RVN Ch 8

“The guides at the center can save my life just fine. They’ve done so until now.”

“I’m different, though. You really need me.”

At that, Renault finally came to an abrupt stop and glared at him. The way he spoke so lightly, like a child, only irritated him further. The desert wind tousled his black, curly hair in all directions.

“I don’t need you.”

Through the strands of hair swaying in the wind, his blue eyes were as clear as an oasis in the desert. And yet, looking into them only made his throat feel drier.

“You don’t need me? That can’t be right. You must need me a lot right now.”

Raven tapped his chest with his index finger and added,

“Me.”

His shameless confidence made Renault scoff.

“And why would I need someone like you—”

“But you do. You’re a mess.”

Those piercing blue eyes gleamed. Renault found himself unable to look away from the cold, lake-like gaze. An inexplicable chill crept over his skin and spread through his body.

He wanted to get away immediately. But he couldn’t just avert his eyes. If he did, it felt like that beast would pounce and swallow him whole in an instant…

Startled by the vivid image in his mind, Renault snapped out of it and wiped his dry hand over his mouth. A ragged breath slipped through his lips.

What the hell was that? His vision blurred for a moment. It was as if he was being forced to drag something long forgotten back to the surface. A deeply unpleasant, unsettling feeling.

“If you keep insisting you don’t need me, I can’t help it. Even if you don’t want to save me, whatever. It doesn’t matter.”

Renault furrowed his brows deeply, standing silent, and Raven shrugged listlessly. His thick eyebrows drooped slightly, as if he were disappointed. Just as Renault was about to retort,

“But in the end, you’ll have no choice but to be mine.”

Bending forward, Raven whispered into his ear. The sheer ridiculousness of such an old-fashioned, cringeworthy flirtation coming from a mere 21-year-old made Renault feel dizzy.

“Little punk’s talking like some old man.”

“Old man? Really? That wasn’t cool?”

Raven blinked, looking genuinely surprised, as if he hadn’t expected such a terrible review.

“Cool, my ass. Did you learn flirting from a book? It’s creepy, so knock it off.”

“It showed? I read it when I was in the Central District. ‘The Key to a Successful Romance.’“

“You little sh—”

What the hell was wrong with this asshole? Having a normal conversation with this bastard was impossible.

Renault exhaled in exasperation and started walking again.

That was when he noticed the team members standing off in the distance, watching them blankly. A sudden surge of heat rushed to his head. They had been talking nonsense in front of those idiots? His face burned with embarrassment. Thank god the bandana was covering half of it.

“Why are you all standing around? I told you to check the surroundings.”

“We took a look around.”

“Chris is scouting a little further out.”

The others piped up one by one. Clearly, they’d just taken a few steps, glanced around, and called it a day.

“I said we need to find it before it gets hotter, didn’t I?”

The outskirts of District 13 were deep inland, far from any sea, and had long since turned into a wasteland. The place was not only in ruins but had started desertifying as well. The climate was just like a desert—blistering hot during the day, freezing cold at night.

It was already past 11 AM. The sun blazed overhead, and the heat was suffocating. If it was this bad before noon, by the afternoon, it’d be like standing in a scorching oven. Just thinking about chasing down monsters in that heat made Renault’s vision swim.

“If you don’t want to collapse from heatstroke, spread out again and search. I’m heading north, so if you find anything, don’t move—just signal. As soon as we get the signal, we run. Got it? Now move.”

As soon as Renault clapped his hands, the team scattered, running in different directions. They had obviously been slacking off on purpose earlier. Watching their retreating figures, Renault clicked his tongue in irritation.

“Four o’clock direction. Two targets. One B-class, one A-class.”

He had been scanning the dusty ruins, wondering when and where a monster might appear. Then, Raven muttered nonchalantly.

Renault’s eyes widened as he turned to him. The words made no sense.

“What did you just say—?”

“They’re heading this way. And they’re moving fast.”

