A heavy smell of gunpowder permeated the air.
Broken rebar occasionally gave off faint cracking sounds under the intense heat.
Buildings in the distance were still burning.
The flames continued to sway.
Black smoke slowly rose into the sky.
And in the center of the street,
Dawolf slowly caught his breath.
Blood continued dripping from his body,
falling onto the charred ground.
Structural Lock was still being maintained.
But that feeling of near-absolute stability
had already begun to fluctuate noticeably.
Occasionally, faint tremors passed across the surface of his skin,
as if his body were constantly re-stabilizing its internal structure.
And the wounds cut open by the Azure short blade
continued to interfere with the stability of his ability.
The wind slowly swept through the ruins.
The surrounding escort unit members maintained their perimeter.
Their guns remained pointed in every direction.
No one approached.
Because everyone could feel it.
Dawolf was more dangerous now
than he had been before.
Meanwhile, Lucian continued standing not far away.
The azure light in his eyes had not gone out.
The short blade in his right hand emitted a faint blue glow.
He made no attempt to attack further.
Nor did he retreat.
He simply watched Dawolf in silence,
as if waiting for something.
Dawolf slowly raised his head.
His gaze fell upon Lucian once again.
Even now,
he still could not completely understand this young man.
Abilities.
The escort unit.
Resources.
Equipment.
Discipline.
Communications.
Medical support.
Logistics.
None of these things
were something an ordinary faction could possess.
Especially that escort unit.
They were not temporary mercenaries thrown together.
They were a genuine modern tactical force
forged through long-term training.
Most importantly,
they obeyed Lucian.
Not obedience on the surface.
They genuinely accepted his commands.
Dawolf had seen too many people.
He had also seen too many organizations.
So he knew very well.
What was truly dangerous
was never the weapon.
It was—
the person capable of making others willingly follow him.
And the young man standing before him
clearly already possessed that qualification.
The wind swept through the ruins again.
Lucian suddenly raised his left hand slightly.
The movement was very subtle.
Almost impossible to notice.
Only the tip of his finger lightly tapped the outside of his wrist once.
The next second,
Scope, positioned at a high point in the distance, slightly turned his head.
A faint vibration came from the receiver behind his neck.
There was no sound.
No communication alert.
Only a short, rhythmic vibration.
Scope's eyes shifted slightly.
Then he spoke quietly.
"Third squad."
"Move with me."
The two members beside him immediately stood.
No questions.
No hesitation.
The three quickly left the sniper position
and began moving rapidly along the outskirts of the ruins.
Their footsteps repeatedly crossed broken concrete.
Occasionally, they crushed glass beneath their boots,
producing brief cracking sounds.
Scope continued observing his surroundings.
The outer area of the battlefield was extremely chaotic.
Numerous buildings had already partially collapsed.
The roads were blocked by abandoned vehicles and rubble.
Charred traces from the fires covered the entire district.
But even in such an environment,
he noticed something unusual.
Among the ruins in the distance,
several figures were moving rapidly.
There were not many of them,
but they were clearly engaged in combat.
Gunshots rang out intermittently.
And the firepower was highly concentrated.
It was nothing like the chaotic suppressive fire from the outer forces.
Scope suddenly stopped.
He raised a hand.
The two members behind him immediately crouched halfway down.
Their guns rose at the same time.
Scope narrowed his eyes slightly.
His gaze continuously passed through the gaps between the ruins.
Soon,
he saw the center.
A little girl.
Several armed men were desperately protecting her as they retreated.
Another group was constantly closing in.
The equipment on both sides was clearly more professional than that of the outer forces.
"High-value target."
Scope spoke quietly.
The expressions of the two members behind him changed slightly.
Because in a battlefield of this scale,
having an entire firefight revolve specifically around a little girl
was abnormal in itself.
Scope immediately raised his hand.
"Intervene."
The three instantly charged out from the ruins.
At the same time,
inside a partially collapsed building,
the air was filled with dust.
The walls were covered in cracks.
Rebar protruded from the concrete.
Even pieces of the ceiling continued falling.
And in the center of the building,
several armed men were constantly retreating.
They were clearly injured.
Blood covered the floor.
One of them had a severe wound piercing through his shoulder.
Blood had already soaked half his body.
Behind them,
the little girl was being protected in the center.
She tightly gripped the clothes of the man beside her.
Her body trembled continuously.
Her eyes were filled with fear.
"Get out of here!"
The man growled.
His voice was already noticeably hoarse.
Another man beside him immediately rushed toward the side door,
preparing to establish an evacuation route again.
But the next second—
BOOM!!!
The wall exploded apart.
Large chunks of rubble violently blasted into the room.
The impact directly sent several people tumbling.
Several figures rushed in from outside.
Their guns rose simultaneously.
"Take the target!"
The leader spoke coldly.
The man protecting the girl immediately changed expression.
"Are you insane?!"
BANG!!!
Gunfire exploded instantly.
A bullet tore through the man's shoulder.
