Chapter 73: The Bitter Sting of Brotherhood
The "Night Orchid" was now a battlefield of empty pitchers and shattered pride. Mika, her face flushed a deep crimson, slammed her final glass onto the wooden table with a resounding thud. A hollow, triumphant laugh escaped her lips as she looked around the room with glazed eyes.
"See? I... I told you... I win," she slurred, her voice barely a whisper.
As if on cue, the world began to tilt. The gravity in the room seemed to shift, and before anyone could reach out, Mika's chair tipped backward. She let out a soft gasp as she crashed to the floor, her body going limp instantly. She was out cold—unconscious before her head even hit the floor.
Lira, who was barely holding onto her own sanity, sighed and dragged her chair over. She hauled Mika's limp body back into a seated position, propping her against the table. "Who told you to drink that much, you idiot?" Lira muttered, rubbing her own temples. "Now I have to carry you back."
A few feet away, Ren was slumped in his chair, his head resting on his chest. He had fallen asleep minutes ago, the rhythmic sound of his breathing the only peaceful thing in the chaotic room.
Kimo reached into his pocket and pulled out the heavy pouch of twenty golden coins. The clinking of the metal seemed loud in the sudden silence. He tossed the pouch onto the table in front of Lira. "Here. Mika won the bet. Since you two share a room in the hostel, you take charge of this. Make sure she gets it when she wakes up."
Lira's eyes widened at the sight of the gold, her drunken exhaustion momentarily replaced by greed. "Sure thing, Sensei," she said, pocketing the coins with a sly grin. "But if I feel like it, I might just 'borrow' some for a new pair of boots. She'll never know."
The four newcomer Vaners, who had also been drinking heavily, suddenly stood up. They were swaying, their eyes bloodshot, but they began to strap on their gear with shaking hands.
"The night is wasting," one of the boys grunted, nearly tripping over his own feet. "Our mission starts in twenty minutes. We have to move."
They stumbled toward the door, their laughter echoing hollowly in the street. Lira watched them go, her expression one of pure disbelief. "Are those people insane? They're going on a high-risk mission while they can't even walk straight. They're asking to be killed."
Kimo leaned back, exhaling a thin trail of smoke. "Don't worry about them, Lira. In this world, some people prefer to face death while they're too numb to feel it. It's their choice. Now, it's time for us to move too."
Adam stood up, his movements surprisingly sharp compared to the others. He walked over to the sleeping Ren and, without a word of warning, delivered a sharp, stinging slap across the boy's face.
Ren jumped, his eyes snapping open. "Who?! Where?!" He looked around frantically, his hands instinctively reaching for the revolver that wasn't there. He blinked, seeing Adam's cold gaze and the messy restaurant. "Wait... are we still here?"
"Stop acting like a tourist," Adam growled, grabbing Ren by his collar and pulling him up. "Get your head in the game. We're leaving."
Kimo and Lira stood up as well, with Lira having to practically carry Mika on her shoulder. As they stepped out into the freezing night air, the contrast hit them like a physical blow. The cold air made the alcohol in their blood spike.
Lira took two steps onto the sidewalk and immediately collapsed, her knees buckling under Mika's weight. They both ended up in a heap on the ground. "Kimo-sir..." Lira moaned, her eyes squeezed shut. "Please... just teleport us. I can't move my legs. My head is spinning."
Kimo rubbed his face, his own vision blurring. "I'm in no state to use high-level spatial Vane, Lira. I'm seeing three of you right now. Just... just stay there for a minute."
While Kimo and the girls were distracted by their own dizziness, Adam caught Ren's eye and tilted his head toward a dark, narrow alleyway nearby. He didn't wait for an answer, grabbing Ren by the arm and dragging him into the shadows.
The alley smelled of damp cardboard and discarded trash. Adam threw Ren against a stack of black garbage bags, the force of the impact knocking the breath out of the younger boy.
"What the hell, Adam?!" Ren gasped, clutching his stomach. "What's wrong with you?"
Adam didn't answer. He stepped forward, his face a mask of simmering rage. He punched Ren squarely in the nose. Ren's head snapped back, and a warm trail of blood began to leak from his nostrils, staining his uniform.
Adam reached into his pocket, pulled out a cigarette, and lit it with a steady hand. He took a long drag, the orange cherry of the cigarette glowing in the dark.
"Are you high or something?" Ren shouted, wiping the blood from his lip. "Why are you hitting me?"
Adam stepped into Ren's personal space, the smoke from his cigarette drifting into Ren's eyes. "I'm going to say this once, and only once, Reaper. Stay away from Mika."
Ren blinked, confused. "What? Stay away from her? What are you talking about? We're on the same team!"
"I saw the way you were looking at her today. I saw the way you worried about her when she passed out," Adam hissed, his voice like a serrated blade. "I'm telling you to back off. Don't worry about her. Don't look at her. Don't even think about her."
Ren let out a frustrated laugh, even as the pain in his nose throbbed. "Are you serious? You're doing all this because you like her? You're jealous?"
Adam's eyes turned cold—colder than the night air. "You want to die? Because if you keep talking like that, I'll make sure you don't make it to tomorrow's mission. I'm telling you this because you're supposed to be my friend. Stay away from her for your own sake."
"Friend?" Ren spat, gesturing to his bleeding nose. "You call me a friend while you're beating the life out of me in a garbage-filled alley? You're pathetic, Adam."
Adam's patience snapped. He threw his cigarette aside and lunged. Ren tried to dodge, but he was still sluggish from sleep. Adam drove a heavy kick into Ren's ribs, sending him sprawling into the trash.
"Stop it!" Ren groaned, the pain flaring in his side. "Just leave me alone!"
"I'm telling you for the last time," Adam said, his voice dropping to a terrifying whisper. "Don't act like a hero around her. You're only alive because of me, Ren. Remember that. While you were playing 'good boy' in the Academy, I was the one keeping the monsters off your back. Don't test me."
Adam turned to walk away, his back turned to Ren. In a flash of anger and adrenaline, Ren scrambled to his feet. He lunged forward, his fist balled up for a retaliatory punch.
But Adam was faster. It was as if he had eyes in the back of his head. He stepped to the side, letting Ren's momentum carry him forward. Adam caught Ren's wrist in mid-air and twisted it with brutal efficiency. He began to pivot, intending to snap Ren's arm in a 360-degree lock.
But Ren wasn't the same boy he was months ago. Sensing the direction of the force, Ren didn't resist. Instead, he threw his entire body into a backflip, following the rotation of the twist. He landed on his feet, his arm still intact, and ripped his hand away from Adam's grip.
"It was a joke, man! Let go!" Ren panted, backing away.
Adam stood still, his hands hanging loosely at his sides. He looked at Ren—truly looked at him—and saw the flickering fire in the boy's eyes.
"Shut your mouth," Adam muttered, the anger seemingly replaced by a cold indifference. He turned and walked out of the alley without looking back, leaving Ren alone in the dark, bleeding and confused.
Ren stood there for a long time, the cold wind biting at his face. He realized then that the monsters in the caves weren't the only things he had to fear. The people he called his brothers were just as capable of tearing him apart.