Black Rain

"I have no jobs for you," Kal'tsit coldly stated before she hung up on us. It has been five hours since the liberation of the LGD headquarters. We decided to return to the office, only to see it get burned to the ground. After cringing at my financial loss, it was decided that we would continue hunting Reunion soldiers. However, Kal'tsit just told us to stay at rest as reserves.

Despite not having Rhodes Island pay us, we continued our hunt for Reunion members for the sake of the quest. Rather, it was primarily Rimuru who consumed every Reunion member he saw. He said that it would help his village population.

"Wait," As we were strolling the chaotic streets of Lungmen, Zhongli suddenly stopped us in the midst of our tracks. Before I could question him, the sound of blades colliding brought my attention to a sword that was a few centimetres away from my throat. Luckily, Zhongli blocked it before my neck separated from my body.

"What the fuck!" I shouted in surprise and pulled out my rifle.

The sword immediately retreated as I unloaded a magazine. As I looked up, there were several figures dressed in black raincoats on the roofs surrounding us. I quickly reloaded my rifle as Jinwoo attempted to shoot them, however, they dodged his shots easily as several blades attempted to take my life, only to be parried by Zhongli.

"They seem to be after me… but why?" I muttered as I watched the figures covered in black flicker at speeds beyond my perception. I was safest with Zhongli in this situation.

As I internally planned a way out of this, an arrow pierced one of the men in raincoats. I turned to the left to see a group of weirdly dressed Reunion soldiers. Player three has joined the game.

"Hurry up and run!" One of the Reunion soldiers shouted, indicating us to an escape route. Although I was reluctant, the others took the opportunity to retreat immediately so I followed along.

"Argh!" A groan from the group of Reunion soldiers could be heard from behind us as he was mercilessly decapitated by the men in raincoats. Utilising the opportunity, I turned around and managed to take out one of the men in raincoats, who was distracted with killing the Reunion soldiers.

Seeing the death of several more of their comrades, the men in raincoats decided to retreat from us. With our biggest threat gone, I turned my attention to the Reunion soldiers. We were enemies, but they helped our retreat, so they weren't so bad.

"Those damned Lungmenites. Targeting people due to their infection," One of the Reunion soldiers muttered as he kicked the dirt next to his dead comrade. From how those guys in the black raincoat were, they must've been Lungmen's special forces. For them to attack me, who wasn't even marked with any signs of being a Reunion member aside from my infection…

"Thank you for your help," I said as I reached out for a handshake. Although we were enemies, I still held respect for their ideology. I could only hope that the incident with us and Lungmen's special forces was a mistake. Surely, they won't massacre innocent civilians due to their infection. They were no reason to.

"No problem. Your group is pretty strong, don't you want to join Reunion? We won't force you if you don't want to, but Lungmen's treatment of the Infected is…" A Reunion soldier offered with a sad tone. I was also surprised to see that I was a resident despite my infection status. From what I've heard, infected individuals are rejected at the gate of Lungmen without a second thought.

"We, unfortunately, have to reject your offer. But, I have a question for you. If you could leave this world and live a life free from discrimination of your infected status, would you?" Rimuru asked. I thought he would've just consumed them like with the other Reunion members. Why is he asking for permission now?

"We would. However, we can't. We still have to protect our sister and retreating comrades. Our squad's numbers are down to only us. I think I speak for all of us that our only last wish is to see our sister live a life away from all of the trouble of this world... Haha, why am I telling you this? You wouldn't know who-" The Reunion soldier chuckled at himself, however, he was interrupted by Rimuru who consumed him and the other Reunion soldiers before they could react.

"Your sister… Frostnova, and her father. I will rescue them," Rimuru muttered as he looked at us with firm eyes.

"I've seen too much to forget. I really hate this system," Rimuru wryly chuckled with a downtrodden expression. He is... strange today- wait no, I was numb. He has always been like this, but I just shrugged it off.

"Forget it, Rimuru. We have a quest to do," I said as I turned my back to the others. I didn't agree with Rimuru's idea of rescuing our supposed enemies and potentially compromising our quest. Our lives were on the line, after all. But, why do I feel like I'm missing something?

"I need to find this Frostnova person in Chernobog, and we might as well take care of their leader. Without a leader, they're bound to retreat from Lungmen," Listening to Rimuru's reasoning, I couldn't help but agree. I didn't understand why Rimuru wanted to go out of his way to save this specific person, but I wasn't one to openly judge another person's morals. We just need to take out their leader to complete this quest.

Perhaps, Rimuru will soon realise that he can't save everyone. No, why am I thinking like that? I shook my head and pulled out my phone. Our destination was Chernobog.

"Do you want a cup of tea? It'll help caffeinate you," Zhongli suddenly said as he presented me with a cup of hot herbal tea whilst sipping his own. I took it with a grateful nod.

"I see why you're so calm all the time," I said as I noticed the calming effects of the tea.

"I haven't always been so… calm. I learnt it from someone I once knew. I can only hope that you won't learn it the same way I did," Zhongli replied with melancholy. Before I could ask him what he meant, Jinwoo popped up behind us.

"Can I also have a cup?" Jinwoo asked as he noticed the tea in my hand.

"I also want to try Zhongli's mysterious herbal tea," Rimuru said with curiosity.

"Here you go," Zhongli replied with another teacup in his hand. It literally appears out of thin air. You know what, I'll just appreciate my tea without thinking about it.

As for the question, I'll ask him another time.