- Undesirable Reunion -
Rak was angry.
How could those turtles possibly leave him the great leader? Those turtles won't be able to do things right without him. Why would they give him the most boring task?
"Don't get too angry Mr. Crocodile" Hanwool said to Rak. "The strongest people are in the pursuit team, so they will take care of everything."
Altaira was holding back his laughter when he heard that.
Altaira and Celeste had decided to stay behind as they didn't want to go to chase those FUG guys. To say that Celeste didn't want to go, it was more like since Altaira didn't want to go, she also didn't want to go. While enjoying her snack chips, she wanted to lie down on Altaira's lap but was stopped as Altaira put his palm on her head.
"What's wrong?" She asked.
"If you want to eat, then sit down" Altaira answered. "It's not good to eat while lying around."
Celeste obediently nodded her head and then enjoyed her snack.
Altaira sighed and then rested his elbow on Charlotte's shoulder and then rested his head on his palm. While Charlotte looked at him in disbelief, he said to Celeste, "This is why you should have eaten enough before. You are hungry again right?"
'Don't use my shoulder to make you look cooler' Charlotte thought as she stood up. Since she stood up in all sudden, Altaira nearly fell and glared at Charlotte.
Hanwool's words were the same with throwing the oil to the fire, "SHUT UP YOU TURTLE! I'M THE STRONGEST ONE OUT OF ALL OF US!"
"I've felt something after I got here....that the Hell Train isn't for someone like me....Truthfully, I didn't even join the Workshop Battle because I was scared...." Hanwool admitted.
"Pht, how pathetic" Rak said towards him.
Charlotte who walked towards the fence rested her hands on the fence, holding her own hands and crossed the fingers. Her cap has been turned around so that she could see things clearly, looking left and right as if she was waiting for someone.
Rak wondered, "Why are all turtles so lousy...."
Charlotte agreed, "Those turtles aren't only lousy..." She looked at Rak, "They are also slow right, Rak?"
Rak who rested his jaw on the fence asked, "Which turtle are you waiting for?"
"I'm waiting for a herd of turtles to come" Charlotte answered. She tip-toed a bit to look around yet she didn't even see their shadows. "But turtles are indeed turtles, they aren't only slow but also troublesome.....where are they right now?"
Altaira never heard Charlotte calling someone else turtle just like what Rak did all the time. This made him wonder whether the habit of calling someone else turtle could also be infectious.
"You also follow that crocodile to call others 'turtles'?" A male voice asked what Altaira wanted to ask. "You guys never get sick of it, don't you?"
When Charlotte heard that male voice, she immediately turned her head around. The person who she has been waiting has finally come, along with the others. Knowing that they had come, she smiled happily.
≪ ◦ ❖ ◦ ≫
"Phew- it took so long. What's happening? Are you guys trying to leave without us?"
A girl who wore the black cloak to cover herself with yellow hair and eyes and freckles decorating around her face looked at the blue haired man in disbelief. She wasn't the only one who was surprised, her teammates were also surprised as well.
"Mr. Khun....how did you...get up here?"
Charlotte's golden eyes looked around and stopped when she saw Yura Ha. She smiled and said, "Nice to meet you again, Ms. Yura. It seems like we really are fated."
Her words only made Yura Ha frown. To say that they were fated.....it wasn't a good news at all.
"Well, I'm not so sure myself, how I was able to get up here" Khun said to them with a smug grin. "It's surprising. I didn't expect that the two people I'm chasing for is on the same side.
It's been awhile, Rachel."
"Mr. Khun....were you here from the start?" Rachel asked them.
"Oh, I arrived here a bit late though" he answered as he showed his blue lighthouse.
"There's been some problems so I got here a day late. But I thought that I'd get here in the evening, so I guess I can also say I'm kinda early. Charlotte and the crocodile told everything when I went to the stadium and thanks to him, I was able to avoid your trap and also catch you guys. Am I lucky or what?"
"How did you get up here?" She asked. She was sure that they already had the elevator wrecked so that no regulars could use it. "An ordinary regular wouldn't have been able to use that elevator."
"Right. It was set in a mode where a regular can't ride in an ordinary way" Khun agreed with her words for this one. "You can't press the button unless you're someone approved and actually, the elevator itself is a different one.
The elevator we take from the platform where we get off operates only one by one. The control center and the skyscraper by that elevator are in fact fake. And the real elevator that goes to the skyscraper was in the control center. And you must go through a secret path from the restaurant in order to get to the control center.....anyways, it wasn't easy.
