Kalyven, Damascar Avenue
Amid the dust and the constant echo of impacts, the temperature of the battlefield rose with every passing second.
Of the three active fronts, only one showed clear signs of reaching its conclusion.
To everyone's surprise.
In just a few moments, Nuri had reduced the soldiers to shadows of what they once were. Exhausted, breathless, incapable of responding.
Her agility flowed through the air like a feather carried by the wind—light and unpredictable—but her restrained, meticulously directed strikes unleashed a scorching effect capable of inflicting damage far beyond the initial impact.
One by one.
Without hesitation.
She was preparing to join Haneul and Byeol when something changed.
A presence.
Coming from above.
From the electrical cables, a figure approached with supernatural grace.
Hedera.
The Visionary who had arrived alongside the other two. One of Solstium's elite military operatives — just like them.
Cold. Calculating.
This time, the group was facing a truly deadly challenge — one with no hope of escaping unscathed, unlike their previous confrontations.
There was no margin for error.
No room for restraint.
This group had been trained to accomplish their mission... or die trying.
Hedera possessed a striking presence.
Dark skin, short almost-shaved hair dyed a vivid green. Her athletic body moved with astonishing precision, revealing absolute mastery of balance.
She had watched Nuri's clash against the soldiers.
In silence. Studying every movement.
"That's quite an interesting power you have..." she said, her tone calm, almost curious.
Her eyes locked onto Nuri's.
"It seems I've finally found a challenge worthy of my Vision."
In one fluid motion, she leapt from the cables. Her body spun through several controlled acrobatics before landing lightly on the ground.
Without a sound.
Without any visible effort.
She raised her gaze.
And looked directly into Nuri's eyes.
"Are you ready?"
Her eyes activated.
A pale green glow emerged from her irises...
And something more.
Tiny roots began sprouting from within her eyes, slowly crawling across the skin of her face as if they were part of her.
Subtle. Organic. Alive.
A small white flower bloomed beside her cheek.
Hedera smiled.
Nuri felt it first.
A faint tremor coming from the ground.
Something was approaching.
Invisible.
Without any apparent form.
She couldn't see it...
But she could feel it.
Her body reacted before her mind could.
She assumed her combat stance.
Breathing controlled.
Senses sharpened.
Her eyes remained fixed on Hedera, attentive to every tiny movement.
She knew there was no room for distractions.
Especially not to enjoy the fight the way she had before.
One mistake...
And it would be over.
Hedera slowly blinked and raised her right hand.
The confrontation began.
From the ground, small plants started to emerge.
Vines, alive.
Hungry.
In an instant, they surged forward—fast, precise—directly toward Nuri's right leg, her support leg.
She reacted.
With a fluid movement, almost artistic, she spun like a dancer, avoiding them at the last second.
But the moment she turned in the opposite direction...
She was caught.
Behind her, another set of vines burst from the ground and wrapped around her left leg.
Nuri reacted immediately.
She kicked violently, trying to break free.
But these weren't ordinary plants.
They adapted.
Adjusted.
Improved their grip and refused to let go.
Without giving her time to think, more vines advanced.
From every direction.
Hedera remained motionless, guiding everything with her hands...
And with her gaze.
Nuri still managed to evade some of them, improvising quick, instinctive movements.
But it was impossible.
One by one, parts of her body were overtaken.
First her right arm—violently pulled downward.
Then her other leg.
And finally, her last free arm.
Immobilized.
Even so, she refused to give up.
She forced her body forward with everything she had.
A raw effort.
Desperate, but rewarded.
For a brief instant, she managed to free her right arm.
She grabbed the vines wrapped around her leg, trying to tear them away...
But it was useless.
In the blink of an eye, she was captured again.
Hedera extended an arm in front of her.
Palm facing upward.
Her eyes glowed once more.
Brighter.
More intense.
And then—
With a single word...
Nuri lost the ability to move.
"Wrap."
The number of vines surrounding Nuri increased dramatically.
In a rising motion, the plants coiled around the utility poles and lifted her into the air, suspending her completely.
Motionless, restrained, and suspended...
Nuri had become the perfect prey.
Like a small butterfly trapped in the web of a deadly spider.
Hedera slowly approached.
