ACE and his team jogged into the battlefield, their movements disciplined, like soldiers executing a morning drill.
As ACE passed by Vina, he blinked in surprise. "Vina, what the hell is this?"
Vina swung her hammer, slamming it into the iron plating on Big Bob's chest with a snarl. "Not a 'thing.' An enemy. Now help me take it down."
ACE snapped to attention and charged in with the [Death] squad, joining the fight against Big Bob.
Seeing reinforcements arrive, the headscarfed man retreated to a nearby rooftop, watching from a distance.
Despite being surrounded, Big Bob remained unfazed. His absurdly high defense let him shrug off most attacks, while the massive chainsaw in his hands kept everyone at bay.
In the midst of battle, Vina shot ACE a glare. "Aren't you Death Squad guys supposed to be the best? How did a few infected slow you down for this long?"
ACE raised his shield to block a strike meant for Vina, his voice strained. "We handled our end. But a woman showed up out of nowhere and threw everything into chaos."
Vina ducked under a swing. "A woman? One person stalled all of you?"
"She's an infected," ACE gritted out. "And she fights in a way I can't explain."
Vina glanced at Big Bob. "And what about this freak?"
"I told you—it's weird. If you don't believe me, see for yourself. Shit—she's here."
At the far end of the empty street, a woman appeared.
She was tall—at least 1.75 meters—with long silver hair cascading past her shoulders. Cold, pale blue eyes peered out from beneath her bangs, her expression as frigid as the winter air. A pair of long, pointed ears marked her as a Cautus.
She moved with unshakable confidence, her every step measured, graceful, and deliberate.
Yoren, watching from a distance, felt a chill crawl down his spine. The air itself seemed to grow colder the moment she arrived.
Who was she?
Who was this woman who had forced ACE and the Death Squad to retreat?
Yoren searched his memory. It was three years before the Chernobog riots. Faces and fates would still change between now and then.
One thing was certain—she was an infected, and she was aligned with Big Bob.
And she was dangerous.
"No matter who she is," Vina growled, "we take her down now."
ACE caught her by the arm. "Vina, don't rush in. Her abilities are—"
"Which is exactly why we need to stop her here," Vina snapped. "We can't let her get to Kate and the others."
The headscarfed man smirked and called down to the approaching woman.
"Shuangyue. Took you long enough."
Yoren's heart skipped a beat.
Shuangyue?
Was that her name?
As she neared, the headscarfed man turned to Vina and the others, his voice dripping with amusement. "Hahaha… The game is over. Your strength impresses me, but unfortunately, I don't have time to turn you into infected. The Ursus army will arrive in Mandel City soon, and I have preparations to make. As for you? Just die here."
His grin faded as he looked down at Shuangyue. "Do it."
Shuangyue didn't hesitate. She reached into her coat and retrieved a perfectly smooth crystal—Originium.
Yoren's stomach dropped. "Vina, be careful!"
Shuangyue clenched her fingers. The Originium in her palm shattered, and an eerie blue glow rippled outward from her feet.
"Vina! ACE! Get out of there!" Yoren shouted. "She's unleashing a powerful Originium technique!"
A sudden, biting cold filled the air.
"Bang!"
An enormous spike of ice erupted from the ground. Vina barely dodged in time, rolling sideways as the icicle burst through the spot where she'd stood.
And then it began.
"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The street cracked and buckled as countless ice spikes shot up from the ground, like jagged teeth. Shuangyue stood at the center of the storm, her body wreathed in an ethereal blue glow, her power reshaping the battlefield.
The [Death] squad scattered, narrowly avoiding the onslaught. Some weren't fast enough—deep, bloody cuts appeared across their legs where the ice had grazed them.
Laughter echoed from the rooftop. "It's useless," the headscarfed man taunted. "None of you are leaving here alive. As long as she's in Mandel City, Shuangyue is the strongest infected in the world!"
The street was unrecognizable, an icy graveyard of frozen spires.
