In the streets of the village, two demons stood before the young hunters. One was Ishiki, a Stone Demon whose entire body was covered in thick layers of stone. His massive frame looked more like a walking fortress than a living creature. Beside him stood Minikui, an ugly demon with grotesque features, twisted limbs, and a cursed body that seemed almost impossible to destroy.
Nao, Riku, and Aoi faced Ishiki, while Shin, Reika, and Kenzo stood against Minikui. Neither group knew how difficult the battle was about to become.
Nao raised his hand. "Golem!"
A huge creature emerged beside him, its massive body shaking the ground as it took its position in front of the hunters. Riku drew his two daggers and lowered his stance, while Aoi summoned her Yokai Cat. The creature appeared with glowing eyes and sharp claws, immediately preparing to attack.
Ishiki simply stared at them before suddenly moving. His stone fist slammed into the ground, sending a powerful shockwave through the street. Nao's Golem charged first, but Ishiki met it head-on, grabbing the creature by the arm and smashing it into the ground.
Aoi's Yokai Cat leapt toward him, its claws striking Ishiki's stone body. But the attack had no effect. The claws could not penetrate the thick stone. Ishiki swung his massive arm and struck the Yokai Cat, sending it crashing against a nearby wall. The creature struggled to stand.
"Aoi!" Nao shouted.
Nao rushed toward his injured companion. Ishiki raised his stone hand and prepared to strike. Before he could reach her, Nao's Golem stepped between them.
Ishiki punched.
His fist pierced straight through the Golem's chest, creating a massive hole in its body. Nao stared in disbelief as his summoned creature began to disappear.
"No…"
The Golem collapsed into dust before his eyes.
Ishiki immediately turned toward Riku and struck him with another powerful blow. Riku was thrown across the street and crashed hard against the ground. Nao and Aoi tried attacking together, but neither could damage the Stone Demon. Every punch, claw, and dagger strike simply bounced from his stone-covered body.
Ishiki slowly advanced toward them.
"You cannot hurt me."
Across the street, Minikui faced Shin, Reika, and Kenzo.
Reika stretched out her hands. "Rise."
Several scarecrows scattered throughout the battlefield suddenly moved. Their wooden bodies twisted as they came alive under Reika's control, rushing toward Minikui from different directions.
At the same time, Shin activated his eye power. His gaze locked onto the demon, and dark energy wrapped around Minikui's body. For a moment, the demon stopped moving.
Kenzo immediately took advantage of the opening.
He grabbed a nearby tractor with his power and hurled it through the air.
BOOM!
The massive vehicle crashed directly into Minikui, burying the demon beneath its weight.
Kenzo grinned. "We got him."
But the tractor suddenly moved.
Minikui stood beneath it.
His grotesque body had been crushed and twisted, but he simply grabbed his own limbs and pulled them back into place. His bones shifted with a series of disturbing cracks before his body returned to its unnatural shape.
Kenzo's expression changed.
"What the hell…?"
Minikui grabbed the tractor and threw it back toward them.
Reika immediately pulled Shin out of its path. Kenzo dashed forward, but he was too late to stop the incoming vehicle. The massive tractor slammed into him with tremendous force, crushing him against a nearby wall.
CRASH!
The wall cracked violently around his body as the tractor pinned him against it. Dust and broken bricks rained down while Kenzo struggled beneath the heavy vehicle.
Meanwhile, Shin's eyes began to burn. His binding power was failing as Minikui's cursed body released a strange energy.
Shin suddenly screamed.
"I can't see!"
The cursed energy had blinded him.
Reika sent another wave of scarecrows toward Minikui, but the moment they came close, their wooden bodies caught fire. One after another, they burned away before they could reach him.
Reika stared in shock.
"What kind of curse is this?"
Minikui smiled.
On the other side of the street, Ishiki continued his assault. Nao and Aoi were being pushed backward as the Stone Demon attacked from the left and then the right. Neither hunter could find an opening.