But even if you find the elevator, it's no use because an ordinary regular isn't approved to get on it. But then, I came up with a simpler way to get up here.
I wrecked the elevator then made another one to come up here with this, right here."
"What? You have no idea what will happen if you do that!" Poro Poe, a regular and also a conductor of the train said.
"It's you guys who broke the rule from the beginning" Khun said to them. "The train captain who's known to be very scary was nowhere to be found and the guardian seemed to be locked somewhere.
You seem to have opened the path to greet a VIP. But thanks to that, it's an easy trip for us to get here. Anyway, from here on, you have to let us to get on that train as well.
Of course, leaving all of you here."
"Damn it!" Poro Poe cursed and then looked at Rachel who assured him. If something happened, then as the train conductor, his punishment would be inevitable. Rachel assured him that since it was their matter, they would solve it on their own.
Khun didn't come there on his own. Aside from bringing Charlotte with him, both Wangnan and Ehwa also came in order to catch Casano Beniamino.
"Are you sure you will be fine?" Khun asked at Charlotte. These enemies wouldn't miss a chance to kill them. "Your arms are injured already."
"They're small wounds" she answered in which the others didn't believe in her. She corrected her statement, "What I mean is that I don't feel that hurt at all. I still could fight. And besides, this is the opportunity to get Casano when he is still weak."
Charlotte knew that Casano who stole Horyang's devil one year ago was still in an imperfect condition. He needed time to become the complete one and as long as he wasn't the completed one yet, there was a chance for them to catch Casano. Charlotte just refuse to believe that with her around, they won't be able to catch Casano. She was determined to change the plot for this time.
One year was long enough for her to contemplate her decision. She had made up her mind that this was the only chance for her to prevent the misfortune that will happen in the future. Even though Noah had told her that there was no way that she could guarantee all their safeties, she still had a hope that she could. She can't let them die, especially when she had the ability to change the plot.
Casano found it ridiculous. Even though he was still in a weak state, he was still a living ignition weapon. He wasn't that weak to be looked down upon by a slayer candidate or two random regulars.
"There are many ways to commit suicide" He said to them. "But I didn't expect you to choose this kind of way to kill yourself. This made me wonder why Ilmar chose to leave me and follow these fools instead."
Khun, "You can't be shivering, are you, Sweet and Sour?"
"That's absurd!" Wangnan responded.
He showed his yellow colored inventory that consisted with few interesting-looking ball. Charlotte who still had the time to fan herself tilted her head for a bit and smiled.
The interesting-looking balls were similar with Pokeballs, except that on the top of the ball was colored in light blue. Those balls that Casano called as toys were called as shinsu bombs by Wangnan with a grin.
He took one of the shinsu bombs and then threw it on the air. After that, the shinsu bomb opened itself and then something came out. The thing that came out from the shinsu bomb moved really fast as it attacked Casano from all directions. Casano crossed his arms in defense, trying to defend himself from the thing that attacked him.
After it attacked Casano from all directions, the ball then returned to Wangnan's hand as he grabbed it with a grin.
Being a living ignition weapon, it wasn't even easy for Hatz to scratch him. So when Casano looked at the wound on his hand, he felt truly surprised, so as the others.
Seeing how their enemies were still in daze, Charlotte didn't waste a moment before opening her fan and then charged towards Casano, fighting him and didn't leave him a chance to fight back. But after she tried to hurt Casano with her fan, she learnt that her fan wasn't sharp enough to hurt him.
Ever since she had received the fan, Charlotte was used to fight with it. Her fan was sharp enough to scratch someone and to slit their throat but towards Casano, it seemed to have no effects. At this kind of situation and meeting this kind of enemy, she should change her fighting style. She can't rely on her fan to defeat this Casano.
Khun, on the other hand, he let the three of them catch Casano while he pulled out a knife and walked towards Rachel. It has been nearly two years after Rachel betrayed and humiliated him and also hurt and killed his teammates with the others; Apple and Michael. He has been waiting for this day to meet Rachel again to get the answers he needed and also to end her.
Rachel admitted that she might be a person who, like he said, someone who didn't care about the others and only cared for her own goal. But it can't be denied that for someone else, she was the brightest start who he wanted to reach for.
"......Dream on" Khun responded after hearing Rachel's words. "If I tell Bam everything you have done so far, do you think he will see you that way? You aren't a star, but a filthy trash. And Bam will find out that soon."
