The group's panic was clear, their tense voices overlapping as they stared out at the impossibly large corpse on the horizon.
"This can't be happening," the wiry one with the bow muttered, pacing in small, frantic steps. "An A-rank Void Breach? How the hell did we end up here?"
The blonde-haired leader held up a hand, his voice steady but strained. "Calm down. We don't know that it's A-rank yet."
"Don't know?" The wiry boy's tone was sharp, his expression twisted in frustration. "Look around you! This isn't just any breech, it's a mory, and even worse not just any mory. It's a Valtherion's mory! Look at that!" He gestured wildly at the towering corpse in the distance.
The crimson-haired girl's voice trembled. "The World Eater... That's iconic. It could only be the one the clan had slain."
A cold silence fell over the group, her words sinking in.
"What if..." The bald man with the hamr trailed off, his voice low and fearful. "What if this is *his* mory?"
The leader shook his head sharply. "No. That's impossible. That being wasn't killed—he was erased. Obliterated completely. He left no soul fragnts behind, no mories to influence a Void Breach."
The wiry boy sneered, though it didn't hide his fear. "Does it even matter? Valtherion or not, an A-rank Void Breach ans certain death for all of us. We're done."
As the argunt continued, Kael's vision blurred. A sharp, searing pain struck his head like a hamr, and he crumpled to his knees, clutching his temples.
Flashes of images assaulted him—shattered fragnts of mories that didn't belong to him. A blinding light. A roaring beast. A voice, cold and commanding, uttering words he couldn't comprehend.
"Are you fine?" The crimson-haired girl took a hesitant step toward him, but the leader held up a hand to stop her.
"He's a waste of ti," the leader said firmly. "We leave him here."
The group hesitated, their gazes flicking between Kael and each other.
"What happens to him doesn't matter," the leader continued, his words cold. "We need to focus on surviving."
The others nodded reluctantly. Even the crimson-haired girl, who had argued for Kael's life earlier, didn't protest this ti.
Kael groaned, the pain subsiding as he pushed himself unsteadily to his feet. "Wait..." he croaked, his voice hoarse. "Before you leave..." He swayed, barely able to stand. "Does anyone...have any food?"
The crimson-haired girl stared at him for a long mont. Her expression softened just slightly before she sighed and pulled a nutrient bar from her pack. She stepped toward him, holding it out.
Kael reached for it, his hand trembling. But before he could take it, beside them, the trees rustled.
A guttural growl echoed through the forest as a massive Ravager erged from the shadows. It moved on all fours like a wolf, but it was far larger than any man. Its matted fur bristled, and its blind, milky-white eyes locked onto nothing, as though they could not.
The bald man with the tattoo stumbled back, his voice trembling. "Look at the markings. That's a B-rank Ravager. We're going to die...we're really going to die..."
The leader raised a hand to silence him. "It's a blood sniffer type. Blind and barely able to hear. As long as none of us are bleeding, we'll be fine. Just walk away slowly."
He turned to the crimson-haired girl, his expression blank. "But for a B-rank... It's better to have assurance."
The girl nodded, her face grim as she turned back to Kael, she grabbed his wrist, her expression hardening once more.
"Sorry, kid," she said quietly.
With a swift motion, she drew a dagger from her waist and slashed across Kael's arm.
Kael gasped in pain as blood welled from the wound, spilling onto the ground.
Kael's breath hitched, wincing in pain as realization t him. He stared at the group, disbelief and betrayal written across his face.
"Wait... You're not... You're not serious..."
The girl didn't answer. She simply turned and rejoined the group. None of them spared him another glance as they began to move swiftly in the opposite direction, leaving him behind.
Kael clutched his bleeding arm, his heart pounding as the Ravager's gaze locked on him.
Its massive maw opened, rows of jagged teeth glinting in the light.
The creature's bloodlust filled the air, suffocating and stiffening.
Kael staggered back, his legs trembling. His mind raging at him to run, but his body refused to move.
The Ravager tensed, its muscles coiling like springs.
Then it lunged.
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