The Eternal Scar was deathly still.
Jin and Hanz stood a few paces apart inside the sunken crater, the ancient gate frame looming behind them like a broken tooth. The violet runes had gone dark, but the air still felt wrong — too thick, too quiet, as if the wasteland itself was holding its breath.
Hanz rolled his shoulders, twin short blades already drawn, a cocky grin splitting his face. "So, Void Reaper… you gonna tell me what the hell you're really doing out here, or do I have to beat it out of you?"
Jin's silver eyes stayed cold behind the mask. "You followed me. That's answer enough."
Hanz laughed, low and excited. "Fair. But come on — a guy like you doesn't trek all the way to this shithole for the scenery. What's the gate? Some old mysterious experiment? Or are you hunting something bigger?"
Jin didn't answer immediately. The silence between them stretched, thick and unnatural. The crystal ground beneath their boots felt too smooth, too perfect, like it was listening.
Hanz kept talking, voice casual but edged with that brute curiosity. "Look, I've been watching you for weeks. Solo clears left and right, no team, no chatter. You're either the luckiest bastard alive or you're hiding something nasty. So spill it. What are you chasing?"
Jin's hand rested lightly on the hilt of one sword. "You talk too much."
Hanz grinned wider. "And you don't talk enough. That's why we make a good pair, right? I ask the questions, you—"
A small creak cut through the air.
Not loud. Just a tiny, dry sound — like crystal grinding against crystal, barely audible.
Both of them froze.
The silence that followed was heavier than before. No wind. No distant monster calls. Even the faint hum of mana in the air seemed to drop away.
Hanz's grin faded. His grip tightened on his blades. "You hear that?"
Jin didn't reply. His silver eyes scanned the crater slowly. The ground looked the same — cracked crystal, scattered dust — but something felt off. The shadows between the shards seemed deeper than they should be.
Another sound. A soft, wet shift. Like something heavy settling into place.
Hanz's voice dropped, all cockiness gone. "Something's here."
Jin drew both swords in one smooth motion. The flames along the blades ignited with a low hiss, casting flickering light across the crater.
Hanz raised his own blades, stance widening into a ready brute guard. "Alright… whatever you are, come out and play."
The air grew colder. The violet light from the gate frame flickered once, weakly.
Then, from the darkness pooling at the base of the gate, something moved.
A low, deliberate scrape of claw against crystal.
The two warriors stood perfectly still, weapons raised, breathing shallow.
Then it came.
A deep, grinding scrape echoed — not from the front, but from deep within the violet darkness, as if something massive was crawling back out from whatever lay on the other side.
The sound grew louder. Closer.
Jin's silver eyes narrowed behind the mask. Gatekeeper?!
His grip tightened on his swords. Hanz's easy grin faltered for half a second. The air inside the sunken crater had gone too still, like something large had just drawn a slow breath.
Then it emerged.
A twenty-five-foot silhouette unfolded from the darkness, jagged black crystal and fossilized hide grinding together with every deliberate step. No roar. No sudden lunge. Just a patient, heavy advance that made the ground tremble in soft, rhythmic pulses.
Hanz's grin sharpened. "Finally." He rolled his shoulders. "I'll draw its attention. You find the weak spot. I'll make sure to take the big piece."
Jin sighed, and gave a single nod.
They charged.
Hanz struck first, twin short blades flashing as he drove heavy blows into the monster's armored side. Sparks burst on impact, but the creature barely shifted. One thick arm swung back in a lazy arc, the backhand catching Hanz square in the chest and sending him skidding across the crystal floor with a pained grunt.
Jin moved immediately, circling to the flank as flames roared along his blades. He unleashed a rapid series of blazing slashes at the monster's legs. The fire bit deep, but the hide held. The creature turned faster than its size suggested and brought a claw crashing down. Jin twisted aside at the last moment, but the shockwave still caught him, throwing off his balance.
