On the other side, the Katsuragi faction had finally stumbled upon a third unoccupied stronghold after another exhausting trek.
The environment was getting worse by the hour. At first, they had caves to shelter from the wind and rain.
Then they were forced into the forest, where the soft mud made sleeping a nightmare. And now?
That damned Class B demon had driven them to the bottom of a jagged cliff.
At first glance, the overhanging rock above seemed like decent cover—it blocked out the sun and could theoretically shield them from rain.
But the ground was nothing but hard stone, and when the heat wave rolled in, it became unbearable.
Worse yet, if the wind shifted even slightly, any rain would come down at an angle, leaving them drenched.
It was torture.
"Cough, cough, cough!"
Yahiko Totsuka, completely spent, slumped against the rock wall, panting heavily. Despite his exhaustion, his eyes remained sharp, constantly scanning his surroundings.
He was afraid.
Afraid that the man who stole their key card would appear again—like a ghost lurking in the shadows.
"... We've hidden ourselves well this time. That guy… he shouldn't come after us again, right?"
Katsuragi Kohei, though in no better condition, continued clearing the area, trying to make the space livable.
"He got here before us last time," he muttered.
"But this time, we've been here for nearly ten minutes, and he still hasn't shown up. I think it's safe to say—"
"Yooo~ You guys seem to be having a great time."
The sudden voice sent a jolt through them all.
Their heads snapped up.
Standing before them, like an inevitable nightmare, was Kure Ragna of Class B.
The air grew thick with tension.
Katsuragi clenched his fists, forcing himself to stay calm. He took a slow, measured breath before speaking.
"You… Was it you?" His voice was steady, but there was an edge to it.
"Were you the one behind all of this?"
Ragna simply smirked.
"Does it really matter?" he mused, tilting his head slightly.
"Look, I'm a kind-hearted person. Seeing you all suffer like this… it pains me."
His voice was thick with mock sympathy.
"But don't worry," he continued. "I'm here to offer you a way out."
The tension in the air tightened like a noose.
Ragna's eyes gleamed as he took a step forward.
"Tell me," he said, his voice slow and deliberate.
"Would you like to swear an oath of allegiance?"
Silence.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Then, as if on cue, the same thought ran through everyone's minds—
Allegiance?
After everything he's done to us?
After driving them into this miserable state, did he really expect them to swear loyalty to him?
What a joke.
Yahiko gritted his teeth, barely holding back his frustration. Katsuragi, however, simply took a deep breath, his gaze steady as he locked eyes with Ragna—
Or rather, Ragna's sunglasses.
"I don't understand what you mean by that," Katsuragi finally said.
Ragna blinked in mild surprise.
"...What?"
The rhetorical response caught him off guard, but he quickly regained his composure, letting out an amused chuckle.
"Ahhh, my bad," he said casually. "Maybe I wasn't clear enough."
He adjusted his sunglasses slightly, his smirk widening.
"I don't need your loyalty. That kind of thing is worthless to me."
Katsuragi narrowed his eyes.
Ragna spread his arms, his tone turning almost casual.
"Didn't I already tell you? If you just align yourselves with the Sakayanagi faction, you can go back and use that cave. It's not exactly luxurious, sure, but at least it's better than rotting away down here."
He leaned forward slightly, voice lowering into something almost conspiratorial.
"So all you need to do is announce your withdrawal from the Katsuragi faction and switch sides. That's it. No more suffering. No more pointless struggle."
His smirk deepened.
"Sounds like a simple choice, doesn't it?"
--------------------------------------
Support me at patreon.com/Arthorain and read upto 100 Advanced Chapters and Exclusive R-18 Content!