Lumiville City is the largest city and also the capital of the country, Luminaria. There are many tall buildings here. The center of government is also located here. During the destruction, many survivors from other areas moved here. Perhaps because it was the capital, the recovery was quite fast.
In a certain place in Lumiville City, the sign read Azalea Flower Shop. A bell rang as the shop door opened.
"Welcome." The shop assistant greeted her customer.
"Ah, Mr. Zain. Would you like to pick up your order?" The shop assistant recognized Zain.
"Yes."
"Okay, please wait a moment." The shop assistant took Zain's order.
"A bouquet of thirty stems of white lilies. Here you are, Mr. Zain."
The assistant handed it to Zain. It was a bouquet of fresh white lilies.
"Hmm, you always order the same flowers, the same quantity, and on the same date. Is there a special reason for that?" The assistant was curious.
"Thank you." Zain accepted it.
"Yes, there is. But you don't need to know that."
"This is for payment for your next order." Zain handed the money to the clerk.
"Well, you're always so serious, hehe."
"Oh, Mr. Zain, can I leave this with you?" The clerk handed Zain a bouquet of sunflowers.
"Please give this to my mother."
The clerk, a teenage girl with her hair in two braids, smiled at Zain.
"I'll give it to her." Zain accepted the flowers.
"I should have given it to her myself, but the other clerk was on leave so I couldn't go."
"It's okay, your mother will be happy."
"Thank you, Mr. Zain. See you on the next order." The girl smiled brightly.
"See you later." Zain left the flower shop.
In a bustling city. Many people were passing by, doing their own things. The atmosphere seemed peaceful. As if the destruction had never happened. But that was only part of what was visible.
After leaving the flower shop, Zain was waiting at the bus stop. Moments before the bus arrived, a loud explosion was heard not far from where Zain was. The danger warning alarm sounded.
"Attention!! Warning to all residents who hear this alarm!! The gate has opened! Please evacuate immediately!!" The warning sounded three times.
Because the gate could not be predicted where it would open, they could only use a warning alarm that could be heard in the area near the gate. So, civilians who could hear the alarm could immediately flee to safety. At least to a place where the alarm could not be heard.
After hearing the warning, people inside buildings and on the streets ran for their lives. The bus that Zain was about to board immediately closed its doors and turned around. Everyone moved away from the sound of the alarm. Zain was silent at the bus stop.
Just as he was about to leave, someone suddenly fell out of nowhere and landed near him. The person was wearing a military uniform and looked young. He was probably a new recruit. The young man fainted instantly. His forehead was injured. But suddenly the young man regained consciousness. When he opened his eyes, he saw Zain in front of him.
"Son! You must evacuate immediately. Please get away from this area immediately!" The young man tried to get up and asked Zain to leave immediately.
"Eh?! Sir?!" When the young man took a closer look at Zain, he looked confused.
Zain looked younger than him, but somehow, Zain's aura seemed more mature. Even though the young man was slightly taller than Zain.
"Ah! I'm sorry, sir, I spoke rudely to you." The young man apologized politely.
"It's okay, everyone is like that at first." Zain wasn't bothered.
"Ah, thank you. But please evacuate from here immediately." He truly was a good soldier.
"Thank you." Zain left.
The young soldier ran back to the direction he had fallen. Even though he was injured, he still prioritized the safety of others.
Although most of the soldiers were people who had awakened their powers, a wound was still a wound. It hurt. Even when the young man had fallen earlier. Although he immediately got up and appeared to be in no pain, that was only his display. Because his concern for protection was stronger than the pain.
"Sorry for the disturbance."
It was the young man who had been knocked down. He ran very fast to where the red gate opened.
"Hey, junior! You're back!" The other soldiers were busy shooting the monsters.
"What are you doing?! Quickly throw the grenades!"
"Okay!"
The soldiers fought to exterminate the monsters. Shot after shot, explosion after explosion.
"Aim for the head first, then the body!"
"Okay!"
Their attitude was professional. They fought while teaching their juniors. They tried hard to keep the monsters from escaping elsewhere. They risked their lives to block the gate's attack.
"This guy over here is badly injured! Quickly take him to the back of the line where the medics are!"
One by one, the soldiers began to fall from their wounds. In fact, many of them were already injured, but they chose to hold on. Until they could no longer hold on. The red gate began to crack.
"The gate is cracking! Go all out!"
The soldiers intensified their attack. Even when their rifles ran out of ammo, they pounded the monsters with their rifles until they were destroyed.
"Out of ammo! Change your weapons!"
The soldiers took out their modified swords to kill the monsters. They only used their swords when they had run out of ammo, as close combat was too risky.
Their swords beheaded the monsters. The number of monsters pouring out of the gate dwindled. The cracks in the gate grew larger.
Finally, the red gate crumbled to ashes.
Seeing the red gate destroyed, the soldiers immediately shouted their victory. Their sweat and blood were proof of their hard work. There were no casualties. The wounded had recovered. They were happy.
With this, they hoped the world would survive, even if only for one day.