Life didn't get easier, even in another world

215 Explosion

Crack

A purple-red crack appeared on the white stone’s surface.

Crack Crack Crack

The crack spread from one side of the stone to the other side. It almost looked like a purple line had slashed the white stone in two.

The electric currents were all gone now.

“....”

“....”

Kairen and the man glance at each other.

“Just now... What...”

.....

Just when Kairen opened his mouth and uttered those were in a confused voice,

OOOOONNGGGG

The ground shook.

ONNNGGGGG

OOOONNGGGGG

The ground shook so suddenly and fiercely that for a moment, Kairen thought an earthquake was happening.

Kairen took one step back and tried to stand firm on the shaking ground, but he ended up falling to the ground after his back hit the half-crumbled soil wall.

“Gasp!”

He raised his head upon hearing a low gasp. Not too far away from him, the soil dude was curled up while clutching his chest. He was pulling the stone on his cloak while curling up more. He stumbled and moved backward while gasping. As he did, the ground shook more and more.

ONNNNGGG

ONNGGGGG

“What is going on?”

“Why is the ground shaking?”

“An earthquake?”

“Kairen! What did you-”

Kairen could hear the others’ confused voices on the other side of the wall. He too was as confused as them. He stared at the man with a dumbfounded face.

‘What happened to this man... Why is the ground shaking...’

Why does he suddenly seem to be in so much pain?

“Hey!”

Kairen got up while leaning on the half-crumbled wall.

“What’s happening?”

He walked toward the man and reached his hand out to him.

“Are you alright?”

TAP

Just when Kairen was about to grab the man’s shoulder, the soil dude moved his hand aside and took one step back.

“...B... Back!”

Kairen heard the man’s shaking voice.

“Mo...ve... Huff... Move... ba...ck...”

“....”

The man raised his head and moved one hand, gesturing for Kairen to move away.

While doing that, his other hand moved inside his cloak. It looked like he was searching for something. After a few seconds, he pulled something out.

The man was now holding something in his left palm. It was a black, round, and heavy-looking object.

ONNGGGGG

The object on his palm was quivering as well.

“Ah!”

As soon as he saw the object, Kairen took one step back.

‘What is this... this thing...’

How could that thing have such a scary presence? In just an instant, Kairen’s back was wet with cold sweat and his whole body was trembling out of fear.

‘It’s just like that...’

Kairen felt fear engulf his whole body. He wanted to move as far away from this thing as possible.

‘That power... It’s just like my power...’

But much stronger. And much scarier.

He took another step back. It was hard to walk on the shaking ground already and now even his body was shaking due to fear. His legs were trembling and he was about to fall down, but something told him that he needed to get away from that object.

ONGGGGGG

ONNNGGGGG

However, he couldn’t do so.

“Argh!”

Kairen clutched his head and fell to his knees.

ONNNNNGGG

“Ah!”

A sharp dagger was stabbing his brain.

It hurt. It hurt so much that his mind went blank for a moment, resulting in him falling down to the ground so miserably like this.

“That... That’s a bomb!”

“That man is holding a bomb!”

“Protect the prince!”

“Team leader! Team leader Dains!”

“What should we do!”

“Sheilds! Prepare shields!”

The agents behind him went into a frenzy upon seeing the object in the man’s hand. Their voices were panicked and they were all looking for team leader Dains and asking for orders.

‘The bomb...’

Kairen peeked at the object through his eyelids that were about to close. A sudden urge of sleepiness was making it hard for him to keep his eyes open, but he obviously couldn’t take a nap right here right now.

So this was the so-called special bomb.

“Kairen!”

Kain grabbed Kairen’s arm and pulled him up.

“Move back! It’s the bomb!”

But Kairen couldn’t just move back. He had done so if he could. Seeing him like that, Kain pulled his arm himself. Kairen was easily dragged back as if he was a light dried-up leaf.

ONNNNNGGG

“Gasp!”

The more the bomb vibrated, the sharped the blade stabbing his mind got.

“Huff...”

Kairen clenched Kain’s shirt and took a deep breath.

“Huff... Huff...”

