“Are you fucking kidding me? Is this really the best you have to offer?”

Two hours into the afternoon, Katie was already in a bar. A mountain of empty liquor bottles formed beneath her feet.

The bartender shrugged. He had no idea what to say. He just served the girl enough drink to put down a man twice her size, but she was not only standing, but also completely unaffected. Ah well. Glancing at the pile of $100 bills on the table, the bartender decided asking questions wasn’t his job.

“Sorry, Miss, but that’s the best we’ve got.”

“Well, in that case do you have any tranquilizers? Chloroform? Anything that can knock me out?” Katie complained, slamming her fist against her forehead. “I really want to pass out right now.”

After leaving the school, Katie drove her car into this bar. If she was a little more emotional, she would be able to add a ‘literally’ to the end of that question.

The fire of jealousy scorched through her chest. Adding gasoline to the flames, she remembered whatever was giving her rapid regeneration was preventing her from getting drunk. Her body processed the alcohol so quickly that it couldn’t even reach her brain. The only thing a mountain of liquor did was get her to the bathroom half a dozen times.

The bartender shook his head. He wasn’t exactly a model citizen, but who the hell would have tranquilizers or chloroforms lying around in a bar? His crimes were limited to petty theft. Abduction was not on his list.

Katie sighed and dropped on the table another stack of hundred dollar bills. She wasn’t short on money. She had thousands in her bank. Eric gave her money. Ben gave her money. She got nearly a million dollars from Arnold’s vault. She was literally a millionaire.

Walking back into her car, Katie stretched her neck. For a moment, she just felt so bored out. She had no one to kill. No pain to feel or exert. No ghost to hunt. She called Ben several times, but the intermediate had no mission available for her. Believe it or not, people aren’t constantly trying to find contract killers.

Suddenly, Katie casually glanced at the mirror inside the car and saw a figure in the back seats. A grin appeared on her face as she turned around and faced that unwelcomed guest.

It was a girl in her early teens. Purple hair. Marble-like skin. There was a sense of nobility with her. She looked like a princess.

“How did you get into my car?” Katie demanded slowly, resting her hand on her belt where her Glock resided in. She was fairly certain she locked the doors, and there wasn’t any sign of breaking and entering.

The girl opened her mouth, but it was a cough that first came out. Katie noticed a few drops of purple liquid between her lips. Was that blood? Purple blood?

As she was busy being confused, the girl finally formed a sentence.

“Drive. Bring me to your house.”

“Wow wow. I don’t think I know enough about you to take you to my parents.” Katie smiled apologetically, but her hand never left her belt. She was sadistic and masochistic, but she was no fool.

“What...how did you...” Now it was the girl’s chance to get confused. The brunette looked like a normal person. Well, she was armed, but against people like her, their weapons would be her weapons. But how did a normal woman like her ignore her suggestion?

Katie shrugged at the confusion, not sensing anything. She realized the girl’s face was extremely pale, but there was no visible wound on her body. Interesting. She decided to push the girl one step further.

“Give me one reason why I shouldn’t call the police and charge you for breaking and entering.”

The girl looked like she was on flight. The last thing she wanted would be to be arrested and detained.

The girl took a deep breath. Her powers have failed, forcing her to choose another, slower path.

“I have money. A lot of money. Bring me to a safe location and I will pay you two million dollars.”

“Hmmm.” Katie’s smiled widened. She was intrigued. “Two million dollars? That’s a lot of money to hire a practical Uber driver. You don’t look well, kid. In fact, I would even say you’re on the run. Who’s hunting you?”

“No one’s hunting me.” The purple haired girl bit her lips, trying her darndest to come up with a decent story. Any sane people would throw her off once they know who’s after her. She was injured from her last escape. She knew she couldn’t find her way out once again in her current condition if she was to be caught again. She needed transport. “Uh...look, a few friends and I are playing a game…”

“Oh shut it. I’m not in the mood for lies.” Katie waved her hand, much to the fear of the younger girl, but the next second, what Katie said made her raise her eyebrows. “Fine. I’ll take you to a hotel, but you have to tell me all about your stories.”

The girl watched in confusion as Katie turned back and put her foot on the gas pedal. Now she really had no idea what was happening. It was obvious the woman knew something was off with her, but she was still willing to lend a helping hand. Why?

Now that she had some time to take a breath, the girl’s intelligence went back online again. Of course! Even in the states, not everyone is walking around armed. When the woman saw her, she was surprised, but not scared. The fact that she was immune to her suggestions suggested that she had a strong willpower. This could only mean one thing, this woman must be some sort of ex-military or mercenary.

In that case, her promise of two million dollars of reward must’ve caught the woman’s attention.

But the girl was hardly thrilled. One simple reason. She didn't have two million dollars. She didn't even have a hundred bucks. She lived in a reclusive village with her relatives. There was little need for money.

