Kai Lane: Beginning

A few hours ago,

The hunters gathered in the area where they were located. Each of them was sharpening their weapons for the hardest fight yet. Five of the thirteen leaders had died. Among them was Dokuo, the fifth leader, who possessed great power. As a result, they had become considerably weakened. The six elders who came after the thirteen leaders were doing what they had to do.

At that time, there were thirteen specially designed houses within the city where the hunters were staying. Six of these houses were empty. The deaths of the five leaders frightened the hunters a little, but they had faced worse situations before, and there were still many skilled hunters among them. The other empty house belonged to the First Leader. He had hardly been seen since their arrival. Many people had even forgotten about him.

Next to the First Leader's house was another house almost as special as his. Though it didn't attract much attention, people couldn't help but sense a terrifying aura surrounding the house. They wanted to kneel down and bow their heads involuntarily.

Inside was a handsome young man with blue hair. He was naked, and his body was covered in wounds. His muscles were mostly hidden under the wounds, but that didn't seem to bother him. Those wounds had appeared in his last battle and would soon fade away. He looked at his reflection in the bathroom; his face was expressionless. It was impossible to tell what he was thinking.

The blue-haired young man bowed his head, washed his face, and tied his hair back. When he raised his head and looked in the mirror again, he felt a hand reach out from his shoulder and embrace him. Ryuga could feel the warmth touching his body. Warm, soft skin touched his back.

Ryuga's expressionless face showed no change, but a young woman with snow-white hair stood on his shoulder, as if she were an angel. She wore a sweet smile, making it hard to believe she was a Hunter. Yet there she was. This beautiful woman hugged him from behind, naked like Ryuga.

"Can't you stay, Ryuga?"

She was a frightening presence for many people, especially men, but she was normal when she was with Ryuga. She acted like a normal human being, just like him. The fact that she was the Fourth Leader frightened people, too.

"This is my only chance for freedom, Vale. If I don't go now, I may never have another chance like this."

Ryuga clenched his teeth as he said this and continued to stare at the mirror. Valeria's eyebrows furrowed, and her arms tightened around Ryuga's neck involuntarily. At the same time, however, she softened.

"Then I'm coming too. Anything could happen today. I can't let you die right before my eyes."

As she spoke protectively, Ryuga turned his head and kissed her lips.

"Don't worry, Vale. This time, we won't be the ones to die."

***

At that moment, people who were not seriously injured had gathered in the city of Atlantia. Everyone was waiting for Quentin's announcement. The Leader's attack had changed many people's minds, and beneath their brave facades, they were desperately afraid.

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Quentin climbed onto the platform where he would speak. Alvar and Jack were with him. Even the legendary leaders were there just to listen because they, too, had begun to disagree.

Jack was the legendary leader of the Red Lightning Academy. Alvar was there to maintain peace in Emma's stead. Emma had taught him a few techniques, and he had the potential to master them.

"Everyone, listen to me."

As Quentin's voice echoed across the field, everyone turned to look at him. Some frowned, while others were genuinely curious. Most were wondering how he would explain what had happened. How would he calm the panic?

Quentin trembled for a moment when he saw those looks, but he was the Black Flame King, having reached the Half Step 2nd Step. He maintained his composure and used his noble aura to reveal his true power to people.

"No matter what I say about yesterday, it won't change anything. I know. Some of our friends have left us, and no one wanted to die this way. Still, this has reminded us of some things."

As Quentin spoke, Alvar and Jack nodded in agreement behind him. As the crowd's attention grew more intense, Quentin raised his voice.

"The World Tournament has come to an end! There's no reason for us to stay on this island anymore. We must leave as soon as possible. In the past, we succumbed to our greed. Despite the fact that the Red Lightning Academy had the power to end the tournament, we did not because of the opportunities in the Skylands. Everyone knows this was the wrong decision, and I sincerely apologize for it."

"To get to the point, we are considering leaving the island using the air vehicles the Hunters used to come here. We are open to your opinions."

After Quentin finished speaking, he tried to cover his ears, but it was too late.

"Steal the Hunters' vehicles?! You must be out of your minds! After what happened yesterday, who among us would dare to do such a thing?"

"Not only that! If that happens, we may have to go to war with the Hunters on a large scale! How many more people would die in such a situation?! "

""What are the higher-ups thinking? Do they want to send us to our deaths? I'm sorry, but I'm not going anywhere!"

"Me neither!"

"Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! Me either!"

Quentin frowned and looked at the crowd as voices rose from all directions. Jack and Alvar were in the same situation.

Finally, Alvar couldn't take it anymore.

"Shut up! Can't you understand that this is for your own good? Don't you see that if this continues, they will use the Sky Lands' resources to destroy our numerical advantage?"

Backed by his aura, Alvar's voice was uninterruptible. So, they listened quietly and waited for Alvar to finish.

When he finished, there was a long silence. Everyone was weighing the pros and cons.

Suddenly, a calm voice interjected from nowhere.

"Why are you talking, Alvar? How much do you care about us? You're the man who killed his childhood friend with his own hands. Don't pretend to care about our well-being."

A young man from the crowd turned around at this calm voice and started walking. He had a shotgun in his hand and walked as if his life depended on it. He was one of the legendary leaders who had not been replaced since they first came to the World Tournament.

He clearly remembered what had happened during the Cannibal King's attack, and he had lost hope after the recent events.

He was the only one from his academy who was still alive.

In despair, with no hope of survival, he could only look ahead with empty eyes.

Upon hearing these words, Alvar took a step back and fell silent. When he averted his gaze, everyone knew it was true.

"I'm leaving. I'm going to hide until the developmental security forces arrive. I'm also going to get stronger so that I can survive. That way, it'll be easy for them to find us when we're all together."

This time, it was another young man who spoke. Like the others, he had lost his best friends and did not want to suffer anymore. From now on, the only person he could trust was himself.

Soon, others started to leave, too. They wanted to take a brave stand, but how was that possible? They were all afraid. The thought of losing their lives inevitably frightened them. They did not want to die before becoming stronger, before writing their lives in the history books, before becoming legends.

They wanted to die in the most honorable way.

But they actually wanted more than an honorable death.

They wanted to live.