Rachel glanced at Casano's side. It seemed like he was in a serious trouble as there was no one to help him to fight against the three regulars. But that wasn't what she was looking. Her yellow eyes were locked at Charlotte who was completely focused with fighting Casano.
"If I am a filthy trash...then what about her?" She asked Khun. Turning her head around to him, she asked Khun, "Do you really think that she is that nice and selfless? That she genuinely want to help you?"
Khun, "What?"
"It seems like you don't know her that much either" Rachel said. "I also wondered why she changed this much....when we could be close friends."
"Close friends....?"
Aside from Bam, the one who accompanied the former Charlotte was none other than Rachel. She was able to tell that the Charlotte who was now fighting with her ally was not Charlotte. It was as if she was someone else who had the same appearance with the Charlotte who she knew.
Hearing these words, Khun felt that there must be something between both Rachel and the former Charlotte. By her words, he felt that the two of them must be ally before the dead soul replaced Charlotte and pretended to be her. But of course, Rachel won't know that the one who she was talking about was someone else. And speaking of that mysterious person, he was sure that no matter what happens, she won't betray them. He was certain of it.
Casano had heard that the notorious Slayer Candidate Nox always wielded his fan as he rarely used any other weapon or his fists to fight. Therefore, even though he knew that underestimating an enemy was something wrong to do, a part of him still felt that without her fan, this Charlotte was nothing. But now that he fought with her, the part of arrogance that he tried to suppress started to vanish.
"Do you know why I often use my fan to attack?" Charlotte asked him. "It's not that I'm that weak to fight without any weapons. It's just that I don't want my own hands to be stained with blood."
"So you are afraid of blood?" He asked, finding it ridiculous.
"Who is afraid of blood in this bloody tower?" Charlotte asked with the mocking smile, tying her long brown hair into ponytail with the rubber around her wrist. "I just don't want my brothers to get worried of me."
With a cold and threatening glare, she finished her words, "After all, if they are worried of me....then I'm not sure whether we could bring you back alive to Horyang."
"Dream on" he responded before he charged towards her again.
But now with the two other regulars around, he was in a serious trouble. The toy that Wangnan brought wasn't just any ordinary shinsu bomb, but an antimatter bomb that was made by the one who took care and the one who gave him the name "Casano", Sophia. The female scientist made this bomb just in case they will be out of control. Not only she made it, she also taught those regulars on how to make this kind of stuff.
Wangnan admitted it, if he used this antimatter bomb, then his life might be in danger. But so what if his body and life were in danger? In order to bring Casano back and to revive Horyang, he gladly took the risk.
The easiest way to end this kind of mess was of course, to kill Wangnan, the controller and the owner of the bomb. But the slayer candidate won't let him touch a strand of his hair, so as the black haired lady in blue.
"What is this?" He frowned and looked at her. "A woman....using fire?"
"I'm Ehwa Yeon" the lady in blue answered as she showed her flame again. "A woman using fire? What an unpleasant way to call someone."
When Wangnan knew that Casano would get serious this time, he grabbed a different bomb and then threw it to the floor. Knowing this, Charlotte immediately jumped backward to avoid it. The floor where Casano was standing soon cracked.
"You got it right" he said to Casano. "And what's more....this is a combination attack."
"What do you think will happen if the Yeon family's flame get on your body after being weakened by the antimatter bomb?" Ehwa Yeon asked Casano.
Yeon put her palm on the ground and soon enough, an explosion happened. Casano was lucky enough to dodge it. But he failed to dodge Charlotte who attacked him from behind.
"Mr. Casano!" Rachel glanced at her comrade worriedly.
"By the way, I'm really surprised to see you with Casano Beniamino" Khun said again. He had prepared his lighthouse. "Well, I don't know what story you have, but it's better this way because I could finish two annoying people without going further troubles."
"......You are confident as ever" Rachel said. "But I will soon leave this place by riding the train."
Khun leaped towards Rachel, "Says who?"
"I said so!" she answered as she directed her lighthouse towards Khun.
The lighthouse was getting bigger and bigger. Before Rachel slammed her lighthouse to Khun, she said to him: "Khun Aguero Agnes! You are so annoying!"
The lighthouse slammed Khun who couldn't run away from it and Rachel huffed and huffed, wondering whether she had won or not.
But then, there was a flash.
There was a flash that cut her lighthouse into pieces.
"I'm impressed" he said, completely unscathed. "I never expected you would be using such a powerful compression like this. But what a shame, since I'm using such a good knife. I can easily slice a lighthouse like this which has a little bit of floating stone inside."
