Chapter 29: Zac’s Arrival
"I’m Lima Martel, vice chief of the Mellow City Association. Nice to meet you, Captain."
"If it isn’t the most famous Martel family daughter. I’m Joseph Milroy, it would have been even nicer if not for the situation."
"I asked you to come here for a reason," Lima said. "In situations like this, having a veteran in the control room to guide will be very helpful."
She then pointed at a specific screen with a massive tree. "Also... look at this."
Joseph’s expression changed instantly. "What...? How is that possible? That’s..."
"Yes, that’s why I strictly ordered that none of your variants go anywhere near it."
She looked straight at him with a little hesitation. "I’ve read your file, Captain, and I know what happened to your team, and I’m truly sorry for that."
"No matter what others say, you are still an A-rank."
Joseph gave a faint smile. "Former A-rank."
"It doesn’t matter, I don’t need your strength but experience. I want you to take command of this situation."
Joseph narrowed his eyes. "What about you? Wait let me guess, you’re planning to fight it yourself, aren’t you?
"You know what that tree is," she replied. "The longer we delay, the more dangerous it becomes. Once it fully awakens... no matter what we do, no one will be able to save Mellow City."
Joseph fell silent for a moment. "...I understand."
Without another word, Lima turned and walked out of the control room, heading straight for the battlefield.
***
Outside Mellow City, the falcon descended and landed on to the ground. Both Zac and Marty were pushed down from its back by the old man.
"Hey! You said you’d take us to the city," Marty protested. "What kind of logic is this, dropping us outside and leaving?"
The old man didn’t even look back and already preparing to leave.
"I said I’d bring you to Mellow City, and I did. From here on, you use those feet to go wherever you want. And oh yeah...try not to die."
With that, the falcon shot back into the sky and vanished into the darkness.
"You are definitely not getting a five-star rating from me." Marty said funnily.
After the visage of the falcon disappeared, both Zac and Marty turned toward the city. The entire city burned like scattered fireworks in the night sky. Even from outside... they could hear the collapsing buildings and roaring monsters.
Zac quickly equipped the leather armor he had bought earlier and gripped his D-rank sword firmly in his hand.
Marty also switched into his battle gear.
With a massive shield in one hand, a heavy axe in the other, and thick armor covering his entire body, he stood there like a mountain covered in armor.
Zac glanced at him. "Can you even move with all that weight?" Marty snorted. "I’m a Tank, remember? This is necessary for my class."
Without wasting time, the two of them began heading toward Marty’s house.
On the way, they cut down every low-level monster they encountered.
Marty couldn’t help but stare at Zac.
His speed, efficiency, and the precision of his kills. Even though he is seeing it with his own eyes he still can’t believe the fact that his once kind-hearted friend is butchering the monsters without batting an eye.
Since Marty’s house was on the western side of the city, they didn’t run into too many monsters along the way. Within half an hour, they reached the house.
Calling it a house was an understatement. It was a massive private estate with high iron fences covering from all sides. As Zac stepped forward to open the gate, Marty suddenly stopped him.
"Wait. Don’t touch it." Zac turned. "What happened?"
"The gate and the entire compound are electrified," Marty said. "If anyone touches it, they’ll get electrocuted instantly."
Zac gave him a look. Marty scratched his head awkwardly. "My dad is... a bit cautious."
"Caution is good but don’t you think this is way over the edge."
Marty shrugged. "It’s not always active. But in situations like this, it becomes useful. That’s why he installed it."
"Is your dad a clairvoyant?" Zac asked.
Marty let out a short laugh. "Nhaa...He’s just paranoid."
Zac glanced at the electrified gate. "Then how are we getting inside?"
Marty walked up to a small camera near the gate and showed his face. "Dad, it’s me. Marty. Open the gate if you’re inside."
The gate unlocked automatically, and the two of them rushed in, heading straight to the bunker in the basement.
The moment they reached the entrance, the bunker door swung open and Marty’s father rushed out, grabbing both of them and pulling them in.
Inside the bunker, Zac saw Marty’s father and a few others with tensed expressions.
"Marty! How are you here? Weren’t you in Maroon City? Who told you to come now? Where’s your mother? Didn’t she come with you?" he fired off question after question without pause.
"Dad, it’s nothing like that. Mom is still in Maroon City, and she is safe. I just came to check if you’re okay."
"Marty, you know we have a bunker here!" his father said worriedly. "If there’s danger, you know I’ll hide here, right? So why did you come at a time like this? What if something had happened to you?"
He pulled Marty into a tight embrace.
Zac stood quietly watching the father and son, thoughts about his own father crossed his mind.
After checking Marty for injuries and finding none, his father turned to Zac. "Oh, Zac... you’re alright too?"
"Yes, Uncle. I’m fine."
"Good... good." He nodded, then frowned slightly. "How did your mothers even let you both come here?"
Marty began, "That’s actually..." But before he could answer Zac cut in smoothly.
"Uncle, we came just to make sure you’re safe. Now that we’ve seen that you are... can you open the bunker? I need to go to the Association building immediately."
"No. Absolutely not." He shook his head firmly. "There are monsters roaming outside right now. I don’t care if both of you have awakened or not, I’m not letting you walk out into that mess."
He let out a tense breath before continuing. "And it’s not just ordinary monsters either. I just received information about an A-Rank beast entering the city. Monsters like that never move alone. If there’s an A-Rank, then there are definitely B and C-Rank creatures nearby too."
He looked at them seriously. "If you run into even one of those things... no one can promise you’ll make it back alive."
"Uncle, everything you’re saying is true, but I have to go to the Association building no matter what. If I don’t... it could lead to something far worse."
He immediately frowned. "What could possibly be worse than getting yourself killed? Just stay inside this bunker until the monsters are cleared out, there’s enough food and amenities here, even plenty of things to keep you occupied while you wait."
Marty hesitated. "Dad, I..."
His father shot him a quick look, stopping him from further talking. But Marty took a breath and spoke anyway.
"Dad... you’re right. But if Zac doesn’t go to the association right now, it could become dangerous not just for him, but for his entire family."
Marty’s father closed his eyes, taking a moment to think.
"My rational mind tells me the safest thing to do is stay hidden in the bunker. That’s what anyone should do during a beast tide like this."
He opened his eyes again. "But... the way you’re insisting on this... I can’t ignore it either."
He looked at Zac. "I don’t know your reason, but I believe there must be an important one."
Zac gave a firm nod. "Alright. Go. But be sure to keep yourself safe, if you saw any strong monsters don’t face is and run immediately ok."
The bunker door opened, and Zac stepped outside. Marty immediately tried to follow, but his father grabbed his arm and pulled him back.
"Where do you think you’re going?"
"Dad! How can we let him go alone?"
"It’s his decision. I can’t stop him. But you..." He tightened his grip slightly. "You’re not setting a single foot outside this bunker, and Zac, please be safe. Plus, don’t tell Debora and Martha that I was the one who let you go."
Before Marty could argue any further, the bunker door shut once again.
Outside, without looking back, Zac sprinted toward the association building, cutting through the chaos like a bullet from a barrel.
***
Contrary to the other parts of the city, the eastern side was relatively quiet, with no monsters in sight.
A huge tree is rapidly growing while absorbing all the mana from the surroundings. Near the tree a man with an ash-colored robe is watching the tree’s growth while grinning. "It’s almost time."
