Rayen stood beside the old man, his grip tightening on his shadow sword. Why would High-Silver rankers appear here? Is this bastard some kind of emperor in disguise?His throat tightened as he assessed the five officers. I couldn't even scratch one of them...What about you, old man? He glanced sideways at his grandfather.
The old man's face remained still, but turmoil raged within. Should I kill them all before they discover Rayen is a Cursed One? His fingers twitched toward his cane. But slaughtering my own peoples goes against my pride... What should I do?
Rayen stood frozen as his eyes darted between the five IAR officers. His attention snapped to the woman at the center—the only one wearing a polished military cap adorned with a single silver star that gleamed under the district's neon lights. The way the other four officers stood half-a-step behind her, their postures rigid with deference, made her authority undeniable.
That star badge... She's their captain, Rayen realized, his shadow sword flickering weakly in his grip. If even High-Silver rankers submit to her, how strong must she—
The starred woman tilted her chin up, her voice cutting through the tension like a blade. "Enough theatrics." Her gloved hand rested casually on the hilt of a saber that radiated restrained power. "We're here for answers."
"What answers?" the old man asked, his eyes darting around, clearly searching for an escape while trying to keep them engaged in conversation.
"First of all, I'm Ashley Kruger, captain of the IAR Special Force of the city of Mira," she introduced herself, placing her right hand over her heart.
Then she pointed at Rayen. "And the answer we want is why this kid impersonated an IAR officer. That's a serious offense against the Empire's Internal Affairs Regiment." She turned her gaze to Lin Xiaolu, who was hiding behind the old man. "Even if your excuse is that this girl was getting harassed and you saved her by pretending to be an IAR officer, it's still a criminal act. The Empire doesn't tolerate that."
Rayen smirked. "Oh? So your Empire is that weak? Can't even handle something like this, and yet you people keep yapping about taking down the Demon Empire? That's straight-up bullshit."
Ashley was shocked by his words and his tone. "Wha— How dare you insult the Human Empire and its people?"
She started analyzing him, both outside and inside, and what she saw made her sweat. From her perspective, a strange red aura was coming out of his body. It wasn't human. It was something else entirely.
Is he…? Is he a Cursed One? But then, why is he with that old man?
She shifted her focus to the old man. He had no presence.
That's impossible. That means he's hiding his presence. But still... it doesn't change the fact that this kid Rayen is a Cursed One. And if he is one, then he's dangerous. I need to contact the Kingdom's other special forces.
She raised her hand at him. "Give me your identity card."
Rayen thought for a bit and nodded to him. Oh, that card from the game... the one that shows which Civilization I'm from. But I don't have one. Grandpa never gave me one.
"But I don't have one... Grandpa never told me about it."
Her hand trembled. "Then how the hell have you been living here without a card?"
Rayen answered with a cocky smile, "Who said I live here? I'm from the Greenlands. That's where our home is—just me and Grandpa. Come visit sometime for tea."
She gritted her teeth. "Catch this Cursed One and his grandfather!"
I've sent the message about a Cursed One to all active forces in the Kingdom through telepathy. They'll be here any moment. Before this kid and his grandfather run away, we need to catch them. His grandpa's been hiding him in the Greenlands, and now he's right in front of us. We won't let this chance slip!
Lin Xiaolu stepped back. What? Sir is a Cursed One? No... that's impossible. That has to be fake! But... but...
Rayen looked at them with anger as she said that. "Who said I'm a Cursed One?"
But before he could react, the IAR officers were already rushing at him.
What's with this speed?
He dodged them, thanks to his dodging training with the needles.
One of the officers charged again, pulling out his saber. He was already on Rayen in the blink of an eye. Rayen dodged—or at least he thought he did—but the officer rolled to his side and slashed at him, slicing off his hand.
Rayen dropped to his knees, gritting his teeth in pain. This is fucking painful!
Another officer charged at him, but suddenly, he was slammed to the ground by a spirit pressure.
The boss, who had been enjoying the fight like a cinematic movie, suddenly found himself stuck to the ground. "What the hell is this?"
Even Ashley was forced to her knees, but she slowly stood back up, gritting her teeth hard to keep from biting off her tongue.
The one behind that spirit pressure was none other than the old man. Now, Ashley could finally sense his presence—and that alone made her feel hopeless.
He's a high-Gold ranker… or maybe even higher. Possibly a low-Upper ranker. In the entire Human Empire, there are only two IAR special force units that have low-Upper rankers. No IAR officer in the whole Empire ranks beyond that. Who the hell is this old man?
Rayen's hand began to heal, leaving Ashley even more shocked and terrified.
How can he heal himself like that? He's dangerous… seriously dangerous. Where are the other forces? Why are they taking so long?!
Rayen stood up and started walking toward the old man and Lin Xiaolu. He glanced at Lin Xiaolu.
The night sky was hidden behind thick clouds, and the mist made it impossible to see anything far off. Rain poured heavily, and the ground in the slums was soaked in mud, making strange squelching sounds with every step Rayen took.
Lin Xiaolu kept stepping back. What should I do? What is Sir trying to do? Why is he coming toward me?
"Don't you dare touch that girl, you curse!" Ashley yelled at Rayen, trying to move her body—but she couldn't.
Rayen was now standing in front of her. Lin Xiaolu couldn't move back—too scared, too confused to react.
Rayen slowly opened his mouth. "Lin Xiaolu… go back. Go back to your home and find a new lover. You don't belong here. Leave, before they drag you in just for standing beside a Cursed One."
Lin Xiaolu clenched her fists, looking down. "Bu-but still... you helped me, and I want to repa—"
"It doesn't matter. Now leave!" Rayen yelled.
The boss, still stuck to the ground, was enjoying the moment like some melodrama.
Lin Xiaolu backed off and started running, passing by the boss and the IAR officers. But suddenly, time seemed to freeze—or maybe it was her seeing her death. From the mist, a claw emerged, about to tear into her eye.
What should I do? I'm going to die...
"Ruyi Jingu Bang!"
The claw was knocked back by a magical staff, just before it could reach her. The staff flew back to its owner—Rayen.
He looked at Ashley. "You called backup?"
From the mist, four active IAR squads appeared.
And just like that, the pressure that had been pinning Ashley, the other IAR officers, and the boss to the ground vanished.
There are more squads now. Not just one. I can't fight them all, and keeping them down with my spirit pressure is draining my old body too much. We need to run. Now that they've identified Rayen being a cursed one and know our house's location too. We need to escape the Human Empire, the old man thought.
The mist slowly began to clear as the other IAR forces walked toward them. Behind them were three beasts—one of them, a mutated wolf with the same claw that had attacked Lin Xiaolu.
So they have Beast Tamers too. Judging by their presence, they're all High-Silver... maybe even low-Gold rankers. I can't handle them. Grandpa could—but he's too old now, and he won't fight because of his pride.
What can we do? Think! Think!
Rayen and the old man both closed their eyes for a moment—then came up with the simplest way to avoid fighting.
They opened their eyes.
"RUN!"