Last Gun Alchemist-Chapter 39: Second Stage – Betray or Fulfill

"Choose a representative?"

Ezra read the words carved into the wall out loud. His voice echoed faintly in the enclosed room, thin and uncertain.

"It seems only one person can pass through that door," he continued, glancing between the three chairs bolted to the floor, "while the others wait here."

"If it’s choosing a representative..."

Aliya turned toward Ezra, a soft smile forming on her lips.

"It has to be you, leader."

She walked without hesitation toward the chair on the right.

"Wait."

Bobby raised his voice before sitting down. His hands clenched tightly at his sides.

"Shouldn’t we think about this properly? We can’t keep relying on Ezra for everything."

His nails dug into his palms.

I haven’t helped at all, he thought.

I’ve only been dragging him down, after I told him I won’t.

"Well, he’s stronger, smarter, and he’s the leader... so?"

Lime tilted his head, clearly confused, as he moved toward the chair on the left.

"But... but..."

Bobby’s gaze dropped to the floor. His throat tightened.

"It’s not like I don’t get what you’re saying."

Aliya’s voice softened as she tried to reason with him.

"But what choice do we have?"

She paused, then continued more firmly.

"Only one person can go in. From the name of this stage alone, we already know what’s waiting inside. A fight. One close to death."

"If anyone can make it out alive, it’s not you, not me, and not him."

She pointed at Lime.

Her finger slowly turned toward Bobby.

"Or do you really think you’re stronger than Ezra?"

Bobby didn’t respond. His arms moved restlessly, like he was trying to shake away a truth he didn’t want to accept.

"Go and sit down," Ezra said flatly, placing a hand on Bobby’s shoulder.

"But..."

Bobby looked up at him, eyes trembling.

"Just sit already."

Ezra let out a quiet sigh.

"...Okay."

Bobby moved sluggishly to the center chair and sat down.

The moment all three of them were seated, metal restraints snapped shut.

Clamps locked around their wrists and ankles with a sharp mechanical sound.

"What’s going on?!"

Aliya struggled violently, her chair scraping against the floor.

"I can’t force it off!"

Lime reinforced his arms with Cognis, veins glowing faintly, but the restraints didn’t even tremble.

"This is bad..."

Bobby’s voice shook.

"You guys should relax."

Ezra looked at them quietly.

Then a voice echoed from the sealed door.

** Welcome to Stage Two **.

** Chosen Representative,

please make your way through the door to begin the stage **.

The door slowly shifted inward, steam flowing out.

Ezra stepped forward.

The others could only watch as he crossed the threshold.

The door closed behind him with a heavy thud.

** Other team members,

please await the return of your representative **.

Silence followed.

"He... he went inside..."

Aliya stared at the door without blinking.

***

Ezra’s eyes opened wide the moment he stepped through the door.

What greeted him wasn’t another room, but a vast forest.

There was no snow in sight. Instead, droplets of water slipped from the tall trees above, falling one by one onto the damp ground. Thick vines stretched from trunk to trunk, crossing each other like tangled webs. The air felt heavy, cold, and quiet—too quiet.

** Representative **.

Ezra turned around at once.

There was no one behind him.

He stood where he was, instinctively folding his hands, his body tense.

** You have two choices of action **.

Two choices?

Ezra frowned slightly, confusion flickering across his face.

** Complete the stage by killing two Ground Apes **.

At the mention of the name, his body reacted before his mind did. His shoulders tightened, and his breathing paused for a split second.

** Or pass through this exit and leave your comrades to continue advancing **.

A strange opening appeared ahead of him, forming out of the trunk of a massive tree.

"What...?"

Ezra stared at it, stunned. Then the corner of his lips lifted slightly.

"So that’s how it is," he muttered.

"They want us to either risk our lives for the team... or betray them."

His gaze lingered on the exit for a moment longer.

** Please choose your option **.

"I will complete the stage."

He answered without hesitation.

He didn’t know what would happen to those who chose betrayal. But he knew one thing clearly, he wasn’t stupid enough to pick that option.

This trial existed to raise loyal, strong soldiers for the family. A child willing to abandon their comrades for personal safety wasn’t someone the family would ever need.

** Then please proceed **.

The exit disappeared.

The door behind him closed.

Ezra moved forward, stepping deeper into the forest. As he walked, he circulated Cognis through his body, sharpening his senses and stretching them outward, searching for the presence of the Ground Apes.

"Ground Apes..."

He let out a quiet sigh.

He remembered them from a book he had read in the library—the Wild Animals of Britannia Encyclopedia.

Their average size was twice the height of a six-foot man. Their weight ranged between three hundred to five hundred kilograms, often even more. They could easily lift objects twice their own size, and their punches were powerful enough to bend steel and shatter boulders. If pushed to the limit, they could even break apart the side of a mountain.

Their skin was thick, mixed with traces of stone elements, making most novice-rank guns almost useless against them.

They usually lived in mountain caves, climbing down only to eat fruits or hunt wild animals in the forest.

And then there was the worst part.

Their obsession with beauty.

They could tell, with disturbing accuracy, the difference between an ugly human and a beautiful or handsome one—male or female. Any human they deemed beautiful would be captured and violated until death to satisfy their twisted sexual urge.

It didn’t matter whether the Ground Ape was male or female.

If they found you beautiful, you were a sexual prey.

Ezra stared at his own reflection in the thin layer of water resting on a curved leaf. The image distorted slightly, but it was enough.

A shiver ran through his body.

"...Damn it."

His fingers curled.

He knew exactly what that meant.

