Chapter 576: Camp!

Chapter 574

Disengaging from the hug, Ray smiled at Van, wiping away both his own tears and those of his best friend.

"Well, that was heartwarming," Caster commented with a slight chuckle as the two best friends beamed at each other.

Felix twisted his head from side to side until his gaze landed on the Captain.

"Oi, Captain! Don’t you want to join in on the f—?!"

The werewolf’s words trailed off when he realised the Captain was simply staring at a particular spot, completely motionless.

Noticing Felix’s sudden silence, the others turned their heads towards Raze.

That was when it finally clicked in Ray’s mind.

His eyes swept across the entire area, searching for someone he couldn’t seem to find.

"Where’s Kai?" he asked, his head still turning from side to side.

The others began looking around as well, until the realisation finally struck Van.

Seeing the Captain staring at the ground, coupled with the absence of both Kai and Layla, confirmed his worst suspicions.

"He’s been taken," the boy whispered.

The others finally understood what had happened.

Ray’s eyebrows rose in confusion.

"Taken? Who could possibly take Kai? I took care of all the Aberrants, so who—?!"

"His sister came, and she... she took him away." Chloe rambled, holding Ray’s hand with a pleading look in her eyes. "Ray, Kai didn’t want to go. He seemed scared, afraid of something, and he didn’t want to leave us. I-I’m worried about him."

*His sister? Why did she show up for him after so long? He’s always been secretive about his fam—*

*What the hell are you thinking about?! Your friend has just been taken, dumbass!*

*And if the others are right, and he really didn’t want to go...*

Ray’s jaw tightened, and his hands curled into fists almost immediately as he glared into the distance.

"I see," Raze finally uttered, turning towards his squad.

He began walking towards them with steady steps, not showing even an ounce of exhaustion in his gait. Soon, he stood before the teenagers.

"That was his sister, huh? The Larsons... I’ve seen my superiors try to change the subject whenever their name comes up. Yet, I know practically nothing about that family.

"All my attempts to investigate them have come to nothing. Part of the reason I allowed your friends into my squad, aside from their strength, was because of the Larson boy," Raze explained, his expression remaining calm.

"...I wanted to learn more about his family, but it seems like I won’t be able to—"

"I want to get him back," Ray interrupted without ceremony.

His hands clenched so tightly that the veins beneath his skin began to bulge.

"Of course, I want to get him back too. Nobody takes a member of my squad without permission. I never had a reason to pursue the Larsons too aggressively, but now I do. I’m not losing a single one of you."

Raze fell silent for a few seconds, surveying the destruction surrounding them.

"But for now, that will have to wait."

"Wait? Why should it wait?! God knows what they’re doing to him over there!" Chloe shouted, her teeth grinding together.

"They’re his family. They definitely won’t do anything to hurt him, so calm down," Van said.

"But—"

"—But we need to remain calm and clear-headed. We don’t even know where they’ve taken him. Or do any of you know where the Larsons are? If you do, we’re attacking tomorrow, so let’s hear it." Raze scoffed, folding his arms across his chest.

Nobody said a word. One by one, they lowered their heads.

"Just as I thought."

Clapping his hands together, he continued.

"Seeing as we’ve succeeded in our mission, help will be sent here to rebuild the Wall and get its occupants back home.

"Since the other Great Houses won’t want to be outdone, I’m sure the Big Four will pool their resources to gain public favour.

"That means this Wall will be rebuilt faster than you can imagine. And in the process..."

Raze paused to consider something before exhaling.

"We’ll have to stay here until the Wall is rebuilt, at least."

"Huh? Why?" Trisha questioned with a frown.

"Because retaking this Wall was our duty, and we accomplished that mission. Now, we have to defend it against another possible attack. Thanks to your speech earlier..." Raze said, turning his gaze towards the Tribrid.

"...We don’t know whether the Aberrants will attack again, so we have to fulfil the latter part of our duty, which is to protect this place. In the meantime, I’ll mobilise all my resources and informants to gather everything I can about the Larsons. Okay?"

The others nodded, except for Ray, who remained deep in thought. His hands clenched tightly as all sorts of memories flooded his mind.

*Why would he be sad about returning home? Could something bad be waiting for him there? No, I can’t just sit back and do nothing. If Kai is in danger, I need to help him.*

*He wouldn’t think twice before jumping into a volcano for me.*

«Which is why you’re being told to hold on a little longer. Once you know where the Larsons are, you can launch an attack. For now, as you always say...» Elyon uttered from within the mindspace.

«...One step at a time.»

"Understood?" Raze asked once more.

With that, Ray sucked in a deep breath, his eyes blazing with determination.

"Understood, Captain. We’ll stay here and help with the rebuilding."

Raze smiled softly before yawning loudly and rubbing his eyes.

"Good. Well, we have to set up camp somewhere around here in the meantime. I need to get some sleep before help arrives."

"Yes!" the others answered in unison.

Ray, however, turned his head slightly to the side, his gaze landing on a flood of notifications that had nearly filled his field of vision.

[Rewards for Quest Completion....]

’Hmm. Let’s see what I got... Later.’

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[A/N: I hope you are still enjoying the novel? Please support with whatever you have to keep motivating me ?? this author needs more motivation.]