"Looks like you got unlucky, kid... Through sheer bad luck, you ended up joining those two, and from the looks of it, you don't even know each other. Hahaha."
She took another step forward, wearing a cold smile.
"You went from being hunted by ordinary soldiers...
To facing military operatives trained to perfection."
She paused briefly, observing her.
"I actually feel sorry for you, you know?"
Nuri twisted against the vines.
"Let me go, you bitch!"
Her voice came out firm despite her restraints.
"It's true—I have nothing to do with them...
But I want even less to do with people like you."
Her eyes hardened.
"A false sense of justice...
Corrupt. Consumed by power."
"You're nothing but criminals.
Just like us.
The only difference...
Is that you're allowed to commit your crimes."
Hedera let out a low laugh.
"Hm... For a captured insect, you've still got a lot of energy. Haha."
Nuri clenched her teeth.
I didn't want to do this... but it looks like I don't have another choice.
She took a deep breath.
"Beast Vision... Wild Pulse."
Her eyes transformed.
Her irises seemed to burn—a blazing orange core surrounded by vibrant pink, pulsing like living fire.
The vines began to wither.
Their green color vanished, replaced by brittle shades of brown.
An intense heat radiated from Nuri's body, distorting the air around her.
With a single movement — Soft.
Light.
She shook her body.
The plants crumbled apart.
Her hair waved with the released energy while tiny particles of orange vapor emerged around her.
Something about her had changed.
Something...Dangerous.
On the other side of the battlefield, Byeol and Haneul felt it.
For a brief instant, both had their attention diverted.
But at this level of combat, a single second of distraction could be fatal.
It was impossible to look at anything other than the opponent standing in front of them.
Haneul was already showing clear signs of exhaustion.
After enduring the initial assault from Wolf Krieg—the country's strongest elite soldier—for several seconds, his body was beginning to give way.
Even so, he believed he could still push him back and regain distance.
His shield had never been surpassed.
It was unthinkable that someone could strike him twice in a row with their bare hands—
Much less without any protection.
And yet—That was exactly what Krieg did.
Impact after impact.
Using nothing but his fists, he hammered against Haneul's shield with increasing force.
Every strike reverberated.
Each impact traveled through the shield and echoed through Haneul's bones, sending chills through his body.
He knew it.
Without that shield...
He would have been crushed long ago.
Minutes passed.
Krieg never stopped.
Blood began dripping from his fists, running between his fingers and staining the ground.
"HAHAHA! What a cowardly old man you turned out to be!"
His grin widened.
"Back where I'm from, you'd be considered a complete pussy, you know that?"
Another punch.
"Get out from behind that shell, old turtle! Hahaha!"
Krieg was having fun.
To him... This was a game.
Haneul seemed powerless.
Trapped.
But his experience would not allow him to be defeated so easily.
Not yet.
He devised a strategy.
Activating his ocular power once more, he maintained the shield with one arm while opening his dimension with the other—
And pulled out a thick-handled sword.
In one swift motion, he drove the blade into the ground.
The resistance stabilized the force of the impacts, anchoring him in place.
For a brief moment...
He gained space.
With both hands free, he tore off his cloak and threw it to the left.
Dust rose into the air.
The cloak danced in the wind.
And it was enough.
A perfect decoy.
Krieg turned toward the movement.
On the opposite side, Haneul rushed forward at high speed—fast enough to make anyone forget the age he appeared to be.
With both arms raised toward Krieg, he wielded a VTR-9 Eclipse Variant, ready to strike back.
Before him stood a living mountain.
And bringing it down would be impossible without heavy weaponry.
His eyes activated.
The sights locked onto Krieg.
"VZZZ—THOOM! THAK! THOOM!"
Three sharp shots echoed through the air, striking the giant's legs.
For a brief instant, it seemed effective.
The bullets left visible marks...
But none managed to penetrate Krieg's skin.
The soldier raised his head, irritated—
Then grinned grotesquely.
"You coward! Hahaha!"
His voice was filled with excitement.
"Looks like I'm finally going to have an interesting challenge..."
He tilted his head slightly, analyzing Haneul.
"We've never met before, have we?"
Haneul stood firm, expression cold.
"Not that I know of...
I've never fought a mountain bear before.
