Chapter 42 : End of the Childhood

It felt like a dream.

The world was ablaze, and my sister looked down at me with a sad expression.

“Sorry for leaving you alone.”

It’s okay. You don’t have to be sorry. Just stay with me like this, and that’s enough.

But against my wishes, she turned and began to walk away.

No. Don’t go.

“Bye, my sister.”

With her farewell, I woke from the dream.

“Are you awake?”

Lycan noticed Ruby stirring in his arms and spoke.

Blinking groggily, the girl scanned her surroundings and asked in an anxious voice.

“Where’s my sister…?”

“Shh. Stay quiet for now.”

At that moment, voices echoed nearby.

“Hey! Nothing over there!?”

“Doesn’t seem like it. Hiding somewhere, making this a pain.”

Whether they were Ikazuchi’s men or mercs looking to sell them out, the situation was bad. Normally, Lycan would’ve brushed off such small fry with a scoff, but after back-to-back battles, he was utterly exhausted.

Hiding in a corner, he slashed the throat of an approaching enemy with his blade. As the foe’s ally panicked at the death, Lycan made a swift escape.

“There! It’s Red Dog!!”

“Kill him!!”

Bang! Bang!!

“Tch…!”

Grimacing as bullets grazed his shoulder and waist, he ran with all his strength. Ruby stared at the blood soaking his body, her lips sealed.

How long did they run? Finally, they reached Red Dog’s hideout. Heading straight to the garage, Lycan placed Ruby in the passenger seat, breathing heavily as he spoke with effort.

“Wait here. The team will be here soon.”

“What about my sister?”

“…”

“Where is she right now? Tell me.”

“What’s the point? You gonna go to her alone?”

“Yes.”

To the childish whim, Lycan replied coldly.

“Don’t be stupid.”

“If she’s gone, you guys mean nothing to me.”

Click. A gun aimed at a comrade without hesitation. The cold gaze of a child.

An act impossible for a normal girl made Lycan realize something in her was broken.

“Your sister gave her life to protect you. If you want to throw that away, I won’t stop you.”

“…Who asked for that? All I needed was her! What’s wrong with that!?”

He’d thought she was just a quiet, stoic kid with little emotion. Her affection toward her sister seemed like mere shyness.

But he was wrong. She simply felt no need to connect emotionally with anyone but her sister.

“Then live for her share too.”

As their eyes clashed in the air, a presence approached from outside the garage.

“Stay in the car and wait.”

Lycan stepped out to scout.

“Freeze.”

Feeling a gun aimed precisely at the back of his head, he sensed his end. He quickly recognized the voice’s owner.

“Impressive ambush, Sheriff.”

“Not even you can dodge a bullet at this range.”

“True. You’ve earned the right to kill me.”

Lycan stood still, not resisting. He was too exhausted, and he owed her a debt.

Sheriff Reina, voice trembling, couldn’t steady herself as she asked.

“Why… Why did you kill him? It didn’t have to come to that…”

“No special reason. Isn’t that just Neotopia? A city built on corpses, killing and being killed. Now it’s my turn to die.”

The flames had spread to the nearby bar. In what might be his final moments, Lycan worried about the little girl left alone in the car.

‘Well, guess it doesn’t matter now.’

The ending felt a bit hollow, but it wasn’t a bad life, all things considered. He accepted his fate with some satisfaction.

Reina bit her lip, slowly tightening her finger on the trigger.

And then.

Click. Handcuffs snapped onto Lycan’s wrists.

“…What’s this?”

“I hate you so much I could shoot you dead right now… But pulling the trigger would make me just like you. Neotopia’s always been this way? Then I’ll change it. I’ll lock up scum like you, make you pay for your crimes, and change it…!!”

This man killed her mentor, true, but the white-haired girl spared her life when she could’ve ended it.

So there’s no such thing as “that’s just how it is.” Tragedy isn’t fated—it’s born from choices. Pulling the trigger for revenge would only perpetuate the cycle of tragedy.

Lycan let out a hollow laugh.

“…Yeah. That’s not bad.”

The tension drained, and the willpower he’d been forcing began to fade.

He needed to mention Ruby in the garage… But his heavy eyelids gave out, and Lycan collapsed like a marionette with cut strings.

“Hey? Suddenly…? Snap out of it!”

Thinking it might be a trick, Reina realized he’d genuinely fainted and felt at a loss.

“How am I supposed to drag this giant alone…?”

Unable to lift him, she grabbed his legs, dragging him along the ground as she left.

