Chapter 116: This is the part where you run

It was clear the writings on the wall had terrified the men, and the fact that they didn’t understand the second abbreviation wasn’t helping the matter.

Meanwhile, Kaelen immediately recognized not just the abbreviation, but also the first handwriting as that of his mother.

His memory had been abruptly cut off after they fell into the Grand Canyon, but the writing on the wall proved they survived the wolf attack.

What Kaelen didn’t understand was why the writing didn’t trigger his memory of that day, just like the temple had. And while he was still battling with his mind, he didn’t notice Yelena staring at him with a complicated expression as soon as she saw the abbreviation.

"What the hell? Kael, did you write this?" Reiner asked with a dark expression as he glared at Kaelen.

Kaelen raised his head to look at the man like he’d asked the most foolish question. "And why would I do that?"

"You’re the one who claimed you’ve been here before. So how did the writing appear on the wall?"

"How would I know that? It wasn’t here the last time I was here."

"And what did you come to do this far into the wasteland? Without a truck, I’m certain it’ll take you five days to make one trip here. Your story isn’t adding up." Reiner said as his hand rested on the hilt of his sword.

Everyone’s eyes were fixated on Kaelen now, as they saw the fatal flaw in his story. No sane person would travel five days to this point and back just to hunt when there was no lack of beasts on the outskirts of the slums.

Even the Commander had grown suspicious, and if Kaelen couldn’t explain himself, he’d become the prime suspect for both Berthold’s death and disappearance and be branded the imposter.

Kaelen didn’t stress over it, even as the mercenaries began to slowly circle him.

"I got lost in the wasteland and was chased here by a pack of feral wolves," Kaelen calmly replied.

Reiner immediately drew his blade. "That’s it for you, you bastard. Have you forgotten you told us you have a scouting Talent? So how could you have possibly gotten lost, huh?"

The other mercenaries immediately drew their weapons as well, as soon as Reiner exposed the flaw in his explanation. The Commander was no exception this time.

Yelena narrowed her eyes at him as her hand rested on the hilt of her sword, still sheathed at her waist. But her eyes didn’t hold any hostility. It was almost like she was curious about what his next move would be.

Kaelen didn’t shy away from her gaze as his lips slowly parted. "...I wonder what the maximum IQ is to join a mercenary corps like yours. 30?" he asked as he tilted his head towards Reiner.

"What’s that supposed to mean?" Reiner flared, but Kaelen wasn’t done speaking.

"You remember my scouting ability, but don’t remember I’m a refugee from Stronghold 9 who fled into the wasteland from the slums. If you did, your mind should tell you that was the point I awakened my Talent, dummy." Kaelen clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"Who the hell are you calling a dummy?!" Reiner roared.

"Reiner, stand down," the Commander said as he sheathed his weapon. "I think whoever wrote this is just trying to mess with our heads, and it’s embarrassing to admit that it’s working. We’re acting on our emotions and fears instead of logic and proven facts."

"How do we know he didn’t just make that up—" Reiner was still speaking when a sound suddenly came from behind them.

Their heads immediately snapped towards one of the parked trucks, which was shaking heavily like something was ravaging it from the inside.

Everyone immediately drew their weapons once more. Yelena wasn’t an exception this time, but the mercenaries were too shaken to take the first step forward to investigate when Yelena began moving towards the truck cautiously.

"I’m sure whatever it is, it can’t survive our blades and abilities," the Commander reinforced as he stepped forward as well, followed closely by the rest of the team, who exchanged nervous glances amongst themselves.

Kaelen didn’t follow after them and simply watched from where he stood. He had already used his [Sharp Senses] to see what it was and believed it was something they could handle on their own.

If they couldn’t handle that much, then he was better off on his own if they lost to it.

The mercenaries cautiously moved towards the rattling truck until one of them stepped on a twig, which snapped under their weight.

The truck suddenly stopped moving and went silent.

That made everyone hold their breaths as their eyes locked onto the truck, but before they could move any further, a dark figure suddenly leaped out of the truck bed.

Almost immediately, the entire area was illuminated with different colours as the mercenaries spammed their skills and abilities at the dark figure without restraint.

It was almost like fireworks, making Kaelen smile in amusement as he watched the terrified men trying to act tough.

"Hold." The Commander called out with a raised fist.

The skill spam slowed to a halt, with the dark figure lying lifelessly on the floor.

A torch was immediately flashed at it, and the men were taken aback by what they saw.

A raccoon.

An innocent raccoon that was scavenging supplies had just taken enough firepower and mana to slay a weakened dragon.

"What the hell was all that for?" Reiner called out to the rest of the team.

"I’m sure I saw you throw the first sword beam, Reiner."

"T-That’s not true. I was watching from the sidelines with Yelena while y’all freaked out over a fucking raccoon." Reiner said and stole a glance at the blonde woman, only to see she was staring at another person.

It was none other than Kael, who hadn’t taken a step forward from the wall.

He was just about to crash out and call Kaelen out for his cowardice when a loud howl suddenly reverberated through the night.

Everyone’s heads snapped towards a hill to see a large wolf howling into the night as several other wolves appeared behind it in great numbers.

"W-What the hell? Are wolf packs usually that large?" Reiner blurted out in surprise before he snapped his head towards Kaelen. "Kael, do something about it. Quick."

The Commander also turned to look at Kaelen, thinking the same thing.

"Guys, remember when I said my ability works on most beasts? Well, this is one of those rare times," Kaelen said as he slowly backed away.

"What do you mean by that?" the Commander asked.

"What the hell are we supposed to do then?" Reiner roared.

"This... is the part where you run." Kaelen said and slipped into the gap in the canyon, disappearing from sight.

Before Reiner could curse him out, the wolves leaped down from the hill and began charging at them at full speed, spreading across the expanse like ants.

The men immediately panicked and began running for their trucks when they discovered the truck where the raccoon had been discovered was now rendered a useless scrap of metal after taking their hits head-on.

The truck was immediately abandoned, and the men began charging for the other vehicles.

Out of panic and because of the sheer speed of the wolves, who were already bearing down on them, the drivers hit the gas and immediately zoomed into the narrow passage of the Grand Canyon.

While the trucks filled up quickly, they zoomed off as well, ignoring the cries and pleas of the men who couldn’t be brought along.

Out of the seven trucks brought for the trip, only [number missing] made it inside the canyon before the wolves arrived and tore down any survivors left behind. Their screams were drowned out by the eerie whistles of the canyon.

Before the wolves could advance any further, a deep voice pierced through the chaos.

"Arise."