Moments before Andrei 's death, Aiden had seen him descend into the pit ahead, but he didn't emerge.
Before he could get close, he saw a black shadow attacking Andrei . He ran toward the cliff to find that Andrei had already been killed by Jelian.
Despite their victory and the elimination of their enemies, they weren't happy about it. Instead, they looked at each other with shocked and even worried expressions.
Jelian, in particular, looked at Aiden with concern and murderous intent. "...Problem, this is a huge problem! Did he see my ability? Did he know that i can regenerate my organs? What should I do with him? Should I kill him? Everyone who knows anything about my ability must be killed. What should I do with him?" He was lost in thought, making no secret of his intention to kill him.
Aiden, on the other hand, was filled with shock. He hadn't done anything noteworthy to begin with.
Instead, a teenage boy had destroyed an army with armored vehicles and weapons all by himself!.
He was able to defeat in 1vs1 battle with the massive arm Andrei .
Even Aiden himself would have suffered if he fought against him.
But he paused for a moment and sighed, then broke the silence: "...Amazing, amazing! You accomplished all of this by yourself. I didn't expect this." He tried to hide his concern and smiled at Jelian.
But Jelian didn't respond or make any movement, still displaying a sharp killing intent.
"Why aren't you happy? You took out Andrei and all the enemies by yourself." His anxiety increased slightly.
Jelian still looked at him. "...Well, let's go home. Your sister will surely be worried about you...".
"Did you see?" Jelian asked suddenly.
"Huh? You saw what?".
"Did you see me kill that elephant?".
"???" Aiden was trying to pretend to be stupid and ignorant.
"No, I didn't see you kill Andrei".
Jelian didn't say anything after that. Even after Aiden answered no, Jelian was still suspicious of him, looking at him with clear murderous intent.
The reason for his suspicions was knowing Aiden's ability, which was the green flames, which could easily roast him, just like before.
Also, his sister would be upset. He had promised her to not kill anyone again, even though she hadn't spoken to anyone in a long time, and all those who wanted to talk were dangerous people with dangerous intent.
Aiden moved and climbed the cliff, then looked down at Jelian, saying, "I'll beat you to your house. Put something on and follow me."
Aiden then disappeared. Jelian sighed, the murderous intent fading in his eyes.
He convinced himself that this was just a coincidence and that he hadn't seen what had really happened. Yes, there was no point in trying without it. A call, but Yule completely cast his doubts.
Before sunset, the city was bathed in a golden orange color throughout the city.
At this time, Jelian returned home carrying clothes he had taken from those killed by the soldiers. It was a white military uniform, clearly a size too big for the boy, but enough to cover him.
When he arrived, he saw Nandi and Aiden talking outside. Nandi was smiling slightly. Her hands were shaking slightly, but she was more open to Aiden than before.
At that moment, Nandi saw her brother from afar and ran quickly towards him, her eyes filled with concern. She hugged him tightly.
Then she bombarded him with questions: "Jelian!!! Are you hurt? Did something happen to you? Did you hear that explosion? What happened? Nothing happened to you, did it?"
"...Nandi, Nandi!! I'm fine... I'm totally fine."
She looked at him for a moment, and then sighed, her anxiety fading. "You scared me. I thought something bad had happened to you."
"Don't worry, have you forgotten? Your brother is always strong, and no one will defeat me."
"Okay, Jelian, you've told your sister everything, and she's ready to leave. All that's left is you." Aiden interrupted their conversation.
"Whooh, whooh, whooh!!! Who said we're leaving?" he asked, surprised by the thought.
Nandi replied, "Jelian, I think it's best if we go with him. Maybe we can actually find a hospital and treat me, and our suffering will end too."
Jelian saw his sister's expression, and there was a certain determination. "...but, ... do you really want to go? This is our home!"
"I know, I know it's not really our home, and it's ruined. Maybe we should just leave and start a new, more comfortable life!"
Jelian sighed, not wanting to disappoint her. "Okay, if that's what you want, so be it."
Nandi smiled and giggled.
Jelian turned with cold expression to Aiden. "Okay, we'll come with you to Asura or whatever it is."
"I knew you'd agree. Now get ready and bring whatever you can, and I'll bring the truck here."
Jelian nodded, and they each left separately. Aiden went to get his truck, while Jelian and Nandi went home to prepare for their departure.
Half an hour later, Jelian emerged from the house carrying a bag as big as his body and two small bags in his hands. Aiden was already standing in the truck.
