The X Guide

The government covered up any news about the green zone falling into the hands of the clans. This was to stop the panic it might cause, but more so to save their reputation.

They could not publicize that they immediately lost a zone this early in the war. However, most higher-ups and those who had the means to gather the information already knew.

The expedition to reclaim the zone was almost complete. The zone was about to be a war zone, and the civilians inside would be able to experience the real hell on earth.

The clashes between the clan and government forces had not stopped since the zone fell. This was not limited to those zones but to most cities that were affected by the war.

At the extension of this event, there was more chaos because of the espers becoming busy with the war rather than clearing up dungeons and monsters.

"Did she talk yet?" The man with some features similar to Ayen spoke and asked.

They did not occupy the building of the association but instead retreated to where they set up the space fissure. It was near the dungeon mine; the buildings around it were now occupied by the clan forces.

In this batch, the Nevaris Clan was the only elite clan and considered the leader of this operation. The medium-sized clans did not have any opinion about it either.

"Man, she still refused to say anything." One man sat across from him and lit a cigarette. "Say, Aicel, she really doesn’t know a damn thing. What should we do?"

In fact, most of them did not care about this. However, Aicel, the direct descendant of the Nevaris Clan, was adamant about letting the woman point out Ayen’s location.

Some of the old-timers recognized him, but most newcomers were unaware and only heard it from rumors. After all, it had been years since he left, and only the direct descendants were still keeping tabs on him.

The man felt it was strange how they were obsessing over that E-class guide.

Aicel, leaning on his seat, lifted his gaze at him, looking lazy. A small smile on his lips. "Even if she doesn’t know. It doesn’t matter. I can use her to lure my dear cousin."

This plan might work or not. Aicel did not care. If things did not work and his cowardly cousin stayed hidden for the rest of his miserable life, the guide could still be of use.

A guide was still a guide...

The man’s lips twitched. Aicel, no, all direct descendants he encountered were this terrifying. He had already been an affiliated esper of the Nevaris clan for five years, but he had yet to understand the mental illness they had.

They seemed normal on the surface, but they had this instance where no one would think of them as one. For example, when Ayen’s name was involved.

The man could only blow out smoke, choosing not to say anything. He might find himself in a precarious situation if he did. Arguing with crazy people... not his thing.

Aicel gave the man a last glance before he closed his eyes.

Inside the makeshift room, a woman was lying on the ground. She was not even given a blanket. The corner of her lips was torn, and there was a bruise at the side of her cheek.

That was not the worst part; her left side was bleeding. Keeran’s fingers twitched as she opened her eyes. She tried to move, but the pain assaulted her again, making her wince.

She moistened her chapped lips, but her throat was too dry. She bit her lips and closed her eyes before curling into a ball.

In the end, she was still a coward, unable to kill herself. Keeran could only wait for her death. Fortunately, she put Ayen’s letter in the space trinket; these people would not be able to use it to pinpoint his location.

She sighed, and a tear trickled down her cheek. If she knew that was their last meeting, Keeran should have thanked him properly and that... told him how much she appreciated his existence.

The only one who tolerated her.

Contrary to Ayen’s guess, Keeran did not have a lot of friends. Most were acquaintances, and she was not as talkative to them either. Only to Ayen could he truly express her thoughts, even if the other seemed uninterested.

She hoped that Ayen was truly in such a safe place.

Keeran stopped thinking of anything and let herself be consumed by darkness, avoiding the night of pain.

Unbeknownst to the clan forces, especially Aicel and the Nevaris clan... trouble was quickly approaching.

One massive beast could be seen quickly traversing ruins, not caring for the land it passed on or if it accidentally trampled a monster.

Looking closely, the monster, which looked like a gigantic lizard, was not alone, and there seemed to be three people at its back.

It was precisely the trio. As soon as they decided to save Keeran, they prepared a few things and went to get Liz. They were not going to have a leisure vacation this time and needed to arrive as soon as possible.

Liz was insanely fast; smoke rose everywhere she passed by at her speed. Yet the three looked calm in her back, even when Ayen could only see afterimages of their surroundings.

The two espers were shielding him from the effect of Liz’s speed.

Liz’s movements had long attracted the attention of nearby espers, but her natural oppressive aura prevented them from approaching. They could only watch her, not even noticing the presence of three humans at her back.

Even if they wanted to, they had to chase it first, which was impossible. Liz’s ability was related to speed. And as an S-class monster who survived in the most dangerous forbidden zone and a beloved pet of two SS-class espers, no normal espers would be able to keep up with her.

Liz effortlessly traversed the path; it was simple for her, who was used to the harsh environment of the forbidden zone.