"Grade four beasts! We only released such a little amount of energy," Loki gulped, instinctively backing away, his voice trembling as the ground beneath them quaked from the approaching creatures.
Axel, standing beside him, narrowed his eyes, piecing together the situation. "Didn't Commander Asher say this type of beast could match an S-rank hunter?"
Josh nodded grimly, his face hardening. He had suspected sothing like this might happen, but not this early. "We're not ready for this. At the level of energy we've put out, our abilities are C-rank or lower, but those beasts headed this way? They're not just S-rank. There's a whole group of them."
Loki's voice wavered, his hands clenching tightly. "Plan?"
Josh didn't hesitate, stepping forward and speaking with a cold determination. "Yeah, fuck the plan. We'll need to release the full extent of our power. That's the only way we're taking down four beasts of this caliber."
Josh's intense gaze shifted to Axel, the weight of the mont palpable between them. "Loki, stay behind. Support us when necessary. You're our ace if things go sideways, and our ticket out if sothing happens." Then, with a more personal edge, Josh locked eyes with Axel. "You've been watching , trying to figure out. Well, here's the thing, Axel—I only work well with people who can keep up.
Don't slow down."
A smirk played on Axel's lips as the tension crackled in the air. So this was the true Josh Roark. His cocky attitude now made sense. "Don't worry. I won't."
The sound of trees snapping and tearing ahead brought their attention sharply forward. The earth trembled as the beasts ca into view. They stood like colossal bulls, their bulky forms rippling with muscle, ten fox-like tails whipping behind them, each movent sending plus of smoke sizzling off their burning skin. They growled in unison, and without hesitation, charged.
"Release your energy now!" Josh barked, launching himself forward with superhuman speed.
Axel followed, their forms blurring as they hurtled toward the first two beasts, their speed almost too fast to follow with normal eyes. They struck together, like twin forces of nature. Axel swung his sword toward the skull of the nearest bull, his blade slicing through the air with deadly precision. But the beast, faster than it looked, swerved at the last second, narrowly avoiding the strike.
The bull turned on Axel with a snarl, its dark eyes locked onto him, then charged again, its massive hooves tearing up the ground. Axel didn't flinch. He stood his ground, raising his hand without his sword this ti. Shadows rippled beneath him, like a dark tide surging forward. Suddenly, shadowy hands erupted from the bull's own shadow, clamping onto the beast's legs and pulling it to the ground.
It thrashed, but the shadows held firm, immobilizing it.
"That's one down!" Axel shouted. But the mont of victory was short-lived.
He sensed it—an incoming tremor in the air, sothing dark and nacing. His instincts scread at him to move, and he leapt to the side just in ti. A dark orb of energy soared past him, smashing into the field nearby. No explosion followed, but a sinister hissing filled the air as the ground began to burn, acid eating through the earth like a plague.
Axel turned, his eyes narrowing on the second bull. This one, standing further away, had its mouth open, charging another orb of deadly acid. The air shimred with heat, and Axel could feel the malevolence rolling off the beast in waves. 'I'm too strong for these things,' Axel mused, irritation flashing in his mind.
He watched as the beast unleashed another orb of acid, this one flying straight toward him.
Without hesitation, Axel raised his sword, swinging it lazily in the direction of the incoming attack. A wave of air shot from his blade, cutting through the orb like it was nothing. The acid dissolved into mist, and the bull behind it? Turned to dust, scattering in the wind.
[Deceased Touch activated.]
Dark energy pulsed around Axel, rippling off him in invisible waves. As more bulls charged toward him, they collided with the unseen force. One by one, they disintegrated, torn apart by the shadows clinging to Axel like a second skin. He stood in the center of the destruction, unbothered by the endless tide of beasts. They kept coming, more and more, like an entire herd intent on crushing him.
But Axel's power, now fully unleashed, was more than a match for them.
'At first, there were only four,' Axel thought, his eyes narrowing. 'But thanks to our energy release, they keep multiplying.'
