Quick little note I forgot how much gold Bell had, so I'm gonna say he had five million.

Elfy walked the streets of Orario. She knew Bell was hiding, and it was easy for him. He knew the city like the back of his hand. But Elfy had grown up alongside him. So she knew this city as well.

Alongside her was her roommate and friend, Lefiya. Who didn't want Elfy to go alone. She barely knew Bell, but he was important to Elfy, and as such, it was important to Lefiya.

"Are you sure he's down this way?" Lefiya asked. It wasn't the first time she asked either.

She and Elfy had been to multiple of these little hideouts before. Places where her and Bell went to escape their lives, if only for a moment.

"No, but this is the last place to look. If he escaped, he'd need someplace to sleep away from prying eyes." Elfy calmly explained.

Lefiya nodded as the two turned down an alley. They saw it empty, but Elfy kept walking with Lefiya following.

Eventually, the two stopped in front of a wall, which Elfy moved. A hollowed-out section carved by someone long dead. A place where Bell and Elfy went to hide from the gangs from time to time.

Elfy ducked her head and walked inside, Lefiya behind her. Her heart dropped, seeing the place empty as well. However, she did note that Bell had been here. The sleeping bag had been used, and a messy plate was on the table. The wooden floor also had footprints on it of dried rain.

"He's been here," Elfy said.

"He's not anymore, how long ago do you think he was here?" Lefiya asked.

"A couple hours at most. He left not too long ago. Maybe an hour before we arrived." Elfy said, walking to one of the walls.

"So we just missed him, maybe he went back to one of the other hideouts?" Lefiya mused.

Elfy didn't immediately respond. Instead, she reached into a hole in the wall and fished around inside it. A few seconds later, her hand met paper, and she pulled it out.

She unfurled the note as Lefiya peered over her shoulder.

Don't try and find me, Elfy. You'll only be in trouble. I promise you I'm safe, but with Evilus after me, I can't be near you. Make your priority Maria and the kids. I can take care of myself now.

Be aware I have an ally, someone protecting Maria and the kids. If you ever encounter her, don't fight her. She's on your side.

Stay safe

Bell

Elfy sniffled, and she folded the letter and placed it in her pocket. She clasped her hand to her mouth as she felt fresh tears stinging her eyes.

"Why, why won't he let me help him?" She cried.

Lefiya put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Because he doesn't want you to get hurt, Elfy. It's clear you mean a lot to him."

"He means a lot to me too! Ever since our childhood! We grew up together, we've been through thick and thin! Can't he see I love him, can't he see I want to be with him?!" Elfy cried.

Tears streamed down Elfy's cheeks as Lefiya hugged her roommate. All the while, Bell watched from a tower. Being able to see the two thanks to his thermal goggles. Yet he couldn't hear them.

You alright?

"No, but it doesn't matter how I feel. As long as Elfy and the kids are safe. I'll put up with it, any idea when these others will show up?"

No, but if I had to guess, there's six of them already here. High probability they're hiding, or Evilus has them in their ranks.

Bell sighed as he watched Elfy and Lefiya leave the hideout. Elfy placing the fake wall back.

"Then we should bide our time, if they're hunting me, they'll eventually come after me, let's use that to our advantage."

What's the plan?

"Simple, really, have overwhelming firepower. If they're hunting me, they'll fight on my terms. Anything in the shop that can give me an edge?"

Oh, you have no idea

If the system could smirk, Bell could feel it. The sheer cockiness from that message caused Bell to smile.

"Well then, if Evilus wants a fight. Let's give them one."

Quest issued: Take the fight to Evilus. It's then to fight back now. You've done enough hiding. Time to use guerrilla warfare on these Evilus bastards.

"Guerrilla warfare, what's that?"

Don't worry about it, I'll teach you everything you need to know.

A wave of information filled Bell's brain. Disrupting supply lines, killing high-value targets. Physiological warfare, and more filled Bell's brain.

