Chapter 1: GOD WON’T LET ME DIE

"Click."

No gunshot.

Kai stared at the revolver in his hand for a few seconds before finally letting out a quiet sigh. His body slumped back against the worn-out sofa of his tiny apartment, the dim city lights from outside casting faint shadows across his tired face. The room was a mess. Empty coffee bottles littered the floor, cigarette butts filled the ashtray, and on the table sat a pile of mission reports he hadn’t touched in weeks.

"Empty again."

A small complaint escaped his lips. It had been almost two years since the war ended, and in that time, Russian roulette had become his nightly ritual.

One bullet. Six chambers. One trigger pull to decide whether he’d wake up the next morning. But strangely, after three attempts, the bullet still never came out when aimed at his own head.

Kai slowly spun the revolver’s cylinder before pressing the muzzle back against his temple. His gaze was hollow, as if he didn’t really care whether he lived or died tonight.

"Click."

"Empty again."

A bitter chuckle escaped his lips—more bitter than amusing. He dropped the revolver to the floor, then covered his face with one hand while closing his eyes.

"So I’m not allowed to die today either, huh..."

It sounded like a joke, but Kai wasn’t sure if he could even joke anymore.

Because every night, when the silence sets in, the memory of that day always comes back to haunt him. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ

Fire.

Screams.

Blood flowing beneath the rain.

Eight years ago, Kai wasn’t the twenty-four-year-old man he was now. Back then, he was just a sixteen-year-old boy raised on the battlefield, taught that rebels were enemies that had to be eradicated.

That night, a mercenary force called the Grim Reaper stormed the largest rebel camp in the northern part of the country. Explosions echoed everywhere, while fire consumed wooden buildings one by one. In the middle of the chaos, young Kai walked at the front, carrying a rifle almost as big as his own body.

There was no fear in his eyes. No hesitation. Because from a young age, he was taught only one thing: If you want to survive, you kill first.

"Eastern unit breached!"

"Main force moving to the central hall!"

"Targets confirmed to still be inside!"

Military radio chatter mixed with the constant sound of gunfire that night. Kai ran through the flames without slowing down. His military uniform was soaked in rain and blood, but his expression remained calm—like a machine simply following orders.

The prodigy of war.

That was the title the government gave him.

Even though he was only sixteen, Kai had already led numerous massacre operations on the front lines. No one doubted his abilities. No one questioned why a child was sent to the battlefield.

Because as long as the results were effective, no one cared.

CRASH!

The main hall’s door was blown open.

Smoke immediately filled the room as government forces stormed in, weapons aimed in every direction. Kai stood at the front with a cold stare, slowly scanning the room. Nine armed men stood there, each wearing the rebel camp’s emblem on their clothing.

The man on the far right radiated a blazing aura—short red hair, a body covered in muscle. That was Rex Scarlet, the rebel camp’s military leader. He was the mastermind behind a series of attacks on cities previously guarded by the government. Beside him stood a man with long white hair, holding a katana in his hand. That man didn’t even glance at Kai—he just stood still, motionless. But Kai knew that this man could separate his head from his body in an instant. He was Zero Vale, commander of the rebel’s close-combat forces. He and his troops could quietly eliminate or kidnap government members they deemed a threat to the rebel camp.

Between Rex Scarlet and Zero Vale stood a man with brown hair—not tall, not striking, wearing glasses. That man was Dian Elno. He wasn’t flashy, wasn’t interesting, and seemed useless compared to the other rebel leaders. But there were rumors that he could boost the rebels’ fighting spirit and pull them out of even the worst situations.

Above the hall’s ceiling, two men watched from a distance. Jack Winter—a sniper—and his partner Gold Ash as his spotter. Together, they were a deadly combination and a nightmare for the government. Just hearing that the two of them had entered a battlefield was enough for the government to know the outcome.

While Kai was still identifying all the men in the room, a voice suddenly came through the radio he always carried.

"They are the primary targets of this operation."

A heavy voice came from the radio on Kai’s right shoulder. But unlike what Kai had expected, there was no hatred on their faces. No fanatical gaze like the government propaganda he’d been fed all his life. What he saw instead was exhaustion.

One of the men—with blue-gray hair—stared at Kai for a long moment before his eyes widened slightly.

"...Kael?"

Kai’s body froze for a moment. That name didn’t feel foreign. A feeling he hadn’t experienced in years began to creep up on him, and fast.

The man smiled faintly, even as blood continued to flow from his arm.

"So you’re still alive..."

