**#008. A Broken World (3)**
A proposal.
What on earth could he be talking about?
How could he know that Niles was dead?
“Ray. I’ve been watching you for a long time. I hope you’ll hear me out.”
Humphrey, usually silent and meticulous in carrying out his duties, had earned a reputation for his quiet efficiency. Now, however, he was saying more than he ever had, and in a tone laced with urgency and desperation.
Ray observed the mana within Humphrey, checking for any sign of deception. But he detected none.
His anger started to fade, like a shell he was shedding.
“…”
There was a time when Humphrey had turned a blind eye to Ray while he was with Hector.
One pays back a debt—that was Ray’s code.
Ray nodded silently.
Humphrey exhaled in relief, swallowing hard before he spoke.
“Let me get straight to the point. I want you to leave Sector 50.”
Ray said nothing. It was happening again—another person telling him to leave this place.
“Why?”
“Because I want you to find my younger sibling.”
“A sibling?”
“Yes, the one Hector sold to the city of mages.”
Ray replied, “You have a sibling?”
“Yes. That’s the reason I work for Hector. He promised to tell me my sibling’s exact location after I complete ten years of service. By now, he’d be around your age.”
Humphrey wasn’t particularly good with words. But it was clear he’d been preparing this story for a long time, and he managed to convey it concisely.
“You knew I used magic?”
“Yes. I had my suspicions for a while, but seeing you fight in the warehouse confirmed it.”
Humphrey pulled back his collar to reveal a faint burn scar on his chest.
“I followed you as you climbed up the riverbank toward the streets. I saw you taking down Hector’s men with magic.”
Humphrey’s words flowed quickly, knowing that Ray might change his mind at any moment.
Ray felt his mind cooling with each sentence.
“What is the city of mages?”
“I heard it’s somewhere upstream along the Elton River. Only mages can enter.”
“Then go find your sibling yourself. Don’t ask me to do it.”
Humphrey’s face twisted bitterly as he shook his head.
“…I don’t have the courage to leave this place.”
“…”
So, he was like the others.
An adult who’d sunk roots too deep and lost the courage and self-assurance to try anything new.
Ray replied coldly, “I don’t see why I should help you. I still have revenge to take.”
Humphrey shook his head.
“Knowing a little magic won’t help you beat Hector. Besides, he’s got a terrible mage by his side.”
A mage with deep blue mana.
The one who controlled the golem.
“How strong is that mage? What kind of magic did he use?”
“…You have no idea how frightening that man is.”
Humphrey’s face darkened, and his mana stirred, black with fear.
“One member who crossed him was frozen solid and shattered. Another was suffocated by a water globe on his face.”
“…”
Humphrey shared all he knew about the mage.
Ray let his thoughts settle.
Yes, he admitted, objectively speaking, his chances of defeating the mage were slim.
Ray hadn’t learned magic in any systematic way. He’d been using it by instinct, and perhaps what he knew was only a corner of a far larger picture. Or maybe not even that much.
On the other hand, the enemy was a professional, equipped with knowledge Ray couldn’t imagine, and the ruthlessness to kill without hesitation.
The odds were almost zero.
Maybe he could inflict some damage with a surprise attack, but that would be it.
Would that satisfy him? Could that even be called revenge?
“Hector is rounding up every child in this sector. If you stay here, you’ll end up caught. You’ll be sold as a slave somewhere, I’m sure.”
“…”
“Leave this place for now. That way, you’ll have a chance to do whatever you set your mind on, including revenge.”
At that moment, a shout echoed from the alley Ray had come through.
─ Over there! The kid ran that way!
─ There are downed men over here too!
The voices of Hector’s men.
“We don’t have much time.”
The color of Humphrey’s mana shifted to anxiousness.
After a few seconds, Ray spoke.
“I have a condition. Deal with the bodies under the bridge.”
“That’s doable. I can take care of it without Hector knowing.”
The color of Humphrey’s mana shifted to intense excitement and joy. He pulled out a leather pouch and a small note from his coat, handing them to Ray.
“I’m not asking for this without compensation. This is all the money I’ve saved in my life. The note has my sibling’s name and features.”
Ray opened the pouch. It was filled with high-denomination coins and a car key.
“What makes you think I’ll keep my promise? I could just take the money and go.”
“I know you. You’re not the type to break a promise. And…”
Humphrey took a steadying breath before speaking again.
“The Ray I’ve seen has enough skill to make it to an upper sector.”
“…”
Ray stared at the pouch. He was about to return the car key but thought better of it and pocketed it.
Niles had prepared a vehicle on the sector’s outskirts, but the situation could always change.
Ray looked toward the street beyond the alley.
It was in the direction of the central square where Hector was.
I haven’t forgotten my anger.
Someday, I’ll return to retrieve that buried fury and drench myself in it.
“Wait for me. Until I come back.”
With a light step, Ray vanished into the alleyway, soon disappearing from view.
Humphrey took a deep breath.
Then, with a booming voice, he shouted down the alley.
“He’s this way──!! The enemy is here──!!”
It was to buy the boy a little more time to escape.
In the bleak gray alley, Humphrey’s mana swirled with hues of anxiety, excitement, and anticipation.
—
—
—
Ray ran and ran.
─ There he is!
─ Round up every last kid!
Hector’s men swarmed him like a hive at every turn of the alley.
Zap!
Under a blue current, each one of them collapsed, their bodies convulsing.
─ Over here!
─ Keep pushing! He’s still running!
The enemies kept coming, the commotion drawing all of Hector’s forces in Ray’s direction.
But it wasn’t a big problem.
The mana coating his body heightened his senses, letting him detect every movement nearby.