Minutes after loading the luggage onto the truck, Jelian checked everything, but he noticed Nandi was gone.
"Where's Nandi?" Jelian asked Aiden as he lowered his bag to the floor.
"Your sister? I didn't see her," Aiden replied, while taking a drag from his cigarette.
"Huh? She just left here a few moments ago." Jelian was shocked by his response.
"I just arrived right now, but I didn't see her."
Jelian was deeply confused. "Where could she... Oh yes! I know where she is."
Jelian 's worried expression faded into relief as he placed the bags in the trunk in the back and got in the passenger seat next to the driver. Aiden gestured for him to get in and move over.
"Do you know where she is?" Aiden asked.
"Yes, she always go there from time to time. In this way."
The truck drove away from the house, arriving at sunset at a shattered building with all its pillars smashed to the ground.
Nandi was sitting on the ground, looking at a rock. Then she stood up, her eyes red and almost crying.
Jelian and Aiden were watching her from the truck. Then Jelian commented, "That's our old house."
Aiden didn't say anything.
Nandi stood up and turned to them, looking ready.
She got into the back seat, and the truck drove out of town.
Nandi popped her head up and looked at Coredith. She was already beginning to miss the town she'd lived in, knowing she might never return.
Jelian also looked at the town through the side mirror. The place they'd once lived in was gone, and now Garda was gone.
It was goodbye to Coredith.
------------------------------
On February 8, 2020, late at night, at exactly 00:47 AM, Jelian was lying on the couch, holding his Nintendo Switch and playing Zelda and Tears of the Kingdom. Nearby, his sister was lying on her stomach, her legs flapping as she watched a rerun of one of her favorite animated series, "The Adventures of Princess Zara."
Meanwhile, a woman's voice was heard shouting, "Nandi, turn the volume down, your father is asleep!"
"Yes, Mama," Nandi replied, looking a little younger and cuter, and barely turned to her mother as she replied.
Jelian laughed and said sarcastically, "Hehe, if you keep raising the volume again, Dad will ban you from watching again."
"Shut up, you and your stupid game, stupid brother." Her sister frowned and got angry.
"My stupid game or this stupid and boring show of yours, aren't you too old for that stuff?" He was actually enjoying bullying his sister.
"Don't call Princess Zara stupid and boring, you're the stupid and boring one. You're stupid and an idiot!" Nandi shouted loudly and angrily.
"Don't scream, boring girl, or Dad will come..."
"Stupid, stupid, stupid..." she continued shouting.
"Enough, both of you!" At the same moment, during their argument, she stood beside them. The daughter looked like her mother in face and hair, except that the mother looked more mature.
She entered a little quickly and dried her wet hand on her dress, placed the kitchen knife she had just washed on the table, and picked up the remote control from the floor next to Nandi.
"No, Mom, I want to watch!!" Nandi was surprised.
"Wait a minute, I want to see what happened to the news".
Mother turned on the news. The headline read: "Breaking News: America Launches Dozens of Nuclear Missiles Without Government Intervention!!".
The anchor began addressing the reporter directly, using formal and professional expressions, and there was a hint of skepticism in his expression. "...Well, since the listeners are confused, can you really confirm if the nuclear warheads were launched without an order from the government, any higher authorities, or even the command center? None of them had anything to do with it? Or was it a mistake by the facility staff?".
The reporter was silent for a moment, listening carefully to the news anchor's words. He then responded with a solemn expression, "...Yes... Yes, I confirm that the government has nothing to do with this. I was informed by some of my sources inside the facility's control center that no orders were issued by the government, the president, or even the commander or team leader. Everyone working there confirmed that they had not been activated. Some even confirmed that they were unable to regain control after a sudden breach of their entire systems."
While the reporter was speaking, the news caught Jelian and Nandi's attention, so they abandoned everything else that was distracting them. The mother expressed concern, raising the remote control to her face as she listened to his report.
The anchor continued, "...Yes. Well, since it's not from the government itself, nor from the team itself, are you saying that a person or group has hacked into all the facility's systems and launched nuclear warheads, intending to destroy cities? Can you predict their trajectories or where they will fall?"
"...Yes,...yes, well, it's very difficult to predict the trajectory of these missiles or even know where they will fall. The team denied any knowledge of their trajectories. What made matters more difficult and frightening was that America isn't the only country that launched its missiles. Russia, France, the United Kingdom, India, China, Pakistan, and North Korea have also launched them."