The beasts ca for a while longer before the onslaught stopped, leaving the field eerily quiet. Axel's breath steadied as he canceled his mana, the shadows retreating. He turned to where Josh had been fighting, and his eyes widened in awe. The field on Josh's side had been transford into a frozen wasteland.
Dozens of bulls stood encased in ice, frozen mid-charge, their monstrous forms locked in place.
Josh stood in the middle of it all, his breath coming out in cold puffs of air, ice crackling around his feet. He t Axel's gaze, the sa thought crossing both their minds.
"Guys, keep your guard up!" Loki's voice rang out from behind, breaking the silence. The worry in his tone was unmistakable.
Axel frowned, his instincts tingling. Loki was right. Sothing was off. The air felt wrong, heavy, like a storm brewing in the distance. The beasts they had fought, as terrifying as they seed, hadn't been the true threat. No, there was sothing else.
Sothing bigger. And it was getting closer.
At first, they couldn't sense it. But now, the feeling was undeniable. A presence. Dark, ancient, and suffocating. The ground trembled beneath their feet, and in the distance, slow, deliberate footsteps echoed through the trees.
Out from the shadows erged a humanoid figure, tall and gaunt, its skin stretched tightly over its skeletal fra. Its head was grotesquely large, dried and cracked, as though it had been left in the sun for too long. Despite its frail appearance, the energy it radiated was suffocating.
"The Grade Three…" Josh muttered under his breath, his hand tightening around the hilt of his dagger. "This thing feels different from the others."
And then it spoke.
"So…" The creature's voice was a low rasp, sending a chill down their spines. "There are more of you."
The group froze, eyes wide with disbelief. Had it just spoken? These beasts weren't supposed to be intelligent.
The creature tilted its head, its large eyes gleaming with sothing close to amusent. "That makes six now. You're the last ones left… the remaining beasts I haven't killed."
The weight of those words hit them like a hamr. Their blood ran cold.
Wait. Remaining?
It dawned on them like a nightmare. The other beasts—the ones they hadn't seen yet.
"He killed the others!" Axel whispered, his voice barely audible over the sound of his pounding heart.
***
The room was dim, lit only by the flickering fla of a single lantern hanging from the ceiling. A cold draft seeped in through the cracks of the wooden walls, causing the small group of figures to huddle tighter, their breath visible in the air. They stood in a semi-circle, all in matching dark uniforms that reflected no light. At the head of the room stood a woman, different from the rest.
Her long, raven-black hair cascaded down her back, and her sharp, calculating eyes scanned the group before her.
Noel Dawning, known by her alias "Dawning Blood," was feared even among her own kind. The silence in the room was suffocating, broken only by the occasional creak of the old wooden floorboards underfoot.
"You summoned us," one of the figures finally spoke, their voice low and gravelly, almost as if afraid to disturb the oppressive stillness.
Noel nodded slowly, her gaze cold and unyielding. "It's ti," she said, her voice carrying a weight of finality. "The Hangi Gang will return to Kyota."
A murmur rippled through the group, excitent and apprehension mixing in equal asure. They had waited for this mont for months, perhaps even longer. Vengeance was a patient beast, and tonight, it was ready to strike.
Noel's lips curled into a dark smile, her eyes gleaming with a dangerous glint. "But this isn't just any mission. This is for revenge—personal revenge. We're going back to settle a score." She paused, letting her words sink in before continuing, "We're going after Axel Teras."
The room went still again, her words hanging in the air like a blade suspended over their heads. The na Axel Teras sent a jolt through the group, the weight of it heavier than the cold air surrounding them.
"He slipped through our fingers once. But now..." Noel's smile widened. "Now, he's mine. We'll make sure he feels every ounce of the pain he's caused."
The figures in the room straightened, a collective sense of purpose falling over them like a shadow. Noel's voice, soft but deadly, cut through the silence once more.
"Prepare yourselves. The hunt begins at dawn."
---
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