Juliane was nervous.
The fear was clearly visible on her face.
She heard a series of gunshots...
She knew those bullets seemed to hit her, but she felt absolutely nothing.
A faint blue shimmer appeared around her, and the bullets were deflected.
Right after that, something struck her head.
That flash before her eyes startled her, causing her to fall backward.
Then, the man who called her "my wife" shouted furiously and, in that instant, pulled her into a tight embrace.
Blood splattered every time the bullets collided with him.
His face was pale.
Even if she only glanced at him briefly, the concern he showed for her was genuine.
There was no way to fake something like that.
"Why does he care so much?"
"Why is his voice still so similar to my Will's?"
"Why would he go so far as to bleed for me?"
Countless questions arose in her mind.
She tried to connect that man to her husband, but the difference was enormous.
Even ignoring his supernatural abilities and even his appearance...
If only the essence remained, there would still be differences.
Her husband was a wonderful man, but he did not possess the courage of the man before her.
His determination, willpower, and intensity...
She had never seen anything like that in William.
His body was warm.
Juliane could see the air around him distort.
Blood ran down his face.
His blonde hair was stained with red and dirt.
Juliane deeply loved her husband, but she had to admit...
For a moment, her heart wavered.
His intense desire to protect her moved her deeply.
The way he looked at her was filled with tenderness, even as consecutive gunshots struck his back.
Noticing her gaze, the man smiled.
Juliane's face, even injured, couldn't hide the blush that appeared.
She slowly raised her hand and touched his face.
Her hand trembled as she touched him.
Blood stained her skin.
And that man seemed unable to resist the contact.
As if he longed for it.
Juliane's heart ached from his suffering.
A scream echoed, and the sound of gunfire ceased.
A familiar voice reverberated.
It was the kidnapper who had helped her earlier.
He was doing it again — helping.
For some reason, she felt a strange sense of peace even in the midst of all that.
She was alive.
She truly didn't understand why she wasn't getting hurt.
Perhaps God had taken pity on her...
— Kyaa!
She screamed in fright as she felt her body being lifted.
Juliane was being carried in the arms of that handsome blonde man.
She noticed his clothes had disappeared, and her face turned even redder.
Hiding her face against his defined chest, stained with blood, she thought:
"Could my Will... have saved me like this man did...?"
She already knew the answer.
Her heart ached a little.
She felt as if she were betraying her husband for having those feelings in another man's arms.
°°°
Upon reaching behind the rock, William placed Juliane on the ground.
He said nothing.
He simply extended his hand, gently touching her face for a few moments.
Juliane didn't stop him.
For some reason, she liked his touch.
— My Juliane... forgive me...
A low murmur escaped him.
She looked into his eyes.
— You look at me exactly like Will does... why?
William was caught off guard.
His mouth opened, but no words came out.
He simply smiled.
Taking a step forward, he moved even closer.
Juliane thought about stepping back, but for some reason, she remained still.
"Why did she feel so safe near him?"
"Why did she want him to come even closer?"
Juliane didn't understand.
She refused to feel that way for any man other than her husband.
Yet that feeling completely consumed her.
A warm lip touched her forehead.
Her face flushed intensely.
Her body trembled.
Without giving her time to react, a comforting embrace enveloped her, and she couldn't resist.
Listening to the intense beats of that heart.
Thump! Thump! Thump~
Her own heart raced and, at the same time, relaxed in his arms.
— I understand your confusion — he said gently near her ear — there will be time for you to understand... I'm glad you're safe!
William's face was growing paler.
His blood flowed slowly.
His Ki was almost completely depleted.
His breathing was heavy and irregular.
But his gaze hardened with determination.
— Juliane... that man... did he help you?
The question made her raise her gaze.
Facing those golden eyes with two suns, she smiled and nodded.
— If it weren't for him... I might already be dead — she said.
She truly would have taken her own life if she had been abused.
That was her resolve.
She wouldn't be able to live with that shame.
Juliane didn't consider herself strong enough for that.
William watched her for a moment and took a deep breath.
— I'll help him. Stay here.
At that moment, her arms wrapped around him.
But she quickly let go, stepping back slightly, embarrassed by her impulse.
— You're already so hurt... and you're still going?
A smile appeared on William's face.
— He protected what's important to me. I owe him that.
Turning around, he began to walk and soon accelerated.
He wasn't as fast as before, but he wasn't slow either.
Juliane simply watched those crimson-stained back, as if hypnotized.
"Could it be possible?"
She thought of a possibility...
But she couldn't believe her own thoughts.
°°°
William ran, staggering slightly.
His vision was blurred.
Even so, he maintained his determination and kept going.
As he moved forward, he saw someone crawling, desperate.
It was Alan, who, by sheer luck, was still alive.
But his face was filled with pure despair as he tried to escape.
William glanced at him for a moment, then ignored him and moved on.
Soon, he reached where Demi and Rafael were.
Executing a maneuver with his hand and forcing his neck to the side, Demi resisted being knocked out.
With only one functional arm, Rafael was losing strength.
It was only a matter of time before Demi broke free.
At that moment, both of them felt the atmosphere grow heavy.
