BXBX NOVEL Chapter 247: New City
His head bobbed up and down to the rhythm, his eyes focused on the road ahead but his mind drifting to memories of his past life.
The familiar melody of a hundreds of years old song filled the vehicle, blending with the steady hum of the engine.
With each verse, his voice grew stronger, echoing through the empty stretches of road ahead.
The sun dipped low on the horizon, casting long shadows over the landscape.
He had been flying for so long, moving fast and quick, that he decided to appreciate the charm of driving a diesel-powered truck while polluting the environment.
Because in a world filled with miasma, who cared about pollution anyway?
'How far is the city?' he pondered, turning his head towards the dashboard.
Even the civilian cars here were more advanced, equipped with touch screens and other features.
He checked the local GPS map and saw that he still had a long way to go to reach the capital, highlighting the vast size difference between a Tier 3 and a Tier 4 city.
Not only was the city larger, but even the quality of the roads impressed him.
It boasted 8-lane highways, and despite being on the outskirts, he noticed numerous exits leading to big towns located outside the city limits.
The traffic was also more lively. He started remembering his old world, where his mother would always give the "F" sign every time someone cut her off on the road.
Lost in memories, he mused inwardly, 'I could have contacted those two if I still had my phone,'
His phone had also been destroyed during the incident, leaving him no choice but to purchase a new one and possibly re-register with the Veiled Nights.
'Ah, fuck, my card was also gone. Do I have to start all over again?' he mumbled to himself.
He realized how much he had lost after that melting accident .
Before, he had been flying around a literal wasteland , where he didn't need any of those human technology.
Now that he was back in civilization, he began to appreciate their importance and started to feel their absence was inconvenient.
He made a mental note to look into those things later, but for now, it was time to increased his paced and get to the city sooner.
Just as he started feel the gas pedal, preparing to overtake, an accident suddenly occurred.
One truck containing dozens of big wooden logs tumbled over, causing a chain reaction among the speeding vehicles around it.
Metal screeched and tires squealed as cars swerved to avoid collision.
Luckily, Reign's inhumane reaction time kicked in. With calm mind, he casually swerved using only one hand, effortlessly dodging the whole incident like a total bad-ass.
When the dust settled, he expected people to exit their cars and curse the truck driver. But, to his surprise, no one got out or honked their horns while shouting insults
"RAWWWR!"
A thunderous roar echoed. With a powerful leap, a big creature landed atop the wrecked truck.
Its sleek grey fur gleamed under the streetlights, and its orange eyes glowed menacingly.
The sight caused everyone to shrink into their cars, fearing that the creature would target them next.
"RAWWWR!" its growl reverberated through the highway, getting attention from the onlookers who where frozen in fear.
'A demon!'
These creatures were pretty rare, almost nonexistent in Tier 4 cities, so he was surprised that they were much more common here.
And judging from the reactions of the people, this was not their first encounter with such beings.
'Should I tame it?' he pondered.
'No, there are too many witnesses, and...' His voice trailed off as he noticed the creature was already wounded, indicating that someone was already hunting it down.
BOOOOOM!
BOOOOOM!
BOOOOOM!
Multiple shockwaves hit the creature, sending it flying off the road.
Then, three figures with katanas emerged from a military HuNovelBinee. They wore traditional kimonos that identify them as hunters.
Without wasting any time, they drew their weapons and engaged the savage demon in a fierce battle.
Intrigued, Reign left his car and joined the onlookers who were now no longer afraid after seeing the hunters in action.
Some bystanders had started filming the distant fight , their phones held high to capture every dramatic moment.
From his vantage point among the crowd, Reign could see the hunters coordinating their attacks with precision.
"Wow, look at that. That's Hunter Risa! She's really cool and sexy!" remarked a kid, about sixteen years old, his eyes fixed on a hunter with a short orange hair and eyes.
Her movements were smooth and precise, each slash of her sword generating sparks of electricity.
"I think Hunter Vin is more awesome. Did you see how strong he was?" remarked a girl, about fifteen years old, her eyes filled with admiration as she continued to film the entire battle.
They were talking as if they were watching basketball, not a dangerous fight.
'Whoa, even the hunters are like celebrities here!' Reign exclaimed, experiencing a big culture shock.
He knew Tier 3 citizens were more aware about the existence of demons and corrupted, but he hadn't expected them to treat a fight like this as if it were a TV show.
More and more people gathered to watch the fight as they saw the hunters guiding the demon away.
In the distance, the hunter continued to confront the demon.
Their movements were synchronized, and even Reign had to admit there was no way the poor creature would survive this encounter.
In fact, he noticed the hunters could have ended the fight much sooner, but they deliberately prolonged it for some reason.
'Why are these guys doing all of this?' he wondered, his genius mind could not understand the logic behind it.
"Wow, my Risa is so good. I'm going to donate money!" exclaimed a 30-year-old man with thick eyeglasses, looking like he hadn't bathed in days, as he fumbled with his phone.
Intrigued, Reign edged closer and asked, "What are you doing?"
The man looked at him like he was an idiot for asking such a dumb question.
"What am I doing ?" He rolled his eyes " I'm her loyal fan, so I'm donating money to her!" "
"Donating money?" he asked, still confused. He felt like he was talking to some kind of rare specimen.
The man sighed, seeing that Reign was not willing to back down without getting answers.
He showed him his phone and began to explain.
"See, this app here is like a Social Media app for hunters," the man started, swiping through the interface to reveal a livestream of the ongoing battle.
"People like me can donate money to our favorite hunters while they're out there risking their lives. It's like supporting them and cheering them on."
Reign watched the screen intently, seeing comments scroll by and virtual gifts being sent to the hunters.
"So, you're giving them money for fighting monsters and saving people, right ?" Reign clarified, beginning to understand.
"Of course not, dummy. I'm giving her money because she's hot and the girl of my dreams!" the 30 year old man retorted, adjusting his eyeglasses like he was some badass Anime MC.