But there's a first time for everything, don't you think?"
For a second, silence.
Curiosity crossed Krieg's face.
Then— A booming laugh echoed across the battlefield.
"Hahaha! Then you picked exactly the right animal. I've fought plenty... and I've never lost."
Krieg pointed at Haneul.
His gaze changed.
The playfulness vanished.
His posture became dense.
Threatening.
"If you want a long-range fight...
Then that's exactly what you're going to get."
Without hesitation, he slammed both hands into the ground.
The impact shook the earth.
Like blades, his arms tore through the surface and began ripping out massive chunks of stone—Enormous.
Brutal.
Resembling Atlas Stones.
With absurd strength, Krieg hurled them one after another toward Haneul.
The air vibrated with each projectile.
Haneul barely dodged, reacting with calculated precision.
While retreating, he fired strategically, forcing the giant to keep his distance from the shield.
Stone after stone.
Impact after impact.
Dust began to fill the air.
Dense. Unavoidable.
And that was when the opportunity appeared.
With visibility compromised, Krieg was losing control of the battlefield.
Haneul quickly retreated behind his shield.
Silent.
Composed.
He opened his domain and immediately pulled out several nail grenades, gathering them into one hand.
With a swift motion, he ripped all the pins free at once.
Activating them simultaneously.
The dust rendered sight useless.
But Haneul did not rely on sight.
His breathing steadied.
The sounds aligned.
Guided by perception and hearing alone, he pinpointed the soldier's exact position.
Ready to throw.
Waiting for the perfect moment.
He heard the soldier place his hands on the ground once again and reacted instantly.
Now. This is the right moment.
The opening he needed.
He hurled them toward the giant—
And an instant later, a chain of explosions tore through the air.
BOOM!
The blast echoed across the entire avenue.
The grenades detonated one after another, releasing a brutal storm of nails in every direction.
The timing was perfect.
The projectiles struck Krieg at the exact moment he was lifting one of the stones with both hands.
Krieg reacted instinctively, smashing the stone into the ground.
The impact deflected most of the nails, creating an improvised barrier.
Even so...
It wasn't enough.
Several embedded themselves into his flesh.
Not deeply.
But enough.
Growling, he tried to pull the nails out one by one.
But those lodged in his back were beyond his reach, blocked by his own muscle mass.
Without wasting a second, Haneul advanced.
He sprinted toward the giant, military dagger firmly in hand.
Krieg sensed his approach.
His body tensed, ready to absorb the impact.
But when the attack came...
Something was wrong.
It wasn't an impact.
It was a stab.
Haneul's blade sank into the soldier's arm—not with destructive force, but with calculated precision.
Clear intent.
Contamination.
Rustveil: Silent Blade
In a violent reflex, Krieg's body went from total contraction to an explosive extension of both arms.
The shockwave launched Haneul through the air.
He hit the ground and rolled several times before coming to a stop.
Clearly injured.
Even so...
He never let go of the weapon.
In his hand, the blade remained firm.
A military knife covered in rust.
Corroded,degraded.
Repulsive.
Just looking at it...Was unsettling.
Blood flowed from Krieg's arm.
But there was something else.
His skin was beginning to take on an abnormal reddish hue.
Deep.
Internal.
As if something was spreading beneath the surface.
The muscle contracted.
Then trembled.
Numbness started. Instability.
"What the hell is this...?"
Krieg narrowed his eyes.
"The knife...
Was it poisoned?"
Irritation turned into fury.
He turned and began advancing toward Haneul, each step heavy as an impact.
"Oh, you bastard...
You're going to pay for this."
His voice dripped with murderous intent.
"If this is poison...
You're not just going to prison."
"I'm going to tear you apart right here."
Haneul moved.
Slowly.
He stood up.
One knee on the ground.
Supporting himself.
Arms resting over it.
He took a deep breath and turned his head.
Then spat blood.
The dark liquid splattered across the ground.
His face looked exhausted.
Injured.
Bloody.
But something had changed.
A smile began to form.
Slowly. Disturbingly.
Krieg felt it.
Something wasn't right.
Haneul...
No longer seemed the same.
His eyes glowed once more.
The green aura expanded, brighter.
Denser.
"Expansion!!!"