Reborn: Apocalypse Ready. War Goddess by My Side novel Chapter 4

Steven watched the stunned look on Bianca's face and quietly laughed to himself.
Right now, Bianca looked thin and fragile, but those bright, lively eyes of hers were genuinely beautiful.
She was the kind of girl who could be cold and commanding one moment, then adorably clueless the next.
Steven explained, "My place is a little house with a yard. Two rooms are empty, and I live there with my grandpa. There's no one else at home.
"If you're okay with it, you and your mom could move in for now. I mean, what if your dad starts hitting you again? That's a real problem."
Bianca panicked a little. She never expected Steven to suggest something like that.
She shook her head immediately. "No, thank you. I really appreciate it, but we shouldn't trouble you. My mom wouldn't agree either."
Steven let out a quiet sigh. "Alright. I won't push it."
Just then, Vanessa walked out.
"Bianca, let's go home."
Bianca nodded. "Okay, Mom. I'll help you."
She gently supported Vanessa's arm.
Then she looked at Steven. "You should head home too, Steven. It's getting dark outside. It's not safe."
Steven fell silent for a moment before saying, "I'll walk you home first. Then I'll head back."
Bianca still looked hesitant.
Vanessa smiled warmly. "Steven, you've got such a good heart. Thank you."
Steven grinned. "It's nothing. Bianca and I are classmates. We should help each other out."
Vanessa smiled and nodded.
But Bianca's heart skipped a beat.
She lowered her head slightly, too nervous to look at him.
What does Steven mean by that?
Was his showing up here today really just a coincidence?
Or...
Bianca quickly crushed the ridiculous thought in her head.
Everyone knows Steven likes the campus belle, Lilliana. There's no way he'll ever like an ugly duckling like me.
It has to be a coincidence.
Still, she never expected someone like Steven to be this kind.
Because of the state of the modern world, everything had changed 300 years ago when countless beasts swept across human civilization, causing the global population to collapse.
Now, the entire world held less than a billion people.
To avoid drawing the attention of flying beasts at night, cities strictly limited bright lighting after certain hours.
Skyscrapers had long since become rare, especially in civilian districts like this one.
As darkness slowly swallowed the streets, fewer and fewer pedestrians remained outside.
"We should hurry back," Vanessa said. "I don't want to keep you out too long either."
Steven smiled. "Don't worry. Usually, nothing happens. The city guard patrols at night too."
...
In the civilian district.
A faint trace of blood lingered in the air.
A man in a black robe suddenly appeared at the end of an alleyway.
"Captain! I've reached the designated location!"
Very quickly, two more voices came through the earpiece. One male, one female.
"Captain! I've reached the designated location!"
"Captain! I've reached the designated location!"
Then a cold, sharp male voice spoke through the comms.
"Activate the Divine Barrier!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Yes, sir!"
At the same moment, black-robed figures in two other parts of the civilian district made the exact same movement.
Each of them pulled a metal block the size of a human head from their backs and slammed it onto the ground.
At the same time, they pressed a palm against the metal as glowing marks lit up across their arms.
"Activate!"
The same shout echoed through the earpieces from the other two teammates.
In an instant, a massive beam of light blasted nearly 300 feet into the sky from beneath the black-robed man's hand.
Two walls of glowing light split outward from the pillar.
At the exact same time, matching pillars and light walls erupted from the other two locations.
The barriers connected in seconds.
Viewed from above, the entire formation resembled a gigantic triangular prison cage.
Only after finishing all of that did the black-robed man finally relax slightly.
The captain's icy voice rang through the earpiece once more.
"All remaining personnel, begin extermination of the Bloodfang Rats immediately. Minimize casualties at all costs!"
"Yes, sir!"
"..."
The man listened to the voices coming through his earpiece, his expression barely changing.
He pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and exhaled a slow stream of smoke.
The smoke ring drifted through the darkness before gradually twisting apart and fading away.
For a brief moment, he seemed lost in thought when a clear, lively girl's voice suddenly burst through the earpiece, filled with urgency.
"Captain! Two Bloodfang Rats escaped underground and broke through the Divine Barrier!"
The captain's voice came immediately. "What direction?"
The girl answered quickly. "Peter's sector!"
The man's eyes sharpened instantly, a vicious glint flashing across them.
The captain spoke again.
"Peter, I'm leaving it to you!"
Peter Woolridge curled his lips into a grin. "Understood!
"Olivia, give me their position!"
