?'
Another punch to the gut — Aarav coughed more blood.
"You sure are a little fun," the man said coldly. He spun and landed a brutal back kick. Aarav's body lifted off the ground and smashed down far away.
'I'm… losing consciousness… I can't die… here…' Aarav thought weakly, as everything faded to black.
Ross slowly woke up and leaned back against a tree. 'What… what happened…?'
His eyes fell on Aarav lying motionless on the ground.
"Huh… Aarav…?" His eyes widened. 'No… he can't be… is he really dead?'
"He killed him… he really killed him…" Mio thought, fear tightening her throat.
The man turned his back, brushing dust from his clothes. "What a waste of time," he muttered.
Then —
A faint sound broke the silence.
Ffffffff…
Aarav's fingers twitched. He exhaled slowly, steadily and controlled.
Ffffffff…
He pushed himself up without any rush, his head low, shoulders relaxed.
When Aarav lifted his face, his eyes were pure white — blank and cold, like glass. His breathing was calm. His expression is empty. There was no anger. No fear. Just silence.
[ AUTO INSTINCT ]
[ ACTIVATED ]
Ross stared. "What… is this…?"
Mio froze, eyes wide. 'He's… different…'
The man turned back. For the first time, his smile flickered.
Aarav just stood there — completely still, like a calm storm waiting to move.
***