"Alright. I'll go out," Elric said, his tone shifting to something sharper, more focused. He glanced back at the blue-haired girl. "Take this time to think carefully. Figure out what the right choice is."
The invisible threads binding Mia suddenly loosened and vanished. She gasped, collapsing forward as control returned to her body.
Elric didn't wait to see her reaction. A woman who met the system's standards couldn't simply be left to die. That would be wasteful.
In a single breath, he vanished from the residential building and reappeared in an open area of the air base. He tilted his head back, tracking the dense clouds rolling across the dark sky.
Transparent threads emerged from his hands and feet—invisible filaments extending upward with impossible speed. They reached toward the clouds, linking him seamlessly to the massive formations above.
This was his first time truly using the Line Fruit's ability.
"Let's go."
BOOM—!
The sound barrier shattered as Elric launched himself skyward. The ground beneath cracked from the force. His body shot through the air like a missile, threads propelling him forward as he swung through the sky. The city blurred beneath him—ruined buildings, abandoned streets, scattered fires still burning.
He was flying.
In the laboratory, Elizabeth looked up through the glass ceiling at exactly the right moment. She saw Elric's form shoot across the sky, leaving a distortion in the air.
"He... he's flying?!" Her voice came out as barely a whisper. "Oh my God—he actually flew into the sky!"
Once a bustling commercial paradise, was now a graveyard. Collapsed buildings leaned against each other. Shattered glass covered the streets. Abandoned cars sat rusted and burned.
At the center of this devastation stood a monster.
It possessed two arms, two legs, and a vaguely humanoid posture that made it worse than if it had been completely alien. It towered over ten meters tall, its massive frame dwarfing the surrounding structures. Its body resembled a colossal white ape covered in matted pale fur.
The creature crouched beside a half-collapsed building, both massive hands pressed against the ground. Its enormous head tilted sideways as it peered through shattered windows with eyes that gleamed with intelligence and cruelty.
A grin stretched across its face—wide, toothy, and utterly wrong.
It wasn't attacking. It was playing.
Inside the building, approximately twenty students huddled in the darkness, their faces pale with terror. They were survivors from the University who had somehow escaped the initial chaos only to find themselves trapped here.
Nana pressed against a wall, phone clutched in her hand showing her sent message to Elric. No response yet.
"It's over... we're done..." someone whispered.
"That thing could smash this building with one punch," another voice agreed. "It's not killing us yet because it's enjoying this."
Several had witnessed what this white ape could do. Earlier, they'd watched it casually demolish an entire apartment complex with just a few strikes.
"I told you!" Nana suddenly shouted, her voice cracking with frustration. "I told all of you! We should've gone to find Elric two days ago!"
Heads turned toward her in the darkness.
"He could've protected us! He has power—real power! But no, you all had to vote against it, and now look—everyone's trapped here!"
It was true. Two days ago, Nana had proposed leading the entire group to Elric's base at Ginkgo Community. But most had refused, thinking he was exaggerating or lying to lure female students.
Instead, they'd followed one of the student suggestion to come here—to a private security company owned by his parents. He'd claimed it would be safe.
Two days later, his parents were dead.
And now the rest of them were about to follow.
"Enough already," someone snapped. "Who could've predicted a monster like that?"
"Exactly," another student chimed in bitterly. "And even if we found Elric—do you really think he could deal with that thing? He's just another student like us! In this world, everyone dies sooner or later."
The words spread like poison through the group.
He sat slumped in a corner, eyes vacant. His spirit had broken.
"You men are useless!"
A shrill voice cut through the despair—a heavyset girl with thick glasses, her body trembling as she pointed at several male students.
"Shouldn't men be protecting women right now?!" she shrieked. "Go out there and distract it! Buy us time to escape!"
The demand was absurd—moral blackmail in its purest form.
At first, the boys ignored her. But she didn't stop. For two full minutes, she continued screeching, calling them cowards and failures while demanding they sacrifice themselves for her sake.
Finally, something snapped.
"Shut the hell up, you fat pig!" One boy lunged to his feet, face twisted with rage. "Who do you think you are, morally kidnapping us?!"
"We're all about to die—don't push it!" another snarled, grabbing a broken stool leg.
Several more boys joined them, their fear transforming into anger. The heavyset girl's eyes widened as she realized she'd pushed too far.
Violence was about to erupt—survivor against survivor.
"Please... stop..."
The soft, tearful voice cut through the tension like a knife.
Everyone froze.
The voice belonged to a girl who had been sitting quietly between Nana and the heavyset student. She slowly rose to her feet, movements graceful despite exhaustion.
She was tall—around five foot eight—with long, straight black hair cascading down her back. Soot and dirt stained her face and clothes, but the grime couldn't hide what lay beneath.
Her eyes were clear and gentle, like still water reflecting moonlight. Her skin, where visible, was pale and smooth as porcelain.
Even standing beside Nana—one of the most beautiful girls at the University—this girl's beauty was undeniable. Superior, even.
Her name was Elsa.
There is 70 chapter Advance, in my patreon. If you are interested can check it out.
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