Chapter 100 - 65: Return

Paige Summers walked at a measured pace. She could feel the man following about ten meters behind her.

This was a very tricky situation.

She had to act, but she couldn’t act rashly.

She had to succeed on the first try. Otherwise, not only would Erin Quinn’s life be in danger, but she’d likely never get the ring back either.

But her opponent was truly cunning, leaving her no openings.

With no guarantee of success, she could only grit her teeth and keep walking.

They weren’t too far from Glimmerlake Base yet. At this rate, they would arrive in half an hour, tops.

’What should I do?’ Her mind raced. In a voice just loud enough for him to hear, she asked, "My name is Paige Summers. What’s yours?"

After a long moment, just when she thought he wouldn’t answer, a low voice replied, "Claire Chapman."

Paige Summers’s heart skipped a beat. ’It seems he isn’t that hostile toward me.’

"Claire... The Beast Tide is coming. Flying Eagle will have to lay low too, right?"

Claire Chapman paused for a moment before suddenly asking, "I didn’t see you before. Was it your doing, Samuel Hughes suddenly announcing the Beast Tide?"

"Oh? Yes." ’He refers to Samuel Hughes by his full name, without a hint of respect. It seems that even if Flying Eagle is one of Hughes’s trusted groups, this guy might not feel the same way.’ "Samuel Hughes knew all along the Beast Tide was coming, but he planned to let everyone go down with him... Even though we were just hired hands, taking him down a peg felt pretty damn good!"

A faint chuckle seemed to come from behind her. Paige wasn’t sure if she’d heard it correctly, but the slight warmth that spread through her chest was undeniable. Her eyes widened for a second before she put on a casual tone and laughed. "I thought Flying Eagle was just some run-of-the-mill Hunting Party, easy to handle. Looks like I was wrong. You guys are pretty strong! Our employer is going to have a major headache!"

"Hmph. Of course we are." After a pause, his voice softened, as if in thought. "You guys are strong, too. I mean, the ones from before. As for the people in the base, only a few are decent. The rest... they’re just cannon fodder."

At his words, Paige Summers stopped dead in her tracks and spun around.

Claire Chapman was exceptionally wary. In that split second, he dragged Erin Quinn back several meters, the hand on her neck tightening. He watched Paige guardedly. "Thinking of going back on your word?"

Paige said urgently, "Whoa, whoa, that’s not it! I just want to talk to you! Go easy on her! Can’t you see you’re choking her?"

Claire Chapman hesitated for a moment before finally loosening his grip. Erin Quinn coughed a few times, leaning weakly against him.

Paige Summers let out a breath and looked at him earnestly. "I don’t know why Flying Eagle works for Samuel Hughes, but the Beast Tide is coming soon. He won’t even be able to save himself... Think about it. If you stick with him, you’ll just end up as cannon fodder. Why should we let someone else control our fate? Now is the best time to leave!"

Claire Chapman stared at her for a moment, then suddenly scoffed. "Are you trying to turn me against him? Too bad..." His voice suddenly dropped. "Enough nonsense! Get moving!"

Paige Summers pressed her lips together and said firmly, "I mean every word!" Only then did she turn and start walking again.

Claire Chapman silently watched her back, his mind adrift.

’Whether she’s sincere or not, she has a point.’

He’d understood that for a long time.

In fact, as soon as he’d heard about the Beast Tide, he had urged Forrest Chapman—his father and the leader of Flying Eagle—to break away from Samuel Hughes, but his father had refused.

He knew perfectly well that his father wasn’t guarding the supplies for Samuel Hughes out of personal loyalty, but to repay a great debt he owed Hughes’s father from before the apocalypse. His father was a man of honor who valued his relationships; even the end of the world hadn’t changed that about him.

’Originally, I thought that since Dad awakened a superpower and still had his skills from his military days, living an unrestricted life in this small place wouldn’t be so bad. It’s better than getting betrayed and left for dead in one of the large bases.’

But from everything he had seen, Samuel Hughes was completely unreliable as a Base Chief.

’Once the Beast Tide arrives, Flying Eagle’s fate... will probably be just as that Paige Summers said. We’ll be cannon fodder...’

At that thought, his gaze on Paige Summers’s back grew more profound.

’Initially, my plan was to use this as an opportunity to squirrel away Samuel Hughes’s supplies, forcing my father to leave. But the Zombies and Mutant Beasts outside the base are tough to handle, and I was worried something might go wrong.’

’But now, an opportunity has presented itself.’

’Paige Summers’s team of Superpower Users is incredibly strong. If possible, leaving with them is a viable path. If we really can’t get along, we can just go our separate ways after finding a new place to settle!’

Having made his decision, he felt much more at ease.

But as Glimmerlake Base drew nearer, Paige Summers grew increasingly anxious.

Based on her observations, although Claire Chapman had outwardly rejected her proposal, he hadn’t been completely unmoved. ’If that’s the case, he should have brought it up again himself. But we’re almost at our destination, and he’s been completely silent... Was I wrong about him?’

