Apocalypse Baby-Chapter 188: Divided Paths

And with every ounce of fury and sorrow in him, he screamed.

Then, the sobs began.

At first, they were quiet, just a few ragged gasps. But soon, they grew, echoing across the battlefield like the wails of a broken man.

Onigi trembled, his shoulders rising and falling as tears mixed with sweat and blood, dripping onto the dirt below.

Across the battlefield, behind Alex, Freya sobbed, too, covering her mouth, her whole body shaking.

Alex stood still, his gaze locked onto Onigi. His expression unreadable.

Then, after a few seconds, Onigi stopped.

His breath hitched, his body stiffening. Something in his eyes changed.

He slowly turned, his gaze falling onto Ezekiel—bleeding out, barely clinging to life.

His steps were slow but deliberate, each one carrying the weight of fury and grief. His shadow loomed over Ezekiel.

Then, in a voice filled with pure venom, he growled:

"You… this is your fault."

Ezekiel, his chest rising and falling weakly, managed a faint, bloody smile.

His voice came out in a shaky whisper...

"It is."

Onigi’s fingers tightened around his sword hilt. His rage ignited.

Then, with a slow, deliberate motion, he raised his blade.

Ezekiel raised his head, his breath ragged. Blood still dripped from his wounds, but he managed to speak through the pain.

"If it makes you feel better, kill me instead."

His voice was weak but steady.

He’d already accepted his death.

Onigi’s grip on his sword tightened. His jaw clenched.

Then he muttered, his voice hollow.

"It wouldn’t. Nothing would. I lost everything."

For a long moment, the two men just stared at each other.

The battlefield was silent.

Then, Ezekiel’s gaze shifted.

He winced, his gaze getting distracted for a second, at the notification in front of him—his time was running out.

"I’ll disappear soon," he groaned, struggling to stay upright. "Make a decision."

Onigi didn’t move.

His fingers twitched on the hilt of his sword, his eyes dark with something unreadable.

Ezekiel exhaled. He understood.

This wouldn’t satisfy him.

So, slowly, he lowered his katana.

Onigi’s stare burned into him.

"I don’t know why you would protect such a person," Onigi said at last, his voice filled with quiet fury.

"I dunno..."

Ezekiel’s voice was faint, barely more than a whisper.

Then—in an instant, he vanished.

Onigi stood still for a moment, his chest rising and falling with deep, heavy breaths. His fingers curled into fists, but there was no more enemy left to strike. No one to blame.

He sighed.

The weight of everything pressed down on him, but he couldn’t bring himself to redirect all of his hatred toward someone else.

Slowly, he turned.

Alex and Freya stood there, watching him in silence.

Their expressions were unreadable.

Without a word, Onigi began walking toward them.

Freya’s mind raced.

Her thoughts weren’t on Onigi nor Alex. They were on Ezekiel.

Would he make it out of the tutorial alive?

She doubted it. Even if he survived the transport, would he even have the strength to consume a healing potion?

A deep sigh escaped her lips.

She didn’t understand Ezekiel’s decision to protect Dorion.

But seeing him risk his life for someone else—standing in the way of a blade meant for another—it reminded her of the man who, at the very start of this nightmare, had assured her and the others that survival was possible.

Now, she wasn’t so sure if he would survive at all.

Onigi drew closer, his steps slow but deliberate.

Freya tensed. Her hands clenched into fists at her sides. Her voice wavered slightly as she whispered,

"You… you don’t think he’d attack us, do you?"

Alex, standing beside her, barely reacted. His expression remained as unreadable as ever, his tone calm.

"He has no reason to."

He glanced at Onigi, then added, as if stating a fact:

"Besides, that would be suicide."

Onigi finally reached them. His gaze dropped, and for the first time, his shoulders seemed to sag—like the weight of everything had finally settled on him.

Then, he spoke.

"First, I want to thank you for defeating the final boss."

His voice was low, rough, but sincere.

"Thanks to you, the nightmare has ended. I was too blinded by my own desires… I forgot what I initially came here to do."

Freya blinked. That wasn’t what she had expected.

Alex, however, responded with a simple, "Eeeh… it was no problem."

Onigi lifted his head then, his eyes locking onto Alex’s.

"You’re in the same tutorial as that young man, right?"

There was something sharp in his tone.

Freya held her breath.

Alex only nodded.

And Onigi didn’t hesitate as he continued, his voice steady but laced with an unsettling intensity.

"Can you kill him as soon as you get out?"

Alex’s brow furrowed. He tilted his head slightly, his gaze sharpening.

"Why drag me into this?" His tone was flat, but there was an edge to it. "Whatever’s going on between you two should stay between you two."

Onigi’s expression remained unreadable, but his voice carried a weight of finality.

"Have you forgotten?" He let the words hang for a moment before continuing. "We’re not from the same tutorial. You’ll return to yours, and I’ll return to mine. There’d be no way for me to hunt him down."

Alex’s eyes widened. He had almost forgotten about that.

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A soft voice broke through the moment.

"Alex."

He turned.

Freya stood behind him, her face tinged with something somber, almost hesitant.

Her gaze met his as she spoke.

"I think we’re from different tutorials."

Alex’s brows knitted together. A hint of confusion flickered in his expression.

"What makes you say that?"

Freya’s voice was steady, but there was a hint of uncertainty beneath it.

"When I first appeared in the tutorial, on the pillar… There was a welcome notification. Then, a notification about zones. Mine was Zone 49."

Alex’s eyes widened.

Zone 49?

A realization hit him like a jolt of electricity.

He remembered it too.

When he first arrived, there had been a number displayed.

At the time, he had brushed it off, thinking it wasn’t important—just another...