Cain's voice was grim.
"We have a huge problem."
Lucas, who had been leaning lazily against the inn's window, turned to face him. His eyes narrowed, his posture shifting slightly small details that only those who truly understood
danger
would notice.
"What happened now?"
Cain took a deep breath. "We have 12 A-rank hunters, 40 B-rank hunters, and 2 C-rank hunters deployed for this raid."
Lucas raised an eyebrow. "That many?"
Cain exhaled sharply.
"A massive dungeon gate has appeared on the main road leading to the city."
Lucas and André exchanged glances.
But for Cain to personally come find them...
This wasn't normal.
Lucas folded his arms.
"That bad?"
Cain's jaw tightened.
"It isn't an ordinary dungeon... We need every hunter we can get."
A flicker of interest crossed Lucas' face.
Then he smirked.
"Sounds fun. Alright, let's go."
The streets of
Sola City
were
unusually quiet.
Lucas and André sat in the back of an
armored transport
, surrounded by
other hunters
some rookies, others veterans. The vehicle rumbled as it sped down the road, kicking up dust and debris.
Cain sat across from them, his fingers tapping idly against the metal seat.
"We aren't the only ones heading there."
Lucas raised an eyebrow.
"What do you mean?"
Cain's voice dropped slightly, as if savoring the words.
"The fourth-ranked SS-rank hunter... Timas the Dual Sage... is already there."
The words
shattered
through the vehicle like a bullet.
Hunters who had been adjusting their gear
froze.
Even André's usually calm face twitched slightly.
Lucas, however, went still.
Timas the Dual Sage.
One of the
strongest hunters in the world.
A living legend.
The fact that he was here meant one thing
This wasn't just a big dungeon. It was a potential catastrophe.
Lucas' fingers tightened slightly against the seat.
Cain noticed and chuckled.
"I never thought I'd see you nervous, Lucas."
Lucas didn't respond immediately.
His thoughts were racing.
What kind of monster required an SS-rank hunter?
And more importantly
Would they even survive it?
When the armored vehicles finally reached their destination, Lucas understood
everything.
The gate wasn't just
big.
It was
massive.
A swirling vortex of
black energy
loomed over the ruined highway, stretching into the sky like a wound in reality. The air around it
crackled
with pure, raw power.
Even from a distance, the oppressive
pressure
of the dungeon was suffocating.
And then
A voice.
Smooth. Calm.
Yet
undeniably powerful.
"So... these are the reinforcements?"
Lucas turned his head.
And saw him.
Timas the Dual Sage.
The SS-Rank Hunter
Timas stood alone at the edge of the battlefield.
He wasn't a
giant
like some of the brute-force hunters, nor did he carry any massive weapons.
He looked almost
unremarkable.
Lean.
Sharp features.
Dressed in a simple
black coat
that billowed slightly in the wind.
But Lucas had been around strong people before.
And none of them felt like this.
There was something about Timas
a weight
in the air, an almost imperceptible distortion around him, as if the world itself bent slightly under his presence.
His eyes
calm and golden
swept over the arriving hunters.
Judging. Measuring.
Cain stepped forward.
"Sir Timas. It's an honor."
Timas barely acknowledged him.
His gaze settled on Lucas.
And for the first time in a long time
Lucas felt small.
"You."
Timas' voice was
soft.
But it felt like a
command.
Lucas met his gaze.
"What about me?"
Timas tilted his head slightly.
"You're different."
Timas chuckled. It was a soft, amused sound.
Then he turned toward the gate.
"Try to keep up."
And without another word
He stepped inside.
Lucas inhaled sharply.
Then
Without hesitation
He followed.
Darkness.
Cold.
Then
A sudden, blinding
landscape.
Lucas barely had time to process before the first
scream
erupted.
One of the hunters an
A-rank
was
already dead.
His body torn apart in an instant by something
moving too fast to see.
And then
Lucas saw them.
The creatures.
They weren't like normal dungeon monsters.
No.
These things were
wrong.
Massive, shadowy beings with
twisted, elongated limbs
and gaping
void-like mouths.
Their very presence felt
unnatural
, as if they had no right to exist.
Lucas' breath caught in his throat.
This isn't just a dungeon.
It was something else.
Something that shouldn't have been opened.
And then
The creatures turned
Not toward the hunters.
But toward
Timas.
And then Lucas realized
They were afraid.
And that terrified him.
Timas spoke a single word.
"Sever."
Before anyone could react
Blood.
Blood everywhere.
Ten A-rank hunters collapsed instantly, their bodies sliced cleanly in half.
Lucas didn't even see what happened. No movement. No attack. Just
Carnage.
A heavy silence followed. The remaining hunters stood frozen, their minds struggling to comprehend what they had just witnessed.
André swallowed hard. "What... what just happened?"
Cain's face was pale. "I... I don't know."
Lucas' hands clenched into fists.
What the hell is he?
Timas, floating above the dungeon's ground, spread his arms wide.
From his palms, a small, blood-red sphere began to form.
Tiny. Harmless-looking.
Then
"Go."
The orb shot forward.
Faster than anything Lucas had ever seen.
The moment it touched a monster a towering S-rank ghoul
It vanished.
Not just the ghoul.
Everything around it.
Gone.
Erased.
No sound. No explosion. Just nothing.
The orb continued.
A second monster.
A third.
A dozen.
Every single creature in its path was obliterated in an instant.
Lucas couldn't breathe.
Even the monsters... were afraid.
Timas descended.
His blood-red wings slowly faded, vanishing into the air like mist under the morning sun.
But what remained...
Was horror.
The battlefield was an open grave. The bodies of ten
A-rank hunters
lay scattered across the blood-drenched ground, their limbs twisted, their eyes frozen in shock.
Yet no one had seen how it happened.
Not a single movement. Not a single sound.
One moment, they had been alive.
The next
Gone.
A massacre.
And yet, the man responsible for it stood there,
unshaken
, his expression disturbingly calm
as if none of it mattered.
Silence gripped the surviving hunters.
No one moved.
No one spoke.
Even those hardened by countless battles, those who had witnessed unimaginable horrors, stood frozen
their fear consuming them.
Then, Timas did something even more terrifying.
He smiled.
"Don't worry... There's no need to be afraid."