The mother rushed over, anxiously saying, "I'll go wake your father up."
The broadcaster continued, "...Hold on!, Are you saying that America isn't the only country that's been hacked? All eight countries that possess warheads have launched all their warheads, estimated at more than 12,000, at the same time? Please explain."
"...Yes, yes, all of those countries have launched their missiles. There's no confirmation or information about the number of warheads launched, but there is definite information that all of those countries' systems have been hacked and that they have launched the warheads they possess. Every facility in each country is working to restore order. Some countries have estimated that the probability of these missiles hitting is approximately 90 minutes from the time of launch, or about 45 minutes from the time of launch; Now, this has caused chaos across the world, with people seeking to escape the nuclear explosions and move as far away as possible, until the spread of the disease..."
The reporter didn't finish his sentence. He turned around to find a bright, luminous light. Seconds later, a massive mushroom cloud appeared.
Boom!!...
A few seconds later, a powerful sound wave carried people, cars, and buildings in its path, passing the reporter. The moment he saw the mushroom cloud, he tried to escape, along with the crew and the cameraman, but the sound wave quickly caught up with them. At this point, the live broadcast in New York was cut off.
The shot returned to the broadcaster, who clearly expressed his fear and nervousness. The studio crew could be seen shuddering in the background.
He tried to regain his courage, but the fear and anxiety were too much for him. He said, "...d..., dear vie..., vie..., ewe..., ers..., we declare..., a sta... te of e... emergency. This is not a joke or..., or... a mil..., military drill. ...r... Run away, ... And get as far away as..., as... you can...".
Boom!!!.
Suddenly, the studio shook violently, and the ceiling shattered over their heads. Screams and voices of control followed, and the TV channel went off.
The explosion and the sound were very loud and terrifying for the two children, Jelian and Nandi. Jelian became tense and trembled all over her body, but her condition was different from her sister's. She began to cry and became extremely scared as she ran towards Jelian.
But she kicked the table hard and fell to the floor, Jelian rushed towards her as she screamed and groaned in pain, and held her in his arms.
He was deeply shocked when he saw a red liquid filling Nandi's stomach. He immediately knew that the kitchen knife had pierced her and she had begun to bleed heavily.
Nandi turned around with tears streaming down her eyes and nose and an expression of pain as she said, "Jelian! Jelian!! What's happening? What's happening? Did it explode here? Am I going to die here? Are we all going to die?".
Thoughts and feelings were swirling in Jelian's mind. Fear and anxiety were overwhelming, and she didn't know what to say or do, completely confused.
Suddenly, he remembered the first aid training he'd learned at school as a side activity. He stood up and left Nandi on the floor, saying, "Wait here. I'll get the bandages and first aid, and I'll call Mom and Dad quickly".
Jelian turned around and ran from the couch he'd been sitting on, heading toward the bathroom, which was five meters away. While Jelian was doing this, Nandi continued to cry and scream in indescribable pain as she clutched her wound.
While Jelian was running, time stopped, and her running speed slowed down. She entered a whirl of unanswered questions in his head, and he didn't notice the light coming from the window.
"Huh? What's happening? What's happening? Missiles? Nuclear bombs? Explosions? All of them? Will they all explode? Will the world be destroyed? Is this the end of the world? But I haven't finished my goals yet. I haven't become a big man! I haven't finished my games! I haven't gone to college with my friends! What will happen to my friends? What will happen to everyone I know? Will they die? Will they just die like that? What about my family? What about my mom? Dad? Nandi? Nandi??? What happened to Nandi? How did she get hurt? Knife? Isn't that the kitchen knife my mom was holding? But how did it happen? I don't understand? I don't understand what's happening now. She's screaming! Nandi is in pain and screaming! I have to hurry! I have to save her! She needs me! I have to treat her! I have to treat her stomach! I have to heal the wound!".
At that moment, the whole house started shaking violently until Jelian fell to the ground, followed by a loud bang, then an explosion that caused the entire house to collapse, the ceiling and walls to shatter on top of each other, and the whole place to fall.
Smoke, dust, house rubble, stones, a dark sky, and a humming sound. He knew nothing else after Jelian woke up, and he didn't fully regain consciousness until an hour later.
He was covered in dust and dirt, lying on a pile of stones, like an old box forgotten many years ago.
Above his body, a huge stone, part of the house wall, crushed his left leg, breaking its bones and crushing its flesh.
