Suddenly—
**BANG!**
A gunshot echoed through the spatial port.
Everyone froze for a brief moment.
Darian's eyes shifted slightly.
Kaelira's head turned.
Even Pythia's vines stopped for half a second.
Then—
**THUD.**
One of the guards collapsed.
Blood poured from his head as his body went limp.
The surrounding guards stared in shock.
"What the—?!"
"Who fired that?!"
Another voice suddenly shouted—
"Over there!"
Standing among the guards—
was Ryke.
He held the dead guard's body upright with one arm.
His other hand gripped the guard's rifle.
His pistol remained hidden beneath his cloak, while his dagger was still secured at his side.
Ryke glanced toward Kaelira and Darian.
He clicked his tongue.
"What a show you're putting on, Kaelira."
Kaelira glanced over her shoulder.
Ryke raised the rifle.
He looked toward the other guards.
"But why should you two have all the fun?"
His expression became serious.
"Why don't we start our own show?"
**BANG!**
The rifle fired.
Another guard dropped.
The moment the others realized what was happening—
panic erupted.
"OPEN FIRE!"
"He's one of them!"
"Kill him!"
**BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!**
Gunfire erupted throughout the spatial port.
Ryke immediately pulled the corpse in front of himself.
**THUD! THUD! THUD!**
Bullets slammed into the dead guard's body.
Ryke ducked behind it.
*They're mostly normal people.*
*Just guards with guns.*
His eyes moved rapidly across the battlefield.
*Only a few of them are Mana Users.*
*First-star...*
*Second-star...*
He tightened his grip on the rifle.
*And I'm only a first-star.*
Another bullet tore past his head.
**BANG!**
Ryke flinched.
*This is really dangerous.*
He swallowed.
*I'm definitely going to die if I don't use my head.*
Another volley struck the corpse.
**BANG! BANG! BANG!**
Ryke gritted his teeth.
*Hell...*
*I might still die even if I do.*
He slowly peeked around the corpse.
Several guards were reloading.
Others were taking cover behind pillars and barriers.
A few were already moving toward his position.
Ryke's eyes narrowed.
*But not this time.*
His gaze shifted toward the battlefield.
Kaelira was still fighting Darian.
Pythia's vines were tearing through the guards and mages.
The Specter was keeping several Mana Users occupied.
And the entire spatial port was descending further into chaos.
Ryke smiled faintly.
*If everyone is busy looking at the monsters...*
He raised the rifle.
*...then nobody will notice the rat crawling through the cracks.*
**BANG!**
Another guard fell.
Ryke immediately moved.
**BANG!**
He fired again.
Then—
he kicked the corpse away.
**THUD!**
Before the guards could react, Ryke rushed toward the nearest cover.
**BANG! BANG!**
Bullets chased after him.
He slid behind a stone pillar.
**THUD! THUD!**
The bullets struck the surface.
Ryke pressed his back against the pillar and breathed heavily.
"Fuck..."
He looked down at the rifle.
Then toward his hidden pistol.
Then toward his dagger.
A nervous grin appeared on his face.
"Okay..."
He slowly peeked around the pillar.
"Let's see how long I can survive this."
Across the battlefield—
Kaelira heard the gunfire.
She glanced toward Ryke.
Her grin widened.
"That idiot..."
Darian's eyes remained fixed on her.
"You know him?"
Kaelira's claws slowly rose.
"Unfortunately."
She crouched.
"But he isn't useful."
Ryke suddenly shouted from behind the pillar.
"HEY!"
Kaelira looked over.
Ryke raised the rifle.
"Can't you just shut up and focus on your fight?!"
Kaelira laughed.
"Don't worry about me."
Her mana surged.
"You should worry about yourself."
**BOOOOOOM!**
She launched herself toward Darian once more.
At the same time—
Ryke stepped out from behind the pillar.
His expression hardened.
The rifle was raised.
**BANG!**
😃😄😁
**BANG!**
Ryke fired.
The guard dropped.
But Ryke didn't stay in one place.
The moment the shot rang out—
he moved.
**BANG!**
Another shot.
He immediately shifted sideways.
A guard behind a pillar raised his rifle.
Ryke's eyes caught the movement.
*Reloading...*
The guard lowered his rifle and began feeding ammunition into it.
Ryke's expression changed slightly.
*Wait.*
His eyes dropped to the rifle in his own hands.
*I've been firing this thing this whole time...*
He glanced at the rifle's ammunition chamber.
*And I haven't reloaded once.*
His eyes widened slightly.
*That means...*
He looked back at the guard.
*They need to reload when they run out.*
A small grin appeared.
*Good to know.*
The guard finished reloading.
**CLICK!**
Ryke's expression immediately changed.
*But that also means I need ammunition.*
He looked down at the rifle again.
*I can't just keep wasting my mana to make up for bullets.*
His hand tightened around the weapon.
*I'm already only a first-star.*
*If I burn through all my mana just to keep firing...*
A bullet suddenly struck the pillar beside his head.
**BANG!**
Ryke ducked.
*...I'm basically asking to get killed.*
He breathed out slowly.
*I need to stop fighting like I have unlimited resources.*
Another guard stepped out from behind cover.
Ryke immediately moved.
**BANG!**
The guard fell.
Ryke didn't even wait to see the result.
He sprinted across the port.
**BANG! BANG!**
Bullets tore through the space behind him.
**THUD! THUD! THUD!**
Ryke slid behind another pillar.
He pressed his back against it.
*Think.*
His eyes moved across the battlefield.
Dead guards.
Dropped rifles.
Ammunition pouches.
Weapons scattered across the floor.
His eyes slowly narrowed.
*I can't keep creating ammunition...*
His gaze settled on the weapons lying around him.
*...I'll take theirs.*
Ryke suddenly stepped out.
**BANG!**
He fired.
Then immediately rushed toward a fallen guard.
He kicked the guard's rifle away and grabbed the ammunition pouch from his belt.
**BANG! BANG!**
Shots flew past him.
Ryke ducked.
"Crap!"
He rolled across the floor.
**THUD!**
He came up beside another fallen guard.
His hand immediately snatched another ammunition pouch.
*This is better.*
He stuffed it beneath his cloak.
*I don't need to win.*
His eyes flicked toward Kaelira and Darian.
The two were still tearing through the spatial port.
**BOOOOOOM!**
Kaelira's claws collided with Darian's sword.
A shockwave ripped through the area.
Ryke glanced at them.
*I just need to survive long enough for them to finish.*
He looked back at the guards.
*And if I can make everyone here think I'm more dangerous than I actually am...*
A crooked smile appeared.
*Then maybe they'll waste their time dealing with me.*
Ryke raised the rifle.
**BANG!**
Another guard dropped.
The remaining guards immediately turned toward him.
"He's over there!"
"Fire!"
Ryke's eyes widened.
"Shit."
**BANG! BANG! BANG!**
He turned and ran.
**BOOM!**
A mana-enhanced shot struck the floor beside him.
Stone exploded upward.
Ryke stumbled.
*Okay.*
He glanced over his shoulder.
*Some of them really are Mana Users, using mana to enhance their already deadly bullets.*
His expression became serious.
*Those are the ones I need to avoid.*
He tightened his grip on the rifle.
*Normal guards are one thing.*
*First-star and second-star Mana Users are another.*
He sprinted toward the nearest group of fallen guards.
*I can deal with the weak ones.*
*But if a second-star catches me...*
Ryke swallowed.
*I'm dead.*