Tarantu roared to life, charging through a hailstorm of bullets with meical precision. The ground trembled beh its weight as it closed the distao Sophia. One of the attackers noticed Tarantu ing up from behind. Turning, the man swung his fist with shog force, eg directly with Tarantu’s chest.

  BOOM!

  The impact was deafening, leaving a dent in Tarantu’s alloy steel armor. But Tarantu wasn’t built to feel pain. Instead, its meical arm retaliated immediately, extending twin alloy bdes that plunged forward with deadly accuracy. The sharp bdes stabbed deep into the man’s chest. Although they didn’t go all the way through his body, the wound was severe enough to damage internal ans. Yet, the man didn’t even flinch. There was no pain on his faly pure, uing rage.

  The man roared, grabbing the bdes with his bare hands, heedless of the sharp metal slig his palms. Blood dripped to the ground, but it didn’t slow him down. “Get this thing off me!” he bellowed, struggling against the mae.

  Another brute nearby charged toward Tarantu, ready to join the fight. Before he could reach them, a deafening soni echoed across the battlefield. Sophia’s head snapped up, relief flooding her features. From the sky, a sleek metallic figure streaked downward, leaving a trail of sound and fire. It was Za his upgraded armor, MV02-W, armed with a Vul mae gun. As he desded, the gun spat out a hail of bullets, wiping out most of the enemy soldiers in a storm of fire and smoke.

  BOOM!

  When Zaded, only two soldiers, the three brutes, and a stunned ander remaihe battlefield, once chaotic, fell into an uneasy silence. Zack stood tall, his armleaming uhe dim light. He eyed the remaining enemies and smirked. “Who sent you?” he asked. But before anyone could answer, he shrugged. “Fet it. I’ll just kill you first and ask questions ter.”

  He reached behind him and pulled out his signature on—a saw sword. The motor roared to life as the bde spun with a menag hum. The brute charged, letting out a guttural roar. Zack didn’t back down. He swung the sword in a , practiced motion.

  SLASH!

  The brute’s body lit in half, his powerful muscles no match for the on’s releeeth. Blood and viscera spilled onto the ground. The remaining two brutes, uerred by their rade’s gruesome death, lu Zack. “These guys fight like mindless zombies,” Zack muttered, frowning. “Did your mutations e with a free lobotomy?”

  The first brute reached him, swinging a massive fist. Zack dodged effortlessly, bringing the saw sword down in a deadly arc. The brute screamed as the bde cut through his torso, splitting him in half. His ans spilled out, painting the ground red.

  “Sir, I’ve detected traces of the Zeta virus in their systems,” Ego’s voice cut in through Zack’s s.

  Zack’s eyes narrowed. “The Zeta virus? You’ve got to be kidding me.”

  Before he could process the revetion, the st brute charged. Zack adjusted his approach, targeting the man’s limbs instead of his torso. The saw roared as it severed the brute’s arms and legs one by one, leaving him a helpless, writhing human stump. “AHHHHH!” The man screamed, his rage undiminished even as he was reduced to a literal shell of himself.

  Zaced down at the brute, who tio thrash and roar despite the gruesome injuries. “Yeah, something’s seriously off here.” He turned his attention to the remaining soldiers and their ander.

  Sensing Zack’s focus, the ander barked, “Take your capsules! Now!” The two soldiers scrambled to obey, pulling out small capsule-shaped pills. They bit into them, and within seds, colpsed to the ground, dead. ide.

  “Cowards,” Zack muttered, turning to the ahe man pulled out his osule, but before he could bite down, Zack darted forward and crushed the man’s jaw with his armored hand.

  CRACK!

  The ander screamed, his broken jaw preventing him from closing his mouth. Zack reached into his mouth, yanked out the capsule, and tossed it to the ground. “High-tration ide,” Ego reported after a quick s. “Also known as Quick Death Poison.”

  Zack crushed the capsule under his boot. “ry, but dying’s not on the menu today.”The ander’s cries of pain intensified as Zack calmly broke all four of his limbs, one by one.

  “AHHHHHH!” The man’s screams echoed across the battlefield, growing more pitiful with every passing sed. Zack stared at him coldly.

  “Shut up, or I’ll rip your to,” he said ftly. He leaned in closer. “Don’t worry. Even without your tongue, I have plenty of ways to make you talk.”

  The threat sent visible tremors through the ander’s body. His face turned pale, and his eyes rolled back as he fainted from the agony. Zack straightened up, his gaze shifting to the battlefield. “Ego, mark this virus as top priority. I want answers.”

  “Yes, sir,” Ego replied smoothly.

  Zack turowards Sophia after dealing with the st ander. His expression was calm but heavy with thoughts.

  Following Zack's orders, Tarantu carried the unscious ander and the maimed strongman—reduced to a limbless stump—on her back. Without a word, she turned and ran towards the unity, disappearing into the night. Sophia stood waiting as Zack approached. Her eyes were filled with worry as she flicked up her visor to look at him directly. “Zack, who are these people?” she asked, her toraying her .

  “I’m not sure yet,” Zack replied, his voice clipped and distant. He wanted answers as much as she did.

  These weren’t just any attackers. They were soldiers, highly trained, and backed by someone powerful. At least three mutants were among them. No ordinary survivor base would have the resources tanize something like this. Whoever sent them roblem Zack hadn’t anticipated, but he knew ohing for sure: they had targeted the wrong person.

  “It’s probably ected to the st zombie wave,” Zack guessed aloud, though it felt more like stating a fact. His sharp eyes turned cold. “Someone must’ve noticed us during that fight.”

  The versation with Antonny’s group earlier had shed some light ouation. Zaew he wasn’t the only oh access to satellites. Other powerful anizations and bases also had their eyes in the sky—like his fa. The massive zombie wave must have drawn attention, and Zack’s efforts to proteYC City had made him a target. He had bee too noticeable. Too much of a threat.

  “Whoever they are, they’ll regret it,” Zack muttered, his voice low and dangerous. He wasn’t a good person. He had always been selfish, cautious, and vengeful—traits that had kept him alive this long. He wasn’t about to ge now.

  Sophia’s voice broke his thoughts. “By the way, why are you back alone? Where’s Erza?”

  “She’s on her way. I had her take a separate route,” Zack replied. He gave Sophia a quiod aured for her to head into the unity.