"Everyone!" Xiang Peng suddenly called out, rushing over to us. "I've contacted the other squads, they are on their way here now...huh? Where's the monster...?"

"These two young ladies here killed it," Gu Yuan replied with a chuckle. "They are quite fearsome."

Ke Tian and Ye Xiao Xing nodded in agreement as Xiang Peng blinked a few times in confusion.

"You two...how old are you?" she asked.

"14," the two sisters said at the same time. "We're twins."

"Only 14?!" Xiang Peng exclaimed. "A-Ahem, if I may ask...how exactly did you manage to take down that monster...?"

The two of them glanced at me as if asking whether they should tell Xiang Peng the truth or not, and I gave a shrug.

This is your decision...don't look at me.

They then exchanged looks, and materialized their Divine Weapons after a few seconds. Xiang Peng's eyes widened, and gasped in shock.

"This is...the Sword of Ice and Water and the Axe of Fire?! Frozen Fear and Flaming Dance!"

I raised an eyebrow. "You've seen them before?"

"Yes!" she exclaimed. "My family has one of the Six Divine Weapons as well, the Bow of Forest, Nature's Call!"

Bow of Forest, Nature's Call, huh...but still...what kind of family is she from?! Having possession of one of the Six Divine Weapons isn't something just any random family can have....

Meanwhile, everyone else present - namely Gu Yuan, Ke Tian, and Ye Xiao Xing - were all listening with their mouths hanging agape.

"S-Six Divine Weapons...? No wonder they were able to cut down that abomination so easily..." Ke Tian murmured in awe.

"Never mind that, the other squad is still fighting their monster!" Ye Xiao Xing interrupted. "We should take care of it quickly."

*****

With Yu An Yan and Yu An Xue's Divine Weapons, we made short work of the remaining monster. Just as we dealt the final blow, we heard some footsteps coming towards us, and Xiang Peng commanded us to hide. I crouched behind the stone wall surrounding the school, the Yu sisters and Qing Yue with me. Xiang Peng and the rest of the team members hid on the other side, across from us.

"Don't tell me...there's more monsters?" Yu An Yan murmured from beside me.

I shook my head. "No...these footsteps...they sound...human?"

Just as I said this, a tall man rounded the corner with a trail of people behind him, and immediately leapt back as soon as he noticed Xiang Peng. He prepared to launch an attack immediately.

"Level Three Voi-"

"Wait! It's me!" Xiang Peng leapt out of the darkness so that the newcomers could see her clearly.

The man sighed and let his arm drop. "Jesus...I almost killed you there, Xiang Peng."

"Right...sorry, I thought it was another group of monsters," Xiang Peng expained.

The man shrugged. "It's fine. Never mind that...are you alright?"

Xiang Peng nodded, as the rest of us began emerging from our hiding spots as well. "Yes...the two mutated monster types have been dealt with."

"Oh? By who?" the man questioned, glancing around.

Xiang Peng looked at the Yu sisters. "It's them two. The twins."

The man followed her gaze and inspected the Yu sisters up and down. "Ho...the two of you don't seem old at all. Around...14, I presume?"

The sisters were kind of shocked to see how accurate the man's guess was, but I guess that could just be chalked up to experience. They nodded slowly, and the ma laughed.

"Good! I don't remember seeing your faces back at the mall, though...you aren't rescue squad members, are you?"

They shook their head, and Yu An Yan spoke up. "No, sir. We are just survivors of this disaster who happened to stumble across this fight, and decided to join in."

"Unable to just let others die, eh? I like that spirit," the man said. "If you would like, I can get you two in the rescue squad with no problems. I'm the leader, after all."

Indeed - he was the leader of the rescue squad, the same one who had done the attendance and all that back at the mall. Of course Xiang Peng's first go-to for help would be him, as he is undoubtedly the strongest out of all of us, being the boss.

However, the Yu sisters turned down his offer, which I was grateful for. I didn't know the reason they did so, but I didn't really care either, as long as they could be safe.

"Sorry, but we don't really want to join. There's something more...important we have to do, after all," Yu An Yan said, before turning to glance at me at the end.

Oh, shit...are they really not joining simply because they want to have a nice long talk with me?! Shit, shit, shit...I was planning to quit the rescue squad after this since Qing Yue and the Yu sisters are both safe, but if I do that now, then I won't have any excuse to not talk with them anymore....damn it!