.....

The pain.

It was familiar.

Kairen didn’t know why but this pain was too familiar. The pain of a sharp blade slicing his head, he felt that he had experienced this before. He had experienced this a lot.

“...What’s wrong with you again?”

Kain frowned even more upon seeing Kairen’s face paling more and more and him gasping for air.

Shake shake

Kairen silently shook his head. Taking another deep breath, Kairen raised his head and glanced at the bomb on the soil dude’s hand.

Kairen didn’t know anything about how bombs and such things were made or how they worked. He had absolutely zero knowledge about them and didn’t even care or wanted to know about them.

But right now, there was something he was sure about.

That bomb was about to go off.

He could feel it. He could feel the chaotic energy stored inside that small thing. The energy was so similar to his power but at the same time, different. He could tell for sure that the object wouldn’t be able to hold and store that power any longer.

Kairen could feel the energy’s movements. It was about to burst out. He was sure of it.

“Shields!”

“Barriers!”

He could see the panicked young prince standing in the middle of the agents like a stick. The agents were surrounding the prince while doing anything they could to protect him. They were creating shields. The area users were creating a human wall around the man and a glowing water wall was being formed around everyone.

“KAIREN!”

Kairen was also being dragged toward the rest of the group, but he knew that he wouldn’t make it. He and Kain wouldn’t be able to reach the others before the bomb exploded.

‘It’s useless...’

They couldn’t survive this explosion using such methods.

Kairen turned his head to look at the soil dude again. The man was holding the white stone on his cloak. There were some electric currents all around the stone.

‘No that’s-‘

It wasn’t electric current this time but... He was sure that they were cracks. Small, red cracks. The cracks he was so familiar with.

ONNGGGGGG

ONGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG

“Argh!”

The energy inside the bomb was about to burst out.

The soil dude, who was holding the bomb, glanced one last time at Kairen before throwing the bomb high into the air. The bomb moved up in the air and started to glow. At the same time, the man dashed towards Kairen and Kain.

“STUPID FOOL!”

Just before the bomb burst out, something moved in front of Kairen, and two hands wrapped around his body. By the time Kairen realized what was going on, Kain’s body was completely shielding Kairen’s.

ONNNNNNNNNGGGG

ONGGGG

“.....”

Kairen took a deep breath.

“You are the fool...”

Do you think you can protect me against something like this by using your body as a shield?

Of course, you can’t.

CRACKLE

CRAKCLE

Kairen closed his eyes. His head hurt. He wanted to throw up.

ONGGGGGGGG

Dust rose to the air and the ground shook even more.

And at the same time,

Another energy started to vibrate in the already tense atmosphere.

B-BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANGGGG

And everything went white.

BANGGGG

BANGGGG

The ground split apart. The air got hot and dry. The grass burnt and the animals were all roasted in an instant.

“Argh!”

“AAAHH!”

BANNNGGG

BANNGGGG

“Gasp!”

Groans and gasps rose to the air. The people were sent back by the impact of the explosion. The smell of blood and burnt flesh could be sensed from all over the place.

“Ah?”

Asa gasped as she touched her injured arm. Her arm was burnt and it hurt. She looked at the injury with a dumbfounded face.

“I’m alive...”

She rose her body.

“Argh!”

“It hurts!”

“Prince! Is the prince alright?”

So was everyone else.

Crackle Crackle

Crackle

Asa looked towards a place where she heard a faint voice.

“AH!”

She gasped once again.

“Cracks...”

“Oh my...”

She heard other agents’ voices who seemed to be as amazed as her.

Everyone in the area was staring at the scene before them with a dumbfounded face.

Golden-silver crack-like things. They were surrounding them all like a shield. A small area around them was completely shielded by those things.

They were all injured. Some had some minor burns and some were injured after getting thrown around by the impact. But they were alive.

However, the area outside the barrier...

The area outside the cracks was completely whipped out.

“Kairen...”

They all turned towards the voice and broke the silence.

“Hey, Kairen!”

There was someone holding another person.

“Can you hear me? Hey!”

And the one that he was calling was leaning on him with a limp body.