It answered with brutal simplicity. A backhand cracked against Jin's shoulder, splintering the silver plate and sending sharp pain down his arm. Another strike grazed Hanz's thigh, tearing a line of blood across it.
They skidded back, regrouping side by side, both breathing steadily.
Hanz wiped blood from his lip, eyes lit with excitement. "Sturdy bastard…"
Jin's thoughts moved fast. It's slower than it looks… but the armor's thickest in front. The joints are softer—but protected.
Before he could speak, Hanz let out a sharp laugh and charged again. "Screw it—I'll make the opening!"
Jin clicked his tongue and followed.
Hanz pressed in with heavy overhead strikes, forcing the monster to raise its arms to block. Jin slipped in low, flames surging as he targeted the exposed joints. For a brief moment, the pressure worked—the creature staggered, plates cracking under the combined assault.
Then it roared.
The sound was low and grinding, vibrating through their bones as both arms swept out in a crushing arc. Hanz took the full force and was blasted backward into a crystal outcrop with a sickening crack. Jin tried to evade but was clipped across the ribs, the impact slamming him into the wall as pain exploded through his side.
He slid down, coughing once.
Hanz pushed himself up, blood running from his mouth, still grinning like a madman. "That one actually hurt!"
Jin forced himself upright, ribs screaming. We can't keep trading like this. It's too durable.
Hanz didn't wait. Mana flared around his blades as he roared and launched forward, pouring everything into a single, crushing overhead strike.
Jin moved at the same time, circling wide as flames surged along his swords, unleashing a barrage of slashes to break the armor.
The attacks landed together.
Hanz's strike smashed into the monster's shoulder, shattering plates and forcing it down to one knee. Jin's flames poured into the opening, burning deep into the exposed flesh.
The creature let out a grinding shriek.
A violent burst of air exploded outward, slamming into the crater walls and sending crystal shards flying in every direction.
Then it collapsed heavily… and went still.
Hanz stood, chest heaving, wild laughter echoing. "See? We got it! I told you I'd take the big piece!"
Jin leaned on his sword, blood at the corner of his mouth. The pain in his ribs was sharp.
For a moment, silence returned.
Then the twitching started.
Hanz wiped blood from his mouth and grinned. "Damn… that was a good scrap. How the hell did you know about this place, Reaper? You've been after the good stuff all along, haven't you? Sneaky bastard."
Jin didn't answer. He sheathed one sword and stared at the motionless corpse, silver eyes narrowed.
Too weak for a gatekeeper, he thought. It gave us trouble, but that's it. Felt more like a wandering beast. Time to leave.
Hanz kept talking, voice loud and casual as he cleaned his blades. "Come on, don't ignore me. We just crushed that thing together. You owe me some answers. What are you really—"
Jin turned away and started walking out of the crater.
That was when they heard it.
Their own voices — perfectly mimicked — drifting from behind them.
"…t-that was a g-good scrap…"
Hanz froze.
Jin stopped cold.
The voices continued, exact in tone, breathing, even the cocky laugh.
"…H-how the hell did you k-know about t-this place...r-reaper?…"
A heavy, unnatural silence swallowed the crater.
Then came the slow, wet sound of shifting crystal.
The monster was rising.
It compressed itself, body shrinking and tightening, turning leaner, sharper. The bulky form melted away into something sleeker, colder. Its aura changed — no longer raw power, but something precise and deeply wrong.
The creature rose on two legs, taller now, more muscular, with a stretched, unnatural grin splitting its face. A single glowing purple eye opened in the center of its head and stared at them with cold intelligence. In a form of a werewolf.
Jin's grip tightened on his swords. It can shape shift? This is bad. We thought it was dead… or was that thing actually the gatekeeper?!
Hanz let out a low, excited laugh, though tension edged his voice. "Well, shit… I really couldn't believe I was about to claim this boss monster all by myself. Looks like this time I get to share the fun."
In the blink of an eye, a huge fist blurred forward.
