Sarah’s scream still echoed through the abandoned streets of the fallen city.
But she was no longer there.
All that remained was a stain of blood on the cracked asphalt and a few torn pieces of fabric.
For a few seconds, all the group members froze. Even the sound of battle seemed to fade away for a moment.
Claire stared with wide eyes at the spot where Sarah had been standing just seconds ago.
Her lips trembled. She was the group’s healer. Her job was to save lives. But she had not been able to do anything...
She had not been able to save even one person.
"N... no..." Her voice barely came out.
She was not the only one shocked by Sarah’s death. They all were... This was the first time they had witnessed the death of a classmate... a teammate with their own eyes.
Their mental pressure multiplied several times over.
But Lian was not that surprised. He had seen death before. Aria’s death. He had more experience in this matter than they did.
At that moment, Andreas was on the rooftop of the building across the street, firing arrows frantically, one after another.
BANG!
BANG!
BANG!
Arrows exploded the heads of the Bloodfang Hounds, one after another, but their numbers did not decrease. As if they were being born from the darkness itself.
Marcus slammed his massive shield in front of the group. The metal hit the ground with a deafening sound.
"Damn it... damn it..."
His face had gone white.
"Focus!" Then Cassian’s voice cut through everything.
Everyone unconsciously looked at him. His sword was drenched in blood.
"This is not the time for mourning! Either we fight, or we all die!"
At that moment, another wave of Bloodfang Hounds jumped out of the broken windows of the buildings.
Claire was still kneeling next to the survivor. Her hands were trembling. Holy light had formed around her.
But she was not a warrior. She was not made to kill. She was made to save. And the monsters had understood this.
Three Bloodfang Hounds jumped out from behind an overturned bus, heading straight for her.
The survivor screamed.
"They’re coming!"
Claire immediately activated her holy magic. A circle of golden light formed around her. One of the Bloodfang Hounds hit it and was thrown back several meters.
But the other two did not stop. One of them jumped from the side, and its claws landed on Claire’s shoulder.
SLASH!
Flesh and clothes were torn together. Blood sprayed on the ground. Claire screamed, a scream that was heard even in the middle of the battlefield.
But the monster was not done yet. A second claw tore into her side. More blood flowed.
Claire fell to her knees.
The survivor screamed in terror.
"Help! Help her!"
Cassian was the first to react. He shot forward like a bullet. His sword flashed in the air, and the first Bloodfang’s head was severed.
Its body fell to the ground. But just as he was about to reach the second, a massive shadow came out from the side of the building.
A Gravehide Brute. Three meters of muscle, stone-like skin, burning red eyes. The monster’s fist hit Cassian directly in the side.
BOOM!
The sound of breaking bones echoed in the air. Cassian’s body was thrown several meters and slammed into the wall of a building.
The wall cracked.
Blood sprayed from his mouth.
The team leader was wounded. Really wounded.
"Cassian!" Marcus shouted in disbelief.
Even Andreas stopped firing for a moment. The strongest member of the group was on the ground.
But the worst situation belonged to Lian. He stood in the middle of hell. His silver sword flashed again and again in the air.
Heads fell. Blood sprayed. Bodies were torn apart. But it was useless. For every monster he killed... two more took its place.
Dozens of Bloodfang Hounds, several Gravehide Brutes, and their numbers kept increasing. As if the entire city had come alive.
The monsters had identified him as the greatest threat and would not leave him alone.
He received notifications of monster kills one after another. He did not even know how many Fragments he had gained... but he knew they were many.
And he also saw notifications of gaining two new skills, but he had no chance to check them in this moment.
His sword was covered in the black blood of the monsters. His breathing was getting heavier. For the first time, he realized that a sword was not enough.
"This isn’t working. I need to think differently." A sword was great for killing a single enemy, but not for massacring an army. Not when he had no sword skills.
Suddenly, he stopped.
Everyone was shocked.
"What is he doing?" Even Cassian, who was still on the ground, was worried. His condition was not good at all.
They had lost one team member, and two others were severely wounded... If Lian also stopped from exhaustion... this would be the end for all of them!
Was this really where they would end? All of them dead? Was this really how they were going to die?
These were the thoughts forming in everyone’s minds.
Lian did not answer. He drove his sword into the ground. The blade sank halfway into the asphalt.
[Steelhide activated]
He realized that no matter how good his armor was, it was not enough for this many monsters. He needed even stronger protection.
But he was not done yet.
A blue spark appeared in the air, then another, then another... Blue lightning began to spin around Lian’s body.
[Thunder Calamity]
The sound of thunder echoed in the street.
The sky seemed to answer. The air smelled of electricity. For the first time, the group members understood what Lian had been hiding from them all this time.
And then... Lian’s hands transformed. Bone, ice, and mana all merged together, and then massive ice claws extended from his fingers.
[Glacial Reaper Claw]
For the first time, the monsters paused. As if their instincts had sensed danger. But it was already too late.
Lian disappeared.
BOOM!
The shockwave of air shook the street. The ice claw passed through the body of the first Bloodfang Hound.
The monster was cut in half. No resistance, no chance to scream.
Blue lightning exploded at the same time, and three more Bloodfang Hounds were shattered in the air.
Lian moved among them. Not like a human, not like a warrior. But like a hunter who had entered a herd.
Every movement of his was death. Every strike was a massacre. The ice claws tore open the stomachs of the Gravehide Brutes.
The lightning burned their bones. Massive bodies fell one after another.
[You have leveled up!]
For the first time... the monsters retreated. Their red eyes trembled. They were scared!
"He was hiding such power all this time?" Cassian whispered in disbelief.
He could not believe that a monster had been hiding among them all this time. He now understood that contrary to what he had thought, he was not the strongest member of the group.
"But how? He is only level ten! Such power does not make sense!" Marcus was also in shock.
This was not power that a level ten Awakened could have... unless he had a five-star class!
Was it possible? Was it possible that Lian had been hiding such a secret all this time?
And just when everyone thought they might survive, the real disaster happened.
Andreas had aimed his bow at the next wave of enemies. Sweat dripped from his forehead, and he gave a bitter smile.
"They’re finally retreating..." He was on the rooftop and had the same reaction, but as the main support, he had no time to waste.
But he did not see what was behind him. Something that had been there from the beginning. Something that had been waiting.
A slender creature, tall, human-like... but not human. Glowing red eyes opened in the darkness.
It made no sound. It had no presence. It was like a shadow. Andreas did not even have time to turn around.
The creature moved. Just a moment, just one strike, and suddenly...
SLASH!
Silence.
The bow fell from Andreas’s hand... His body stood for a few moments. Then it slowly collapsed.
Blood flowed on the rooftop... His eyes were still open, but they no longer saw anything.
The entire battlefield fell silent.
Claire lay half-conscious on the ground... Cassian was barely breathing.
Two team members were dead.
Sarah.
Andreas.
And on the distant rooftop...The Red-Eyed Stalker stood.
The survivor suddenly started to tremble.
His face had turned white. Tears flowed from his eyes... As if he had finally seen his nightmare again!
And with terror, he screamed.
"It came..."
"It came..."
"Its envoy has come..."