Chapter 929: Trouble comes again Chapter 929: Trouble comes again From MC’s Perspective: The body of the second warrior lay lifeless at my feet.
His blood seeped into the dirt, a grim testament to the battle that had just unfolded.
His eyes, once full of life and determination, were now dull and empty.
Without hesitation, I turned my attention to the third warrior.
His movements were sluggish, perhaps from fear or fatigue.
It didn’t matter.
In a swift, fluid motion, I ended him too.
His body crumpled to the ground, joining his fallen comrades.
With the fight over, I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, the weight of what I had done settling in.
The adrenaline that had coursed through my veins moments ago began to ebb, leaving only the cold clarity of survival.
These warriors had been skilled, but not skilled enough.
I couldn’t afford to leave any trace of this skirmish behind.
Carefully, methodically, I erased all signs of the struggle.
The earth, the trees, everything around me had to remain untouched by what had just occurred.
Only after ensuring the scene was clean did I turn my attention to the Black Armadillos.
I had been too distracted by the fight to check on them earlier, but now I had the time.
As I approached the crevices, I could see them : dozens of them, varying in size from small, nimble creatures to the larger, more imposing ones.
Among them was the very Armadillo that had led me here, its eyes blinking at me with what seemed like curiosity, or perhaps recognition.
But something was off.
This place, I realized, wasn’t safe for them.
It might have been their home once, but that time had passed.
The Vulture Gang’s hunting team had found their way here, and though I had taken care of them for now, it wouldn’t be long before others came searching.
The Vulture Gang was relentless.
They would notice their missing comrades soon enough, and when they did, they would descend upon this area with fury and vengeance.
The Armadillos would be caught in the crossfire.
I observed the Black Armadillos for a moment longer, and it became clear: they were already planning their exodus.
The larger ones were restless, the smaller ones clung close to their elders, and there was a collective tension in the air.
They knew it too.
They had to leave.
My mind was made up.
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I couldn’t risk the Vulture Gang discovering this place because of the bodies I had left behind.
If these Armadillos were going to have any chance of survival, I needed to dispose of the evidence far from here.
With renewed purpose, I gathered the corpses of the three fallen warriors.
Their weight didn’t slow me down, though the burden of what I had done was starting to sink in.
After walking for half a mile through the dense forest, I found a spot that seemed fitting.
The ground here was littered with monstrous footprints-monsters of the wild that would likely find the corpses soon enough and devour them.
It was brutal, but necessary.
Once I had dropped the bodies, I wiped my hands on my cloak and turned away without looking back.
The forest would take care of the rest.
Time slipped by as I made my way back.
An hour later, I returned to the boundary, my senses on high alert for any sign of other hunting teams.
The token I carried allowed me to pass through the barrier effortlessly, but the tension in my shoulders remained.
I couldn’t afford to get complacent, not here.
As I moved toward Alpha City, the familiar sight of returning hunting teams came into view.
They were a motley assortment, each wearing insignias that marked their allegiance to one gang or another.
Though all of them were technically members of the Federation, their gang affiliations were clear from the badges they proudly displayed.
It was a reminder of the fractured alliances that defined this place.
I kept my gaze steady, but I couldn’t help but notice something interesting.
Not a single warrior was flying solo.
Every one of them moved in groups, their eyes scanning the horizon for threats.
The fact that I was alone didn’t just catch my attention-it caught theirs too.
I raised an eyebrow at their reactions.
It wasn’t impossible for someone to travel solo to the boundary, but it was rare.
The gangs had a stranglehold on this territory, and most warriors relied on the strength of numbers to survive.
The murmurs began as the hunting teams noticed me.
Some looked confused, others intrigued.
A lone warrior, moving without a team, was a strange sight indeed.
Their eyes followed me, curious, wary.
But the surprise didn’t last long.
As I continued my steady pace, one of them finally recognized my face.
Their expression shifted from curiosity to shock.
They knew who I was.
…
“Hey, isn’t that Zack Lockwood?” a warrior from one of the hunting teams muttered, his eyes narrowing as he recognized my face.