"Argh."

Irritation rose in his chest as he imagined the worst-case scenarios.

"These things are practically the natural enemies of novice-rank alchemists," he muttered, rubbing his forehead.

"And we’re supposed to kill two?"

For the first time, he regretted not choosing betrayal—if only a little.

"Well... it’s not like they don’t have weaknesses."

Ezra grabbed a branch and pulled himself upward. He moved smoothly from tree to tree, jumping with practiced precision until he reached the top of one of the tallest trees.

From there, the forest spread out beneath him.

It was massive.

Far in the distance, a mountain rose above the trees, its back hidden beneath thick fog. Near its base, he spotted a dark opening carved into the stone.

The cave.

Their nest.

Then...

The tree to his left shook violently.

Leaves scattered. Branches snapped.

A heavy sound followed.

Ezra’s eyes narrowed.

He remembered the voice clearly.

Kill.

Not hunt.

Which meant...

"They’re hunting me too," he muttered.

The shaking grew stronger.

"Ground Apes have a good sense of smell, huh..."

Ezra steadied his breathing.

"And from that size, this is definitely a mature one."

His muscles tensed.

Note: the average size he remembered applied only to their young ones—not the adults.

Whatever was coming for him now...

was far worse.

A Ground Ape suddenly leapt into the open.

Its massive body tore through the air, blotting out the light for a brief moment before crashing down. The impact sent violent ripples through the trees, trunks bending and leaves exploding outward.

Ezra locked his eyes onto it.

The moment it landed, he jumped.

The ape slammed down onto the tree Ezra had been standing on just a heartbeat earlier. The trunk snapped apart with a deafening crack.

Ezra was already falling.

Midair, he drew his dagger and tied a thin rope around its handle in one smooth motion. He flung it downward and caught a thick vine, swinging hard to the side. His boots scraped against bark as he launched himself toward another tree.

A roar shook the forest.

Another Ground Ape burst through the trees between him and his landing point, its body smashing through branches and scattering debris everywhere.

Ezra didn’t hesitate.

He hurled his dagger upward, the blade hooking into a flying chunk of wood torn loose by the ape’s charge. The rope snapped tight. Ezra yanked himself upward, narrowly avoiding the second ape’s reach.

He landed on a branch, rolling once.

Then he pulled out the steel bar.

Clap.

The sharp sound echoed through the forest.

Cognis surged.

The nearest Ground Ape paused and looked up.

Ezra slapped his alchemy symbol onto the bar.

Metal reshaped itself in his hand.

The Colt 1911, formed.

The Ground Ape beat its chest violently, roaring as the ground beneath it trembled. With both hands, it ripped two full-grown trees from the earth and hurled them forward.

Ezra leapt.

The first tree collided with the one he had just left, splintering it apart in midair. Ezra landed on the second thrown tree, sprinted along its length, then kicked off and dropped straight down. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

The ape threw a punch.

The air warped.

It felt like space itself was being crushed.

Ezra caught the tip of its knuckles with one hand.

The impact screamed through his arm, but he rolled with it, sliding along the ape’s massive forearm until he stopped directly in front of its face.

Its eyes snapped toward him.

Bang!

Bang!

Two shots slammed into its left eye.

The Ground Ape howled in pain, flinging its arm upward wildly. Ezra was thrown into the air again, his body spinning.

He released the rope.

Midair, he twisted, forcing himself into position.

"Like I said," Ezra shouted, his voice cutting through the chaos, Cognis erupting from his mind realm...his Star blazing,

"You Ground Apes are called natural enemies of novice alchemists only because of your tough skin!"

White light surged through his veins, racing down his body and flooding into his right arm.

"But your eyes..."

"...and the stomach, where your heart is!"

"Those parts are soft!"

Gravity pulled him down.

"And even a Novice Alchemist reinforced physical strength..."

"...can still shatter stones!"

Ezra’s fist came down like a falling meteor.

The punch landed squarely on the Ground Ape’s forehead.

The earth shook.

A thunderous impact rolled through the forest as the creature was smashed into the ground, dust and debris bursting outward in a choking wave.

Ezra landed atop its body.

Pain exploded through his right arm.

Bones snapped.

He bit down hard, his teeth grinding as he forced himself to stay upright. His right hand hung uselessly, blood dripping.

Still, he didn’t stop.

Holding the Colt in his left hand, he staggered forward, stepping onto the ape’s chest. Beneath his boots, its heart was still beating—violent, heavy, desperate.

He could feel every pulse.

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

Three shots.

The heart burst.

The Ground Ape went still.

Ezra collapsed onto the corpse, breathing hard.

"Five shots..."

His voice came out hoarse.

He braced the gun under his right armpit and used his left hand to pull out a prepared magazine. His movements were slow, painful, but precise.

Click.

The new magazine slammed in.

He remained seated for a moment, blood soaking into the fur beneath him, then pushed himself up.

"One down."

The forest shifted.

Slow footsteps echoed between the trees.

The second Ground Ape emerged.

It didn’t rush.

It walked forward leisurely; its lips pulled back into a twisted, perverted grin. It had waited, letting Ezra and the first ape fight to the death, ready to enjoy whoever survived.

Now it saw Ezra.

Injured.

Breathing hard.

One arm, broken.

"Chance..."

The ape let out a shrill scream, excitement twisting its face. Its grin widened further as it dragged its knuckles across the ground.

Ezra stood still.

Blood ran down his arm. His face was pale.

His eyes, however, were steady.

He raised the Colt with his left hand.

"One to go."

The forest went silent.