He had the playbook of Guerrilla warfare wired into his brain in seconds.

"So I'm about to fight a one-man war against Evilus?"

Two man if you add Revis

"No, she needs to watch over the kids, and I'm not getting Elfy involved in this either."

Then a one-man war it is. Are you ready?

"Yeah, I am. I can't let these guys harm the ones I care about. Elfy's already fought them once. I'll make sure there won't be a second time."

That's cold, you could quote that.

Bell chuckled as he stood up. He looked different now. He was dressed in all black with his M4 slinged over his shoulder. Not visible to anyone but Bell, he wore a brown Kevlar vest for ballistic protection. He wore black laced boots that were waterproof.

His white hair had gotten somewhat longer, reaching down to his shoulders. He had it tied up, so it was out of his face. It had been well over two months since MonsterPhelia. The day where everything changed.

But Bell was more worried about everyone but himself. Such was his fatal flaw.

So, how do you plan on drawing Evilus to you?

"Well, who do we know that's a part of Evilus?"

Ah, right, so you go and face her, then have her sic them after you?"

"Something like that, if these others are after me, it'll be best to draw them to me. Then afterwards, mop up the rest of Evilus. Or plan B is to make a lot of noise and draw them to me."

But not without preparation first, correct?

"Obviously, we need to do some planning first. Find a place where civilian casualties will be low or none. Then rig that entire place to blow and bait them in."

Oh, I have just the thing.

The shop window opened, and scrolled all the way down to explosives. It opened a tab and had an explosive called C4.

Pound of C4 cost: 25,000 gold

"Hmm, not a bad price. Let's see, I have about 2.5 million gold left over after giving half to Maria. So I'll spare about 500,000 for this, which should bring me to 20 pounds of C4." Bell thought.

He purchased the C4, and it was deposited into his inventory. After which the shop tab closed. Bell stood up and looked in the direction Elfy walked.

His heart longing to embrace her. But his mind telling him to dig deep and push it down. He had a job to keep her safe, and he would do it.

"Alright, let's get going, break time's over."

Bell jumped off the tower and onto a roof. He then proceeded to jump from rooftop to rooftop, making his way to the please district.

.

.

.

.

Ishtar looked out into her district as the moonlight gazed through her window. Her thoughts dwelled on the strange man who had visited her earlier.

He was strong, that much Ishtar could tell. Stronger than most first-class adventurers. His body also radiated annoyance at his situation.

But what worried her most was that he had six eyes, and he was after Bell.

"Ishtar," Bell called out.

The goddess jumped in fright and let out a yelp. Quickly turning around, she saw Bell standing in the shadows of her room.

His piercing red eyes seemed weary and tired. Yet Bell still held himself with an air of weariness around her. His right hand holding his 1911.

Ishtar nervously swallowed, seeing the weapon. She knew what it could do.

"Are you going to use that on me?" The goddess asked.

Bell looked at his sidearm before looking back to her. "No, but I can't be too careful these days. Evilus hunting me and all."

Ishtar drew a shaky breath. "Mind if I sit?"

Bell glanced at the sofa. "Go ahead, I only need you for one thing."

Ishtar nodded as she sat down. Her legs feeling shaky and weak. "And what would that be?"

"I need you to sic Evilus on me, or no, I can't have this being linked back to you. Who knows what'll happen to your girls? I need you to give me a way to make Evilus hurt. I want them coming after me."

Ishtar's eyes widened. Bell had just escaped Evilus, and now he wanted to take the fight to them. Was he dumb, or had he gotten much stronger in a short amount of time?

"You want to take the fight to Evilis? After just escaping their clutches. Why the hell would you do that?" Ishtar asked.

"Simple, really, if I kill them all, I can go back home to my family." Bell calmly answered.

"Bell, that's insane! Evilus has been building strength for years, add to the fact this strange man was looking for you, and it makes me worried for your safety."

