The Gambler’s Proof

  Solen’s rage finally reached its peak.

  "How arrogant! How corrupt!" she screamed, her voice cracking under the weight of her trauma. "Why must the world be like this? Why must you eat the world to fill your bellies?"

  She roared, abandoning all defense. She fought with the desperation of a survivor who refused to be a victim again. Her emotions were so raw, so potent, that the universe itself answered. The Dark Matter around her swirled violently, responding to her hatred for the Kin-Slayers.

  Amara and Aryan felt the pressure intensify. Even Ray, usually the calm tactician, had lost his logic to the bloodlust.

  "Their will is too strong," Amara gritted out, deflecting a lethal strike from Solen. "Pain fuels them."

  "They just can't tell right from wrong anymore," Nine whispered in their minds, her voice dropping with sadness. "That is what this world has become. Trauma loops. They are living examples of the System's cruelty. How many like them exist?"

  "Save the philosophy for later, Sister!" Sam chimed in urgently. "Fight first! Don't die! They are in full rage mode!"

  Solen and Ray combined their energy. A massive, dual-colored beam of White and Dark matter formed between them, aiming directly for Amara and Aryan’s heads.

  It was an execution command.

  But just before the beam could fire... the distance between them stretched.

  [Skill: Spatial Extension - The Gap]

  The air warped. The ten meters between the two groups suddenly became a hundred meters. The perspective distorted like a funhouse mirror.

  Jay skated into the middle of the distorted space, his skateboard humming.

  "Ai! Stop now!" Jay shouted, his voice amplified by a speaker on his wrist. "We allies shouldn't fight!"

  The beam dissipated, unable to cross the sudden infinite distance.

  "You Kin-Slayers got an ally?!" Solen shouted, her eyes bloodshot. "More trash to burn!"

  "Oh dear." Jay rubbed his temples, acting as if he had a massive migraine. "You people are loud."

  He hopped off his board, standing confidently in the warped space.

  "Look at the facts, you idiots," Jay sighed, pointing at Aryan and Amara. "If they are Kin-Slayers—monsters who eat their own kind for power—why are they standing there? Why haven't they eaten each other? Look at them! Two siblings, perfectly intact, protecting each other."

  "Huh!" A subordinate from the Northern Army shouted. "That's because they slayed others! They can fight alongside our Leaders because they are strong! Do you think we are fools? We saw them slay an innocent man not ten minutes ago!"

  "The public has spoken!" Ray roared, stepping forward. "Move aside, or we cut through your space!"

  "Great," Jay muttered. "You won't listen to logic. But..."

  He tapped his wrist computer. A holographic projector hummed to life.

  "I'm not helpless against stupidity."

  Solen stepped forward, her sword raised, ready to tear Jay's spatial skill to dust with sheer brute force.

  But Ray stopped her. He grabbed her shoulder.

  "Sister. Wait," Ray said, his eyes narrowing at the hologram flickering into existence. "Let's see what happens. We didn't see this guy slay anyone. We mustn't be like them—harming the innocent without proof."

  Hearing her brother, Solen stopped. But her hands remained clenched into fists, her brows knitted together, her body stiff and alert, ready to launch an attack the second the hologram ended.

  And then, Jay started the play.

  [Video File: Sector 7 - The Silent War]

  The screen expanded, filling the distorted space with a high-definition recording.

  It was a chaotic battlefield from weeks ago. A scene of total war.

  On the screen, Amara and Aryan were fighting. But they weren't using System Skills. They weren't using flashy magic. They were in a "Dead Zone"—a place where matter and system skills drove people crazy, so they had to rely on pure physical stats.

  The video showed Amara, covered in mud, punching a Red-Aura Kin-Slayer so hard his helmet shattered.

  It showed Aryan, back-to-back with his sister Amara, using a rusty pipe to defend a group of wounded Resistance soldiers.

  [Audio Playback]

  "We don't need rewards!" the on-screen Amara shouted, throwing a Kin-Slayer off a cliff. "Just get your people to safety! We will hold the line!"

