Dave glanced at the girl as they made their way through the destroyed remnants of the city. She had been quiet ever since they left the cage, still looking as lost as ever. Her small, innocent eyes followed every step he took, as though she depended entirely on him for guidance.
'She needs a name,' Dave thought. 'I can't keep calling her "girl."'
"Hey," Dave said, breaking the silence. The girl turned her head toward him, her wide eyes full of curiosity. "You don't remember anything about yourself, right? Not even your name?"
She shook her head, her lips pressing into a thin line. "No, I don't remember anything."
Dave frowned, considering his options. He couldn't leave her without a name, and until her memories returned, he would have to give her something temporary. A name she could hold onto, even if it was just for now.
"Alright," he said, glancing up at the sky as the sun set. The colors of the dusk gave him an idea. "How about... Aurora?"
"Aurora?" she repeated, testing the name on her tongue. Her eyes lit up slightly, and for the first time since he met her, there was a spark of something—something like recognition, even if it was faint.
"Yeah, it means 'dawn,' like the first light of a new day," Dave explained. "It's a placeholder until you remember your real name. What do you think?"
Aurora smiled softly, nodding. "I like it."
Dave gave her a brief smile before his face turned serious again. 'Aurora' might have suited her for now, but the reality of their situation hadn't changed. There were still superhumans in this country—powerful ones that needed to be dealt with. And from what the system had told him earlier, the strongest among them was still waiting for him.
Dave had been tracking the movements of the remaining superhumans in the area. They were scattered, hiding in pockets of resistance, but one by one, he found them. His first encounter was with an A-rank superhuman named Cyrus.
Cyrus had the power to manipulate the wind, creating powerful gusts and tornados that could rip apart buildings. The fight was brutal, with debris flying everywhere as Cyrus tried to use the environment to his advantage. But Dave, with his enhanced reflexes and sheer strength, closed the distance and crushed Cyrus's wind barriers with raw force.
The battle ended with Dave snapping Cyrus's neck.
As he wiped the sweat from his brow, Dave checked his system. "One down," he muttered. "System, how many left?"
"Three more targets in this region, all B-rank and above."
'This is going to take longer than I thought,' Dave mused. But there was no turning back now.
The next superhuman he faced was a B-rank woman named Lyra, who could generate illusions and warp reality. She was a trickster, using her powers to disorient Dave, making it seem like he was fighting multiple enemies when it was really just her. But her illusions weren't enough to fool his enhanced senses. After a long, tense struggle, Dave found her real form and ended the fight swiftly by driving a blade through her heart.
With Lyra's death, only two superhumans remained in the country. Both of them were higher-ranked than the others, and Dave knew that the toughest fight was still ahead.
After traveling further into the country, Dave reached a sprawling compound hidden in the mountains. It was well-fortified, but it was clear that this was where the strongest superhumans had gathered. The system had identified his next target: an S-rank named Draven.
Draven was known for his ability to manipulate shadows. He could melt into the darkness, becoming invisible, and his attacks were like knives slicing through the air. Dave's enhanced abilities made it easier to sense Draven's movements, but the fight was still intense. Draven's attacks came fast and relentless, leaving Dave with little time to react.
"Your power won't save you," Draven hissed from the shadows. His voice echoed, making it impossible to pinpoint his location. "You think you're strong, but you're nothing compared to the real power in this world."
Dave dodged another shadow blade, his mind racing. 'He's fast, but if I can just—'
In a split second, Dave activated his matter control ability, creating a barrier around himself that deflected the shadow blades. He used the opportunity to close in on Draven, breaking through his shadow armor with a devastating punch to the gut.
Draven gasped, his form flickering as his shadow powers weakened. Dave didn't give him a chance to recover. He grabbed Draven by the throat and slammed him against the ground with enough force to shatter the earth beneath them.
"That's enough out of you," Dave muttered before snapping Draven's neck. The S-rank's body fell limp, and the shadows around them dissipated into nothingness.
The compound was now silent, the air heavy with the aftermath of battle. Dave stood in the wreckage of what had once been the stronghold of the superhumans in this country. All that was left now was the final one—the highest-ranked superhuman in the entire region.
As Dave walked toward the largest building in the compound, he felt a shift in the air, an overwhelming presence that made his heart race. He had fought strong opponents before, but this one... this one felt different.
When he reached the center of the building, there, waiting for him, was the highest-ranked superhuman in the country.
A man clad in dark armor, his eyes glowing with raw power, stood before Dave, his expression cold and unyielding.
"You must be the one they call Zoran," Dave said, his voice steady, though his muscles tensed in anticipation.
Zoran didn't reply, but the sheer force of his presence was enough to tell Dave that this was going to be his toughest battle yet.