Now, the mercenary was willing to help her for some extra easy cash, but once she realizes that extra cash are not happening, there was no telling what she would do.

With these thoughts, the girl glanced at the surroundings as Katie started driving. She was looking for a way out.

“So, what’s your name?” Katie asked casually.

“Mira.”

“Oh, so like the character in Spartacus? The girl played by Katrina Laws?”

“Yeah...I guess.” Mira was obviously caught by surprise by how Katie jumped from thought to thought. Now she’s talking about some movie?

“Cool name.” Katie shrugged, glancing at the girl again from the mirror. “Care to tell me your backstory?”

“My what?”

“Who you are. Why you’re running. Who you’re running from. That stuff.” Katie tossed her arms up. “I’m in a bad mood right now, so I really need to see someone in a worse situation to make myself better.”

If she couldn’t feel pain first-hand, then hearing about the second-hand suffering of others would have to satisfy her for now.

“Just keep driving and you’ll get your money. I’m not answering any questions.” Only a fool would tell a random stranger who she barely met a few minutes ago her secrets. Mira kept her mouth shut and fell back to her promise of wealth. Katie shrugged again before continuing to drive.

A few minutes passed. Turned out it was Mira who spoke again.

“Where are you taking me?”

“A Sherdon hotel in the suburbs. There’s no way I’m taking you home, and something tells me you don’t want to be in a heavily populated city where there are eyes and ears everywhere.”

Katie has gotten further and further away from her parents ever since the games started. She knew something was wrong with them, something related to how she was born, but she had neither the ability nor the patience to find out what it was. Plus, the curse made sure she and they would be on two parallel worlds, and she was fine with that.

Still, no need to put them at risk for no reason.

“Oh and, by the way, you’re paying for the room.”

“Uh...” Mira frowned as she slowly tapped her pocket. There, a couple wrinkled up pieces of cash were resting. “how much?”

“Around a hundred bucks a night,” Katie suddenly turned around and glanced at Mira again. “Of course, it shouldn’t be that much of a problem for a millionaire like you.”

But all of a sudden, as she was looking away from the road, she saw Mira’s expression turn from frustrated to horror.

“Look out!”

Katie’s first impression was that she ran into someone, but that was unlikely. She was taking a road out of the city, and when she glanced at the road ahead just seconds ago, there was no obstacle as far as her eyes could see.

When she turned back, she realized she was only partially correct.

An old woman stood in the middle of the road. She stared at the approaching vehicle like it was nothing. Katie was ready to press the brake. She wasn’t a good girl, but she wasn’t low enough to hit an elderly on purpose. But that was when the old woman acted.

An invisible wall formed in front of Katie’s red Sedan. Moments later, Katie’s car ran straight into the barrier, going straight from 50 kph to 0. The front half of the car was shattered.

Katie, the cautious driver that she was, decided there was no need for seat belts, and she paid a price for it. The sudden jerk sent her flying through the window. She slammed into the same wall that practically destroyed the car. Her neck forming an unnatural angle.

The old woman didn't even glance at Katie. Her eyes were trained on the girl in the back. Mira sighed before slowly walking out.

“Grandma, you found me faster than I thought.”

“There is a connection between the bloodline. You knew that, so you should’ve known escape was impossible.”

Grandma was unimpressed. Finally, she glanced at Katie’s corpse.

“Or were you hoping that this woman can save you? With her puny weapons?”

Mira bit her lips. The fact was, Grandma was completely correct. She had a spell to sever the connection, but it needed time, which was where Katie came in. But the fact was she underestimated her own family.

“Please! Let me go! I will not be brought back and be given to a monster as a gift.”

“Oh don’t be silly. That is not going to happen. Kameron might be a monster, but his father is the head of the Seven Tribes. Our bloodline has fallen a long way since the old days. We need his father’s support if we don’t want to be devoured by the other six tribes.”

“Is that why you will have me marry him? To sacrifice me for the survival of the family?”

“You are a member of the tribe, and you should act accordingly, giving your all for its benefits.” But Grandma has had enough words. She waved her hands slowly, and Mira suddenly collapsed on the ground, screaming. Blood dripped out of her nostrils.

“That’s what you get for trying to run. Now, be a big girl and get back up. Kameron is coming to visit our tribe tonight. We need to get home before he arrives. Your little stunt will only make him hurt you more.”

Mira coughed. Her head burned from the psychic blow Grandma delivered, but she did her best to push through. As she got back up, her heart sank. There was no way she could escape now. She had a few tricks up her sleeves, but her grandma had enough power and experience to crush her with ease.

That was until her eyes glanced across where Katie’s corpse was and saw nothing.

Dadadada!