And then. Ruby remained alone in the garage, waiting endlessly.

“…”

It’s okay. She’ll definitely come back. She always does.

The flames had reached the hideout. No human sounds remained—only the crackling of fire filled the world.

“Sis…?”

Through the window, Ruby saw the fleeting image of her sister, the one she’d waited for. But it was swallowed by the flames, a mirage vanishing.

Unable to tell if it was real or a hallucination, Ruby felt her breath catch in the stifling heat of the car.

It’s suffocating. Should I escape now? But what if she can’t find me if I do?

The scene from her dream resurfaced.

Her sister looking at her in a burning world, just like now.

“Sorry for leaving you alone.”

It’s okay. You don’t have to be sorry. Just… come back, whenever that is.

Don’t abandon me. I don’t want to be left alone again.

The scene shifted. Their old home. A body hanging, tongue grotesquely extended. Their mother’s final image.

Cowering in a corner, unable to escape, burying her face in her knees.

No. I don’t want to go back to that time…

Her sister stood at the door, looking down with cold eyes before turning away.

“Bye, my sister.”

‘Am I being abandoned?’

“Bye, my sister.”

‘No. She wouldn’t leave me.’

“Bye, my sister.”

Her sister’s voice replayed endlessly.

The hanging body cackled, speaking in a deep male voice.

“Your sister gave her life to protect you.”

‘So she’s dead…?’

“Sorry for leaving you alone.”

“Byemysisterbyemysisterbyemysisterbyemysisterbyemysisterbyemysisterbyemysisterbyemysisterbyemysisterbyemysisterbyemysisterbyemysisterbyemysisterbyemysisterbyemysister…”

Burying her face in her knees on the passenger seat, Ruby didn’t move. Even as the flames crept into the garage, threatening her life, she was lost in panic, unable to grasp reality.

‘She’s not coming back. Then what…’

What am I living for?

“Then live for her share too.”

Lycan’s voice and a sudden memory flashed.

‘I promise. I’ll never die. Let’s leave Rat Town together and go there.’

We promised under the stars. You said you’d never die.

“…Liar.”

Bang! Crash!!

A noise startled Ruby, and she looked up. Franklin, having shot the car window, clicked his tongue.

“No answer when I call, and you lock the door? Idiot!”

Ruby stared blankly and muttered.

“…Smells like booze.”

It hurts like death. Or maybe I’m already dead. Perhaps I’m being punished in hell.

Sadly, my guess seems wrong.

“You crazy b*tch… I nearly died because of you. If that lightning had been off by a hair, we’d both be charcoal.”

Yeah. I failed, huh? Kinda regret not killing this bastard.

“Do you even know what you’ve done? You crashed the city’s entire power grid. Fire suppression failed, and the blaze has spread beyond Rat Town. How’s it feel to be the arsonist of Neotopia’s worst fire in history?”

Great fire. The words dazed me. It’s an event from the original story. A significant one.

The cause of the protagonist losing their parents. In other words, Ruby, my sister, was supposed to start this fire.

“…Heh. Ha.”

A hollow laugh escaped, but the pain stifled it. Only a pathetic wheeze came out.

I don’t even know what’s what anymore. My body won’t move a finger, and my mind’s fading in and out.

I instinctively knew this was my end. I was dying.

“Want to live?”

What’s the point of asking? Of course I do.

“See this syringe? It’s a suppressant for Stone side effects. It won’t save a dying person, but it can keep you breathing a bit longer. Follow me after the shot, and I might get you treated.”

Follow? I didn’t understand.

“Your talent is real. With some polishing, you could grow far beyond now. And we need talent.”

A recruitment pitch after we just fought to the death? Maybe the lightning fried his brain.

“Ever heard of Old City? The corporate wars there are brutal. Wave’s a real pain. I could handle it, but I’m tied to Neotopia. Go there, fight for Ikazuchi, and take out our enemies. Become a White Wolf.”

An absurd proposal, not worth hearing. But he added an offer I couldn’t refuse.

“It’s a mutual deal. Accept, and I’ll leave your sister and comrades alone. I’ll even wipe your record clean.”

What a vile, filthy deal.

“What’s it gonna be? You in?”

Become Ikazuchi’s dog after they destroyed everything? I’d rather die, my mind screamed.

But I looked up at the dark night sky, at the stars shining brighter than usual. Family, always like unreachable stars to me.

The chance to see Ruby again made my choice simple.

“…Fine.”

That was my limit.

Just before my eyes closed, I felt a needle pierce my neck and lost consciousness.