Chapter 41: The Unyielding Guardian

After leaving the small trading post behind, Aiden Cross’s Subway Station Locker Key had been completely used up, exchanged for some basic supplies and a small amount of gold coins, a pleasant bonus.

He drove the Rezvani through the outskirts of the city, deliberately patrolling areas and locations where "opportunities" were likely to appear based on the memories of his past life.

His next clear objective was to find Luna Everhart, the future strongest support-class player who possessed the SS-rank class [Dice of Fate].

Unfortunately, Luna Everhart’s whereabouts were elusive. Finding her would require a certain amount of luck, and perhaps a fair bit of patience.

Until then, Aiden didn’t mind making a few long-term ’investments’ along the way.

The Rezvani passed an area that had once been a sprawling logistics warehouse. Now, most of the building had collapsed, leaving behind broken walls, twisted metal, and piles of rubble.

Amidst the ruins, the sounds of weapons clashing, monsters roaring, and desperate human cries drifted faintly through the air.

Aiden Cross had no intention of interfering.

In the apocalypse, scenes like this unfolded every moment. People died every day, and he wasn’t some self-righteous savior who intended to rescue everyone he encountered.

Just as he was about to accelerate and leave the battlefield behind, however, his gaze swept across the chaotic scene.

Then, it stopped. In the center of the battlefield stood a figure who remained as immovable as a rock despite being surrounded by monsters.

Yet that seemingly unyielding figure was already teetering on the brink of collapse.

Aiden’s eyes flickered slightly.

....

It was an extremely burly and sturdy man, nearly two meters tall, wearing a tattered, blood-stained work uniform.

He had no proper weapon in his hands, relying solely on a pair of flesh-and-blood fists and a thick metal door bolt ripped from who knew where as he stubbornly held off the frenzied attacks of three Level 2 Hard-Shell Beetles and two Level 3, Sprinter Corpses.

His fighting style could hardly be called a technique.

There was no finesse, no carefully executed movements, only overwhelming brute force and an almost instinctive tenacity that refused to let him fall.

The metal door bolt whistled through the air with every swing.

Whenever it slammed into a Hard-Shell Beetle’s carapace, a heavy bang rang out, occasionally staggering the creature backward.

But against the agile Sprinter Corpses, his reactions were noticeably slower.

Several wounds deep enough to expose bone had already been carved across his body, blood soaking through his torn uniform and dripping onto the ground beneath him.

Yet he hadn’t taken a single step back.

Because behind him, two pale-faced young men and women who looked like students were huddled together, trembling in fear.

They clutched crude, sharpened wooden sticks in their hands, but their terrified expressions made it obvious that they were incapable of providing any meaningful assistance.

The burly man was using his own body as the final line of defense between them and the monsters.

Even though they were complete strangers.

"Roar!"

One of the Sprinter Corpses suddenly seized the opening created when the burly man swung the door bolt and missed.

Its figure blurred. Like a ghost, it slipped around his side and lunged toward his back, its venomous claws tearing through the air as they aimed directly for his heart!

The burly man seemed to sense the danger. He tried to turn. But after fighting for so long, his body had already become sluggish from blood loss and exhaustion.

It was too late to dodge completely. But just as the claws were about to pierce his body

"Bang!"

A compressed burst of force suddenly tore through the air. At the edge of the battlefield, Aiden had raised one hand. His fingers were casually shaped like a gun.

’[Pressure Shot]!’

Mana surged through his arm before rapidly compressing at his fingertips.

BOOM!

The highly pressurized burst of force struck the Sprinter Corpse directly in the side.

The impact violently twisted its body and sent it flying sideways.

-68!

The Sprinter Corpse crashed heavily into the remains of a collapsed wall, its claws gouging deep marks into the concrete as a painful shriek escaped its throat.

The sudden intervention instantly stunned everyone on the battlefield.

Even the monsters momentarily seemed to hesitate.

The burly man turned his head sharply. Only then did he notice the figure standing quietly at the edge of the battlefield.

The newcomer wore a clean, crisp green combat uniform, a stark contrast to the blood-soaked battlefield around him. A pair of metal [Power Gauntlets] covered his hands, emitting a faint energy fluctuation.

His face was expressionless, his eyes as calm as a deep, bottomless pool.

It was none other than Aiden Cross. He didn’t waste words. His figure simply moved, cutting into the battlefield like a ghost!

The [Power Gauntlets] whistled through the air, smashing directly into the relatively fragile joint of a Hard-Shell Beetle. Boosted by Kinetic smash, that attack was no joke

[-63!]

CRACK!

The sound of the carapace shattering rang clearly across the battlefield.

Another Sprinter Corpse seized the opportunity to pounce at him. Yet Aiden Cross seemed to have eyes in the back of his head.

With a nimble sidestep, he effortlessly slipped past the attack before driving his elbow backward with brutal precision.

Bang!

His elbow slammed directly into the Sprinter Corpse’s spine!

-38!

The Sprinter Corpse staggered forward, its body momentarily losing control.

Aiden’s movements were concise, efficient, and ruthless.

Every strike targeted a vital point, while his footwork constantly positioned him in ways that blocked the monsters’ attack paths and redirected their attention.

The pressure on the burly man was instantly reduced.

Although the man’s reactions were a beat slower than Aiden’s, his combat instincts were sharp. He immediately understood that a powerful reinforcement had arrived.

He roared, forcing the remaining courage into his battered body, and swung the metal door bolt with both hands.

Bang!

The weapon smashed viciously into a monster that Aiden had already injured. The monster staggered and Aiden immediately followed up.

Bang!

Another precise strike landed on its exposed joint.

-42!

The two of them, one attacking, one defending; one agile, the other clumsy, unexpectedly formed a tacit understanding within moments.

Aiden would cripple the monsters. The burly man would finish them off.

Aiden would draw their attacks away. The burly man would use the openings he created.

With Aiden Cross joining the battlefield as a fresh force, especially with his precise and lethal attacks, the tide of battle reversed almost instantly.