"So you really were hiding in the pile of corpses... If you hadn't run into us by sheer bad luck, one of White Town's leftovers might actually have escaped."
"Why are you still talking? Just kill him already. Find the goods and let's go!"
"Kid, if you want to blame someone, blame your own bad luck."
One of the soldiers raised his gun with a savage grin and aimed it at Law.
There was not the slightest trace of guilt in his heart.
To him, a living Law was nothing but an eyesore and a nuisance.
With nowhere left to run, Law clenched his teeth so hard they almost cracked, his eyes filled with hatred and unwillingness. He hated his own weakness, and he hated these inhuman butchers even more, the monsters who had slaughtered everyone in Flevance.
"Is everything about to end here? I still haven't taken revenge on this despair-filled world... I can't accept this!"
Just as the soldier's finger slowly began to squeeze the trigger, countless images suddenly flashed through Law's mind. His father, his mother, his little sister, Sister Mary, and all the companions from the church...
But at that exact moment, none of them noticed that a figure had already quietly slipped behind the soldier who was about to fire.
The Power Enhancement Shoes were instantly set to the highest, third level. Under the dual stimulation of electricity and magnetism on the acupoints in his feet, the muscles in August's right leg exploded with their maximum strength.
Secret Ultimate Art: Lineage-Ending Kick!
August put every ounce of strength in his body into that kick and drove it viciously into the spot between the soldier's legs.
That kick was absolutely earth-shattering.
Not because of its raw power, but because of the catastrophic damage it caused.
For one brief second, it felt as if something had shattered.
The soldier August had ambushed felt a wave of agony explode from between his legs. Then it was as if all the strength had been drained from his body at once. His face turned deathly pale, his eyes bulged, drool spilled from his mouth, and he dropped to his knees.
Even though the pain had already reached the absolute limit, all he could do was open his mouth and let out a silent scream.
That kind of suffering was worse than death.
Just like that, he blacked out from the pain and collapsed face-first to the ground.
The whole thing happened in an instant. The other soldier and Law, who had just been waiting to die, were both left frozen in shock.
Neither of them could understand why there was another living person here, and that kick alone was so painful to watch that it made their legs clamp together instinctively.
In that situation, even though August had used [Just a Background Extra] beforehand, its effect was naturally broken. Reduced presence was not true invisibility, after all.
But unlike the other two, August did not freeze after landing his strike, nor did he try to pick up the gun that had just fallen to the ground.
Instead, he hurled the item in his hand at the other soldier.
That movement finally snapped the man out of his daze.
Almost entirely on instinct, he rolled to the side at once, perfectly dodging... a banana.
That was right.
What August had just thrown was literally a banana.
"You little bastard, you want to die?!"
The soldier immediately flew into a rage, embarrassed and furious at how oversensitive he had just acted.
He had actually been played by a brat!
So he instantly sprang back up and raised his gun toward...
"Huh? Where'd he go?"
"Get down!"
August, who had already taken the chance to hide himself, saw that Law was still standing there stupidly in the open, so he could only shout.
As for whether Law could understand what he meant, that was up to fate.
Fortunately, Law was not stupid, and he had already recognized August, so he immediately dove forward and flattened himself on the ground.
Then, in the very next second, the banana near the soldier's feet suddenly exploded.
Boom!
The blast blew him straight into the air.
He would probably never understand, even in death, what exactly had just happened.
Only August was silently mourning the 5 Trade Points he had spent on that [Banana Grenade].
Still, judging by both the power and the deceptiveness, it had absolutely been worth it.
After all, how many people would ever be afraid of a banana lying on the ground?
The feeling of killing someone for the first time was not especially pleasant, but for August, who had opened his eyes in this world while lying among countless corpses, it was not nearly as hard to accept as he had imagined.
Bang!
Just then, another gunshot suddenly drew his attention.
Turning his head, he saw that Law had picked up the gun from the ground and, with a vicious expression, shot the unlucky soldier who had previously been turned into a eunuch.
At that moment, Law was radiating a frightening aura that kept all strangers away.
In the span of a single day, he had watched his parents get killed, his sister burn to death, and Sister Mary and all their church companions get gunned down.
That kind of absolute despair was something a ten-year-old child simply should not have to bear.
"How does it feel, killing someone for the first time?"
August slowly took the gun out of Law's hand, his tone unreadable.
He was taking the weapon away in case Law suddenly snapped and hurt him.
And the reason he had ultimately chosen to save Law was simple. He believed the future Supernova had investment value, and the price he himself had to pay was low enough to ignore.
He believed that as fellow survivors of Flevance, and as companions from the same church, this life-saving favor would be something Law remembered for the rest of his life.
The thought might have been a little utilitarian, but August did not feel embarrassed about it in the slightest.
He was not the boy's father. If he was going to save someone without asking anything in return, then what exactly would be the point?
Law did not answer August's question immediately, but neither did he resist when August took the gun from his hand.
That was undoubtedly a good sign.
August had no desire to save someone who was impossible to communicate with, some self-destructive lunatic beyond reason. At the very least, Law had not reached that stage yet.
Law took several deep breaths. The hollow numbness in his eyes faded a little, and only then did he speak.
"It feels awful... but that won't stop me."
"August, why are you here? Back then, I clearly saw Sister Mary and everyone else already..."
At those words, August let the right amount of hatred show on his face.
"Those bastards tricked Sister Mary. It was all a trap to lure us into walking right into their hands. Everyone was shot. I was hit too and collapsed in the chaos. After that, I don't remember anything. When I woke up again, I found myself dumped here. Thanks to this precious protective vest, I barely managed to keep my life."
"Law, it's a good thing you didn't leave with us back then. Otherwise, we might never have met again here. Right, how did you survive?"
Law lowered the brim of his hat, pain written all over his face as he recounted what had happened to him.
"Everyone died... Dad, Mom, and my little sister hiding in the hospital too. In the end, I hid among the corpses and got transported here, but I was still discovered. If you hadn't saved me, I probably would already be reunited with my family by now."
Sometimes, staying alive was more painful than dying.
Right now, the only thing supporting Law's will to live was revenge.
Revenge against this twisted, despair-filled world!
After hearing each other's stories, the two of them fell silent for a while.
(End of Chapter)
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