The leader glanced between Yu An Yan and I, clearly noticing something was off. But he probably didn't want to pry into our personal matters, so he just shrugged.

"That's a shame. But if you ever change your mind...just come find me. You can call me Jiang Tong."

Find you? Where? You'll be off doing missions...but whatever.

Yu An Yan nodded, and her sister did the same. "Got it. Thank you."

"Don't mention it," Jiang Tong brushed the gratitude off lightly. "Now then...let's meet up with the other groups, and head back to the safe zone together. The entire city has been searched, and we have found what survivors remain. We've done the most we can."

With this, we headed back to the safe zone together, in one piece.

*****

We rendezvoused with the other groups at the Coastal Metropolis' back entrance, the same one where we had left from. After clearing out any monsters in the area, we entered the mall. The mall's security staff and guards all gave us salutes when they spotted our return, probably from respect. After all, rescue squad was a dangerous task, and tedious as well. The responsibility on your shoulders as a rescue squad member, especially when you have located a survivor already, is a burden only the strongest can bear.

In total, we rescued 67 survivors. It wasn't much considering the size of Shenzhen, but...it was the best we could do. We gave it our all on this 5-hour expedition, and it was already 8 in the morning by the time we returned. I had gotten no sleep at all tonight, much like many others. It wasn't a surprise that I was feeling exhausted.

After the rescue squad disbanded - for now - I headed to a cafe to get some coffee and just rest, maybe take a short nap. However...

"So? Why are all of you here?"

Feng Mian, Yu An Yan, Yu An Xue, Qing Yue, Mei Gui, and Flaria were all here, each seated at a chair around my table - with the exception of Flaria who was currently sitting on my shoulder and pecking my shoulder painfully.

"Stop, Flaria, it hurts...!" I groaned, trying to swat her away. But she merely jumped up a little and landed again the moment my hand was out of the way, and continued pecking at my shoulder like a little pest.

"Hmph! This is what you get for abandoning me again! Stupid Master!" she whispered sharply. At least she had the common sense of not outright yelling in here. Still, this was getting pretty damn annoying. But...this was nothing compared to what was about to come for me.

"So...Xuan Kai, now that everything is over, why don't you tell us your true feelings like you promised me?" Feng Mian said, staring deeply into my eyes.

I sighed, and removed my mask. "A-Ahem...things aren't over yet. We still don't know where Obsidia is, and Lan Xiao Su-"

"Hm? Lan Xiao Su? Who's that?" Qing Yue cut in, immediately picking up on my blunder.

Oh...shit. I think I may have just fucked myself over twice removed. I forgot...I forgot they didn't know about Lan Xiao Su!

"E-Er, she's no one..." I murmured faintly, even though I knew they weren't going to buy that.

"Master...have you acquired another girlfriend I do not know about?" Mei Gui tilted her head and asked, a hint of dejection in her voice.

"No! And stop referring to them like objects!" I exclaimed, raising my voice a little.

"Then, who is she?" Yu An Yan asked with a penetrating gaze.

I looked away, unable to come up with a good lie. "Uh...just some person I met in the rescue squad..."

"The rescue squad?" Feng Mian questioned. "What's that?"

"Oh, Big Brother Xuan Kai didn't tell you?" Qing Yue raised an eyebrow. "He joined the rescue squad, and went out there to search for survivors. That's where he's been for the past five hours, and also how he found me, An Yan, and An Xue."

"..." Feng Mian looked at me with a dead expression, and I laughed awkwardly.

"I-I was going to explain to you over text as soon as I got back, but I just got too tired...and it kinda slipped my mind..." I trailed off.

Feng Mian sighed. "You brought back An Yan, An Xue, and Qing Yue safely, so I'll let it go this time. But next time, if you don't do something you promised you would again, or let it just 'slip your mind', then...you're in for some not-so-friendly treatment."

"Right..." I mumbled.

"Also, what he said about Lan Xiao Su being in the rescue squad is a lie. I was there myself, and I never saw him interacting with a person named Lan Xiao Su once," Yu An Yan added, successfully guaranteeing my death.

All of their gazes concentrated on me at once, and they spoke at the same time, each with a different expression on their faces.

"So...what else are you not telling us, Xuan Kai?"