Bloodline Evolution: I Can Choose Opposing Paths-Chapter 98: The Urban Hunting Club

Morning light spilled into the apartment from the windows as Aren stepped out of his room with duffel bag in hand. The zipper had been stubborn when he closed it, bulging slightly from the extra gear he’d forced inside.

The apartment was quiet, well, it was only 5 AM in the morning so not many people were even up—which was the point. They needed to leave early as to avoid detection.

Aren adjusted the strap across his shoulder when he saw another bag sitting on the couch. It wasn’t small either, packed just as tightly as his own with a pair of boots resting neatly beside it.

Aren frowned.

"...What?"

He lowered his duffel onto the floor with a soft thud and glanced around the room.

That was when he noticed Luna standing near the kitchen counter, calmly tightening the strap on a pair of gloves. Her silver hair had been tied back into a short ponytail, and unlike her usual academy uniform she was dressed in more casual clothing.

The realization came a second later. Aren gestured toward the couch.

"...Are you going somewhere as well?"

Luna glanced over her shoulder before walking over to slip something else inside the bag.

"The Urban Hunting Club had a small problem this morning," she said casually. "One of their members, a freshman, dropped out today."

"Dropped out?"

Luna nodded.

"Apparently the Wildlands sounded a lot more exciting during the sign-up meeting than it did when departure day actually arrived."

Aren couldn’t help the faint snort that escaped him.

"Cold feet?"

"Probably?" She zipped up the final pocket on her bag before straightening.

"Emily called me about it about an hour ago."

"They needed a replacement fast," she said. "Technically the club can’t deploy without five members for safety regulations."

Aren stared at her for a moment longer before the pieces finally clicked together.

"...Don’t tell me."

She tilted her head slightly but a small smirk had formed on her face already.

"Problem?"

Aren shook his head once, though the surprise still lingered faintly on his face.

"Well," she said, stepping toward the door, "someone has to make sure you don’t do anything stupid out there."

She opened the door and glanced back at him. "Because the Wildlands are a lot less forgiving than a concert stage."

Aren stepped out into the hallway beside her. The door clicked shut behind them.

"...Yeah," he muttered.

"I figured."

By the time they pushed through the building’s front entrance, the morning had fully settled over the street.

And parked along the curb was a large truck decorated in all sorts of gold engravings. Aren knew immediately who its owner was right from the get-go.

"—I’m telling you that route is longer!"

"And I’m telling you it’s safer."

Aren rounded the front of the vehicle and immediately spotted the two figures beside the driver’s door.

Daniel Lancier—or well, Lancaster– leaned against the side of the truck with his arms crossed. He was frowning as he gestured toward the tablet in Professor Sterling’s hand.

The wine-haired professor had traded her academy attire for a darker travel coat, though the thin-framed glasses she had still stuck around.

"The northern approach cuts through three active monster territories," she said calmly.

Yeah, but they’re small ones." Daniel waved dismissively. "You think so lowly of our members, Professor..."

Sterling frowned before she noticed Aren and Luna approaching on the corner of her eye and put the tablet away. Daniel followed her gaze and the argument dissolved instantly.

"Well look who decided to show up," Daniel said with a grin. "Nice to see you too, Luna. Glad you can join us."

Professor Sterling simply gave a small nod.

"Good. Everyone’s here."

Aren glanced past them toward the truck. "...I thought we were heading to the Wildlands."

"We are," Daniel said. "But we’re not driving there."

"We’re heading to the airport," Professor Sterling added. "The Wildlands sector we’re hunting in is nearly a thousand kilometers away,"

"Even the academy budget isn’t wasteful enough to drive that."

She opened the door and got onto the passenger seat

Daniel opened the passenger door of the truck for them before opening his own door.

"Public flight," he added. "Don’t worry. Economy class."

Aren blinked.

"You’re joking."

"Nope."

"Can’t you use your, I don’t know, your black credit card to get us some better seats?" Aren frowned.

"Who’s to say I didn’t already max it out?" Daniel replied easily before hopping into the driver’s seat.

"But of course," Aren pinched his temples as he stepped inside.

The interior of the truck was larger than it looked from the outside. Three people were already seated inside.

The first face Aren noticed was immediately familiar. Emily Carter looked up from the tablet resting on her lap.

Her eyes widened the moment she spotted Luna behind him.

"Luna!"

Before Aren had even fully stepped inside, Emily had already jumped to her feet. She squeezed past him in the narrow space and practically threw herself at Luna, wrapping her arms around her in a quick hug.

Luna wrapped her own arms around the Senior just as quickly.

"Emily!."

Aren watched the exchange for a moment before slowly setting his duffel down on the top railing designed to hold baggage. His eyes shifted between the two girls.

Somehow... they looked far more familiar with each other than he expected.

Seems like this friendship developed fast?

He didn’t remember them talking much at all.

Emily finally seemed to remember Aren existed and peeked around Luna.

"Oh—hi Aren!"

"...Hi."

Aren shook his head slightly before his attention shifted to the other two people inside the truck.

A broad-shouldered guy, with tanned skin and dark hair sat in the big seat that was meant to accommodate three, but he took it all by himself. It was fair though, Aren wagered the guy could stop a charging monster all by himself.

He seemed like the serious and dependable type. The guy studied Aren for a bit longer before offering a hand.

"Marcus Hale."

Aren stepped forward and shook it.

"Aren Cross."

"Hope to learn a lot from you," he added.

Marcus smiled faintly before leaning back into his seat. "Yeah, likewise."

Across from him, another figure leaned against the window, watching the interaction with a big grin on her face. She had long blonde hair that fell loosely over her shoulders and pinkish eyes bright with curiosity.

"Iris Aston," she said with a friendly smile as she reached out as well. But something about this handshake told Aren it wasn’t so simple.

"So you’re the famous freshman Daniel keeps bragging about."

Aren reached out and took her hand. "Hope he didn’t say anything bad."

That’s when the trap sprung. With all her force she shook his hand up and down as he almost fell over.

"Sooo glad to finally meet you!"

Aren barely managed to steady himself before she finally released his hand.

"...You’re stronger than you look," he muttered.

Marcus glanced over. "Hazing the freshie already, Iris?"

"Hazing? What’s wrong with my introduction?" she frowned as Aren could literally imagine the crocodile tears on her face.

Marcus sighed quietly before turning his attention back to Aren.

"Sorry," he said calmly. "She gets excited meeting new people."

"Hehe."

"Noted," Aren said softly as he continued to his seat and buckled up.

From the front of the vehicle, Daniel’s voice suddenly called back. "Everyone ready back there?"

Emily grabbed the strap hanging from the ceiling and leaned forward slightly.

"Ready!"

Marcus gave a short nod. "Good to go."

Iris lifted a hand lazily in the air. "Always ready."

Daniel laughed from the driver’s seat.

"Alright then."

The engine rumbled louder. Outside the windows, the city street slowly began to move as the truck pulled away from the curb.

And with that, they started towards the airport for the bi-annual Urban Hunting club’s expedition to—

The Wildlands.