It slammed straight into Hanz's face with a sickening crack.
Hanz flew backward like a ragdoll, crashing through crystal outcrops in a burst of shattering shards and dust.
Jin spun, blades rising — the monster was already there.
Claws flashed for his face. He bent backward at the last possible instant, the edge grazing his cheek and drawing a thin line of blood.
The strike missed — and still detonated.
A violent burst of wind tore across the ground, ripping through crystal and shattering it in a wide arc.
He leaped back, heart hammering. It moved so fast… I couldn't react until the last second. I could have died right there.
He glanced at where Hanz had landed, then back to the monster.
The creature stood there, chuckling — a low, wet sound that didn't belong to any beast of Chaos.
Jin raised his blade. Silence stretched between them.
A single rock fell from in the distance.
Clack.
The sound echoed.
They both sprang forward at the same time.
Jin attacked with everything he had — flames roaring along his swords in rapid, precise strikes. The monster met him head-on, blocking before the blades could fully extend.
It moved first.
Every opening vanished the moment he reached for it.
Then it struck.
A claw slammed into him like a battering ram.
Jin crashed into a crystal wall, stone cracking, ribs screaming.
He pushed off, flames surging again — but the monster slipped past the slashes effortlessly.
A knee drove into his gut.
The impact folded him over, breath tearing from his lungs. Another strike followed, sending him skidding across the ground.
The monster wasn't just strong — it was learning.
Jin coughed, tasting blood, vision blurring for a split second as he forced himself up again.
The creature stood a few paces away, chuckling, its single purple eye glowing brighter.
Then a sword whistled through the air.
The monster dodged at the last moment.
Hanz appeared right where he wanted it, laughing wildly as he delivered a nasty, mana-charged overhead strike that smashed the creature backward, sending it crashing into the far wall in a burst of crystal and dust.
He landed heavily, breathing hard, blood running down his face, but his grin was feral.
"Got you, you ugly piece of shit!"
Jin straightened, swords still raised, but the bad feeling in his gut only grew stronger.
Hanz's body trembled as pain radiated from the earlier blows. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. He turned to Jin, voice rough with adrenaline and confusion.
"What the hell is this beast? Why isn't it dying?"
Jin emerged from the settling dust, his mask cracked and finally breaking off his face, revealing sharp, calm features and those piercing silver eyes. He stood there silently, breathing measured.
Hanz glanced at him and let out a short, surprised laugh despite the situation. "Never seen your face before. Damn… with looks like that, you probably get a lot of girls, huh?"
Jin ignored the comment entirely. His gaze locked on the monster as it slowly rose from the debris, body shifting and twisting with wet, grotesque sounds. It was growing wider, bulkier, the sleek form hardening into something more primal and armored.
This isn't right, Jin thought, grip tightening on his swords. It feels like it's evolving with every strike. Adapting. Countering. It wasn't like this before. It doesn't feel like it's trying to kill us… not yet. What the hell is this type of monster...
Hanz shouted, voice edged with battle lust. "Stop overthinking it, Reaper! The big guy's done warming up!"
Jin immediately raised both blades. Hanz lifted his remaining sword. The monster, still chuckling with that low, wet sound, extended its claws, the tips sharpening into lethal points.
From the red skies above, thunder echoed like a warning.
All three moved at once.
Jin and Hanz sprang forward in a high-speed blur, attacking from opposite sides. His flaming blades carved toward the monster's joints while Hanz came in head-on, his strikes heavy enough to break crystal.
The monster met them without fear.
It blocked Jin's first slash with its forearm, sparks bursting on impact. The second strike was deflected aside — straight into Hanz's path. Jin twisted mid-air to avoid the collision.
Hanz's overhead blow came down hard, but the creature caught it with its other hand. The impact sent a shockwave through the crater.
Then it turned the force.
Hanz's own swing was redirected back toward Jin, forcing both hunters to break off and evade as the monster stepped forward, pressing the advantage.