Vina wiped the blood from her cheek, her grip tightening on her hammer. With a roar, she slammed it into the ground.
"Bang!"
The impact shattered the ice around her, sending shards flying into the air.
But before she could react, a shadow loomed behind her.
Big Bob.
His chainsaw descended, and Vina barely raised her hammer in time to block it. The force drove her to one knee.
Then the frost returned.
A wave of blue light rippled across the battlefield. Vina felt the freezing touch of magic creeping up her legs.
She looked down—her feet were frozen solid.
She wasn't the only one. ACE and the Death Squad were all rooted in place, trapped by Shuangyue's spell.
Big Bob lifted his chainsaw again, preparing the final blow.
Vina raised her hammer to block, but her body ached, her strength waning.
Yoren clenched his fists, eyes burning with frustration. "No…"
He turned to the rooftop, his gaze locking onto the headscarfed man. "You bastard."
The man finally noticed Yoren standing at the edge of the battlefield. His lips curled into a wicked smile.
"Oh? I almost forgot about you." He tilted his head. "You were pretty good at throwing rocks. Now it's my turn."
Before Yoren could react, the man leapt from the rooftop, dagger flashing.
Yoren stumbled back, his foot slipping. He crashed onto the frozen ground, the world slowing to a crawl.
Kate, Vina, Guigui, and ACE all saw it.
Yoren was defenseless. The headscarfed man would cut him down in seconds.
No one could reach him in time.
Yoren saw the dagger's edge glint in the dim light.
So this was it.
The flag wasn't broken after all.
He, Yoren, was going to die here. In a world that wasn't his own.
His heart pounded in terror. His body locked up. He couldn't even resist.
He thought he had accepted the risk when he chose to return to Terra.
But now, staring death in the face, he realized the truth.
He didn't want to die.
"Yoren!" Vina's voice rang out.
She knocked Big Bob's chainsaw aside, turned, and hurled her warhammer straight at Yoren.
The headscarfed man closed the distance. Three steps. Two. One.
The dagger plunged forward.
A flash of metal. A burst of pain in Yoren's shoulder.
His vision blurred as he saw Big Bob pin Vina to the ground.
Then everything faded to black.
Blood splattered against the wall, staining a tattered poster of Rem.
With a dull thud, Yoren collapsed onto his bed.
His phone—his link to another world—was trapped beneath him.
In the room.
Yoren stared at the ceiling, his mind blank, his body limp with exhaustion. He lay motionless on the pillow, his breath coming in ragged gasps.
He was alive.
That was the first thought that registered.
He flexed his fingers, then slowly pushed himself up with his arms. His hand brushed against something hard. He looked down.
A phone. His phone. Lying quietly on the bed.
His gaze traveled around the room.
Yes. This was his room. He was back.
Yoren knelt on the bed, palms pressed against the blood-stained sheets. Sweat dripped from his forehead, dotting the fabric below. His shoulder throbbed with pain—a sharp, searing reminder that this wasn't a dream.
With an empty expression, he rolled off the bed. The moment his feet hit the floor, his legs gave out, and he collapsed onto the ground.
Blood soaked his hands, his shoulder wound seeping freely. He leaned against the bed frame, fingers trembling uncontrollably.
Those who had never been at death's door wouldn't understand.
For one brief, excruciating moment, he had been certain he was going to die. If the turbaned man's dagger had slashed his throat instead of his shoulder, he wouldn't even have the right to tremble right now.
Yoren forced himself to take deep, steadying breaths. He clenched his fists, trying to stop the shaking.
He wasn't dead. He wasn't dead.
Damn it. If he wasn't dead, then the game wasn't over yet.
At the last moment, his body had been yanked back from Terra. From everyone else's perspective, he must have disappeared in an instant, as if he had simply ceased to exist.
It might have looked like an emergency escape mechanism, but Yoren knew better.
This wasn't some failsafe. It was pure chance.
The rules of his travel between worlds were clear—he could choose when to enter Terra, but he had no control over when he was pulled back.