  The Amara in the video was brutal. Efficient. A monster of physical strength.

  But she was fighting for the Resistance. She was slaughtering the very Kin-Slayers that Solen and Ray hated.

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  The video ended on a freeze-frame of Aryan carrying a wounded child on his back while Amara stood over a pile of dead red-aura enemies.

  Silence descended on the graveyard.

  The Northern Leader, North, who was still on the ground clutching his chest, froze.

  Solen and Ray, whose hands were glowing with execution magic, froze.

  The public and the army under their command froze.

  Even Aryan and Amara froze, looking at the screen.

  "When and how did he record that? We didn't take the group with us at that time. This guy is…" Aryan thought.

  All of them looked at each other. The rage in the air evaporated, replaced by a suffocating confusion.

  Then, Jay spoke, breaking the silence.

  "You must have heard the rumors," Jay said, his voice dripping with theatrical arrogance. "The story of the 'Monsters of Sector 7.' A woman and a man who defeated a Kin-Slayer army with bare physical power when the Resistance was on the brink of death."

  He pointed at Amara and Aryan.

  "The news must have traveled fast. Didn't it? I assume you had been searching for these 'Heroes' to join your group?"

  Jay spread his arms wide, looking at Solen and Ray.

  "Well... Here they are. And you are trying to kill them."

  He let out a scoff of disbelief.

  "Your own allies. Your own heroes. Stupidity."

  Jay roared the last word with a bit of exaggeration, raising an eyebrow to see if it landed.

  Internally, however, Jay was sweating bullets.

  'Oh god. Please tell me this is working,' Jay thought, his heart hammering against his ribs. 'If they don't buy this, I'm dead. My gamble is a goner. Thank god I kept that recording for blackmail material... who knew it would save my life instead? Hehe... please don't kill me.'

  The Bill for Emotional Damage

  The silence in the graveyard was louder than the battle had been.

  The holographic screen flickered and died. Jay closed the projection with a dramatic flourish, then folded his arms, waiting.

  One second.

  Two seconds.

  Solen’s white aura, which had been burning with the heat of a supernova, sputtered and vanished. Her sword lowered, the tip dragging in the ash. She blinked, looking from the empty space where the video had been, to the "Kin-Slayer" standing in front of her.

  The "Kin-Slayer" narrative shattered. The monsters they thought they were fighting were actually the heroes they had been trying to recruit.

  Ray dropped his spear. It clattered against a stone. He looked at his hands, then at Aryan, his face turning a deep shade of red. "We... we attacked you. We used lethal force."

  The Northern Leader, North, slowly picked himself up from the dirt. He spat out a mouthful of blood and looked at Amara with terrified respect.

  The atmosphere was heavy with guilt. But Solen, being a leader, tried to salvage the situation. She took a deep breath, straightening her posture despite her exhaustion.

  "No, it's not bad news as everyone thinks it is," She said, making a quick emotional decision to frame this as a positive. "Had we found them easily, would we have believed they were the heroes? No. Let me frame it like this: on this planet, who can we truly believe?"

  She looked around at her subordinates, then turned back to Aryan and Amara, a strained smile on her face.

  "So. Getting beaten and beating... isn't really a bad report. It proves your strength. What do you say... Heroes?" She stretched the word 'Heroes' to its peak, offering an olive branch wrapped in a compliment.

  Aryan blinked. Then, he ran a hand through his messy hair and chuckled.

  "Ah. That is true," Aryan said, looking at his sister. "Even we have no damn good idea about this planet. Everyone is suspicious. I guess that logic totally works, Sister. It's okay. We understand."

  Solen exhaled, relief washing over her face.

  But then, Aryan’s eyes flashed with a golden glint.

  "But you see, Sister Solen," Aryan continued, his voice dropping to a serious tone. "Compensation is a must."

  Solen froze. "Compensation?"

  "Yes," Aryan stepped forward. He rubbed his shoulder, wincing dramatically. "You broke my arm. I heard the snap. Did everyone hear the snap?"