Aoi's Yokai Cat tried to rise again, but its body was too injured to continue.
Nao clenched his fists.
"We can't keep fighting like this."
Ishiki raised his massive arm.
Then a voice came from behind.
"I can."
Nao turned.
Riku slowly stood.
His clothes were torn, and his body was bruised from the earlier attack, but he still held both daggers tightly. His expression had changed. The fear that had been in his eyes was gone.
The sight of Ishiki's stone body had reminded him of something from his childhood.
Something he had tried to forget.
Years earlier, Riku had been locked inside the basement of his home. The room was dark and cold, and he sat against the wall holding a small knife.
The basement door opened.
His father entered, dragging a chained demon behind him. He locked the demon in front of Riku and then handed his son the knife.
"Kill it."
Riku stared at the demon. His hands trembled.
"I… I can't."
His father turned toward the door.
"Then you will remain here."
The door slammed shut, leaving Riku alone with the demon.
For a long time, neither moved.
Then the demon began speaking.
"Please…"
Riku looked at it.
"Unlock me."
The demon continued begging, promising that it would not hurt him. Riku hesitated, but eventually approached the chains and unlocked them.
The moment the demon was free, its expression changed.
It attacked.
Riku barely escaped the first strike. The demon continued attacking him, leaving wounds across his body. Riku crawled into a corner, clutching the tiny knife as fear consumed him.
The demon laughed.
"You were foolish enough to trust me."
Riku trembled.
Then everything went dark.
His consciousness began to fade, but something inside him awakened.
Riku suddenly moved.
He dashed toward the demon and struck.
Then again.
As he fought, he began seeing the demon differently. He noticed its movements, its habits, and the openings in its defenses. He saw the weak points that others might have missed—the neck, the joints, and the places where its body could not properly defend itself.
Riku attacked every weakness.
The demon staggered.
With one final strike, Riku brought it down.
The basement door opened.
His father stood there, staring at the defeated demon before looking at Riku.
For the first time, there was approval in his eyes.
"You found its weakness."
Riku said nothing.
His father opened the door.
"Come."
Riku walked out of the basement.
Back in the village, Riku stood before Ishiki and slowly raised his two daggers.
Ishiki laughed.
"You?"
Riku said nothing.
The Stone Demon charged.
Riku moved.
He slipped beneath Ishiki's massive fist and studied his body. His eyes immediately found the openings.
The neck.
The armpit.
The joints.
Riku attacked.
Slash!
His dagger struck the exposed joint.
Ishiki roared and swung again, but Riku slipped beneath the attack and struck another weak point.
Then another.
His movements became faster.
He wasn't trying to overpower Ishiki. He was finding every place where the stone armor failed to protect him.
Neck.
Shoulder.
Armpit.
Knee.
Elbow.
Every weakness.
Ishiki swung wildly, but Riku moved between every attack, striking the exposed areas of the demon's body.
Nao stared in disbelief.
"He's seeing through him…"
Aoi watched Riku carefully.
Riku continued his assault, striking the Stone Demon from different directions. Each blow weakened Ishiki further until the enormous demon finally staggered.
"No!"
Riku leapt into the air.
Both daggers crossed in front of him.
Then he struck Ishiki's exposed neck with everything he had.
The blades cut through.
Ishiki's head separated from his body, and the enormous Stone Demon collapsed heavily onto the street.
Riku landed behind him, breathing heavily.
Silence filled the battlefield.
Then Minikui turned.
His grotesque face twisted into a smile.
He had seen everything.
Ishiki was dead.
And standing before him were Reika and Shin.
Reika slowly raised both hands. Around her, the bodies of fallen villagers and demons began to move. One by one, they rose, their lifeless bodies twisting under her control like puppets.
Shin stood beside her, unable to see, gripping an iron rod tightly in his hand.
Minikui stared at the growing army.
Reika's eyes hardened.
"Your turn."
Shin tightened his grip on the iron rod.
Even without his sight, he was ready to fight.