He was Wild Neon, one of the most influential rebel leaders because he was a former government parliament member. He was in charge of communication channels and the mastermind behind various government data-hacking operations.

Not long after hearing the name "Kael," Kai’s head suddenly throbbed with pain. A fragment of memory appeared out of nowhere. A bright campfire. A dark night sky that didn’t feel lonely. Someone lifting his small body while laughing, telling happy stories. But it all disappeared as quickly as it had come.

"Eliminate the targets."

The commander’s voice came through the radio. Kai’s gaze turned cold again. He raised his rifle without hesitation and aimed directly at the man.

BANG.

The bullet pierced through the man’s head, and his body collapsed without a struggle. Screams immediately filled the hall.

"One down."

Not long after Kai muttered that, battle erupted in seconds. Bullets flew, glass shattered, and explosions shook the entire building. Kai moved through the smoke like a shadow, pulling the trigger without the slightest change in expression.

Rex Scarlet charged forward at incredible speed and attacked. Kai had no choice but to dodge every strike because he knew—forget taking the hit, even blocking it would be suicide. One punch from Rex Scarlet could shatter his young bones.

But Kai felt something strange. Only Rex Scarlet was attacking him. The other seven leaders just stood there, barely moving.

Just as Kai started getting used to Rex Scarlet’s attacks, Rex’s movements suddenly changed.

"Click."

The sound of a gun being cocked echoed clearly through the main hall. Kai realized that Jack Winter was ready to strike.

"Hahaha! You’re pretty sharp, kid."

Rex Scarlet smirked and continued his assault.

While Kai was busy dodging Rex’s relentless attacks, Jack Winter finally fired his gun. But because Jack had taken so long to aim, Kai managed to predict the bullet’s trajectory and dodged just in time. However, Rex Scarlet quickly closed the distance and landed a punch directly on Kai’s ribs, sending him flying far from where he had stood.

"Bam!"

Kai was thrown ten meters away. But something was strange—he didn’t feel any pain. He was sure that attack should have killed him, but somehow he was still standing.

Rex Scarlet looked at Kai with a disappointed gaze.

"Are you done yet, kid?"

Kai paused for a moment, looked around at the dust-filled room, and realized what he had crashed into.

"These are grenades!"

Kai quickly grabbed two grenades from the crate and charged at Rex Scarlet. Without Rex realizing it, young Kai was already close. Kai pulled the pins and tossed them upward—straight toward Jack Winter and Gold Ash.

"BOOM!"

Kai successfully diverted Rex Scarlet’s attention, who instinctively looked toward the explosion. But it was too late. When Rex turned his gaze back to Kai, the boy was already holding an automatic rifle, showering Rex’s body with bullets. Even after being riddled with bullets, that monster still wouldn’t die. But just as Kai was about to end Rex’s suffering, Zero Vale suddenly lunged forward, swinging his blade toward Kai’s neck—fortunately only leaving a shallow cut because at the last second, Kai had sensed the cold air around him.

Zero Vale returned to where Rex Scarlet’s body lay.

"Shhhk."

Slowly, the sword in Zero Vale’s hand pierced through Rex Scarlet’s body, killing him instantly. Kai could hardly believe what he had just seen. Why would he so calmly kill his own comrade? But Kai didn’t have time to think about that—he was now facing a close-combat specialist.

Kai stood still for a moment, thinking of a way to defeat Zero Vale. Suddenly, the ceiling began to collapse due to the grenade explosion he had caused. But that gave Kai an idea.

Kai grabbed large wooden planks and swung them around Zero Vale, creating enough dust and debris to obscure vision. But Kai knew that alone wouldn’t be enough, so he decided to set a trap—tying a grenade to a wire he always carried to eliminate enemies silently.

Kai attempted a stealth attack, but before he could get close, a metal disc flew straight at him. With quick reflexes, Kai dodged the disc—which had been thrown by Zero Vale. Kai was confused. Why didn’t Zero Vale just charge at him directly? That would have ended the fight long ago.

Kai decided not to dwell on things he couldn’t figure out. So when he saw Zero Vale still standing still, not even looking in his direction, he seized the opportunity and charged straight at him with all the traps he had prepared. Without hesitation, without fear. Kai started getting used to Zero Vale’s movements. They were simple—when attacking from above, Zero Vale would thrust. When attacked from different angles, Zero Vale would slash horizontally.