This, too, was an instinctive way Ray had learned to use mana.
Thanks to this, he navigated the maze-like alleys without getting surrounded.
Finally, when Ray stopped running, he found himself at a wide intersection leading from Street 17 to other numbered streets.
Bracing his knees, he caught his breath.
Once he’d calmed down enough to run again, he raised his head.
And met the gaze of someone at the other end of the intersection.
“…”
An individual who had existed here and would continue to exist.
A thought crossed Ray’s mind.
Confirming that no one from Hector’s gang was around, Ray strode toward the figure.
“…”
“…”
Strictly speaking, their eyes didn’t meet. The person in question was blind.
Viola sat on her mat with her usual gentle smile, unharmed as though the chaos hadn’t touched her.
…She was likely spared because she wasn’t in the massacre’s center.
“I have a question. Please answer quickly; I don’t have much time.”
Ray fished a coin from his pocket to drop in her can but paused.
It was the 1,000-shilling coin he’d received from Hector.
“…”
No, that wouldn’t do.
He’d already decided how he would use it someday.
Ray took out another coin and dropped it into the can.
Clink─!
“Is it true that if you find a rainbow, you can make a wish?”
“It’s you, Ray.”
Viola’s closed eyes seemed to trace the contours of his face with an unseen gaze. She replied warmly.
“The rainbow exists, indeed. And any wish can be made upon it.”
The violet mana in Viola’s vessel remained pure. It was impossible to tell her true intentions or whether she was being honest.
“I heard that the magician came here looking for something. He mentioned a rainbow, didn’t he?”
This at least suggested that the rainbow wasn’t pure myth. According to Humphrey, even the one-eyed mage had mentioned it.
“Can it bring people back?”
“Yes, anything at all. But no one knows where to find the rainbow.”
“Thank you.”
Ray turned to leave, but then a thought made him look back.
“For now, you might want to move to a new spot.”
Ray started running again, the worn-down scenery of Street 17 watching the boy’s fading figure.
—
—
—
The outskirts of Sector 50, on the outermost 23rd Street.
Ray found the vehicle noted by Niles with little trouble—a white car parked beside an abandoned building.
A four-seater compact. Still, it felt a bit big for a boy.
“…”
His mind was foggy.
He had overused his mana. His strengthening magic had nearly worn off, and he had no energy left to use any other spells.
Sweat-drenched, he approached and inserted the key.
“What’s this? Instead of Niles, I caught a rat?”
A voice came from across the empty lot, followed by the appearance of a man.
His swaggering gait and hostile gaze left no room for friendliness.
The moment their eyes met, Ray immediately recognized him.
The black rain that night.
The chase that began at the food storage facility.
One of Hector’s men who had hunted him relentlessly back then.
…Missing a finger.
His bandaged stump was evidence of the punishment he’d received from Hector for failing to catch his prey.
But that wasn’t the real danger.
The needle marks on his exposed forearm.
The murky liquid in the syringe he carried in his other hand.
Ray knew exactly what that was—a cheap drug that dulled pain while forcing the body into a heightened state of awareness.
“Who the hell are you? And why do you have the keys?”
The man began closing the distance threateningly.
Thankfully, it seemed he hadn’t yet recognized Ray.
“You one of Niles’ little brats? Did he send you to fetch the car? Where is Niles?”
A tense silence hung between the boy and the man.
The first to act was Ray.
*Creak!* *Click!*
“You little—where do you think you’re going?”
Ray opened the car door just as the man bolted from his position.
Jumping into the driver’s seat, Ray simultaneously inserted the key into the ignition with his right hand while pulling the door shut with his left.
*Thunk!*
It should have closed—if not for the man grabbing the handle just in time.
“You arrogant punk!”
Ray held onto the door from inside, but the difference in physical strength was evident. Slowly, the door began to open.
With his mana depleted, even his enhanced strength was nearly gone.
The widening gap allowed the man to shove his arm inside.
“Get out, you little—what kind of stunt do you think you’re pulling?!”
The man gritted his teeth as he flailed his arm to grab Ray.
Ray resisted with all his might, trying to jam the key into the ignition.
*Click, click!*
But the car shook under their struggle, making it hard to align the key.
In the chaos, the man yanked Ray’s hood off, revealing his face.
The man’s eyes narrowed sharply.
“You little—! No way—!”
The moment he recognized Ray, his strength surged.
The door was now more than half open, and the man tried to wedge himself into the car.
*Smack!*
Ray abruptly let go of the door.
Off balance, the man stumbled backward in an undignified heap.
“You bastard! You’re the one! You’re the kid from the warehouse!”
His rage overshadowed the pain of his fall. He scrambled to his feet and lunged at the car.
The instant the man reached for him, Ray used his remaining mental strength to enhance his body briefly and slammed the door shut.
*BAM! CRACK!*
“Aaagh!”
The man’s arm, caught between the door and the car, made a sickening snap.
*Creak.*
At that moment, the key finally slid into the ignition.
Without hesitation, Ray turned it.
The engine roared to life.
Ray gripped the steering wheel tightly.
He had never driven a car before, but he’d watched Niles operate one enough times to remember the basics.
*Creak! Clunk!*
*Vroooom!*
He shifted into reverse gear and pressed down hard on the accelerator.
The car jolted backward, and the scenery through the windshield blurred as it sped away.
The man, clutching his broken arm, staggered to his feet.
“You son of a—!”
The man’s face twisted in anger.
Ray shifted gears to drive and turned the wheel sharply to the right.
*Vroooom!*
Then he stepped on the accelerator.
Relentless. Without hesitation. With everything he had.
