Chapter 55: Julia’s has only one goal.

Julia opened the car door and stepped out.

The moment her shoes touched the ground, the air felt different.

Heavier. Oppressive.

The street smelled thick of smoke, along with the sharp scent of burnt rubber and something metallic. Something that made the back of her throat tighten, and her stomach churn instinctively.

Blood.

It was faint, but she could smell it, making her more tense than she already was.

Stella was also about to follow, as she was already pushing the door open from inside, with panic rising violently in her chest—

But Julia immediately raised her hand without turning around.

“Young Miss, you stay here. I’ll check what happened.”

Her tone wasn’t gentle anymore. It wasn’t the warm, comforting voice from moments ago when she had been patting Stella’s head.

It was composed. Controlled. Professional.

“But—”

Stella’s fingers trembled over the edge of the door. She hated being left alone, especially right now, when something was clearly wrong.

The crashes. The screams. The way people were running.

Even she could tell that something was clearly wrong, and she wanted to be with Julia right now.

She was about to retort, to insist on coming with her—

“Miss, don’t come out.”

Julia’s voice sharpened slightly, remaining firm and steady, leaving her with no room for argument.

Her job was to keep her safe.

And she would do exactly that, even if she had to be a bit harsh at her—even if Stella hated her later.

Julia turned to the driver and began walking toward him quickly.

But before she could reach him—

He suddenly scrambled to his feet like a man jolted by electricity and ran.

“RUNN!!!” he screamed at the very top of his lungs.

His voice cracked midway, splitting with raw terror, as the sound trembled and broke as if his throat could not handle the fear flooding through him.

Around them, other people and pedestrians who had stepped out of their vehicles were no longer still.

They were sprinting.

Some dropped their phones on the road without even realizing it.

Some abandoned their cars in the middle of the lane, with the doors left wide open, as if the cars no longer mattered.

One man even tripped over the divider in his panic before he scrambled back up and ran again without even looking back.

Julia’s pulse instantly spiked violently.

She didn’t understand what was happening—

But she immediately went on alert.

Her body tensed, and her breathing sharpened.

Slowly, carefully, she turned her head.

Toward the direction where the driver had frozen.

Toward the source of that faint, unnatural crawling sound scraping across metal.

When Julia saw the scene before her—

Her eyes widened.

Her breath hitched in her throat as she swallowed nervously.

‘What…?’

She couldn’t believe what she was looking at.

Her mind refused to process what her eyes were seeing.

Because a bit far away from her stood—

A giant ant.

‘Am I dreaming?’

She desperately thought for a second, almost questioning her sanity. It was absurd, but maybe she had fainted, or maybe she was just hallucinating.

But then she quickly shook her head.

No.

It was real.

It was really a giant ant, its length the size of an average adult human.

Its body was dark—almost pitch black—its hard exoskeleton reflecting the pale morning sunlight like polished armour.

Its long legs were bent at unnatural angles, twitching slightly as it shifted its weight, and its massive mandibles clicked slowly and rhythmically.

For a second, her mind again tried to reject the reality before her.

She couldn’t believe the thing before her was real.

This wasn’t possible.

Creatures like these only existed in fantasy novels.

This couldn’t be real.

But then—

Her gaze lowered.

And her stomach dropped, her eyes widened even further.

What horrified Julia wasn’t the ant itself.

It wasn’t even the sheer size of it.

It was what was trapped between its massive pincers.

A body, or at least what remained of one.

A corpse.

It had been torn apart into pieces, with limbs scattered grotesquely across the road, as blood pooled beneath the remains, slowly spreading across the road, staining it dark red.

The ant’s head was lowered as it chewed.

The sickening, crunching sounds of bones breaking echoed faintly in the morning air.

Its mouth and pincers were covered in fresh blood.

Julia almost puked as she unconsciously took a step back.

Her heels scraped against the ground, producing a small but sharp sound.

It wasn’t her intention, but she had lost her composure for just a second, making such a stupid mistake.

And that second was enough.

The giant ant’s head snapped up instantly, as its black compound eyes locked onto her.