Bell narrowed his eyes. "What strange man?"

Ishtar took a breath to calm herself. "A week ago, a strange man came to my tower looking for you. He was your average-looking man with red hair. But one thing that I'll never forget was that he had six eyes."

Sounds like an other

"Yeah, it does."

"So I have a six-eyed man after me. Good, I want to draw his attention the most. Now give me some targets I can hit that'll put the hurt on Evilus's operations." Bell demanded.

Ishtar grit her teeth in annoyance. Bell was on the fast track to getting himself killed. "Damnit, Bell, can't you see I'm trying to help!"

"Then help me by giving me a target! You said you wanted to try and be better. Then you can start by helping me! I'm not asking for anything else!" Bell yelled.

Ishtar looked into Bell's eyes. Seeing their steely gaze made her feel uncomfortable. This wasn't the Bell she knew. The one who was kind and caring. That one was still there, of course, but the situation he was in called for something else.

The goddess sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Fine, Bell, you want a target, I'll give you a target. But in return, I need you to do me a favor."

"Fine, what is it?" Bell said.

"There's a girl, her name is Haruhime. Through my terrible deeds, I have made her life miserable. I've subjected her to a life of slavery and mistreatment, all in pursuit of knocking Freya off her throne. Take her away from here, take her somewhere safe where she'll be happy."

"I know a place, now give me the target," Bell answered.

Ishtar stood up and walked to Bell. She could see the exhaustion in his eyes. He looked miserable.

"There's a place in Daedalus Street. Where the Ikelos familia traffics monsters out of the city. For what reason, I don't know, but it brings in a good deal of money for them. Take it out, and they'll take notice."

Bell spent responded, and Ishtar walked over to her coffee table. She grabbed a pen and paper and wrote down the address. Both for Evilus and Haruhime. She handed it to the boy, who silently took it.

"But before you attack them, take Haruhime somewhere safe. There are those in my familia and abroad that wish to see her dead. I used to be one of them once upon a time."

"I'm not gonna ask why. But you need to fix your mistakes, Ishtar. Before they come back and bite you in the ass. For those that wish Haruhime harm, leave them to me." Bell said.

Ishtar didn't respond, instead, she nodded and like the wind.

Bell was gone.

.

.

.

.

Bell moved from rooftop to rooftop, making sure he couldn't be seen. The pleasure district was flooded with people. Both prostitutes looking to sell their services, and customers looking to indulge.

Bell did notice that there seemed to be fewer prostitutes than before. Where they were, he didn't know. Maybe it was too early for them to work? Bell pushed that thought to the back of his mind. He had a job to do.

Landing on the rooftop of the address Ishtar gave him, Bell lowered himself to a window. He had his Trench Knife ready in case anyone gave him trouble.

He slowly grabbed the window and quietly opened it. Peering inside, Bell saw a Far Eastern-style bedroom. But in front of him was a golden-haired Renard staring at him with wide eyes.

She went to scream, but Bell was quickly in front of her, his hand covering her mouth.

"Quiet!" Bell hissed, looking toward the door.

Haruhime whimpered into his hand, scared at what he would do. She could see the strange knife in his hand.

"Are you Haruhime?" Bell asked.

Haruhime quickly nodded her head. Scared at what this strange man would do to her.

"Good, you're coming with me. I'm getting you out of her."

Haruhime's eyes widened. He was going to do what?

"Now I'm gonna take my hand away. Don't scream."

Haruhime nodded, and Bell took his hand away.

"What do you mean you're getting me out of here?! How did you even know about me?"

"Don't worry about it. Now come on, I'm getting you someplace safe. Somewhere, no one can harm you." Bell explained.

"No, you can't. Ishtar will hunt you down, and who knows what she'll do? Just leave me, you don't need to worry about someone like me."

Bell rolled his eyes and grabbed her arm. "We're not starting this. Be as self-deprecating as you like, but I'm taking you away from here. Ishtar won't do a thing."