His voice carried just loud enough for his nearby teammates to hear.
“The one who’s been making waves recently?
He’s the core member’s student, right?” another warrior chimed in, sounding both impressed and curious.
At the mention of core member their entire group stiffened.
Some of the warriors who hadn’t been paying attention now squinted in my direction, their expressions shifting from indifference to shock.
They took a few moments to scrutinize his face, and soon enough, recognition spread across their features.
“What the hell is he doing here?” one of them asked, his voice laced with suspicion.
“I heard he usually sticks to Delta City.
This isn’t the territory of Lowell McClain,” another warrior added, his tone carrying a sharp edge.
This one clearly came from a faction hostile to core member Lowell McClain, and the sight of Zack Lockwood here, deep in unfamiliar territory, had caught him off guard.
He exchanged uneasy glances with his teammates, his gaze flickering between them and me.
The tension was palpable; his faction had no love for mine, and my presence here only stirred the pot.
They were already on edge, and now they were trying to figure out my angle.
Meanwhile, warriors from more neutral factions, who had no immediate stake in the ongoing feud, seemed more curious than confrontational.
“He’s probably here because of a mission,” a warrior from a neutral group speculated, shrugging as if my presence was of no real consequence to him.
“The Delta City monster region is small, after all.
You can only get low-level missions there.” At this, several others nodded in agreement.
The logic made sense to them.
Delta City didn’t offer the high-stakes opportunities that Alpha City’s boundary region did.
As long as they were all part of the Federation, crossing into other cities for missions wasn’t unheard of.
In their eyes, he was just another warrior expanding his horizons.
But not everyone was convinced.
A few of the more hostile warriors exchanged glances, their eyes darkening with malice.
They weren’t buying the innocent mission excuse.
I could see it in the way they whispered to one another, huddled close like conspirators.
One of the warriors, his jaw clenched, spoke up with a dangerous glint in his eye.
“Go and block him,” he said, his voice low but commanding.
“He’s on our turf.
It’d be rude not to say hello, wouldn’t it?” His teammates immediately stiffened, their eyes widening in shock.
They weren’t naive-they knew what this warrior was suggesting, and they knew trouble was brewing.
A few of them shifted uncomfortably, clearly torn between following orders and avoiding an unnecessary confrontation with someone like me.
They had heard the rumors, they knew my reputation, and picking a fight with a student of a core member was a dangerous gamble.
Still, the one who had spoken was persistent, his eyes narrowing as he glared in my direction.
He was clearly spoiling for a fight, eager to test me or maybe make a name for himself.
His teammates hesitated, exchanging nervous glances, but the idea of backing down didn’t sit well with them either.
After all, they were part of a gang, and showing weakness wasn’t an option.
..
As I continued my steady pace toward Alpha City, my senses suddenly sharpened.
A familiar tingling sensation crept down my spine-someone was following me.
It was subtle at first, the sound of footsteps just a little too close for comfort, but soon it became undeniable.
I turned my head slightly, just enough to take a glance over my shoulder.
Sure enough, two warriors were heading in my direction.
They weren’t trying to mask their approach, and they weren’t exactly in a rush either.
Their faces held expressions of smug amusement, and as they waved their hands at me, gesturing for me to stop, I caught the glimmer in their eyes-mocking, playful, but with an underlying sense of malice.
Trouble.
The realization hit me instantly.
My eyes narrowed, a cold glint flashing as I processed the situation.
These weren’t just any warriors looking to exchange pleasantries.
Their postures, their demeanor-it was clear they were looking for something else.
Something I wasn’t in the mood to give them.
When you’re out here, minding your own business, there’s always someone eager to stir the pot.
I didn’t want any trouble, not today, but it seemed that trouble had decided to find me.
I exhaled quietly, calming the irritation bubbling up inside me.
Picking a fight here, in the open, wasn’t in their best interest, and they knew it.
The Federation didn’t take kindly to public brawls between warriors, especially in areas so close to the city.
They wouldn’t dare attack me-not openly, not here.
Still, they wanted to test me, to provoke a reaction.
I wasn’t going to give them the satisfaction.
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