'Has the Rat gone mad or what?'
That was the shared thought of all the soldiers after yet another exhausting day of chasing him.
Messages carried by owls spread across the entire mountain—some sent to the top to report the latest news, others to the lower areas to alert and warn the troops. However, soon the soldiers realized that some of the messages never reached their intended destinations.
On the night of another Furious Night, a group of soldiers gathered inside the tent, their faces twisted in frustration. Some were so furious that they had even started vomiting blood.
"How does he keep doing this?!" one soldier shouted, the veins on his forehead bulging.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" yelled another soldier standing beside him.
"Didn't you say he was in the village? I went there and didn't find him!" The soldier's voice was edged with the readiness to start a fight.
"I told you about his route. If you can't find him, it means he got ahead of you and escaped." He replied, taking a step closer to him.
"Are you a fool, or are you just pretending to be one?" He moved even closer until their foreheads nearly touched. "The village has two paths—one you were on, and the other I was on."
"Then that means he passed right under your nose without you even noticing!"
"And why wouldn't you be the liar here? Who said he ever entered the village in the first place?"
"Me? A liar? So the six men with me are lying too?"
"Who knows? They are your men, after all!"
"If you want a fight, just say it straight instead of making excuses!"
"Look at you! Since when do you have the guts to fight? Now suddenly, you want one?"
"I've had the guts to do a lot of things while you were still sucking down the potions your mother bought for you, you mama's boy!"
"Did you just bring up my mother?!"
"I did. Are you deaf now?"
Their hands moved toward their swords, but the only voice of reason in the tent cut through the tension.
"If you two want to fight, wait until the Furious Night is over. Then go outside and do whatever you want."
Everyone swallowed their anger and turned their focus back to the map.
All the men in the tent were military squad leaders, and it was rare for them to gather in one place. The only reason they were here now was because of the Rat.
Throughout the past day, reports of the Rat's whereabouts had kept coming in, only to be contradicted minutes later by new messages confirming he was somewhere else entirely.
No one knew the mountain's terrain better than they did, and it was impossible for him to move so fast—even when he ambushed them, stole one of their wolves, and rode off.
That left only one possibility: Someone was sending false reports.
With soldiers spread all over the area, they eventually found themselves converging at the same location.
The camp, positioned near one of the villages, held around thirty-five soldiers.
"This isn't good," one of them muttered with a frown as he examined the map. "Once the night ends, we'll have to split up again."
Gathering in one place gave them a sense of security, but their goal wasn't to strengthen their numbers—it was to capture the Rat or drive him toward Hamim. But with all the conflicting reports claiming he was in multiple places at once, it was becoming clear that neither goal was being achieved.
"He only has two possible escape routes—one is heavily guarded by our forces, and the other is where we are. We have people stationed at every corner, watching."
"Don't you get it? Our reputation is at stake! We've become a laughingstock!"
"Stop caring about what the scum think."
"Easy for you to say! I worked hard in Zaar Village, and then that damned Rat ruined everything!"
"It's 'Zeer.' At least learn to pronounce it right if you care about it."
"Damn it, whatever!"
"Enough with this nonsense. We have a bigger problem."
Everyone turned to look at him, confused.
"Are you kidding me? I'm talking about Hamim's damned shit. Instead of killing the Rat, we have to deliver him."
"Are you suggesting we ignore his request?"
"Hamim doesn't make requests—he gives orders, like one of our elders."
"Well, he is going to be one!"
"That lunatic has been sitting on top of the mountain for ages without anything exciting to catch his interest, and now he's found something. I don't want to be the idiot who pisses him off."
"Agreed. Everyone hates him, but no one dares to challenge him. Following his orders is the safest choice."
"Cowards! All of you!"
No one paid attention to the insult. No one wanted to deal with Hamim's madness.
"There's an even bigger problem. The Rat might be intercepting our messages."
"Didn't they say he doesn't understand our language? What would he even do with them?"
"He doesn't need to understand them. Just stopping them from reaching us was enough to throw us into chaos."
"No, he understands. Some reports even claim he deliberately showed up near certain camps."
"I suggest we stop using wolves. He's riding them like horses, that bastard."
"That's another thing that's bothering me. How the hell is he making them run like that?"
"Maybe he's using a special drug or something."
"They mentioned he's carrying a dagger now."
"By the way, don't you think the markings on the wolves look like the effects of a Sand-Cat's poison?"
Silence fell over the tent. Everyone, including the one who spoke, froze.
Then, all at once, they exploded.
"Have you lost your mind from lack of sleep?!"
"Idiot! Watch your mouth!"
"Don't say things that make my heart stop!"
"If you're just looking for an excuse to go back up the mountain, pick something else. Don't bring up things you don't fully understand."
They all took deep breaths, trying to shake off the tension.
"...Now that I think about it, you might be right," one of them admitted after a brief silence.
But without realizing it, their minds instinctively refused to dwell on the thought, quickly shifting the conversation.
"By the way, where is Uncle now?"
"Don't you know? He's on his way down. Why ask something so obvious?"
"I know, you stubborn fool, but my question is—has he arrived yet or not?"
"He's almost there. Once he arrives, he'll give the order to clear the way for that damned Rat."
"He's worried about some of the elites from the top coming down. If that happens, the Uncle will be doomed to failure."
"And we'll suffer the same fate. Damn it."
"When is this supposed to happen, anyway?"
"No idea. But some said they're waiting for results. If nothing happens in the next three days, we'll find them breathing down our necks."
"Damn it, they're such a pain."
Their discussions continued until the first rays of sunlight broke over the horizon. With renewed determination, they stepped out of the tent.
"As we agreed," one of them said as he stepped out of the tent, the others following behind. "We'll split up. No one gets in his way. We'll just..."
But before he could finish, everyone suddenly became aware of someone sitting in the middle of the camp, right in front of an ice block. On top of it, several owls were being roasted.
Eyes widened in shock as they saw Vio, casually enjoying his meal of golden-brown roasted owls.
"Guys, I won't lie," Vio said with a wide grin. "This is pretty good!"
"Rat!"
"Rat!"
The shouts erupted all at once, triggering a wave of chaos as soldiers rushed out of their tents. One by one, as they stepped outside and laid eyes on Vio, they joined in the shouting, sounding the alarm across the entire camp.
"Alright, let's get this over with quickly."
With that, Vio leapt into the air, and in an instant, the soldiers mounted their wolves and took off after him.
Some raised their bows, while others hurled sharp ice fragments at him. Arrows and projectiles rained down in waves, yet Vio dodged them with ease, moving as if he could predict their attacks before they even made them.
"Booooooooo!"
"Fwooooooo!"
Horns and whistles echoed, broadcasting his location. Swarms of owls took to the sky, flying off to warn other Vio of their presence.
Amidst the chaos, Vio remained perfectly calm, his eyes locked onto his map.
After a deep moment of focus, he realized something—he had fully memorized the entire route by now.
Deciding to check his stats for the first time in a while, a proud smirk spread across his face.
Name: Vio Kian
Age: 24 years (biological), 2 years (mechanical)
Level: 7 | XP: [788,049/800,000]
Rank: Proto-Cyborg
Titles: Skull Crusher, ???
HP: 6,000/6,000 (100%)
EP: 100/100 (100%)
SP: 0/0 (Locked)
[Stats]
Strength: 36
Stamina: 31
Agility: 100
Intelligence: 31
Perception: 101
Endurance: 62
(Available points to distribute: 0)
Cores: Alpha
External Data: 40/100 MB
49,500,000 system coins
But then, his expression tensed as he noticed something strange—a series of question marks next to his title.
'What the fuck is that?'