Reborn: Apocalypse Ready. War Goddess by My Side novel Chapter 243

Reborn Apertypoc Ready, War Goddess by My Side

Chapter 243 A Little Banter

Uriah’s grin turned wicked: “Know exactly who she’s dealing with, huh?”

Peter opened his mouth to respond.

A large rock sailed into his face before a single word came out.

“What was that for?!”

Fhrished

Darlene spat to the side. “Who says I want to know all about you? Either step up, rail me, or stop running your mouth about it.”

“Oh, Peter,” Uriah said with gleeful delight, “you’ve really let Darlene down. Leaving her alone at night? What kind of man are you?”

Peter scrambled back upright.

“You! You absolute terror! Just wait until we get back, I’m going to have words with you!”

Darlene made a dismissive sound. “Bring it on.”

Peter couldn’t meet her eyes.

He sat back down.

The rest of the squad wore the easy smiles of people who’d witnessed this particular dynamic too many times to be surprised by it anymore.

Steven smiled too. This kind of warmth was genuinely good for the soul.

Uriah turned back to Steven. “You still didn’t answer the question.”

Steven thought about it for a moment.

“Two reasons, actually.”

The squad looked over with mild curiosity.

Steven’s mouth curved slightly, and he tilted his head back to look up at the open sky.

“I wanted to be free.”

Several faces went flat at once.

“Get out of here.”

“Steven, come on.”

“This kid is slipperier than anyone I’ve ever met.”

“No, I mean it, Steven said, still smiling. “That’s genuinely the reason.

12:29 pmPP.

Chapter 248 A Little Banter

Finished

Everyone rolled their eyes in near–perfect unison.

Steven let the laughter settle around him.

Everyone in an Awakened Squad carried their own reason for being there, and most of those reasons came wrapped in something private.

Then Olivia’s expression changed.

“Orders from the military.”

The easy mood dissolved instantly.

Olivia’s voice came out measured and serious. “The military has confirmed that the Celestial Core is in possession of the Phantom Moon Fox, and Hanford’s squads have managed to drive it into an ancient abandoned city.

“The Fox is extraordinarily cunning. Every attempt to box it in has failed, but it hasn’t left the city either. The current assessment is that it’s calling in beast forces to turn the encirclement around and slaughter the Hanford teams.

“The military is ordering all twenty squads in the field, plus their own units, to abandon current tasks and converge on the target location. The objectives are to reinforce the Hanford squads and seize the Celestial Core.”

Something grim settled into the squad.

A level 5 Phantom Moon Fox.

Just the name alone made the danger feel immediate and tangible.

Olivia kept reading. “The target location is approximately ninety–three miles northwest of our current position. At a hard push with no overnight stops, we’d arrive two days.

“With normal rest breaks, our ETA is four days.”

Olivia looked at Alan.

Alan stood up.

The rest of the squad rose with him.

J

“Captain, are we going full speed? If we actually get our hands on the Celestial Core, we’d be set for life!” Louie’s voice carried barely–contained excitement.

12:29 pm

So it’s here. Just when I exactly need more time, the clock runs out.

Lower the risk. Buy more time. Keep converting.

Peter cut in before Steven could respond. “Tank, he’s a spear fighter and you’re a brawler. What’s he going to teach you? I’ve got a few generations old fist technique that would suit you way better. Fist of Dominance.”

Mason made a short, derisive sound. “Peter, didn’t you mean the Fist of Dumbdumb?

“Steven, don’t listen to this man.”

Steven laughed and nodded. “During the next fight, let me watch your form. I’ll see if anything stands out

12:29 pm PP.

Chapter 243 A–Little Bonter

Finished

Mason nodded with genuine enthusiasm. “Deal.”

Steven had grown comfortable with almost everyone in the squad over the past weeks.

Edric and Nicole were the exceptions, but that was simply who they were. Both of them were quiet by nature, economical with words in camp and mercilessly efficient the moment weapons came out.

The squad moved out again.

They kept a sustainable pace, not pushing hard, just steady forward momentum.

They’d already coordinated with the Team Blood Wolf about linking up further down the road.

With no more Celestial Eyes to plant, the path forward was straightforward. Just distance to cover.

During the day, Steven pushed divine crystal absorption as hard as he could to push the Wind–Fire Divine Sigil forward..

At night, he ran Beast Energy Conversion without pause. Every available hour counted now.

The squad fought whatever beasts crossed their path and harvested any crystal deposits they passed, unhurried and methodical.

After clearing a small pocket of beasts, one remained.

It was a Blazefire Ape.

“Captain, don’t touch it! Leave it for me!” Mason’s voice rang out loud and clear.

1.7K

12:29 pm PP.

Reborn. Apecalypse Ready, War Goddess by My Side