I ran with everything I had.
My breaths were ragged, my chest burned, and my legs trembled.
Behind me, the Worm Monster slithered forward, smashing through anything in its way.
Its guttural screech sent chills stabbing down my spine.
"I'm scared…"
The little girl clinging to my back was shaking.
"I know! Hold on tight!"
I pushed my legs harder, even though they felt like they were about to give out.
But then—
THUD!
My foot caught on a chunk of rubble.
I fell forward, but twisted my body so the girl wouldn't get hurt.
When I lifted my head—
…damn.
The Worm Monster was already right in front of us.
Its mouth opened wide—filled with rows of jagged teeth, dripping with foul-smelling saliva.
I forced myself to stand and gently lowered the girl to the ground.
"What's your name?"
"R-Rin…"
"Rin, listen carefully." My voice trembled. "Run. Now."
Her eyes watered. She hesitated.
"GO!!" I shouted.
Rin immediately bolted as fast as her tiny legs could carry her.
I exhaled sharply, trying to focus.
SWIFT—!
I grabbed a sharp metal rod from the rubble and hurled it at the monster's eye.
CLANG!
Damn it—missed.
It only struck one of its teeth.
The Worm Monster roared and lunged toward me.
I rolled to the side, scraping my arms as dust filled my lungs.
I barely got onto my knees before it turned again—unnaturally fast.
My breath faltered. Sweat drenched my body.
I was exhausted. Completely drained.
Damn… I can't dodge again.
In the last second, I lifted my head toward the sky.
And I saw them.
S.P.E.A.R. Operatives.
With the last of my strength, I pushed myself up and ran again.
The monster was right behind me, close enough that its drool nearly touched my shoulder.
I dove forward and rolled with all I had.
BOOM!!
Something crashed down behind me—hard.
Followed by dozens of shadows dropping from above.
They wore composite armor, tactical helmets, and full gear.
Unit Aegis had arrived.
***
"Baz! Take your team—evacuate any civilians still alive! Don't stop until you find them all!"
"Everyone else, ready your weapons! We're taking that damn worm's head!"
The Captain's voice cut through the chaos—sharp, steady, commanding.
Baz and the evacuation team sprinted off, while the frontline operatives unloaded their weapons at the monster.
But—
Every bullet bounced off.
Its scales were too hard—even for reinforced ammunition.
The Worm Monster opened its maw wider, baring its monstrous teeth as if mocking the operatives.
Even though my whole body throbbed with pain, I couldn't look away from the battle.
And then my gaze locked on the figure at the front.
The Aegis Captain.
Long white hair.
Bright, icy blue eyes.
An aura so cold it felt suffocating.
Now I understood why people called her the Snow Princess.
She inhaled softly.
FWISH!
Her body vanished from my sight.
In the blink of an eye, she was right in front of the monster.
SHING!!
Her sword danced—fast, precise, beautiful… and lethal.
The scales that bullets couldn't pierce cracked under her blade.
The Worm Monster thrashed violently, trying to retreat, but the Captain gave it no room—no time—no mercy.
Meanwhile, the other operatives prepared for the second offensive wave.
Their uniforms were white-gray.
But some wore full black—elite Aegis members, the deadliest unit S.P.E.A.R. had.
One of them laughed like a maniac in the middle of battle, screaming nonsense as if this was an amusement park instead of a war zone.
Their weapons were unusual—crafted from parts of defeated monsters.
Others wielded high-tier weapons: Anomaly Core Weapons, forged from fragments of high-level monster hearts.
Rumor said the cores still retained a sliver of "consciousness," granting destructive power to their wielders.
Only elites were allowed to use them.
I collapsed against the rubble. The evacuation team still hadn't found me, probably because the debris hid me from sight.
CRACK!
The rubble beside me suddenly shifted—almost crushing me.
"HEY!"
A kid popped out, kicking the debris away.
He wore an oversized lab coat, held a scalpel, and looked completely out of place.
"What are you doing under the rubble? Eh! I mean—are you okay?! I should've asked that first!"
Oh God… why did this weirdo have to find me?
"Hey! Are you okay??" He waved his hand right in front of my face.
"I'm not interested in talking to someone who's blind." I snapped.
"Eh—OH! I-I'm sorry!"
He flailed his arms in panic. "MEDICS! OVER HERE!"
Realizing his own stupidity, he called the evacuation team while jogging back and forth.
"What were you doing in the middle of all this chaos?" I asked weakly.
He stared at me for a long moment…
…without answering…
…then scratched his head, despite clearly not being itchy.
Unbelievable. This kid was rude and weird.
A few seconds later, two evacuation operatives arrived with a big medical kit.
One rushed toward me, while the other approached the strange boy.
"My apologies, Sir Timmy. You're not supposed to be on the battlefield—"
…sir?
Huh!?
"Hoh? So just because I'm the head of the research division, I'm not allowed to fight!?" Timmy snapped.
"That's not it, Sir Timmy… You're too important to Unit Aegis. All Aegis equipment is designed and built by you. If anything were to happen to you—especially here—"
The operative bowed deeply.
Timmy burst out laughing.
"HAHAHAHA!! And why do you think I joined Aegis, huh!?"
He spread his arms wide, as if admiring the destruction around us.
"BECAUSE I WANT TO SEE ALL OF THIS UP CLOSE!"
Then he jabbed a thumb at his own chest, grinning far too confidently.
"And remember this—
The Captain herself said that I, Timmy, am allowed to do whatever I want!"