Like buying a one-way international flight. He could pick his departure date, but his return was dictated by some unseen force, like an expired visa forcing him out.
And the so-called "escape" just now? A coincidence, nothing more.
He had proof.
The pain in his shoulder.
That dagger had struck him. If Vina hadn't thrown her hammer in desperation, knocking the turbaned man off balance, he wouldn't have made it back at all.
Vina had saved him.
A cold realization settled over him.
Time in both worlds continued as usual.
Which meant—
"Vina! Vina!"
Panic surged through him. The last thing he had seen before vanishing was Vina, disarmed and pinned beneath Big Bob.
No. He didn't have time to sit here shaking. He had to go back.
Yoren pushed himself off the ground, ignoring the blood seeping from his wound. His phone was dead. He plugged it into the charger with shaking hands.
He had to go back.
He had to save Vina.
He had to save everyone.
But as he clutched the phone, his frantic thoughts slowed.
How?
Even before Frostmoon arrived, the battle had been barely manageable. Once she showed up, everything tilted against them. But Vina was strong, the Glasgow gang could still fight, and Guigui could defend herself. As long as they weren't all frozen at once, there was still a chance to retreat.
He knew the truth.
Among everyone in that battle, he had been the weak link.
If Vina hadn't thrown her weapon to save him, she wouldn't have been pinned down.
If he returned now, in the middle of that chaos, he might make things worse.
No. He couldn't go back. Not yet.
He had to wait. Wait until they escaped, wait for the right moment to reunite with them.
All he could do now was hope.
Stripping off his bloodstained coat and mask, Yoren stumbled into the bathroom. He splashed cold water onto his face, washing away the grime and sweat.
His shoulder wasn't too bad—the cut was deep, but the bone was intact. Still, it needed to be treated.
The morning sun cast a pale glow into his room.
The alarm clock read 7:20 AM.
Yoren changed into fresh clothes, unplugged his now half-charged phone, and stepped outside.
After wandering the neighborhood for a while, he found a small clinic that had just opened for the day.
Inside, a bald doctor was sweeping the floor. On the table nearby sat a fresh serving of soy milk and fried dough sticks.
Seeing Yoren enter, the doctor set down the broom. "What's wrong, kid?"
Yoren sat at the examination table and pulled down his shirt to reveal his wound. "Got a pretty bad cut. Patch me up."
The doctor squinted at the injury. "Damn, how'd you do that?"
"Cat scratch."
"A cat scratch? Don't bullshit me. This is a knife wound. You get into a fight?"
Yoren waved a hand dismissively. "No, no. Just messing around with some friends and got nicked."
The doctor grabbed his shoulder for a closer look. "You really should get stitches at a hospital. It'll heal better."
"No need. Just give me a tetanus shot, disinfect it, and wrap it up. I'll manage."
The doctor sighed. "Young people these days, acting all tough."
By the time Yoren left the clinic, it was nearly 8:00 AM.
Then another realization hit him.
He hadn't been to school in three days.
A bitter smile tugged at his lips. He had just survived a life-or-death battle, and now he was worrying about school?
Still, he knew he couldn't return to Terra yet. The safest option was to wait until nightfall.
If he went home and did nothing, his mind would spiral. He needed a distraction.
So, after grabbing a quick breakfast, he headed for school.
Stepping through the school gates felt surreal. It was like stepping out of a cinema after watching a mind-bending sci-fi film. His body was here, but his mind was still trapped in another world.
As he walked into the classroom, he saw Zhang Yuan standing at the podium, holding a broken broomstick like a microphone.
"Apurupai, Apurupai, Apurupai!"
Yoren sighed and silently walked up behind him.
Then he kicked him in the ass.
Zhang Yuan spun around, eyes widening as he took in Yoren's face.
Five seconds of stunned silence.
Then Zhang Yuan pointed dramatically at him and yelled,
"HOLY SHIT, YOU'RE STILL ALIVE?!"