  "I heard it," North grumbled, trying to regain some dignity. "But... you healed it instantly."

  "That's not the point!" Aryan snapped, pointing a finger at them. "The point is the pain. The trauma! Do you know how much it hurts to be called a 'Kin-Slayer' when you are a pacifist at heart?"

  "Pacifist?" Sam scoffed in his head. "You just laughed like a hyena while breaking your own bones."

  Aryan ignored the System. He saw the guilt returning to Solen and Ray’s faces. And where there was guilt, there was profit.

  Passive Skill: Greed’s Intuition Active.

  Opportunity Detected: Negotiation Leverage is at 100%.

  "I..." Solen stammered. "We owe you a life debt."

  "A life debt is nice," Aryan said, waving his hand dismissively. "But debts are abstract. Let's talk about something concrete."

  He walked over to Jay, putting an arm around the skateboarder’s shoulder. Jay stiffened but didn't push him away.

  "My friend Jay here risked his life to show you the truth," Aryan said smoothly and being a bit dramatic. "And my sister and I risked our lives defending against your... enthusiastic welcome. We wasted Matter and even Dark matter” His voice dropped low at the mention of Dark matter and then he soon found his plate to the exaggeration and continued with the spirit. “We wasted stamina. We wasted precious time."

  Aryan held out his hand, palm up.

  "So. Before we talk about alliances, let's talk about the bill."

  "The... bill?" Ray blinked.

  "Yes," Aryan nodded solemnly. "Medical bills. Mana potions. Psychological evaluation fees for the emotional damage of being hunted like a dog. And, of course, a replacement for my sister’s trench coat. You ruined the fabric."

  Amara looked at her torn coat, then at Aryan. A tiny smirk tugged at her lips. She stayed silent, letting him work.

  "We..." Solen straightened up, looking confused. "We are the Resistance. We don't have currency. We trade in resources and favors."

  "Perfect," Aryan grinned. It was a shark’s smile. "I love resources. And I love favors. Specifically, High-Grade Mana Crystals, access to your intelligence network, and... let's say, 30% of the loot from the next raid."

  "30%?!" North shouted. "That's robbery!"

  "Is it?" Aryan tilted his head. "Or is it the price of hiring two Rank Five warriors who can beat your Leader into the ground without using skills?"

  North shut his mouth. He looked at Amara, who was casually inspecting her fingernails. He remembered the feeling of her palm on his chest.

  "Fine," North muttered. "15%."

  "25%," Aryan countered instantly.

  "20%," Solen interjected, stepping in as the diplomat. "And full access to our Intel Database regarding the Warlord."

  Aryan paused. He pretended to think about it.

  "Throw in a new coat for my sister," Aryan added. "And you have a deal."

  Solen looked at Ray. Ray looked at North.

  They all looked at Jay, who shrugged.

  "He's giving you a discount," Jay whispered. "Take it before he asks for your kidneys."

  "Deal," Solen sighed.

  .System Alert.

  Alliance Formed: The Resistance. Solen and Ray and North + The Duo. Aryan and Amara.

  [Relationship Status: Indebted / Awkward.

  Aryan clapped his hands together, the golden aura around him flaring happily.

  "Excellent!" Aryan beamed. "Now that we are all best friends and business partners, why don't you invite us to your base? I believe you mentioned something about 'conquering the North'? I'd love to hear the pitch."

  He walked past the stunned leaders, patted North on the shoulder (who flinched), and winked at Solen.

  "After you, allies."

  Amara walked beside him, leaning in to whisper.

  "You are enjoying this too much."

  "Sis," Aryan whispered back, his voice giddy. "They think I'm a victim. They feel guilty. Guilt is the best currency in the apocalypse. We just funded our entire Rank Six ascension plan."

  Jay trailed behind them, shaking his head.

  "I thought I was the opportunist," Jay muttered to himself, kicking his skateboard up. "But that kid... he's a professional."