Why

Li Quyi was twenty-one, still a student. Yet he was already a professional Explorer, the kind with two or three underlings.

He was a student union officer at River Bend City's Heng Science University, one of the campus elite. But because he had been too outstanding, he had entered the world of Professionals early—and received society's brutal beating.

By graduation season, he and several senior-year classmates had started a small company, taking commissions from both official and private sources. Of the seven partners, only three remained now—or perhaps there would soon be only two.

"...Leave me behind. You still have a chance."

Liu Ge, the partner who had shared his dormitory, was gasping and groaning on Li Quyi's back. Blood dripped onto Li Quyi's feet and spilled across the ground.

"No, we still have hope."

Carrying the wounded man, Li Quyi trudged forward numbly. As the captain, as the core of the team, he spoke words he did not even believe himself.

Six others followed behind him. Every one of them was injured, young and middle-aged alike.

One of them was his last remaining partner. The rest probably came from at least three different teams.

"...We can't escape. If you don't put me down, Brother Li, you won't get away either. We're like stray dogs, being driven along without end..."

His words chilled everyone's hearts.

Indeed, they were like stray dogs, casually driven around by people wielding sticks.

After losing their means of communication, the Aus had seized the initiative on the battlefield.

Most Eastern Kingdom people hunted and explored in this world in groups and squads. When war suddenly descended, they anxiously contacted one another. But when the radios abruptly went dead as well, they became lone boats on the open sea.

Only a very small number of teams