“You mean… monsters?”

“What else?”

Raven responded casually, his hands still in his pockets.

That was impossible. According to the reports from headquarters, there was only one B-class insect-type monster in the area.

Since this mission was considered minor, they had only brought three combat espers, no healers. The plan was to take down the target quickly and get out. But now there was not only a B-class but also an A-class?

Renault swallowed dryly. If this was true, they were in trouble. Unexpected developments happened in the field all the time, but this was completely absurd.

“And I’m supposed to believe that?”

“You’d better believe it?”

“Where did you even get this information?”

Renault glared at him, suspicion and unease in his eyes. Raven simply shrugged, as if it didn’t matter whether Renault believed him or not. His attitude was as insufferable as ever.

“Tell me where you got this info.”

Renault’s voice dropped lower, his tone cold against the vast emptiness of the wasteland. Raven turned his gaze slightly to meet his.

“Just a hunch.”

Crazy bastard.

Renault let out a long sigh. Then, he quickly checked his phone. No biological signals detected.

“The range is only a mile and a half.”

“A mile and a half is a considerable distance.”

“No, it isn’t.”

Bending over to look at Renault’s screen, Raven’s eyes crinkled as he smiled.

“They’re already coming. From over there. Want me to count? 10, 9, 8…”

With each number he counted down, Renault’s throat felt drier. As if enjoying himself, Raven grinned and raised his hand, folding a finger down with every count. Until only his index finger remained.

“One.”

The moment he finished, Renault’s phone vibrated. An alert popped up—a biological signal had been detected. Exactly one mile away.

“I have pretty good instincts.”

Raven smiled playfully.

Fuck. Renault immediately reached for the strap on his shoulder and pulled his automatic rifle into his hands.

Renault’s ability was weapon enhancement. Like most combat-type espers, his power was specialized for weapons. He was completely powerless barehanded, but through specific weapons, his ability manifested.

The difference was that while most combat espers were specialized in one weapon type, Renault could enhance any weapon. It didn’t matter what he held. The moment it became a weapon, its performance was upgraded.

When it came to handguns, their maximum firepower could increase nearly a hundredfold. A single bullet from a handgun would leave a massive hole as if a shell had been fired. Even missiles, which he didn’t hold directly, were no exception.

With a low-power missile, he could unleash destruction comparable to that of a nuclear bomb. However, since the power consumption increased in proportion to the weapon’s firepower, he avoided using missile-grade weapons.

Depending on how it was used, his ability could surpass even S-class, and it was the only one of its kind across the entire planet. Because of that, the military had set their sights on him, and in his younger years, he had once served as part of their ranks.

There hadn’t been a single good thing about the military, but he did acknowledge that the experience of handling, testing, and using a vast array of weapons in real combat hadn’t been bad. Thanks to that, he now had expert-level knowledge of all kinds of weaponry and could wield any of them with ease.

“Target spotted! Four o’clock direction. Everyone, regroup.”

As Renault swiftly loaded his automatic rifle and called his team back through the watch on his wrist, a figure could be seen running toward them, kicking up a thick cloud of dust in the distance. It was Chris.

“Captain, I detected a life signal too! It was coming from the southeast, but why is it so fast? At this rate—”

Before Chris could even finish speaking, the ground trembled violently, as if an earthquake had struck.

Something was approaching from the four o’clock direction—not aboveground, but burrowing beneath the earth. Shooting it with a rifle was out of the question in this state.

It was impossible to gauge just how massive or fast the creature was. A deep, resonant boom rumbled closer, shaking the very terrain. Half-collapsed buildings began to crumble completely under the force.

A tremendous dust storm engulfed the entire area, making it almost impossible to see. Renault raised a hand to shield his eyes, but it was useless. The wind, thick with sand, howled violently, pushing him backward as if trying to sweep him off his feet.

“Take cover!”

As the epicenter neared, the earth quaked more violently, splitting apart, while buildings continued to collapse one after another.