Her body trembled under that gaze.

Those weren’t the eyes of an insect.

They were the eyes of a predator that had just found new prey.

But Julia quickly regained her senses, forcing herself to calm down.

She inhaled deeply and remembered her goal: to protect Stella—her Young Miss.

Nothing else mattered.

She quickly reached behind her back and pulled out her handgun.

Yes.

She had one.

She had to protect Stella alone, which meant she had to be prepared for any kind of threat.

So, of course, she had been trained for such a thing.

Her hands steadied.

She gripped the gun firmly and raised it.

She aimed at it—at the giant ant monster before her.

Not because she wanted to kill it, or to gain its attention.

She wouldn’t do such a stupid thing, and she wasn’t that reckless.

But because it was already crawling toward her at an insane speed.

Its legs scraped violently against the road as it dashed at her.

Bang!

The first shot rang out sharply, echoing through the highway.

The bullet struck the ant’s body.

It staggered slightly.

But Julia’s breath hitched.

She didn’t feel even the slightest relief, because only a second later, it rushed toward her again—

This time, faster.

Her eyes widened.

‘Impossible—’

She couldn’t believe it.

The bullet had barely scratched its hardened exterior.

Bang!

Bang!

She fired twice more, but the same result occurred.

The bullets merely grazed it, as sparks flickered faintly upon contact, and then… nothing.

It barely pierced its outer shell.

This time, it didn’t even slow down. If anything, it seemed enraged.

It was as if it understood that Julia was trying to harm it, and that very intent had provoked it.

“Julia! What happened!”

Stella’s voice rang out from behind as she ran closer.

She had heard every gunshot, had seen people scattering in fear, and she was terrified as she ran toward her in sheer panic.

Julia’s heart dropped violently.

“Miss! Get away from here!”

Julia shouted, firing again.

She didn’t even look at Stella, keeping her entire focus on the monster before her.

Bang!

This time—

She adjusted her aim and, rather than shooting at its armoured body—which was too tough to even be grazed by a handgun—she aimed at the only vulnerable area she could think of.

Its eye.

The bullet shot forward—

And pierced straight through its glossy black eye.

“SKRRRIIIIIIII—KRAAAAAAK!”

The sound was ear-piercing and shrill, vibrating through the air so violently that Julia had to squint her eyes and grit her teeth.

Stella stumbled backward, her face turning pale white as she finally saw the creature clearly.

“W–What is t–that?” she stammered, as her voice trembled uncontrollably.

The ant rolled around wildly in pain, smashing into nearby cars.

Glasses shattered as it slammed into the windshields, and car alarm systems rang out violently, overlapping with the chaotic noise.

Julia didn’t hesitate.

She ignored the thrashing monster entirely and ran up to Stella.

She quickly grabbed her wrists tightly and pulled her hard.

“Run!”

Stella stumbled but followed her, her body weak and shaky, still confused as her mind tried to comprehend the nightmare unfolding behind them.

The giant ant was thrashing violently, crushing car hoods under its weight.

“W-What was that?”

Stella asked again, her voice choking in panic as she trembled in fear.

She was about to look back again when—

“Don’t look behind! Just run!”

Julia shouted sharply, dragging the stunned Stella with her.

They couldn’t use their car, since the driver had taken the keys before he fled.

And even if they had them, the road was clogged with crashed vehicles and abandoned cars. There was no way to maneuver through the chaos.

Most of the people nearby had already escaped when the gunshots began.

And if there was anyone else remaining—

Then Julia didn’t have the time.

She didn’t have the luxury of caring for others right now, especially not in this situation, when she herself wasn’t sure what exactly was going on.

This just looked like something straight out of a fantasy film, or some weird sci-fi scene recreated in real life.

She didn’t know what would happen next, and she had neither the time nor the heart to search for anyone else—to save them, or even to think about saving them.

Yes, she was being selfish.

Because her only priority was Stella.

No one else.

“Stella, run faste—”

She shouted, but her words cut off abruptly.

*****

(50 powerstones by this week = An extra chapter)

50 powerstones by this week = An extra chapter

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