Gritting her teeth, she walked until they reached the tunnel entrance they had used. Fortunately, apart from faint sounds from deep within the base walls, their immediate surroundings were quiet. Paige spun around. ’Worst case, I can’t get the ring right now. I’ll figure that out later. The priority is to save Erin Quinn!’

"We’re here. Give her back to me!"

Claire Chapman grunted in acknowledgment, but after a moment’s pause, he said, "We’ll go in first. You follow."

"What do you mean? If you..."

"I’ll give her back once we’re inside. Simple choice: are you going in or not?"

Paige Summers ground her teeth and shot him a fierce glare. She had come this far; even if he was plotting something, she couldn’t back down now!

’Time to risk it all!’

She was about to nod when Erin Quinn suddenly called out hoarsely, "Paige..."

"Evie, are you alright?"

Erin Quinn managed a faint smile. "Go in. It’s okay."

Paige Summers blinked, then suddenly smiled. She took two steps back. "Okay. No problem. I’ll go in right after you."

With a blank expression, Claire Chapman pushed Erin Quinn down into the tunnel, then squeezed in himself. Paige Summers followed right behind.

The three of them emerged in single file.

Thankfully, the area was already desolate, and now it was completely empty. In the distance, faint silhouettes could be seen, still locked in combat...

Paige was surprised, but she had no mind to focus on it, her eyes fixed on Claire Chapman.

He took a deep breath and pushed Erin Quinn toward her.

"Evie!"

Paige touched her friend’s neck and had her take a few deep breaths. After checking and finding no serious injuries, just angry red marks on her neck, she finally let out a sigh of complete relief.

Claire Chapman pursed his lips, his expression turning serious again. "Repeat what you said to me earlier to the leader of Flying Eagle. If you can convince him, I’ll consider giving you back the ring."

Erin Quinn glanced at him, then leaned in and whispered his true intentions into Paige’s ear.

’So that’s what he’s thinking...’

Now Paige understood everything.

’On second thought, this could be a good thing.’

’Flying Eagle is a strong fighting force, and from the sound of it, Claire Chapman’s father is a decent man. If Marcus Monroe could really recruit them, it would be a huge boost to our strength!’

’The only thing is, I’m not Marcus Monroe. I can’t make that decision for him. Besides, I promised I’d get the ring back, and I still haven’t done it.’

Paige scratched her head. ’Trying to take it by force now would be foolish. His superpower is strong and rather strange—the way he took the ring and pulled Erin Quinn toward him was like something out of legends, like telekinesis. My crossbow wouldn’t give me much of an advantage. A close-quarters fight would be hard to win quickly, and it would definitely draw the other members of Flying Eagle. Then Evie and I would be the ones to suffer.’

After thinking it through, she finally nodded.

Satisfied, Claire Chapman led her toward the warehouse. But before they got close, they both saw who was fighting and were stunned.

Paige especially. She never imagined that Marcus Monroe would have led the others back here ahead of her and already be in a full-blown battle with Flying Eagle. Judging by the intensity of the fight, he was playing for keeps this time.

She had never seen Marcus like this.

He was always serious, but right now, his face was like a mask of ice, his expression chillingly cruel. The Energy Blades he continuously unleashed formed a semicircular scythe, desperate to reap his opponent’s life.

The man fighting him was middle-aged and bore some resemblance to Claire Chapman; it had to be his father. Although he also looked incredibly fast and wielded his Water Ability with great skill, he was repeatedly driven into perilous situations by the full force of Marcus Monroe’s overwhelming assault.

The other Flying Eagle members fighting Martin Warren and the rest of the group seemed to notice their leader was being overpowered. Several times, they tried to rush over and help, but this only gave their own opponents an opening to attack.

In short, Flying Eagle was in a terrible position. Many of their members were injured. If no one intervened, it wouldn’t be long before they were completely wiped out.

Claire Chapman’s face turned ashen. Before charging forward, he threw a final warning at Paige. "Don’t forget what you promised! If you back out, I’ll destroy the ring!"

Paige was silent for a few seconds, then, with Erin Quinn in tow, she followed him.

By then, Claire Chapman had already joined the fray.

His superpower was indeed remarkable.

With a wave of his hands, rocks, branches, and other debris from the ground lifted into the air and shot toward Marcus Monroe and his group at incredible speed!

At that speed, a hit to a vital area would be extremely dangerous.

For a brief moment, the one-sided tide of the battle was turned...

Frankly, however, he couldn’t use such a wide-area attack frequently. In the end, Flying Eagle was still likely to be defeated.

But Paige knew she couldn’t let them keep fighting to the death. Her eyes darted around, and taking a deep breath, she bellowed, "Stop! Flying Eagle is leaving Glimmerlake Base! They’re coming with us! We’re on the same side!"

Everyone present froze at her words.

Marcus Monroe and Forrest Chapman exchanged a glance and stopped fighting at almost the exact same moment.

Marcus was surprised, but Forrest was furious.

They both turned toward Paige simultaneously.

"What’s going on?"

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

The two men demanded one after the other.

By now, the others had also retracted their superpowers, exchanging bewildered glances.

Just as Paige was about to speak, a coarse male voice echoed from the distance, drawing nearer. "Forrest Chapman! You traitor!"