Chapter 49: A Saviour Arrives
Kalon kept an arm around her shoulders, holding her close as the room settled into a comfortable silence.
Neither of them spoke for several minutes.
Outside, the city continued on as normal, faint voices and distant footsteps filtering through the windows.
Inside, however, it felt as though the world had paused just for them.
Josinia rested her head against his shoulder. Her cheeks remained flushed.
"I was so nervous," she admitted with a small laugh. "I thought I’d embarrass myself."
Kalon smiled.
"You had nothing to worry about. As I said, you were perfect down there."
She looked up at him, searching his face. Her cheeks were even darker than before.
"You really mean that?"
"I do."
The answer made her smile widen.
She shifted closer until they were pressed comfortably against one another, enjoying the warmth that each of them gave off.
"I don’t want tonight to end," she eventually said.
"It doesn’t have to, yet," Kalon replied. "We can stay like this for a little while."
She nodded happily.
...
The two of them remained on the sofa, talking quietly about small things. Josinia spoke about growing up on Venduros. In return, Kalon told her stories about Earth.
He could only tell her stories that didn’t involve himself, as his own stories were filled with nothing but depression.
Josinia listened with sparkling eyes.
"It sounds peaceful."
"It has its problems, as you know," Kalon said, "but things are getting better for me."
She reached over and intertwined her fingers with his.
"I hope I get to see it one day."
Kalon looked down at their joined hands before giving them a gentle squeeze.
"I’d like that."
...
Eventually, he had spent a few hours on Venduros and decided that it was time to return.
He said his goodbyes to the woman before activating his system.
She watched him the entire time.
[Initiating Travel Sequence...]
[Adapting body to suit conditions...]
[...]
[You have arrived!]
[Welcome to Cryos!]
...
...
...
When Kalon arrived on Cryos, other than the strong cold that stung his skin, he immediately knew that something wasn’t right.
There was a strong smell in the air. A smell that reminded him of iron, but he knew better than that.
It was blood.
Kalon found himself standing on a grassy field in the middle of a blizzard.
Icicles flew through the air, attacking him viciously, but not enough to do any damage.
He couldn’t see further than a meter ahead of him. He also couldn’t hear anything except the sound of the strong winds.
System... what the fuck is going on here?
Kalon had to brace his feet against the grass in order to stop himself from sliding about the place.
Eventually, he was given an answer.
「This is known as the Ice Horde. Every Sunday, a blizzard filled with vicious monsters attacks the planet of Cryos. All Cryons are forced to remain under curfew in their homes, whilst those who have been selected stay out and fight.」
So this was the Ice Horde that he had heard about.
Still, something wasn’t making sense.
Didn’t I choose to teleport to Sifa’s location? Last time I checked, she isn’t eligible to hunt?
The system didn’t answer at first.
「Correct!」
Kalon grit his teeth in anger.
"Then where is she?!"
This time, he spoke the words aloud, as though the system was the one to blame.
Still, the loyal system responded.
「Look down, Host, and you should be able to find her.」
Kalon did exactly that.
Which was when he realised that there were droplets of glowing crystal in the icy grass.
It was Cryon blood.
Although he couldn’t see far ahead of him, the trail was easy enough to follow. It continued in a straight line directly ahead of him.
Shit, shit, shit!
Kalon cursed over and over again as he pushed through the blizzard, following the trail of blood.
Eventually, after a minute of following it, he reached a location where the blizzard had faded a little.
Just enough for him to see the scene that was set out in front of him.
There, standing ahead, was the source of the blood.
Sifa.
She was dressed in her all-white uniform, but it now had a vicious gash going across the arm.
Her back was slightly hunched, and she was slowly trying to crawl herself away from a creature that was only a few meters behind her.
This creature could only be described as an extremely malnourished gorilla. Its fur was white with icicles frosted through it, and it stood roughly six feet tall. At the end of its fingers were three-inch-long claws that dripped with blood.
The way the malnourished gorilla wasn’t chasing after Sifa immediately made something clear to Kalon.
The creature was toying with her.
It was finding enjoyment in her weak helplessness.
The thought alone brought rage into Kalon’s heart.
He whistled to draw the creature’s attention. It didn’t waste a second turning around.
Kalon caught a glimpse of its face.
It was ugly beyond comprehension. Not only that, but its eyes were like black buttons, and its face was twisted into a constant smile that didn’t show any teeth.
Sifa risked looking back.
When she saw Kalon, she finally allowed herself to collapse to the ground.
Tears fell from her eyes. Before, they were tears of pain, but now they flowed because of relief.
Somehow, she knew that his arrival meant that she was safe.
The gorilla turned its attention away from the woman and towards the man.
It was having fun terrifying the woman, and now this man had come to ruin it.
It would have to temporarily put the chase on hold to deal with this minor problem.
The gorilla suddenly began crawling on all fours toward Kalon, just as a gorilla would. It made monkey noises that echoed through the air as it prepared to crush its prey.
As for Kalon, he remained calm.
He wasted no time activating Ninefold Sunbreaker, allowing the flaming spheres to orbit around his body.