Chapter 9

If you ever were granted nine lives, I am sure you'd choose to live the same life you have with that special someone.

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The reckless pursuit for the fleeing midget was not for naught when Berret both successfully killed the midget and let it alert its other brothers.

"Huh?! Wasn't that Dos?!"

Outside did the huge disfigured brother storm with an ax in his hand and a wildly raging look on his face. Viciously did he growl upon the bitter discovery of his murdered brother.

"Rah!"

Roaringly, he was uproariously yelling at the top of his lungs while the other remaining brothers showed themselves. And... they were all deeply enraged at the ugly sight of their brother.

"Dos, you will not go wasted!"

Shockingly, the five of them brothers sat around the dead brother. One of them took their knife and began to cut up the midget in pieces.

"To your murderers. I swear I'll kill them!"

"Good thing I still have two more uses of my invisibility."

Before one of them could spot him and point the crime on him, Berret cloaked himself and disappeared into the dusk.

Nom, nom, nom. Chomp, chomp, chomp. Disgustingly, each of the brothers helped themselves to the dismembered midget, indulging in their cannibalistic desire. Yes, they were devouring their own. But why? Because it is their way of preserving their relative's soul. By ingesting them, all of the brothers share the same bond, connecting with each other even after death. That's at least what they think.

"Bleugh! They are way worse than I imagined!"

Throwing up was the last thing they should do, and Wil knew it, thus taking Mary by her wrist and pulling her away from the area.

"Where are we going now?"

"Somewhere," he answered. "They are staying together right now. If ever they see us, all five of them will come at u,s and we'll be helpless against them. They are superior in skills and strength. Their prowess far surpasses that of a normal human. But with traps and such, we can take them out."

Wil would rather have someone rely on him than him relying on someone. However, when it comes to his parents whom he loves so much, Wil just can't help himself being dependent on them.

And the reason for keeping Mary by his side was for the sole purpose of making use of her. By utilizing her capabilities, Wil sees an opportunity to live through another dangerous hunt. He is yet to die, and he will trample and trod at anything just to see another great day.

But what is it that drives him to survive? What is it about his life that makes him try? Is it his parents? Perhaps his quite unique hobby of building hopping and mountain rock climbing? Or could it be that Wil is just as afraid to die as anyone?

"We're back here where we first spawn."

Yes, back at the place where a bunch of abandoned cars were parked close to each other like a dumpster for toys.

"This is where we will be hiding for the time being. We want them to split up, so it will be easy to take them out. We don't stand a chance if we take them on by ourselves. We don't even know if the others are still alive."

Both of them understand that none of them have a weapon that can kill or eliminate their opponent. Wil has his [Useful Eyeglasses] while Mary receives her ATech called...

[Microdrone]

[Description: Microdrone could be used for reconnaissance missions, gathering data in hard-to-reach or dangerous areas. Can also be used for surveillance. A microdrone can be used for up to 5 minutes per use.]

And there are three usages per new Artificial Technology or ATech. As the users level up, they will unlock more features regarding their ATech, and it is even possible to receive new ATechs they can use. This means that any passive cooperation during hunts can lead to nothing. One must utilize their capabilities for everybody's sake, especially for themselves. In other words, one won't receive experience points because they didn't cooperate or participate in the hunt.

"It's a Techfly that is designed as a dragonfly and a Techpad for controlling the microdrone, which is the size of a normal dragonfly."

[Techpad initializing... Please confirm the user's fingerprints to enable the use of the ATech.]

Mary placed all ten of her fingers on the Techpad's screen to unlock her ATech and so it did afterward.

[Registering Mary Antoine as the user of Microdrone. Registration complete. The user may now use the Techfly and control it depending on the user's will.]

"And here I thought my ATech would be equipped with a small gun that can kill those ugly bastards."

Mary sighed, disappointed and serious about what she said and what she could not get. But to Wil, it was not so bad because they could monitor their surroundings.

"It's getting dark. We should find a perfect car to hide ourselves and wait for an opportunity to come knocking on our door."

But the forest was vast. Waiting nonchalantly for their enemies alone would not be enough. They need something that would attract their enemies one by one. If they arrive all together, Wil and Mary won't win.

"Luckily, my ATech has a night vision feature, which allows me to adapt to the night."

Upon hearing this, Mary wondered if her Techfly also held the same ability. And since it was getting dark, she'll know.

"You should place the Techfly on top of the car for proper launching," suggested Wil as he opened a rusty door to a car and got inside.

"Thank you. I'll do that."

There was no description of the range of the Techfly being able to reach, nor does it state what kind of personal feature the microdrone has aside for its general availability.

Once Mary was settled inside a car, one that was not far from Will, she comfortably set herself straight and prepared the microdrone's launch.

[Initializing microdrone launching... Activating gear sets; night vision, flashlight, and alarm. Your Techfly is ready to take off.]

"Okay, so I click here to ascend and the bottom one to descend. On my left is where I control its direction. Pretty simple key binds since it says here what it does. Oh, would you look at the acceleration and deceleration buttons? And, of course, the buttons for the features."

Sloppily and clumsily, Mary was doing good at controlling the microdrone, flying it around. She won't accelerate its current speed because she is afraid that she might crush it onto a tree.

"Please carefully watch our surroundings. I'll keep watching, too in case you miss something."

Her microdrone's personal features came out perfectly. It would be the best trap for their enemies, but she still does not know how exactly the alarm feature works.

"Okay. I've got the hang of it now. I'm gonna keep flying around."

It finally became dark, thus activating the night vision option whereas the flashlight feature would be conspicuous. Like a normal dragonfly flying at its normal speed, the Techfly shows impressive smooth controls.

[You are nearing its limited range. Going any further will result in disconnection.]

"Shit! Go back! I didn't know that it can only fly away for 20 meters and a height of 10 meters."

Mary switched to deceleration to decrease the Techfly's speed and not unwillingly disconnect from her controls. She then shifted, turning around. Instead of going straight now, Mary was going around in circles fifteen meters away from their location.

Residual junks, mounds of dry leaves, and fallen big trees were the common sight through her screen. It was slightly visible with the help of a night vision feature, but everything looked dim. She was not picking up any signs of life when three individuals clocked in.

"I have company, Wil."

[Remaining Time: 23 Minutes 16 Seconds]

"Really? Around where?"

"12 meters north. There are three of them. W-Wait," she stopped mid-sentence when another couple of lives came into view. "Two more are approaching these three at top speed! They will come in contact in ten seconds!"

"Then those three are our teammates! Can't you warn them?!"

To not be shouting at each other, Wil moved inside to the car where Mary was hiding. They were both looking at the Techpad's screen.

"Switch to your flashlight option and direct them at the two!"

Despite being the size of her pinky finger and its head the shape of a round normal die, a bright flashing light distracted the two brothers from approaching the three.

"Guwah! Keke! What is that bright light?!"

"Shoot it with your bow!"

It was too small to aim for and hit it. Thoughtlessly firing more arrows towards it will be all for naught.

"Hey, what is that light?!"

"Never mind that! Look at those two!"

The geezer saw their enemies a few meters away from them, too distracted and blinded by the bright light.

"Aren't they our enemies?! Then, does that mean someone's helping us?"

Though not being directly showered by the flashlight, their exact location vaguely draws the brothers' attention.

"Baron, they are about to shoot an arrow at us! Use your kinetic shield!"

"Hell no! Just hide behind the tree trunks! They are thick enough to cover for us!"

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