Armed with that knowledge, Kai finally decided to attack from above. He ran around Zero Vale toward a pile of wood, then leaped toward him. Zero Vale quickly thrust his weapon upward, just as Kai had predicted. So before the attack could hit him, Kai quickly twisted his body and dodged. But before he could touch the ground, Zero Vale launched an upward vertical slash. Kai didn’t dodge.

"CLANG!"

The loud sound of metal clashing echoed through the room. Zero Vale didn’t realize that the shadow he saw wasn’t Kai—it was the metal disc he had thrown earlier. Kai was standing on top of that disc, and on the other side of it, he had tied a grenade using the wire he always carried.

Zero Vale didn’t even have time to realize he had fallen into Kai’s trap. Kai quickly stood up, aimed the disc with the grenade attached, and pressed it against Zero Vale.

"BOOM!"

The explosion hit Zero Vale directly, and he collapsed motionless.

Kai, who was also caught in the blast, muttered quietly.

"That’s number six."

He gasped for air, exhausted. He knew he couldn’t defeat all nine leaders by himself. His stamina had limits. But did he have any choice other than to keep fighting?

"Hah... hah... hah..."

Kai struggled to control his breathing but couldn’t. It seemed his body had reached its limit. While Kai was clearly exhausted, a voice suddenly came from one of the remaining leaders.

"Just give up, Kael. You don’t have any strength left."

"Yes, you should just join us."

Kai recognized those voices. They belonged to Jim Sol and Dennis Noah.

They were the rebel leaders in charge of logistics. No matter how many times the government destroyed their supply depots, somehow their supplies always remained.

Jim Sol and Dennis Noah approached Kai, who was still gasping for air, and reached out their hands.

Kai, aware of his vulnerable position, reached for that hand—and then.

"Ugh..."

A flood of memories began to wash over Kai.

"The rebels must be exterminated."

"They don’t deserve to live."

"They are a disease and must be cleansed."

"KILL THEM ALL!"

A loud voice echoed in his mind—spoken by someone whose face Kai couldn’t even remember.

Seeing Kai in pain, Jim Sol and Dennis Noah quickly approached him.

"What has the government done to you?"

Jim Sol muttered quietly as he looked at Kai’s condition. Dennis Noah suddenly continued.

"It seems we really should take this kid with us. If left alone, he could become a major problem."

Dennis Noah looked at the supreme leader of the rebel camp with a serious expression, but his suggestion was quickly dismissed.

"No. Leave him be. He could be the key to ending all of this."

Hearing that from their leader, Jim Sol and Dennis Noah couldn’t do anything else.

As Jim Sol tried to pull Kai—who was still visibly in pain—suddenly—

"Shhrk!"

A knife suddenly embedded itself in Jim Sol’s neck.

Dennis Noah, seeing this, immediately attacked Kai. But with a blank expression and dead eyes, Kai quickly pulled out the knife and lunged at Dennis Noah.

"Shing!"

A swift slash instantly split Dennis Noah’s throat.

Dennis Noah collapsed instantly. Kai stood there, drenched in blood, barely moving, staring at the floor while gripping his knife.

Jhon Virel—who had watched all his comrades fall at the hands of a sixteen-year-old boy—was conflicted. Should he be impressed? Or terrified? As the supreme leader of the rebel camp, Jhon Virel could only leave a message for young Kai, because he knew—no one could stop him now.

Kai, who had nearly lost all consciousness, suddenly jolted awake when he heard a voice.

"I hope one day you’ll find out who your true enemy really is..."

Kai instinctively threw the knife in his hand toward the source of the voice.

Kai recognized that voice. That man was the primary target he had been hunting all along. He had been forced to watch recordings of that man’s speeches, so even without seeing his face, Kai knew exactly who was standing before him.

"Thud."

The sound of something heavy falling to the floor. As that sound faded, Kai began to gather his senses.

"It’s finally over."

Letting out a tired sigh, Kai turned and walked toward the exit of the building—now a wreck from the battle against the rebel leaders. But before he could take another step, he felt a chilling cold at the back of his neck.

And in that moment, Kai finally realized—something was off about this entire battle. It felt like they were trying to protect something.

He quickly looked up at the second floor of the building and saw a pair of red glowing eyes, its entire body shrouded in black shadow. Kai realized that behind where that shadow stood, there was a hallway lined with doors facing each other.

Those eyes kept staring at Kai, and for the first time, Kai felt true fear.

Not long after that, Kai began to feel dizzy. His body swayed and finally collapsed. Soon after, the leader of the mercenary force carried him out of the building. Kai, still barely conscious, tried to look back at the second floor—and saw that the pair of red eyes was pointing directly at him.