3. Cruel world

Six years ago

"Grab the boy!!" a bald man shouted as a small boy ran along the streets with a loaf of bread in his hands, quickly darting into a corner.

He was quick on his feet, climbing a fence and staying on the other side, panting as he listened.

"Where did he go?! Argh!!"

He could hear frustrated screams and then sat down on the ground, devouring the bread like it was his last meal.

After a while, the boy left the corner, only to run into another boy around his age holding a bottle of water. The black-haired boy froze as the blonde-haired boy stared at him curiously.

A pressure suddenly pushed him to the ground as a man stepped out of a black car across the street and walked toward them.

The blonde boy looked at the black-haired boy trembling on the ground and extended his hand.

"You want this?" he asked, holding out the water bottle.

The thin, black-haired boy nodded silently, and the blonde boy handed him the bottle with a small smile.

Present day

Kyle and Don walked down the street, hunter licenses in hand, their boots crunching against the gravel as they headed toward their shared apartment.

"Yeah, I remember that day," Don said with a nostalgic chuckle.

"If not for you, I'd have been out of life points. I would have surely died. So, in a way, I owe you my life," Kyle said, smiling as he glanced at his friend.

Don's laughter wavered slightly as he clenched his hands behind his back.

"The Rachel family would probably look down on you because of the low-rank talent, but we can still make a way for ourselves," Kyle said, trying to encourage him.

Don smiled faintly, though his gaze seemed distant. "Yeah, yeah. At least it's nothing to do with potatoes."

Kyle laughed loudly at Don's joke as they arrived at the apartment building. They stepped inside, and Kyle kicked off his boots, unaware of Don's shifting expression.

"Well, I guess this is fine," Don said suddenly, his tone low and unfamiliar. Kyle turned around, confused by the change in his friend's demeanor.

"What are you talking about?" Kyle asked, frowning.

Don stepped forward, his gaze cold and calculating. "You owe me your life, Kyle. But now it's time to repay that debt."

Before Kyle could react, two men in suits emerged from the shadows, blocking the exit. Kyle's heart sank as he looked between them and Don, his mind racing.

"Don… what is this?" Kyle asked, his voice trembling as he took a step back.

Don smirked as one of the men handed him a gun. "Six years. Six years of playing the loyal best friend finally comes to an end today, haha!"

Kyle's hands balled into fists as he struggled to process what was going on.

"What the hell are you saying? Is this some kind of prank, bro?"

Don raised the gun, pointing it at Kyle's chest. His smile was cold, devoid of any warmth. "You're nothing but a tool, Kyle. That SSS-rank talent of yours? It's wasted on someone like you. But me? I'll use it to become unstoppable."

Kyle's chest tightened as the words sank into his mind.

"Playing best friend for six years..."

The boy who saved him from the streets, gave him hope, and became his family, now held a gun aimed directly at him.

"Is it because of power? Is that truly all you want?" Kyle couldn't help but ask.

Don smiled, his tone devoid of all emotion and warmth. "Yes, I wish to be the most powerful one of them all. And you, my investment, are my ticket to achieving that."

Kyle couldn't believe it. It was like some kind of sick dream he was having.

'This is surely a prank; I've known him for six years,' Kyle thought, biting his lip.

A punch landed on Kyle's stomach, and he felt his entire body go numb. He fell to the ground, curled up in pain, squirming as he gritted his teeth hard.

The two men behind him grabbed him and pinned him to the ground, and then Kyle looked up to see Don above him with the gun.

"Please, no..." The words escaped his mouth, and Don chuckled.

"This world doesn't reward sentiment, Kyle. It's the survival of the fittest, and today, I survive."

Bang!

Outside the apartment, a few passersby looked toward the building as they heard the loud sound, and some began to disperse.

Kyle lay on the ground as his vision began to blur. He could feel a sharp pain in his chest and his entire body becoming weak.

He gasped as pain erupted in his chest, his blood staining his shirt.

"Don't… do this," Kyle rasped, his vision blurring as tears streamed down his face.

Don knelt beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder with mock gentleness. "It's nothing personal," he said softly. "Just business."

One of the men pulled out a glowing device and pressed it to Kyle's chest. Searing pain coursed through his body as the device began extracting his talent.

"ARGHHHHH!!!!" Kyle screamed in pain as it felt like his soul was being sucked from his body. He felt like flames were burning him from within, and his eyes went bloodshot red.

A red aura suddenly surrounded Kyle, and a wave of mana burst out of his body, pushing the two men back.

Kyle stood up and glanced at the room. He couldn't see anything but red lights in front of him, and his entire body was wracked with pain.

"Don!!" He waved his hand, and the blood beneath him moved toward a man, forming a straight blade that cut him in half.

The second man materialized a dagger in his hands, and then tentacles with blades at the end, made of blood, surrounded Kyle and lashed around wildly.

The man became like mist as he approached Kyle, deflecting the tentacles and protecting Don.

He suddenly turned into a white mist, moving toward Kyle, then pushed the button on the device stuck to Kyle's chest.

A red light was suddenly sucked out of his body, and he collapsed on the ground.

The man removed the device, and Don, who was on the ground in shock and fear, stood up, dusting his clothes.

"Now that was crazy. He just awakened, and he's already this strong," Don said with a smile on his face.

This is just the reality of hunters. Awakening a high-ranking talent is already a guarantee to make it big as a hunter.

'Just awakening an SSS-rank talent, he cut down a seasoned C-rank hunter with ease,' Don thought, looking at the other bodyguard he brought with him who was now in half.

The building had a hole through it, and there were cracks all around.

"Let's go." Don walked away, and the other hunter with him looked back at Kyle, who was on the ground, then left with only a sigh.

In a dark space filled with nothingness, Kyle's body floated in the quiet, vast space.

He could hear water droplets echoing in the space, and he just felt empty at that moment.

Quiet, heartbroken, betrayed...

The scene of his death played over and over again.

He couldn't tell how long he had been there, but it had been for a long time—that, he was sure of.

"Hm... What a past? You must be hurt."

Kyle looked around, not knowing where the voice was coming from, then he saw a red light floating in front of him.

"Your life is going to be nothing but dangers from now on. Do well to not die again," the voice came from the red light again.

For some reason, Kyle couldn't talk. He just stared at the light as it entered his body, and a large crack appeared in front of him, revealing another world, pulling him in.

"What's happening?" he managed to mutter as he fell through the portal.

Passing clouds, he noticed that it seemed to be Earth again, but the ground had lava and fire covering most parts of it.

He curled his body, then landed on hard concrete.

Crack!

"ARGHHHHH!"

He screamed as he felt his waist shatter from the fall, and in the next moment, the pain vanished, and he could move again.

Kyle stood up. He seemed to have landed on a small mountain. He looked down from it, and his eyes widened as he saw demonic beings below.

"Get a move on!"

Wupah!

A grotesque demon whipped humans bound by chains, making them suffer.

"Where am I?" he couldn't help but ask.

A hand suddenly grabbed him from behind, making his heart jump.

He looked to the side to see a demon with a long nose staring at him, chuckling.

"This is the one. The king would be pleased."

Kyle felt a chill down his spine as the demon licked its lips.