THE MUTTS' HOUSE

Surprise ruled the room.

Every soldier stood frozen in astonishment—eyes stretched wide, mouths hanging open. Every reaction in the room made one thing painfully clear: even they had never known about their boss's power. It wasn't every day you saw someone melt a pair of scissors with nothing but a subtle touch of two fingers. In movies? Sure.

But in real life, standing right there, it was a sight that forced itself into memory.

"You fucking Zabi!"

Roy shouted, loud enough for the soldiers—and the injured Marie—to hear. Veins bulged along his neck as the blue party lights washed over his skin. The calm profile and psychological control he always bragged about shattered completely, thrown out of the puzzle like it never mattered.

"I've always suspected there was something different about you! No man can be that confident around guns!"

Zabi's eyes twitched. Roy's voice carried a sharp frequency, drilling straight into his ears.

"Talk like a normal human," Zabi replied flatly. "Relax. I'll tell you whatever you want—when we get back."

The childish edge of Roy's outburst annoyed him. Zabi turned away, fixing his gaze on Marie, studying her like someone who still might be hiding another card up their sleeve.

"I really thought he'd come rushing if I killed your mother…"

Disappointment slipped into his voice.

"It's insulting that he doesn't take me seriously."

He squatted beside Marie, lifting his right arm toward her blood-soaked legs. Movement crossed her mind, but the truth hit hard—there was no point. The damage was already done. Her body refused to respond.

She was crippled.

A punishment from actions of a know it all.

Not by strangers.

Not by enemies.

By someone from her own inner circle.

Her older brother.

The one meant to protect her had done the exact opposite.

Drip!

Zabi pushed his thick fingers into the gunshot wounds, forcing them inside without hesitation. He twisted slowly, fingers dancing through torn flesh and shattered bone as blood washed over his hand, making everything worse.

"Aaah—God!"

Marie screamed, overwhelmed by pain.

Hands flew forward, pushing at him, punching blindly, throwing everything left inside her body into the effort. It didn't matter what landed—anything was better than surrendering to the pain tearing through her.

It was useless.

Zabi didn't even flinch.

The soldiers watched in silence, eyes darkened, like devils enjoying a fire they had already planned.

"You have warm blood," he said calmly, as if offering a compliment.

Drip!

His thumb rotated inside the wound, slow and deliberate, like the hand of a wall clock.

"Blame your brother," he muttered.

Nothing about the process disturbed him. His eyes showed it clearly—this wasn't his first time bringing despair to people. He was drowning in his goal, and nothing mattered as long as it pushed him closer.

Marie didn't hear his justification. Screams drowned everything out. Every word he spoke bounced back at him like stones thrown against a wall.

Even the soldiers noticed it.

"Aaa…"

Boredom slipped into his breath.

He pulled his fingers out slowly, like sticks dragged from deep mud. Before they fully withdrew, they had already passed through to the other side of her legs—unrecognizable, soaked entirely in blood.

"I no longer have use for you."

He stood, adjusting his clothes while Marie sobbed, arms wrapped tightly around her ruined legs.

Zabi drew his gun with the ease of a professional, aiming the cold muzzle to her forehead.

"I'm sorry, miss, but I can't leave anyone else alive."

A welcoming smirk spread across his face, like a worker greeting guests at a hotel.

"Standard protocol."

Pow!!

Zabi fired.

....

GENKI ZONE

Beam!!

A grim katana appeared in Ross's hands, shining violently.

[Durability increased by 40%]

The words streamed across his screen in inviting colors.

The past few minutes had been spent devouring whatever remained of the realm—spider parts, massive worms, anything left breathing. Ross savaged them without hesitation, absorbing their attributes, folding their strength into his own.

[Glory replenished: 60%]

The display updated.

"Who was that guy?"

Ross wondered.

The incident replayed clearly—the vintage-looking portal, the unfamiliar voice, and the words that forced even a reluctant Genki, one who swore he wouldn't leave the realm, to retreat.

We have been summoned.

No matter how much he searched his thoughts, answers refused to surface. Only blurred assumptions collided inside his mind.

ENDURANCE: +6 → 73

[Skill Acquired from Worm: Worm Eyes | Cost: 3% Glory]

Updates continued—things he would've celebrated if his head wasn't already full.

*******Worm Eyes allowed the worm to see above ground while maneuvering deep beneath the soil.********

"Oh well."

He cracked his neck.

"Story for another day. I need to get home."

Then—

A figure appeared before him.

Blurred at first.

Unclear.

He focused.

The boy.

Standing steady, healthier, stronger. A magnificent glow wrapped around him—something that hadn't been there before.

"It was you," the boy said slowly, voice weak, like someone who had gone too long without relief.

Ross froze. Words never came easily in moments like this. Talking to kids was worse—either something incredibly stupid or something extremely wise, never anything in between.

"The man from my dream… thank you, Mister !"

The boy smiled brightly, waving as his form slowly faded.

Something dropped inside Ross's chest—a feeling that came from watching someone struggle back onto their feet.

He waved back, smiling.

"My pleasure," he muttered.

The boy disappeared.

Warp!!

A portal opened to his right, shaped exactly like his bathroom door.

[We should get going.]

Medusaa reminded him.

He stepped through, energy surging around his body.

"Yeah. I need some rest."

...

Click!

The bathroom door opened.

Thud.

One step out.

Thud.

Another.

Sniff!

He breathed in instinctively.

"What's that smell?"

He wondered, a feeling of unease setting up.

"Activate Worm Eyes."

His eyes turned red. Everything peeled away—walls, design, illusion—leaving only what lay beneath.

"What are soldiers doing here?"

Armed mercenaries filled his vision. Looking closer, two corpses lay flat on the first floor—only part of the bloodbath spreading outside.

"What am I seeing…?"

The house he left alive now stood completely obliterated in death's.

Then—

His heart skipped.

Marie.

Sitting on the floor. Bones fractured. Surrounded by soldiers.

One man stood in front—braids, ten rings woven into his hair—gun raised.

The bullet already halfway out of the muzzle, even if he activated time freeze it would be too late because of the activation time.

Then—

Pew!!

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