He began coughing and trying to comprehend what had happened. He even tried to stand, but he couldn't comprehend that his left leg was broken, even after seeing it. As he stood there, he looked left and right. He couldn't see anything, barely seeing anything. He couldn't find his room, his home, or anything at all.
Jelian was able to pull himself out and put his foot on the hook. The rocks weren't parallel, and he was able to push them away easily. He certainly couldn't feel them at all; perhaps even in his mind, he still hadn't fully comprehended the situation.
But then he heard someone's voice from afar, and instinctively, he stood up and ran toward it. He ran tortuously. He stamped his foot, and still not feeling it at all.
Despite the darkness, the devastation of the earth, and even his weak comprehension of what was happening around him, every cell in his body recognized that familiar voice.
He knew full well that they had to reach her no matter what it took, and he wouldn't delay for a second or hesitate as he had done before. He ran desperately, ignoring the broken bones in his leg, until he was able to reach her. He fell to his knees, taking a deep breath.
It was his mother. He recognized her, even though her legs, left arm, and parts of her stomach were all buried under a pile of stones from the wall that had collapsed on her during the explosion.
Instinctively, he grabbed the rock and tried valiantly to lift it, even if only a little. He succeeded, as his thin and small body, he was able to lift stones weighing many times his own.
He could see his mother more clearly, lying on the rocks, breathing very weakly, despite the indescribable pain and complete paralysis throughout her body. Her black eyes stared at her son with a look of pure terror. As compassionate as she always looked at her newborn son after giving birth and labor, she finally knew that her son was still alive and standing before her.
A smile!.
was all that was on her face, but she didn't move after that, and her breathing stopped as a tear fell from her eye. And Jelian woke up in shock.
It wasn't the first time he'd dreamed about the same events, and that's what made him remember them in detail.
Seconds later, he noticed he was still in the middle of the desert, the darkness of night filling the place an hour and a half after sunset.
The truck continued on its way, unobstructed.
In the early months of the Great Nuclear Disaster, the lands were filled with beasts and wild animals of all kinds, ranging in size, length, and even barbaric intensity. It was truly difficult to roam outside, that's unless you count the mutated beasts inside the cities.
There was no safe place. You wouldn't let the beasts go to waste, and certainly no one would help you. Everyone cared for themselves. Life was too precious to waste on anyone.
But now there was no sign of the mutated beasts, and you could go out and wander more freely. It was as if they had dispersed into the air or buried themselves underground, strangely disappearing from existence.
Inside the truck, Nandi was lying in the back seat. Even though the seat was uncomfortable, fatigue had overcome her because she had cleaned the house before leaving.
Jelian and Aiden were still awake, and hadn't spoken throughout the journey. Aiden only glanced at Jelian from time to time.
"If you want to say something, say it," Jelian said, noticing Aiden's gaze.
"...Remember my question before? About how you tamed those dogs?"
"Yeah, what's wrong with them?"
"Well...I don't need to know."
"Really?"
"Really!, I can figure that out on my own."
"...Okay."
"...Because I saw it."
"Saw what?"
"Your fight with Andrei".
Those words were enough to awaken the pent-up beast inside Jelian. She turned to Aiden with a look of shock and concern, followed by anger and murderous intent.
"Did he say he saw it? Did he see my power? (Sighs) Ah, why are you telling me now? Now I can't kill him or touch him. We can't go back. And I don't know how to explain this to Nandi. What am I going to do with him?", Jelian thought.
Aiden was a little confused by Jelian's terrifying gaze. "I know what you're thinking. I know you want to get rid of me. Well, I don't care whether you get rid of me or not, but I won't break my promise, and I'll help both of you, no matter what."
He didn't respond and kept staring sharply.
"I'll keep it a secret. I can think how much trouble it would cause you if anyone found out about your ability, so I'll keep another promise. If you ever hear a word about your ability leak, you can slit my throat right away and I won't object."
Jelian still not responding.
"Okay, let's not talk about it, boy. You're truly amazing! You don't know how hard it is to defeat Andrei alone."
After seconds Jelian calmed down a little. "...Well, I just fought and defeated him. Everyone I fought was the same way. I fought hard with them, made them pretend to win, then pounced on them in the back."
"Yeah, it worked for me. Even one of the ranked players fell for you." Aiden was He mocks himself.
"Ranked? You said that before. What is this?"
