The ruins of the ancient temple stood in eerie silence. Blood stained the broken stone, and the last assassin’s body collapsed at Aafreen’s feet. She exhaled, wiping her blade clean before turning to Jai, who approached hesitantly.
"Miss... is it over?" he asked.
Aafreen’s eyes swept across the battlefield, her expression unreadable. "Yes," she said. "I killed every assassin that attacked here."
But sothing was off.
She recalled the words of one of the assassins she had interrogated before his death.
"There are twenty-five of us."
Yet, she had only counted nineteen dead bodies.
A cold realization crept into her mind.
"Six of them are missing," she murmured.
Then, a young girl nearby, her clothes tattered from the battle, whispered with fear in her voice:
"Big brother Seenu’s team... they’re missing."
Aafreen’s eyes widened. They were the real targets all along.
"Damn it!" she cursed. "I have to get to them before it’s too late."
She turned, ready to move, but deep down—she didn’t know that the ones she was worrying about...
Were far stronger than she ever imagined.
The Aftermath of Battle
Kunal adjusted his glasses, rubbing off the bloodstains, when a sudden impact struck the back of his head.
"Wow, man! You were this strong all along?!" Raj grinned, pulling back his hand from the slap. "Why didn’t you ever show your strength before?"
Kunal pushed his glasses up, sighing. "I didn’t need to. You guys are already strong enough."
But his face betrayed his words.
Raj caught the flicker of hesitation in his eyes. He was hiding sothing. But Raj didn’t press further. Not yet.
Aamir stepped forward, rolling his shoulders. "Hey, Kunal, let’s spar when we heal up. You’re strong—I want to see just how strong."
Kunal imdiately waved his hands. "Y-yeah, yeah, maybe later. But... is everyone alright? No serious injuries?"
Aamir exhaled, looking at their team. "Just minor wounds. We’ll live."
Then, Seenu walked up to Kunal, his face serious. "Listen, Kunal. I know you fear your own power... but don’t." His voice was calm but firm. "It’s your power. It belongs to you. You don’t need to be afraid of anyone."
Kunal’s eyes flickered with sothing unreadable. He wanted to believe those words...
But then—
The ground trembled.
A sudden, violent quake shook the battlefield. The ruins cracked. Dust erupted from the ground as a presence far stronger than anything before surged through the air.
Stronger than the Shadow Assassins.
Stronger than Kunal’s suppressed aura.
Kunal, Aamir, and the others froze.
Then, Aamir’s system screen popped up.
[QUEST ACTIVATED: SURVIVE]
"What the hell?" Aamir muttered. Survive?
Then, the answer revealed itself.
A deep, rumbling sound echoed from beneath them. The ground shattered.
A colossal entity erged from the earth.
As massive as a palace, its body was part of the underground itself—tangled with roots, vines, and jagged thorns. A massive skeletal face erged from the roots, its ’eyes’ glowing like molten gold.
It was a living nightmare.
Aamir’s heart pounded as he quickly activated Appraisal.
[IDENTIFYING TARGET...]
[ABYSSAL THORNFIEND]
[MONARCH-CLASS BEAST]
A Monarch-class Beast?!
Aamir’s breath caught in his throat.
"How... how the hell do we defeat sothing like this?!"
Its very presence made the air thick, suffocating.
Even far away, Aafreen felt it. Her blood ran cold.
"What... a creature this strong? A Monarch-class?" she whispered in disbelief. "But the reports said all higher-level beasts had already left Vedangiri..."
Sothing was wrong.
The Last Stand
Aamir’s mind raced.
"A Monarch-class beast... we can’t win."
But his system’s quest wasn’t to defeat it.
It was to survive.
He gritted his teeth. "We just need to hold on until Aafreen gets here."
His gaze darted to era—her shoulder was still bleeding, her breaths uneven.
"era," Aamir said firmly. "You’re too injured. Step back."
era hesitated. "B— But I can still fight—!" era started, but Aamir cut her off. "No. This ti, trust us." She bit her lip.
"Please," he insisted. "Let us handle this."
She clenched her fists, then nodded. "...Okay. I’ll leave this to you."
She stepped back, and that was when Kunal sighed.
"Oh no, man..." he muttered. "I didn’t think I’d have to use my power again this soon."
Then—he threw his glasses and pendant to era.
"Catch."
era barely caught them You’re right—I cut Seenu’s speech short. Let rewrite that part with his full speech to keep the intensity and motivation strong.
Seenu stepped forward, his eyes locked on the towering Abyssal Thornfiend. His voice was steady but filled with urgency.
"Listen up! We can’t hold back this ti. If we do, we’re dead. Go all out—use everything you’ve got. Riya, don’t worry about us. Your job is to protect era."
Riya nodded firmly. "Understood."
Seenu’s gaze swept over Aamir, Kunal, and Raj. "Let your adrenaline surge. Fight like this is the last battle of your life—because if we don’t, it will be."
A tense silence followed his words.
Then—
Their auras exploded.
Aamir’s golden energy crackled like lightning. Kunal’s presence beca a storm, fierce and overwhelming. Raj’s battle spirit flared, and Seenu’s own energy hardened like steel.
The ground trembled once more—
But this ti, it wasn’t just the beast’s power.
It was theirs.
All four of them stood like unshakable pillars, facing the towering monster.
Aamir drew his sword, and the intricate patterns along its blade began to glow faintly.
The Abyssal Thornfiend roared, its massive vines lashing out like whips.
They all leaped back, narrowly avoiding the first strike.
Kunal shouted, "era, throw your daggers—fast!"
"On it!" era responded, hurling two daggers toward him.
Kunal caught them mid-air, his body blurring with speed as he slashed through the vines. Sharp cuts split through the creature’s tendrils—but more kept coming.
"Damn it! There’s no end to them!" he gritted his teeth.
Aamir kicked off the ground, landing on one of the thick vines, using it as a bridge to run toward the monster.
A vine lashed at him from behind.
He twisted mid-air, bending backward just in ti.
Then—another vine struck from the side.
Aamir spun, slashing at it—but his blade barely cut through.
It felt like striking solid rock.
"What the hell?!" Aamir shouted. "Kunal! How did you cut through these so easily?!"
Kunal, still weaving through the vines, yelled back, "It wasn’t that hard before!"
Aamir’s grip tightened. "No—sothing’s changed. It’s like they’re turning to stone!"
Seenu’s eyes widened in realization.
"No... it’s ADAPTING!"
The group froze for a split second.
"Every ti we attack, it learns. It’s making its vines harder to counter us!"
Aamir gritted his teeth. A beast that could evolve mid-battle?
This fight had just beco much, much harder.
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