The girl's crisp voice rang through the comms again.
"They've already crossed the Divine Barrier and are heading west! Approximately a mile away!"
"Got it!"
Peter shot forward like a shadow racing through the night.
...
Meanwhile, Steven had just escorted Bianca and Vanessa back to their house.
All three of them saw the glow of the Divine Barrier in the distance.
Vanessa's expression darkened slightly. "No telling what kind of beast is out again.
"Steven, it's probably dangerous to leave right now. Why don't you stay here tonight?"
Bianca immediately panicked at the suggestion.
Stay here? Then where will he sleep? There's no way he can share a room with me, right?
Their house didn't have any extra rooms.
Steven glanced toward the Divine Barrier and said, "Maybe the cleanup will finish quickly this time. Once the Divine Barrier disappears, that means the beasts have all been dealt with. I can wait a little longer."
In reality, Steven knew better than anyone that it didn't matter whether the Divine Barrier vanished or not.
Danger could appear at any moment.
Vanessa shook her head. "It's really fine. You can stay here tonight."
Bianca didn't dare say a word.
Steven smiled lightly. "Let's wait and see first."
The moment they reached the doorway, an enraged roar exploded from inside the house.
"Bitch! Where the hell did you go? Where's my booze? Where's my dinner?"
The drunken figure stumbled out through the doorway again, his face twisted with fury.
Steven frowned. The guy still isn't sober? How much did he even drink?
The moment Vanessa and Bianca saw Howard like this, bitterness filled their hearts all over again.
Vanessa forced down the grief in her chest and said softly, "I'll make dinner right away."
Howard's unfocused eyes seemed to sharpen slightly.
He seemed to suddenly remember something.
"You bitch! You brought your little pretty boy home? He's the bastard who hit me earlier, isn't he?
"You cheating whore! I'll kill you!"
Howard completely lost it. He grabbed the wooden stick by the doorway and charged at them again like a madman.
Vanessa felt utterly miserable. What had she done in this life to deserve this?
Bianca had already gone numb. Looking at the man in front of her, not even a ripple remained in her eyes anymore.
Steven stepped slightly forward. At this point, there was no way this mother and daughter could keep living here.
One day, this drunk would beat them to death.
"You cheating bitch!"
Howard raised the wooden stick and swung it toward them.
Steven was already prepared to deal with it.
But Bianca and Vanessa stood completely still, neither of them even trying to resist.
Right at that critical moment, a shadow suddenly appeared behind Howard in the darkness.
Just as Howard swung the stick down.
The black figure behind him abruptly rose upright, opened a massive blood-soaked mouth, and bit straight into Howard's shoulder.
In that instant, a horrifying scream ripped through the night.
"AAAAHHHH!!!"
Steven's eyes widened.
"Bloodfang Rat!!"
The mother and daughter, who had shut their eyes moments ago, opened them again and saw the horrifying scene before them.
Blood poured from Howard's shoulder, splattering everywhere.
"Ahhh!!!" Bianca and Vanessa screamed, their faces drained completely.
The Bloodfang Rat stood upright, nearly two heads taller than Howard, its crimson eyes filled with savage brutality.
It clamped down on Howard and violently whipped him through the air.
Howard's screams seemed loud enough to carry for blocks.
Bianca and Vanessa were so terrified that they couldn't even move.
Seeing Howard in that state, Vanessa's heart broke completely.
"Howard!!"
Even after all the drinking and abuse, she still couldn't help feeling crushed seeing her husband like that.
Bianca's mind had gone completely blank too.
Steven had no time to think about any of that.
This was a level 1 beast. Without an Awakened, they had almost no chance of surviving.
He grabbed both mother and daughter by the hands.
"Run!"
This wasn't the time fight. The only option was escape.
In his previous life, crushing a level 1 Bloodfang Rat would've been effortless for Steven.
But now, he hadn't awakened his Divine Sigil yet.
Bianca and Vanessa were both still frozen in shock.
As Vanessa let Steven pull her forward, she glanced back at Howard, whose screams were already growing weaker and weaker, tears soaking her face.
Once a Bloodfang Rat locked onto prey, it usually ignored everyone else nearby.
This was their only chance to escape.
But just as Steven dragged the two of them barely a dozen yards away, his footsteps suddenly froze.
Another Bloodfang Rat had appeared directly in front of them.
Steven's heart dropped.
We're finished!
The next second, the Bloodfang Rat lunged toward them like it had just spotted the perfect meal.