The orc lord raised his massive hand.
Even with my vision blurred and my body barely responding, I felt the shift in the air.
The very space around us trembled as an unseen force coiled in his palm, ready to crush Edward where he lay.
Gravity.
I gritted my teeth, every instinct in my battered body screaming at me to move, to help Edward, but I couldn’t.
I was totally trapped by gravity.
I could break through gravity, but this was different.
The air grew heavy, pressing down on me like an iron weight.
The ground beneath me cracked, deep fissures spreading in every direction.
My ribs groaned under the pressure, my muscles locking up as if I were being dragged into the earth itself.
This is it.
I had no way out.
No cards to play.
No miracles to rely on.
Then—
BANG! BANG!
Two gunshots rang through the battlefield, sharp and precise.
And then...
Something impossible happened.
The bullets didn’t stop.
They didn’t freeze in the air like before.
They passed through the orc lord’s invisible barrier.
The orc’s eyes widened, just for a fraction of a second, before his instincts took over.
His massive form blurred, moving faster than anything that big had any right to move.
In an instant, he leaped back.
The bullets missed him by mere inches, slamming into the ground where he had just stood.
The impact sent dust and debris flying into the air.
The orc lord’s grin vanished.
His posture shifted, not out of amusement this time, but out of caution.
I tried to process what had just happened.
One moment, the orc lord had been looming over Edward, ready to crush him with an invisible force that could have not only crushed Edward but also me.
The next, he was leaping backward, forced to evade gunfire that actually broke through his barrier.
I turned my gaze toward the one who had fired those shots.
There she stood, unwavering, pistols still aimed forward, a soldier.
Her uniform was slightly torn and smeared with dirt and blood, but the insignia on her chest was still clear.
A private.
Her dark brown skin gleamed under the dim light, her black eyes focused and sharp, calculating every movement of the orc lord, her long, jet-black hair swayed slightly.
A flicker of something, hope?, stirred inside me.
As I took a closer look, my eyes caught a small yet distinct name tag stitched onto her uniform.
First Class Private Beth.
I memorized the name instantly.
The orc lord, now a few steps away, studied her with an expression I hadn’t seen before.
He wasn’t grinning anymore.
His amusement was gone, replaced by a cold, cautious stare.
Like he had experienced something like her before.
She had forced him to retreat.
Even if only by an inch, she had done what no one else could.
But I tried to make sense of what had just happened.
How?
That was the only thought hammering inside my mind.
How had her bullets passed through his defenses?
I had seen it with my own eyes, the way every other attack, no matter how powerful, had stopped midair, as if hitting an invisible wall.
Arrows had shattered, spells had dispersed, and even Edward, with all his monstrous strength, had been repelled like a ragdoll.
Yet, Private Beth’s bullets had sliced right through, forcing the orc lord to retreat.
I shifted my gaze back to her, gripping my sword tightly.
Was it her weapons?
The bullets themselves?
Or maybe something about the way she fired them?
Beth didn’t seem fazed.
She stood firm, her pistols still trained on the orc lord, fingers steady on the triggers.
There was no hesitation, no fear.
Just pure, calculating gaze.
Was it a special ability?
Did she awaken a ability that allows her enhance her gun?
Or was it something even deeper than that? Something the orc lord himself hadn’t accounted for?
If there was a way to bypass his barrier, if even one bullet could break through, then maybe, just maybe, we had a chance.
The orc lord’s grin widened, his massive tusks gleaming under the dim light.
His deep-set eyes, filled with cruel amusement, flickered with something new, curiosity.
For the first time, he looked intrigued.
His barrier had been absolute.
An impenetrable force that rendered all attacks useless.
He had toyed with us, standing there like an untouchable god, watching as our strongest efforts failed.
ut then, her bullets had passed through.
And now, he was entertained.
Beth didn’t hesitate.
The second the orc lord’s expression shifted, she moved.
Her boots barely touched the ground as she dashed forward, closing the distance between them in an instant.
She was fast, faster than any normal soldier, faster than most awakened I’d seen.
There was no hesitation in her movement, no sign of fear in her eyes.
She raised both pistols mid-stride and fired again.
Two sharp flashes.
The muzzle sparks lit up the battlefield.
The bullets tore through the air, heading straight for his chest.
Would they hit?
Would they break through his defense again?
The orc lord didn’t move to block them.
He didn’t need to.
His grin only deepened as he watched them come.
I barely registered what happened around me.
My mind was clouded, my body still sore from the gravity which was healing fast, but my instincts screamed at me, Edward.
I turned, my breath caught in my throat.
He lay motionless on the ground, his massive frame twisted unnaturally, his body barely holding together after the orc lord’s brutal assault.
Blood pooled beneath him, soaking into the dirt.
His breathing was shallow, uneven, every rise and fall of his chest a struggle.
No.
Not like this.
I ran.
My feet barely touched the ground as I sprinted toward him, my pulse hammering in my ears.
The battle around me blurred into nothing, i didn’t care about anything else.
Dropping to my knees beside him, I reached out, my hands trembling as I pressed against his chest.
His wounds were deep, brutal. Bones shattered, flesh torn.
I could feel the faint warmth of his body slipping away, his life hanging by a fragile thread.
"Edward, stay with me," I urged, my voice barely above a whisper.
His eyes fluttered open, just barely.
The usually firm, unyielding gaze was dull, hazy.
His lips parted, but no words came, only a ragged breath that made my stomach twist with dread.
I won’t let you die.
I pressed my hands against his wounds, my energy surging forward, desperate, frantic.
The familiar warmth of my healing ability spread from my fingertips, flowing into his broken body.
His wounds slowly began to mend, torn flesh knitting itself back together.
But it wasn’t fast enough.
He was too far gone.