The intensity spiked.
Jin tried to create distance with rapid flame slashes, but the monster anticipated every angle. It stepped inside his range and drove a heavy fist into his ribs.
Pain flared as he was sent crashing into a crystal wall, shards exploding around him.
Hanz roared and charged in harder, unleashing a flurry of brutal strikes. For a moment, it looked like he was landing clean hits —
then the monster changed.
Its movements smoothed out, sharpening with unnatural precision. One of Hanz's swings was caught mid-motion, twisted, and redirected so that he nearly impaled himself on his own blade.
The creature followed with a vicious elbow that cracked his shoulder plate and sent him staggering.
Jin pushed off the wall, flames roaring along his swords as he tried to rejoin the fight — but the monster was already there. It matched his speed, deflected his strikes, and countered with raw force that sent him tumbling across the ground again.
It's destroying our coordination, Jin realized, breath coming in sharp pants. It's learning us too fast.
Hanz recovered and charged once more, swinging his blade with everything he had.
The monster caught it in its jaws mid-swing.
It bit down on the sword –crack– the sword shattered under the force.
Hanz froze in shock as his blade snapped between the creature's teeth.
His guard dropped for a split second.
A kick slammed into his stomach, lifting him off the ground and sending him crashing violently into a cluster of crystal pillars.
Jin watched it happen, heart pounding, wounds burning across his body. The monster turned its single glowing purple eye toward him, that wide, unnatural grin still fixed on its face.
The fight had turned ugly.
And the thing that should not be was clearly enjoying itself.
Rain began to fall.
Soft, crimson droplets tapped against the crystal ground of the Eternal Scar. The sky darkened into a deep, bruised red, heavy clouds rolling overhead. Each drop hissed on contact, thin wisps of steam curling into the charged air as blood and dust washed into narrow rivulets between the cracks.
Jin pushed himself up from the rubble, chest rising and falling. He drew in the surrounding mana, pulling the thick, heavy energy of into his core. It settled inside him — warm, volatile.
This will take everything.
From the opposite side, Hanz emerged from the rubble.
He was laughing — loud, wild, blood running down his face and chest. His armor hung cracked and broken, but his eyes burned with savage joy.
"Ah...This is the best!" he shouted, voice cutting through the rain. "No monster I've fought has pushed like this!...Such tenacity, such skill...i like it."
Jin glanced at him, then let out a low chuckle. "You're really stupid."
Hanz grinned wider. "Every monster has a core. Small or big — doesn't matter. You find it, you kill it. Even if it costs you an arm."
Jin turned back to the creature.
It stood there, still chuckling, its body shifting again — growing wider, heavier, more wrong with every second.
Jin steadied his breath, the gathered mana settling deep within him. Ten years in this world… I'm not wasting that now. This is just like any other dungeon boss monster...no big deal.
Hanz rolled his shoulders, then slammed his fists together with a sharp crack, his grin never fading.
The two stood side by side. No fear — only focus.
Just another hunt.
Only tougher.
Hanz stomped the ground. Wind mana erupted outward in a violent burst, cutting across the crystal floor as invisible blades. The air spiraled around him, eyes glowing bright green as the storm built.
Jin stepped forward. Flame mana surged from his body in a roaring wave, the ground beneath him melting and glowing as rain evaporated on contact.
Fire and wind raged together, tearing across the crater.
Hanz laughed. "In times like this… going all out is the only option!"
Jin smiled faintly, raising both blades. For once, excitement stirred.
The monster stood perfectly still. Then it began to change.
Two additional arms tore free from its torso. Claws lengthened. Its single purple eye sharpened with cruel intelligence. Muscles thickened, feet cracking the crystal ground as they dug in.
It threw its head back and roared. The shockwave shattered the nearby crystal and bent the falling rain mid-air.
Then, through its stolen voices, it spoke — layered, distorted, with a stretched grin on its face:
"L-lets… g-go…"