"Well... since you haven't received any information, there's a lot to learn. First, the people are categorized a list of the 10 most dangerous people in this country. This list is compiled by the government and relied upon by everyone on the island."
"Wait, is there a government?"
"Yeah, there is a government, but it's only in the capital, Dorabora, and it doesn't interfere with anything in the country."
"That so..., then, who are the 10 most dangerous people?"
"Well, here's the tenth place, except for me, the Blaze, hahahahaha," he said proudly, pointing to himself.
Jelian looked at him with disgust.
"As for the ninth place, there's a guy with one big eyeball in the middle. We don't know his name, but we call him Wazowski. You know? From Disney's Monsters University."
"As for the eighth place, there's Kaito the Wall of Meat. He looks like Andrei, whom he fought hours ago, except for the hugeness of his right hand. The Wall of Meat is huge all over his body, and is two or three times bigger than him."
"...Really!" Jelian was surprised.
"As for the seventh, my favorite is Shihan, the dojo master," he said lovingly, his cheeks flushing. Jelian's look of disgust again.
"And on the sixth, comes the samurai Kenji, who is merely a follower and protector of the trade caravan of Doyle."
"On the fifth, comes the Blood Man. He's a young man who controls Tahikru City. He has one of the most powerful gangs and organizations on the island. Since it's close to the capital, he's always in conflict with the government and its army."
"The Blood Man... does he control his blood or what?" Jelian wondered.
"Exactly. I don't know how he does it, but he oozes blood and transforms into sharp shapes capable of cutting anyone. Well, he would be considered the most powerful in the country if it weren't for the two Calamities. In second place comes the Calamity Lord..."
"Wait a minute. What about the fourth and third? And who are the calamities?" Jelian asked.
"I was going to explain it to you. In fourth place is the Shadow Monster. He's a boy your age. He's always hidden and doesn't appear in front of you, but he releases a gas that can put you to sleep, poison you, or even control you. It's very annoying."
"As for third place, it's Queen Rania. She has the ability to change her body shape, enlarge her body, or change any shape she pleases. She has an information network and knows everything that's happening in the country."
"Everything that's happening on the island?"
"Yes, always be careful when you go out, but comparing the Shadow of the Beast and Queen Rania to the Blood Man, the last one will outshine them."
"But the reason for their positions is that they are directly subordinate to the second-place, who runs Newgrid City, the Calamity Beasts' Lord. From his name, you can tell he can control any type of beast, and he has a massive, countless army. He can annihilate anyone who stands in his way, no matter who they are. With these beasts, he can wipe out the entire cities."
"The government named him Calamity because he annihilated most of the government's army alone, and with it, he brought down Bagpiper City, one of the largest cities under the government. All this alone, with his army of beasts, is enough to destroy any city here. He is a Calamity who can wipe out everyone in the country."
"And finally, in first place and the most powerful of all, Calamity the Mantis... We don't really know many details about him, not about his abilities or his name, nor does anyone know what he looks like, but we do know from the large distinctive mantis tattoo on his back and his strangely mask, all we know about him is that he was the only one who stopped the Beast Lord and his army in the Battle of Bagbeer. He solo eliminated all the powerful beasts there, and the battle lasted three days. Even the Beast Lord himself praised his terrible strength.
Jelian listened carefully to everything he said and was impressed.
"Well, don't worry. At first, all the ranked ones were raging, but now they've become self-disciplined and no longer fight like they did before. Perhaps if a fight were to take place in Bagbeer, the Beast Lord would conquer the entire country."
"I'm not afraid of them. Even death itself can't do anything to me."
"Hehe... Maybe you're right, but as for me, I don't think you stand a chance against them."
"What? Do you think I'm weak like you, the one in last place?"
"I'm not weak," he said, suppressing his anger.
"This ranking isn't the strongest, but the most dangerous. Or, to put it another way, what the government thinks is dangerous to the government and the capital itself. In addition, there are strong people spread throughout the country. Some people have called them unranked, and they may even be stronger than some ranked ones.
"Since I defeated you, I can consider myself a ranked one." Jelian mocked Aiden.
"Oh really? Do you think it's that easy?"
"Yes, you're weak in my eyes."
"Haha, very funny! Winning by cheating and going behind people's backs doesn't make you strong."
"Admit it, I might be the most dangerous of the ranked ones."
Aiden didn't like this, and they continued arguing with each other about who was stronger.
Nandi had been listening to their conversation from the beginning, but she didn't say anything, and this continued throughout the dark road.