Blood sprayed violently.
His body slammed hard against the wall behind him.
The girl instantly curled up in fear,
clinging tightly to him.
But the attackers did not stop.
Their firepower swept across the room again.
Bullets continuously tore through the walls.
Concrete fragments flew everywhere.
Because their objective was perfectly clear.
It was the girl.
"Drag her out!"
Two men immediately rushed toward the rear.
The guards desperately opened fire to stop them.
The narrow interior of the building instantly descended into complete chaos.
Muzzle flashes continued flickering.
Screams and cracking sounds erupted one after another.
At the same time,
Scope and the other two had already approached the outer perimeter.
The moment the gunfire erupted,
Scope suddenly accelerated.
"Firefight confirmed."
The next second,
the three crashed directly through the side ruins.
BOOM!!!
The broken wall instantly collapsed.
The people inside had not even reacted
when the escort unit's firepower had already covered the area.
BANG! BANG! BANG!!!
A series of precise bursts instantly suppressed two attackers.
One of them had just begun turning around
when a burst of blood exploded from his forehead.
The other rolled desperately, searching for cover,
but crossfire immediately sealed off his escape route.
The leader's expression changed drastically.
"There are more people?!"
Scope did not waste a single word.
His gun remained steady,
continuously restricting the enemy's movement.
His judgment was simple.
Since both sides were desperately fighting over that girl,
then she could not be allowed to get hurt.
Meanwhile,
inside the temporary medical area,
piercing alarms continued ringing.
Large amounts of medical equipment remained in operation.
The air was filled with the smell of medicine mixed with heated metal.
Bear slowly opened his eyes.
His chest and right arm were still wrapped in immobilization devices.
Some of his bones were even still undergoing temporary realignment.
Nearby, a technician continued adjusting the remains of his combat suit.
Metal components were scattered across the floor.
A medical worker spoke quietly.
"Don't move."
"Your internal injuries from the impact haven't stabilized yet."
Bear did not respond.
He simply slowly raised his head
and looked toward the ceiling, which continued trembling in the distance.
Even several streets away,
he could still vaguely sense that oppressive presence.
After a brief silence,
Bear spoke quietly.
"That guy…"
"He really is a monster."
The medical area fell silent for a moment.
Several nearby members simultaneously fell silent.
Because they all knew.
Bear rarely described anyone that way.
Especially after fighting them face-to-face.
Bear slowly closed his eyes.
That punch flashed through his mind again.
It was not technique.
It was not speed.
It was—
pure, absurd power.
"If Scope hadn't found an opening…"
"I'd already be dead."
The air fell silent once again.
Meanwhile,
at the center of the main battlefield,
Dawolf suddenly stopped moving.
Broken voices came through the communication channel.
"Captain…"
"Rear evacuation area…"
"Attack…"
"Alma—"
KRRRSH!!!
The communication suddenly cut off.
The air instantly fell silent.
Dawolf's pupils contracted violently.
The next second,
a terrifying pressure erupted outward.
The ground beneath his feet instantly cracked.
The surrounding rubble trembled continuously.
The escort unit members in the distance simultaneously tensed.
Because at this moment,
the man who had remained calm all this time
had truly lost control.
Dawolf suddenly raised his head.
His breathing instantly grew heavier.
"Who?!"
His voice no longer sounded entirely human.
It was more like something being forcibly squeezed out from the depths of his throat.
But there was no response from the communication channel.
The air continued trembling.
Structural Lock began frantically stabilizing his body.
Muscles.
Bones.
Joints.
Everything entered a high-load state.
Even the surrounding air began producing a low, rumbling vibration.
Yet Lucian still did not move.
He simply watched him in silence.
Dawolf suddenly turned around.
He stared directly at Lucian.
For the first time,
true killing intent appeared in those eyes.
"What did you do?!"
The air instantly compressed.
The surrounding escort unit members simultaneously entered combat readiness.
But Lucian simply spoke calmly.
"Not me."
There was not the slightest fluctuation in his voice.
Dawolf's fist suddenly clenched.
Structural Lock even caused the surrounding air to erupt with low explosive sounds.
But at that very moment,
the communication channel suddenly came back to life.
KRRRSH—
Then,
Scope's steady voice came through.
"Target confirmed safe."
"Repeat."
"Target confirmed safe."
The air suddenly froze.
Dawolf's movements abruptly stopped.
On the other end of the communication,
gunfire was still continuing.
Yet Scope's voice remained unusually steady.
"We are currently engaged."
"Target is unharmed."
At that moment,
it was as if all the strength suddenly left Dawolf's body.
The oppressive force that had been violently spreading outward
briefly loosened.
And Lucian continued standing there in silence.
He did not explain.
Because there was no longer any need to explain.
The wind slowly swept through the ruins.
The flames in the distance gently swayed.
And Dawolf slowly lowered his head.
His breathing grew heavier and heavier.
Until this moment,
he finally truly understood.
Lucian had not been threatening him.
He had been protecting him.