Chapter 66: Brutal Responses

"How many days had passed? Juno was no longer sure. The concept of time seemed distorted, diluted in the sequence of events now tangled in her mind. She had tried to count once, when there was still some hope of order. But the days began to merge, each one identical to the other, and the numbers lost their meaning. A hundred? Two hundred?

Abstract, her mind screamed. Everything had been abstract since her only mission became retrieving supplies, food, and medicine. Her only defeat had led her to that moment.

The people who ran from them didn't even scare her anymore. The adrenaline of the past weeks still pulsed in her veins, like an annoying memory, and now boredom threatened to take its place. The emptiness of routine spread slowly, like a shadow growing with time.

She knew the line between control and loss was thin. What kept her from giving in to the impulse, from unleashing what had been buried in the last few weeks?

If the emptiness consumed her, that was what her heart feared.

The fear in their eyes, in their cornered faces, their gaze avoiding hers. Juno no longer believed as much as those who once made her think she should. The smile she had tried to maintain for so many years had turned into a puddle of indifference.

"Juno," Sebastian approached with a sword in hand. "We're ready. Everything we could gather from this part of the city is already being taken, but we couldn't go too far this last month."

"Why?" The question left her mouth in a dragged-out tone. She was still staring at the ground, her vision blurred by cloudy thoughts. "What happened?"

"There was an old man wandering back and forth. Well, if you can even call that walking. He went into a bunch of houses we marked last month and took everything. And he did that almost every day."

"We didn't even get half," she completed. Her head still hung over her shoulders. "The boss won't be happy."

Sebastian chuckled, sheathing his sword.

"He likes you. Talk to him for us. We did everything we could. Those Impure ones we caught outside did a good job. We also got that diskette that tells us how to produce linen, so we won't need to come back."

Juno closed her eyes, exhausted.

"I'll talk to him."

"That's what I like to hear. Now, let's go."

Juno tried to stand up, but before she could complete the movement, her eyes fixed on her arm. Something was off. She didn't know exactly what it was, but an unsettling feeling crept over her. The hairs on her skin began to rise, one by one, as if an invisible current was coursing through her flesh. At first, it was subtle, a faint ripple that could be ignored. But soon, the sensation intensified, like an involuntary reaction to the presence of something unusual.

She lifted her head. The silence and darkness in the back of that wide room unsettled her no less than the feeling that something was watching her.

Sebastian noticed where she was looking and did the same but saw nothing.

"Hey, stop being weird and let's go."

He walked out the door, leaving her alone.

Juno stood up, unconvinced. The boredom was being replaced. The adrenaline from the day she fried half a man's body, starting with his fingers. A smirk formed on her lips as she kept staring into the darkness.

"Looks like there are bigger rats here than I thought." She quickly raised her hand but blinked before converting her Cosmic Energy.

When Juno opened her eyes, he was there. A man, so close that the air felt heavy with his presence. His smile was wide, exaggerated, almost unrecognizable in its confidence. There was something strange about that grin, an unsettling firmness that made the moment even more surreal, as if he already knew what was about to happen.

Juno froze, her muscles locked in place for a second that stretched infinitely. She knew she had been caught off guard, but the speed with which everything happened left her with no reaction. The man was in front of her before she even had time to prepare.

Suddenly, her body was thrown back, her stomach colliding with the brutal force of a punch that felt like it came from the depths of the earth. Pain exploded immediately, a hot wave spreading through her torso, but the impact wasn't just physical. Something in her mouth ignited, a mix of rage and adrenaline, a visceral sensation that took her back to the day everything changed. The raw, unfiltered anger consumed her body, fueled by the memory of the past and the intensity of the present moment.

She lifted her hand with determination, fingers stretching to grab the old man's neck. The intent was clear: immobilize him once and for all. But with surprising agility, the old man dodged with a quick, fluid motion, his body tilting to the side with the precision of someone who knew every trick in combat.

Who is he?

She was sent flying against the wall, breaking through and crashing onto the other side. Civilians watched her rise, shocked. Juno took deep breaths and exhaled as much air as possible, controlling her anger.

He was laughing. The old man was coming toward her, stepping through the hole he himself had created.

"Juno." Sebastian quickly lunged at the old man.

"Hey, hold on."

From the shadows, a gunshot echoed. The crack of the shot seemed to stretch for an endless second, its presence unmistakable, and a subtle tremor rippled through the environment, putting everyone on alert.

From within the darkness, Juno saw a small flash. Moments later, Sebastian was sent flying before even touching the old man. He smiled, his white teeth gleaming as if he were enjoying the chaos around him. The grin was wide, almost defiant, as if he was watching everything from a position of power, savoring the moment with a dark pleasure.

The atmosphere around him seemed to distort, the tension growing as he kept smiling, immune to the imminent danger, as if nothing could touch him.

"Get up and continue," the old man said to her, stopping in place.

Everyone stood still. Juno, on the other hand, began to smirk, a careless, lopsided grin that mixed contempt and amusement. Her eyes gleamed, and she stood up slowly, as if every movement was calculated, unhurried. Her arms hung loosely by her sides, her posture relaxed, but the tension in her gaze left no doubt that she was far from underestimating the situation.

She stared at him firmly, her eyes locked onto his, as if waiting for something , perhaps a reaction, or maybe his next move. Her laughter, soft and almost mocking, broke the silence, releasing a small spark that danced around her shoulders. Almost at the same moment, she heard the teasing sound of a chuckle from the other side.

"This is going to be fun," the old man said. "Can't afford to get rusty. Recruit Dante reporting for combat."

And he struck his open hand with his fist, a dull sound cutting through the silence, a signal that he was ready to fight. Juno was both impressed and alert. This was a formidable enemy.