Joey couldn't say for sure if he felt good or bad right now. Ever since Pokkle had said they were heading out to provide support, he'd expected things to go south exactly like this.
The group wasn't far from the organization's base, and just a few kilometers to the northeast was another village.
Those two places guaranteed one thing: this area was crawling with Chimera Ants.
And since this was a rescue mission, a clash with them was inevitable.
All Joey had hoped for was not to run into a Squad Leader-level Ant or a cluster of High-Ranking Soldiers, because those types could see Nen.
As for splitting from the team and escaping alone? Pokkle and his group weren't that trusting.
Sure, they claimed their formation was to defend against Ant ambushes—but Joey knew full well that putting him in the center was also to keep him watched. If he made a suspicious move, the two no-name grunts would shoot him without hesitation.
So the moment they set out, Joey had already begun calculating his escape route.
Sheer Heart Attack's detonation had been part of his exit plan.
Once the bomb exploded and he sprayed bullets at the Ants, he'd rush toward the blast zone, retrieve the tank, and vanish into the forest.
What he hadn't anticipated… was a Squad Leader-tier Crocodile Ant suddenly entering the tank's path and hijacking the entire scenario.
His clean extraction had turned into a forced confrontation.
Even worse, the Crocodile Ant—a literal cold-blooded creature—had a higher body temperature signature than a nearby flat-billed Ant that looked like a duck. Was this a joke?
Still, in the end, he'd faced it. And the First Bomb laid on a riverbed stone had delivered some good results.
All in all, the real battle experience had taught Joey a lot.
Even if the explosion hadn't finished the Crocodile Ant, if his warning had helped Pokkle and Ponzu escape, then the outcome was still a win in Joey's book.
Because after what they'd just faced, he refused to believe Pokkle would try to keep Ponzu in NGL.
...But Pokkle had hesitated. Joey had seen it—he'd hesitated about finishing off the wounded Crocodile Ant.
And that hesitation was why things had turned out like this.
Joey wasn't particularly worried about the Chimera Ants chasing him.
After resting for half the night, his stamina had mostly recovered. The battle had cost him some energy, but nothing critical.
His only real problem was the bullet graze on his shoulder. Fortunately, it had just torn skin and muscle—no bone was hit.
That made treatment a lot easier than if the bullet had embedded itself.
Still, blood was dripping steadily down his arm, leaving a trail for any halfway-decent tracker to follow.
And the pain gnawed at his nerves in waves.
But the pain kept him sharp, grounded—focused.
The pursuers behind him were likely low-ranking soldier Ants. These types couldn't even see Sheer Heart Attack. If he planned things right, Killer Queen would be more than enough to take care of them.
The harder part was choosing what to do next.
Based on the current situation, Joey had two options:
Option one: Wait until sunrise, then cautiously head toward the organization's base—no, wait.
He suddenly remembered something. Pulling out the map, he ignored the blood smudging the paper and scanned the area northeast of him.
There was a village.
If he remembered correctly, Kite and the others had also passed through that village in the manga. He couldn't recall whether they were led there by Ponzu's intel or if it had been part of their general sweep.
But compared to the base—that village was a safer bet.
Especially with the blood scent wafting from his shoulder like a dinner bell.
Option two: Double back to the battlefield, find Pokkle and Ponzu, or scavenge maps from the dead bodies of the two grunts.
Joey didn't even need to think this one through. Option one it was.
Turning back would be suicide unless he'd gone totally insane.
He had no idea whether Pokkle or Ponzu were even alive. No clue if the grunts' bodies were intact. And even if they were, who's to say the maps were still on them?
The risk far outweighed the potential reward.
Far better to eliminate his pursuers and then go into hiding.
With that in mind, Joey began prepping an ambush for the Ants trailing him.
Running wasn't realistic. Even without knowing what type of Ants were chasing him, the blood trail alone ensured they'd catch up.
He'd rather eliminate them now.
His eyes scanned the terrain carefully.
The Ants weren't chasing him with much effort. In fact, after seeing his bizarre, dangerous tricks earlier, the low-level grunts were downright demoralized.
One of them, a humanoid porcupine with spiked bristles along its back, was even half-asleep as it walked.
When they reached a creek in the forest, the group paused.
The one with a rooster's head and small wings examined the rocks and grass for signs—clearly, it was the tracker.
As the rooster Ant approached the stones, it noticed something odd—two long, parallel tracks etched in the sand, heading right for its feet.
Its comb feathers shot upright in alarm. It opened its beak in a loud, rooster-like screech.
But its body was far slower than its lungs.
The moment it screamed—BOOM!
An explosion ripped through the creekside, silencing its cry.
From across the water, hidden in the brush, Joey opened fire with his rifle.
Gunfire blended into the explosion, and the Ants, caught off guard, panicked—flailing, scattering, ducking for cover.
But this creekside was a trap, carefully prepared by Joey. There was no cover.
Bullets tore into carapace, screeches filled the air.
Meanwhile, Sheer Heart Attack, having just shredded the rooster Ant, burst from the smoke and charged another target—a rat-headed Chimera Ant that was halfway burrowed into the ground.
Just as the Ant exhaled in relief, thinking it had escaped—BOOM!
The tank burst into its tunnel and then out the other side, immediately charging toward a third Ant that resembled a beetle.
Joey, meanwhile, ditched his rifle and rolled sideways into new cover.
Spines whizzed past where he'd just been—fired from the porcupine Ant's back in retaliation.
But Joey's bullets had already torn up the enemy.
His aim wasn't great—but these Ants were big, slow, and out in the open. Spray the clip in the right direction and let the Stand finish what he started.
Two more explosions followed.
And when the smoke cleared… all that remained across the creek were shattered Ant parts.
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