Chapter 35: The Broke Sentinel

Saddie slowly looked up at her. But instead of getting angry after being scolded by a stranger, she let out an awkward chuckle.

Saddie scratched her cheek. "I’m kind of poor right now," she admitted. "So I can’t afford to buy more plasma energy."

Summer stared at her and for a few seconds, she honestly didn’t know how to respond.

The livestream, however, had no such problem.

[WAIT SHE REALLY CAME HERE BROKE???]

[That is sad but also WHY DID SHE STILL ENTER A POLLUTED ZONE]

[And ALONE?!!]

[Maybe she thought emotional damage was enough preparation LMAO]

[STOPPP T_T]

"Miss McKay, long time no see." Ilya’s voice finally broke the awkward silence between them.

Saddie immediately jumped to her feet. Her back straightened almost by instinct before she raised one hand in a salute. "Long time no see, Captain Noctis, sir!"

Ilya stared at her for a moment before letting out a small laugh. "You can relax around me now. You’re not one of my soldiers anymore, remember?"

Saddie lowered her hand awkwardly. "Understood, sir!"

Apparently, old habits were hard to break.

Ilya didn’t bother correcting her again. Instead, he looked Saddie up and down before asking, "I thought you became rich after leaving the military. Wasn’t that why you decided to become an ordinary Sentinel and focus on streaming?"

Saddie’s expression immediately became painful. "I was rich."

"Was?"

"I was blinded by love," Saddie said sadly. "Then I got deceived."

Summer glanced at the comment section.

[Saddie please have some dignity.]

[She lost the money AND the girlfriend.]

[Don’t kick her while she’s down LMAOOO.]

Ilya sighed. "I warned you."

Saddie immediately pointed at him. "You did not warn me properly!"

"I told you that beautiful colors are usually poisonous," Ilya added.

"That could mean anything!"

Ilya looked at her in disbelief. "It meant exactly what happened to you."

Saddie opened her mouth, then closed it again. Apparently, she had no answer for that.

Summer had been quiet this whole time, but honestly, the thought of a rich livestreamer becoming poor in just one night was both funny and ironic.

But maybe it was simply in Saddie’s nature to trust others too easily? She had even run toward Summer earlier even though they didn’t know each other.

If it were Summer, she would rather fight a whole group of cockroaches than trust a stranger in the middle of a battlefield.

Speaking of cockroaches, the remaining ones were still moving around them, making disgusting clicking sounds in the darkness. 𝘧𝓇ℯℴ𝓂

Ilya finally stopped teasing Saddie. He reached toward the storage compartment attached to his belt and pulled out a small plasma energy cell.

"Here."

Saddie’s eyes lit up the moment she saw it. "Captain!"

Ilya tossed it toward her, and Saddie caught it with both hands.

"Use that for now. You can pay me back later," he said.

Saddie looked like she had just been handed a treasure. "You’re the best, Captain!"

The livestream immediately exploded.

[EXCUSE ME???]

[ILYAAAAA WHY ARE YOU HELPING ANOTHER WOMAN BUT NOT SUMMER???]

[HELLO??? YOUR TRAINEE IS RIGHT THERE???]

[Are you guys stupid?!!]

[Saddie isn’t being evaluated!]

[Exactly! If he helps Summer, it defeats the whole point of the test.]

[Also, stop shipping her with Ilya. Saddie is gay as fuck. She’d probably puke rainbows if she ever kissed a guy.]

[If she’s going to go after anyone, it’ll 100% be Summer!]

[LMFAOOOOO.]

Summer stared at the comments for a few seconds before shaking her head. Seriously, these people probably couldn’t survive even one hour without being dramatic.

"Okay. Okay. Saddie, they’re just insects. Just insects." Saddie kept muttering to herself while doing a few small jumps in place, like she was trying to hype herself up before a fight.

Summer watched her for a moment before asking, "Do you need... help?"

Saddie turned to her and formed a smile on her face. "Haha, it’s okay! I’m the one who brought these insects here, so I should take responsibility!"

Summer was about to say something, but Saddie’s expression suddenly turned serious. Without saying a word, she raised her plasma gun, aimed it right beside Summer, and fired.

BANG!

Summer flinched and quickly turned around. At that moment, she saw a giant cockroach several meters behind her explode into black blood and broken shell.

She blinked several times. She hadn’t even noticed it was there, but before Summer could say anything, Saddie was already moving again.

BANG!

Another cockroach dropped dead, and not long after, another one died too.

Saddie stepped lightly across the ruined street, almost on the tips of her feet. Every movement looked strangely graceful, like she was following music only she could hear.

Her fear was still there. Summer could tell from the way her face twisted every time one of the cockroaches got too close, but somehow, the more disgusted she looked, the prettier her movements became.

Saddie fired while spinning to the side, her movements so smooth that it almost looked like she was dancing instead of fighting.

One cockroach jumped toward her. Saddie bent backward in a deep arch, letting it pass just above her face and then she pushed off the ground.

Her legs stretched gracefully beneath her as she jumped, almost like a ballerina leaping across a stage.

For a moment, she looked almost weightless. Then, she landed on a broken car, jumped off the roof, and pointed her gun downward.

BANG!

The cockroach’s head below her instantly blew up, and black blood splattered everywhere.

Summer stared with her mouth slightly open. Was this really the same woman who had been jumping in place and trying to convince herself that these roaches were "just insects" five seconds ago?

Another cockroach rushed toward Saddie from her blind side. She turned around immediately, but instead of using her gun, her eyes landed on a long metal pipe lying on the road.

Without thinking twice, Saddie grabbed it. Then, with one smooth turn of her body, she drove the pipe straight through the cockroach’s head.

CRACK!

The creature stopped moving, and when Saddie pulled the pipe back out of its head, its body swayed toward her.

She immediately jumped away from it. "Ew! Ew! Ew! Don’t touch me!"

She shuddered in disgust and immediately threw the pipe aside like it had personally offended her.

Summer couldn’t help but laugh when she saw that. Meanwhile, the comments on Summer’s livestream exploded.

[HELL??? WHERE IS THE TIMID GIRL FROM EARLIER?!]

[Who are you calling timid? Saddie? Girl, is this your first time seeing her fight?]

[She met one beautiful flower and suddenly decided to lock in LMAOOO]

[Or maybe she’s just too embarrassed to look useless in front of her former Captain.]

[She used to be Lieutenant Saddie for a reason!]

[Summer, if your sugar daddies ever abandon you, just go with Saddie! She can treat you better than any man!]