A familiar figure was staring at them.
Between the two, Demi was the most frightened.
William said nothing.
He simply picked up the semi-automatic rifle.
Then he aimed at Demi.
Noticing this, Rafael quickly let go of him.
The tension was suffocating.
Rafael truly didn't know if that monstrous man would let him live just because he had helped him.
— Juliane told me about you... thank you!
William's voice came out hoarse, strained.
He was at his limit.
Hearing that, Rafael let out a deep sigh of relief.
Maybe he could still make it back alive to his family.
He had truly been thinking about retiring after that day.
What he had gone through had been too much.
Staring at the blood-covered figure before him, riddled with bullet wounds, he trembled slightly.
"This guy... really is a monster..."
He didn't know how many shots William had taken.
But they certainly exceeded one hundred and fifty.
Rafael remained silent for a moment.
A faint smile appeared on his face as he replied:
— I also have a wife and a daughter that I love... I did what I would want someone to do for them.
William smiled back and turned his gaze toward Demi.
Rafael watched him, thoughtful.
The tremor in William's hands as he held the rifle surprised him.
"Was this the first time he killed someone?"
The other side seemed hesitant to pull the trigger.
Pow!
A dry sound echoed.
Bringing his hand to his chest, Rafael saw the blood.
— Puf!
Blood escaped from his mouth.
William froze.
Pow!
Another shot.
More blood poured from Rafael's mouth.
He looked at William and forced a smile.
— Since... I helped your beloved... help my family... and forgive me... I truly didn't know...
Bam!
His body fell backward.
Life slowly faded from his eyes.
On his face...
There was regret, longing...
But somehow, there was also peace.
As if he trusted that his request would be fulfilled.
William looked at the body.
Then toward the direction where the shot had come from.
About twenty meters away, John stood with a pistol aimed.
Taking advantage of the distraction, Demi rushed toward William.
Already out of strength, he couldn't react.
He fell backward with a dull thud.
He tried to stay conscious...
But his eyes shut against his will.
In the end...
He blacked out.
°°°
Demi's eyes lit up.
— What kind of absurd monster is this?!
He exclaimed, letting out a sigh of relief.
Quickly, he grabbed the rifle and stood up, ready to blow the monster's head apart until he was sure he was dead.
This time, he truly thought he would die.
If it weren't for the other side's hesitation and the massive blood loss...
Demi believed he would have died.
— Haha! We survived, boss!
He shouted, excited.
But there was no response.
With a stiff, trembling motion, he turned his head toward where his leader was.
His eyes widened.
A very handsome young man was floating in the air.
On the ground, where his leader had been before, there was only a mass of flesh and blood.
Like grapes crushed in a press.
Steam still rose from the blood.
Demi's body trembled uncontrollably.
Urine ran down his legs.
He was terrified.
All of this was already beyond his comprehension.
And now something even more terrifying appeared.
He saw the young man extend one of his hands...
And close it into a fist.
Demi's body was instantly crushed.
Flesh, blood, and bones compressed into a grotesque mass.
Daniel let out a soft sigh.
Releasing a bit of Ki, he caused all that mess to disintegrate into blue particles.
His eyes fixed on an individual who was crawling.
Without effort, he crushed him from a distance, like an insect.
His condition was similar to John's.
Quickly, he also turned his remains into nothing.
He did the same with the bodies of John, Ralf, Josef, and Romeu.
The only one he left intact was Rafael.
Floating in the air, Daniel lifted his disciple, surrounding him with his Ki to stabilize his physical condition.
All the bullets in his body were forced out, leaving only several holes scattered across him.
As the bleeding stopped, the wounds closed, leaving countless scars.
William's breathing gradually returned to normal.
Looking at Rafael, Daniel lifted his body beside his disciple.
Soon, two others appeared in the distance.
Now they floated around them.
They were the two policemen, Tom and Jim.
They were still alive.
Then, he stopped above where Juliane was.
Juliane looked at him, stunned.
Her eyes were filled with tears.
She had seen everything.
Rafael dying.
And that man who cared for her collapsing.
The pain she felt from seeing those two people who had helped her meet such an end deeply shook her heart.
Especially the one who had embraced her and acted as if he were her husband... even though he wasn't.
Her heart felt like it was being torn apart seeing him in that state.
She wished something would happen...
But she never imagined that a mysterious man with an imposing aura would appear out of nowhere.
And simply crush everyone in such a terrifying way.
Even she couldn't bear the sight.
It was horrifying.
Now, that same man was watching her while floating.
Ignoring the fear and nervousness Juliane showed, Daniel smiled.
— You are deeply loved… you are truly blessed.
Juliane blinked, not understanding.
Daniel didn't explain.
He simply lifted her.
And in the next instant, he flew with all of them at Mach 16.
Leaving behind only trails of ionized energy.
Daniel was not satisfied.
However, his disappointment was not that great either.
His disciple had failed in the rescue.
But he had not failed in character.
He risked his life to protect what was important to him.
Even in failure, it was a great experience that would benefit him greatly in the long run.
Sometimes, one must lose in order to learn how to win.