The sound of automatic rifles firing suddenly echoed through the air. Katie emerged from behind the car with two M4A1s in hand. She woke up during the conversation between the two, but as much as she wanted to strike immediately, she decided to sneak to the trunk of her vehicle and pull out a pair of automatic rifles she kept there.

Grandma underestimated Katie. As far as she saw, there was no need to keep an eye on the corpse of a normal woman.

Grandma acted quickly, raising another barrier between her and Katie. With the duel-wielding, Katie practically abandoned accuracy for firepower. A hail of bullets rained down on the shields, raising a wave of ripples.

Grandma’s expression changed as she was forced to send more energy into the barrier just to maintain it. True. The barrier stopped Katie’s car right in its tracks, but the car had multiple points of contact. The force it exerted on the barrier was spread out to the entire shield. Katie’s bullets, on the other hand, focused on the force on single points on the barrier.

But the old woman wasn’t intimidated. This wasn’t the first time she had to take on firearms. As soon as the girl’s bullets run out, she would go for her head. She didn't know how Katie managed to get back up after getting her neck snapped, and she didn't need to. Take off the girl’s head, and she would surely stay down.

Mira realized that as well. As fierce as Katie was with double M4A1, she would be out of shots in just seconds. She contemplated running, but she knew that would be a poor life choice. Instead, she focused all her powers and tried to lend Katie a helping hand.

Emptying the clips, Katie tossed the two rifles to the side before reaching inside her jacket and pulling out her dagger and tossing it at Grandma.

The barrier that held through all those bullets dissolved under the blade of metal. Grandma opened her mouth and coughed out purple blood, but at the same time, she tilted her body so the knife merely flew by her body, missing it by just inches.

“Oh no...” Mira’s mouth hung open in disappointment.

Missing the shot, Katie wasn’t put down. A swipe on her belt and two Walther PK380 handguns were in her hands. Once again, bullets started raining down.

“How many guns do you have?” Grandma wanted to curse. Automatic rifles? Some sort of dagger with psychic energy piercing abilities? Now two handguns? Who is this girl and why the hell does she look like she’s constantly ready to fight a war?

Even now, she saw Katie as just an ordinary human being. If she had the opportunity, she could kill her with ease, but Katie struck first, and for that she has maintained the upper hand. All of Grandma’s attention was focused on trying to keep herself from being riddled by bullets.

Another shield appeared. The destruction of the first one damaged Grandma’s psychic capabilities, which meant the new one was much weaker. Katie charged forward while firing. She groaned when two ratchets bounced off the shield and landed in her chest, but she kept on moving before finally leaping forward and slamming into the shield with her full strength.

Once again, a foundation of blood came out from Grandma’s mouth. She took a few steps back before forming a psychic blast with all of her remaining strength and sending it into Katie’s head.

“Ahhhhh!” Katie screamed as she collapsed on the ground. Mystic energy converged in her brain and started tearing her consciousness apart. This was worse than anything she has experienced before. It was even worse than the strikes of the undeads. Her handguns were just an arm’s reach away, but she couldn’t reach them.

“Heh.” Grandma was on the ground as well, but her powers could still recover and she could still get back up. That gun-swinging maniac, on the other hand…

Suddenly, footsteps appeared on the side, and Grandma’s expression changed. She and that woman weren’t the only two people here. She squinted and saw Mira standing beside her. One of Katie’s pistols was in her hands.

The struggle was in her eyes.

“Don’t do it.” Grandma begged. Yes. She begged the girl she was just tormenting. Right now, her powers were completely exhausted. She was no different than a normal elderly. A single shot could claim her life.

Mira’s hand shook. Her grandma wanted to sell her to a well-known sadist, and she hated her for that, but at the same time, deep down, she understood the choice. Their tribe was at risk, and the only way to keep them safe was by finding a faction to back them up. With Kameron and his father behind their tribe, their position would surely be secured.

Grandma saw it, and she used it to wager for her life.

“If you kill me, Kameron will find out, and he himself will come after you. When that happens, you will not be worrying about a marriage. You will be worrying about a torture session and a brutal execution. You know how much Kameron enjoys torturing people that go against him.”

“Well, unfortunately for you, so do I.”

Grandma’s head snapped around, but it was too late. Katie jammed her blade into the old woman’s forehead.

Instant kill.

“How was that for a one-liner?” Katie smirked before pulling the blade out.

The psychic blast hurt. It really did, but slowly, Katie could sense its effect wearing off. Whatever was healing her physical body also mended damage done to her mind. Eventually, she was able to stand back up and deliver the killing blow.

Mira’s mouth hangs open at the sudden change of events. She had no idea what to do. Blame Katie? Thank her? But at this point, nothing mattered anymore.

All she could do was sit down and sigh.

Katie sat down beside her.

“So, who the hell is Kameron?”