The night forest was silent.
Only the sound of rushing wind and hurried footsteps cut through the darkness.
Aarav moved between the trees with Jack and Kai close behind him.
The moonlight slipped through the branches, painting silver shadows across the ground.
Kai suddenly stopped.
His crimson eyes narrowed.
"He went this way."
A faint trail of blood shimmered on a broken leaf.
Jack knelt and touched the ground.
"Fresh."
"Less than five minutes."
Aarav's breathing slowed.
Then something strange happened.
The scent of blood became clearer.
Too clear.
He could almost see it.
Every drop.
Every direction.
His eyes slowly glowed crimson and silver.
"He's moving north-east."
Jack and Kai both turned toward him.
Kai frowned.
"You can smell that far?"
Aarav blinked.
He hadn't even thought about it.
The scent was simply there.
Natural.
Like instinct.
Jack stood up slowly.
"That's farther than even Mia's range."
Kai's eyes narrowed.
"And sharper than mine."
Aarav frowned.
Before he could say anything—
His shoulder wound suddenly tightened.
Then, right in front of them, the torn skin began healing.
The cut closed completely.
Jack froze.
Kai stared.
Aarav looked down in disbelief.
The wound was gone.
Completely.
Kai slowly spoke.
"That's impossible."
Jack crossed his arms.
"No."
His expression turned serious.
"It's beyond our bloodline level."
Aarav's heart pounded.
His speed.
His senses.
Now healing.
Everything felt stronger.
Kai spoke again.
"Your regeneration just surpassed mine."
Jack nodded.
"And even alpha wolf healing."
Aarav looked at them.
"Then what am I becoming?"
Kai's expression darkened.
"Something bigger."
Before anyone could say more—
A sound came from ahead.
A branch snapped.
Jack instantly moved.
Aarav followed.
But the next moment—
He was already ahead of both Jack and Kai.
He stopped abruptly.
His eyes widened.
How?
He had crossed nearly twenty metres in a single burst.
Jack and Kai arrived a second later.
Both of them looked shocked.
Kai let out a slow breath.
"That speed…"
Jack's voice was heavy.
"You're faster than both of us."
Aarav stared at his own hands.
He could feel the power moving inside him.
Fast.
Sharp.
Wild.
Kai stepped beside him.
"This is what Elder Seraphina meant."
"Your potential already exceeds ours."
Jack added,
"But potential and battle are different things."
Aarav nodded slowly.
He understood.
He was stronger.
But not more experienced.
That difference mattered.
Then—
They found him.
The hunter captain leaned against a tree, breathing heavily.
Blood stained his white coat.
His silver blade was cracked.
But the moment he saw them, he smiled.
"So the little heir came himself."
Aarav stepped forward.
His voice turned cold.
"You're not reaching the Church."
The captain laughed.
"You think strength alone wins battles?"
He suddenly threw a silver dagger.
Aarav reacted instantly.
His hand moved faster than thought.
He caught the dagger in mid-air.
The holy silver burnt his palm.
But the wound healed almost instantly.
The captain's smile faded.
"No…"
His eyes widened.
"That healing…"
Kai slowly stepped to Aarav's side.
"Now you understand why you're not leaving."
The captain suddenly moved.
Fast.
Much faster than before.
He rushed toward Aarav.
His cracked silver blade aimed for Aarav's neck.
Aarav saw it.
Every movement.
Every angle.
His instincts screamed.
Move.
He sidestepped.
Too wide.
The captain instantly adjusted.
The blade cut across Aarav's side.
A shallow wound.
Aarav stumbled back.
The captain smirked.
"Power without experience."
The words hit hard.
Jack growled.
But Aarav raised a hand.
"No."
His eyes narrowed.
The wound on his side healed in seconds.
Kai watched carefully.
Aarav took a slow breath.
He now understood.
This wasn't about raw power.
This was about reading movement.
Predicting rhythm.
He focused on the captain's heartbeat.
Fast.
The left side is heavier.
Breathing unevenly from his injury.
Aarav's eyes sharpened.
The captain attacked again.
This time—
Aarav moved at the exact moment his heartbeat shifted.
He dodged cleanly.
His fist slammed into the captain's stomach.
BOOM!
The hunter captain flew backwards and crashed into a tree.
Blood spilt from his mouth.
His eyes widened.
"How…"
Aarav slowly walked forward.
His voice was calm now.
"I may lack experience."
"But I learn fast."
The captain tried to stand.
Jack appeared behind him.
Silver claws at his throat.
Kai stood in front.
Crimson eyes glowing.
No escape.
The captain looked at Aarav.
Then suddenly smiled.
"You still don't understand."
His hand moved to a silver crystal at his belt.
Kai's face changed.
"Stop him!"
Too late.
CRACK!
The crystal shattered.
A pulse of silver light shot into the sky.
A signal.
Aarav's heart dropped.
The Church.
The captain laughed weakly.
"They know now."
Aarav's expression hardened.
His body blurred.
One movement.
One strike.
His clawed hand pierced the captain's chest.
Silence.
The hunter captain's eyes slowly widened.
Then dimmed.
His body collapsed.
Jack looked toward the sky.
The silver signal was still fading above the trees.
Kai's voice turned grave.
"He sent a distress flare."
A cold silence fell.
Even dead—
The captain had succeeded.
Aarav slowly looked up.
His chest tightened.
The Church now knew.
And that meant—
The hunt was no longer local.
It had become war.