Chapter 23: Silence of the Gates – Two Months of Closure
Scene 1: Suspicious Calm
After two months of strenuous effort, the hunters finally announced their success in closing all the open gates. The city began to breathe, and the areas that had been filled with strange energy became unusually quiet.
Ren sat on the edge of a building, contemplating the city from above, feeling a sense of emptiness.
Ren (whispering to himself): "Quiet... Suspiciously quiet... It's as if something is still watching us."
The girl with the giant sword (touching the ground cautiously): "Everything seems fine... doesn't it?"
Lennon (cautiously): "Yes... but Ren, you don't seem reassured."
Ren (in a low voice): "This calm... it's not normal."
---
Scene 2: Traces of the Gates
Even after they closed, there were strange traces of the gates:
Glowing lines on the ground resembling "burn marks."
Some plants that grew near the gates sometimes glowed.
People who approached the affected areas suffered strange seizures.
Ren examines the area: "The gates... are dead... but their traces are not yet dead."
Mr. X (worried): "Maybe they left something behind in the world... something we can't ignore."
---
Scene 3: The Hunters' Exhaustion
During the two months, the hunters paid a heavy price:
Some disappeared inside the gates during the closure.
Others returned with altered abilities or weakened senses.
Some lost their special abilities completely.
Lennon (sadly): "They did the impossible... but at a high price."
Ren (quietly): "That's what no one told us... Power has a price, but we didn't fully understand it."
---
Scene 4: One gate refuses to close
Among all the closed gates, the hunters encountered one strange gate:
They tried to close it several times, but it automatically reopened.
Their last attempt made it immobile, but it never closed.
Ren (feeling its pulse): "This isn't just a gate... It's alive... And it's waiting for something."
The girl with the giant sword: "Can we do anything?"
Ren: "No... No one but me can sense it like this."
---
Scene 5: The Disappearance of the Hunters
After the sealing process was complete, the hunters themselves began to gradually disappear, one by one, from the world itself.
The only traces left behind: mysterious symbols glowing on the ground, resembling eyes.
Mr. X (surprised): "This... was completely unexpected."
Ren (in a low, fearful voice): "The entity... didn't need the gates to come. It just needed them to be closed."
---
Scene 6: Confronting the Living Gate
Ren stood in front of the gate that had not been closed. Strange cracks began to appear on its surface, as if it were slowly opening its mouth.
Ren (breathing deeply): "I think... this is just the beginning."
The gate suddenly began to make a sound, clear this time:
Gate: "Thank you... Now start again."
The ground shook beneath their feet, and the team was shocked.
Lennon: "Ren... What does this mean?"
Ren (concentrating): "It means... the danger isn't over yet... and what we thought was the end might just be the beginning of even greater chaos."
---
End of Chapter 23:
The gates closed... but they left their mark.
The hunters disappeared one by one.
One gate remains, defying everyone and sending a mysterious message.
Ren and the team face a new challenge greater than ever before.
(To be continued)
Chapter 24: Tears of Shadows and the Second Grimoire – The Epic Version
The city lay in complete ruin. Ghosts of shattered buildings littered the streets, thick black smoke choked the horizon, and the air trembled with an energy that defied description. Rin stood amidst the devastation, facing a living gate pulsating with dark energy, writhing like a serpent. Every step he took made the ground quake. His heart was heavy, burdened by the memories of the past two months—the hunters who had sacrificed themselves, the blood, the screams—they all weighed on his soul.
Then the beast appeared. Its enormity was beyond words. Taller than any skyscraper, its long horns glowed with a dark crimson light, and its massive tail slammed into the ground, ripping a gaping fissure. Its roar reverberated through every alley: "You have come… to destroy everything!"
The battle began without mercy. The hunters charged with all they had, their screams deafening, waves of black energy exploding in every direction. Each swing of the beast's tail shattered the earth; every pulse of its dark energy threatened to engulf everything.
"Rin! Aim for its heart!" Linon shouted, rushing toward the beast, but a wave of black energy struck him, sending his body flying into the rubble. His scream pierced the air.
The girl with the colossal sword leapt high, her blade glowing as she executed a flurry of spinning strikes. The beast barely reacted; its tail absorbed every attack. "You will not pass!" she yelled, before the tail struck her, hurling her across the battlefield. Her final blow set the debris ablaze.
Mr. X activated his last device, sending a counter-wave to stabilize the gate. But the beast's tail struck him directly, shattering bones with a sickening crack. He fell to the ground, yet he did not die. Weak but resolute, he whispered to Rin: "Rin… the grimoire… use it… you can enter the Demon Realm through the barrier… focus…"
Rin's heart broke, tears streaming for the first time, but he did not falter. He focused all his energy on stealing the beast's power. An indescribable surge coursed through him, immense energy flooding his body as the beast's strength transferred into him. "How… dare you?!" the beast roared, struggling in vain.
Rin charged, tears flowing freely. "I will not let your deaths be in vain!" he shouted, unleashing his newfound power. A massive wave of energy struck the beast's heart, detonating in a colossal explosion that shook the gate and everything around them. Screams, destruction, pillars of black fire, and flying debris consumed the battlefield.
The beast tried to resist, but it began to shrink under Rin's focused energy. Its muscles convulsed, its screams reverberating with terror, until its dark essence disintegrated completely under Rin's relentless assault.
Amid the ruins, Rin collapsed to his knees, weeping for every life lost—Linon, the girl with the massive sword, every soul who had believed in him. Yet he was not entirely alone. Despite his injuries, Mr. X stepped forward steadily, eyes filled with unwavering confidence. "Rin… now you know what must be done…"
Among the rubble, a faint glow appeared—the Second Grimoire. Rin approached cautiously, grasping it, and a surge of power engulfed him. Every secret of the world unfolded before his eyes. Opening it revealed the truth of their world:
One hundred years ago, a colossal gate appeared in New York, covering the entire city. A massive being emerged—ten meters tall, long horns, a dragon-like tail, and a mask covering its face. Cracks tore through the sky, planets merged with the earth unnaturally, and countless gates appeared.
Humans gained extraordinary powers, yet those under sixteen perished or vanished. Natural humans became scarce, dwindling from eight billion to roughly one billion. Old nations collapsed, leaving only the strong—or those who adapted to their newfound abilities. A barrier in the human realm could not be broken. Since then, humanity focused solely on the gates. The Demon and Dragon realms, from which the horned being came, were the source of all power and chaos.
Rin, tears streaming, realized that the true power lay within the grimoire, granting him the ability to enter the Demon Realm through the barrier, just as Mr. X had instructed. He lifted his head, sensing the other gates, the energy, and the hidden truths. The city lay in ruins, the beast defeated, his comrades lost—but Mr. X remained alive.
Rin looked around, tears flowing freely. "No one's death will be in vain again!" he shouted, eyes fixed on Mr. X. "We will be ready… for whatever awaits."
Mr. X, struggling but smiling faintly, placed a hand on Rin's shoulder. "Rin… this is only the beginning of your true journey… the Demon Realm awaits… and we will face it together."
---
(To be continued)
I may be late in uploading the chapters. Thank you for your support.