"But-

"But nothing, now shut up and hold on," Bell said. He held her in a princess carry before jumping from rooftop to rooftop out of the pleasure district.

Ishtar watched him from atop Belit Babeli. "Looks like his war has begun. Good luck, Bell."

.

.

.

.

Maria sat inside the living room at her new house with the kids. She was able to afford a nicer one with the 10 million valis that a strange woman had given her.

She knew where the money came from. It was from Bell, who she didn't know where he was. She knew he had escaped his captivity from Evilus.

But no one had seen him since. She knew Elfy was looking high and low for him. But so far, her search had turned up nothing. This led the woman to sigh and close her book.

Bell was her son in every way except by blood. So were the rest of the kids she raised. But knowing her son was out there, and not knowing if he was safe or not. It filled Maria with immense dread.

She let out a weary sigh before hearing a knock on her door. Which was odd, who would be out at this hour? Let alone know where she lived.

She got up from the couch and walked to the door. She hoped it wasn't another one of her neighbors offering her a casserole.

She unlocked the door and opened it. Tears of relief immediately filled her eyes as she ushered Bell inside along with his companion.

After shutting the door and locking it, she hugged the battle-weary boy. He returned it, patting her on the back as he did so.

"Yeah, I'm alright, Maria, I'm alright."

Maria pulled back and smacked his chest. "Where have you been? Do you have any idea how worried we were?!"

Bell sighed, and he grabbed Maria's shoulders. "Maria, I can't stay for long. But I need you to keep an eye on my friend here."

Bell gestured to Haruhime, who had her ears pressed against her head. She shyly looked away from the older woman.

Maria just pinched the bridge of her nose. "You've been gone for two months, and now you come back and ask me to do you a favor? Do you have any idea how the kids feel knowing you're gone? How Elfy feels?!"

"I'm aware, but with Evilus hunting me, I need to stay away. You want them to come here and take you? Make you watch as they kill the kids in front of you just to get to me?! I'm staying away to make sure they don't know about the connection between us?!"

Maria took a step back in slight fear at Bell's tone. He had never raised his voice at her before. Bell, seeing what he had done, sighed.

"Look, I didn't mean to get angry. It's just- I can't stand the thought of losing you, or the kids. That's why I'm staying away, it's the only way you'll be safe. But I need you to look after Haruhime, she had nowhere else to go." Bell said.

Maria looked at the Renard girl and sighed. "Of course, she can stay here, Bell. You know I'd never leave a child out on the street."

Bell gave her a tiny smile. "Thank you, Maria, now I need you to take this. It'll help protect you and the kids."

Maria was confused until Bell took a gun out of his inventory along with some ammo and a book. Maria was even more confused on what Bell had.

"This here is a .38 revolver. It's small and compact, so you'll be able to hide it. It takes six bullets, and in this box is a hundred of them. You're also equipped with a speed loader and a book on how to use it. Use it if you're in danger and only for that. Understood?"

Maria, confused on the explanation, nodded anyway. "Um, ok, Bell, but you don't need to worry we're in a nice neighborhood now."

"It's not the neighbors I'm worried about. But I've spent enough time here. Don't tell anyone I was here, and look after Haruhime. Now I need to go."

Before Maria could protest, Bell opened the door and left. Maria sighed as she looked at Haruhime. "Come with me, let's get you settled in. You can meet the kids tomorrow."

Haruhime remained silent but nodded as Maria led her to her room.

Well, I think I'll end this here. I can't remember if Bell and Haruhime met beforehand cause I haven't updated this in a while. But if they have, well, that's retconned now.

Anyway, cats doing fine for now. Still eating and drinking, but I can see her getting weaker. Once she stops eating, I'll know that's when it's over.

So, I think I'll update here and there while she's still eating. But after she doesn't, I'll spend her last days with her.

Well, I'll see ya later, and make sure you spend time with your loved ones.