Right now, Rachel had three cards. The first one was Emily, the popular chatting app that she used to lure the regulars earlier. Second was her teammates who were strong individually and third was her lighthouse skills. But now, Emily couldn't be used to fight against Khun. Her teammates were occupied with the others and their teamwork wasn't great either and her lighthouse skills, not only that Khun was a talented Light Bearer but he also had an interesting knife with him.
She had to leave as soon as possible. With her current power, there was no way that she could beat him. But some of her comrades hadn't come yet. The situation was disadvantageous for them.
"Is this all you've prepared?" He asked. "Gosh, you really haven't prepared anything at all. Being so despicable and being unable to do anything by yourself. You always need someone else's help 'cause you can't do anything alone."
And after he said those words, there was someone or a group of people coming. From all the people who could come, the brown haired boy with the red thorn on his shoulder also showed himself.
By the time he arrived, his golden eyes were locked to only one person.
In this wrong circumstance, his eyes only saw his light.
The first person who be friended with him was her; the first person who pushed him to the abyss was her.
He was too focused with Rachel that he can't even hear any other voices or saw anyone or anything else. Not even Khun's voice could distract him.
Her hands were trembling as she lowered her head. Bam noticed that as he was looking at her keenly. He had dreamed to see her again and again but when he met her, he didn't know what he should say.
'What should I say to her? "Long time no see"? Or just plain old "how have you been"? Should I tell her that I missed her? Or ask why she is scheming such thing? And ask what she's after? Or before anything.....why on earth did you push me off that place?'
When Bam heard that his younger sister's body was actually possessed by someone else, he wondered whether that happened to Rachel as well. It was because that the person who he was staring keenly had the same appearance with Rachel yet her behavior was so....foreign? Her behavior was something that he didn't understand or accept.
"Rachel, I..."
"Why are you here Bam?" Rachel suddenly asked coldly. "And why are you still alive? You were supposed to be dead back then."
"You were supposed to be dead back then."
Her words echoed inside his head. These hurtful words came from the person who he cherished the most.
"Why would you say those words, Rachel....? S...shouldn't you be making excuse or something? I.....I have followed you this far because I had faith on you......."
On the other hand, the person who felt betrayed wasn't only Bam. Casano also felt the same. Knowing that these bombs and toys were all created by the one who took great care of him and Ilmar/Horyang back then, he felt betrayed.
Wangnan didn't understand what Casano was saying. Casano told them that one day he would wake his childhood friend up, but after he achieved his purpose.
"The great power granted to Ilmar and I...is both a burden and a purpose. If he can't come to understand the meaning of this power, then he does not deserve to be awakened alive" he said to the three of them.
"I don't understand why you would go this far even to betray your childhood friend like this, perhaps it's because I'm not the type of person who will hurt my closest ones for something called 'greater good'" Charlotte earnestly said to Casano. "I just know that no matter what happens...I have to bring you back to Horyang....no matter all the costs."
Right now, Charlotte was troubled with two decisions. She wanted to go and to wake her brother up but if she does that, then just both Wangnan and Yeon won't be able to catch Casano. But if she didn't care for her brother, then something bad would happen as well.
This was her fault, she said to herself. She should have considered this part as well.
"You are persistent indeed" Casano said to her. "Even with those two injured arms, you still want to catch me. Looking down on me will only result to your death, slayer candidate."
"Funny, I was thinking about the same thing as well."
His left arm was his devil, his right arm was supposed to be Horyang's devil. Now that Casano used both of his arms to fight, with the tremendous power, he could cover himself from all sides. One shot was already more than enough to prove the tremendous power he possessed.
And his tremendous power was a problem for them. Charlotte was unsure whether she could defeat him with her current power.
While the two sides were distracted, Daniel Hatchid, a yellow haired man with blue eyes and freckles headed towards Poro Poe. Earlier, he was supposed to help his comrades to stop Bam and his guide from reaching this place. But with the power of the red thorn that Bam had, Bam successfully reached that place but when he saw Rachel, he forgot about anything or anyone else.
His obsession had distracted him which gave them a chance to run away. As long as they used the navigator, since Yura Ha was now heading towards the train, then there would be a chance for them to run away.
"Rachel, you know I...... I came all the way here just to find you. I don't care about this tower or whatever the stars look like" Bam earnestly said to the yellow haired girl in brown. His tone was filled with pain and disbelief, filled with sadness and betrayal. "All I need is just you. But.....why.....are you....?"
"I have something to accomplish, Bam."
"Is that more important than me?"
"Yes, much more."