In a place within the Forest of Despair...
There was a place like a hideout, an old secret lab. There were green neon lights inside, and the outside was covered in black moss. Two people were guarding the entrance.
"Man, that was way too easy," spoke Criminal Hunter #1.
"Yeah, totally," spoke Criminal Hunter #2.
"These teenagers are real amateurs! They're supposed to be the future of humanity? The future of my ass! Haha!" spoke Criminal Hunter #1 sarcastically.
"Yeah, but you know who's coming, the big guys, for us," spoke Criminal Hunter #2 with some worry.
"Don't worry about that. The boss has taken care of the problem. He's currently casting a spell, a teleportation on them, and will move them to a place far from here," spoke Criminal Hunter #1.
"Do you mean a secret gate that leads to our world?" spoke Criminal Hunter #2 in shock.
"What? No! I mean a place far away in the forest, not outside the gate," spoke Criminal Hunter #1.
"Oh, so how long until the gate reopens?" asked Criminal Hunter #2.
"Hell, as if I know that. But it didn't take much time because if it did, we'd be dead by then."
"That's true," replied Criminal Hunter #2.
Clang!
"Huh?"
They both saw that the lamps lighting the path ahead had suddenly gone out, and everything around them became dark.
"Why did the lights stop? Is there some malfunction?" asked Criminal Hunter #1 in confusion.
"Aren't they magic-powered?" asked Criminal Hunter #2.
"Yeah, but damn it! They treat us like hobos, just because we're former criminals prevents us from becoming hunters. This pisses me off!" spoke Criminal Hunter #1 while trying to figure out the lamp issue.
"But look at us now, my friend. We captured what they call the hope, H.E.R.O.E.S."
"A bunch of rich idiots!" spoke Criminal Hunter #1 while shaking the lamp violently.
"Dammit, it's broken. What time is it, buddy?" asked Criminal Hunter #1.
"Hey you, why don't you ans____
"What the hell?!"
He saw it. His friend was lifeless, fallen to the ground, his neck twisted strangely. He felt threatened and scared.
Just what the____
Before he could finish his sentence, he felt something behind him. He turned and attacked the thing with a magic blast while screaming, but the thing moved swiftly in the darkness and precisely pierced his throat with its sharp claws.
He tried to scream, but he couldn't. His vocal cords were severed. The hunter clutched his wounded neck and looked at the thing. All he could see were savage red eyes staring at him while its hand dripped with his blood.
He stared at the monster in terror, and in a moment, it vanished before his eyes.
And whoosh!
Suddenly, that monster appeared behind him, stabbed his spine with precision, completely paralyzing his body. He fell to the ground, his body trembling as he looked in fear at the monster who raised its claws high and ended his life.
Slash.
The monster looked at the door, slowly opened it, and went inside, fading into the darkness....
While this happens, inside the hideout, in a certain room...
There was a person sitting in a monitoring room, wearing black and a cowboy hat, holding a bow, and looking at the surveillance screens.
"He was looking at five hunters forming something like a dome, expanding very slowly. He looked at them with tiredness.
"A little more time remains, and then my work will be done, and I get my pay. But..."
He looked at another screen, where the hostage room was. They were currently on the ground, their arms bound with special shackles. His men were having fun with them, tearing their clothes, taking them to a dark place to have some 'fun,' and mocking them in the midst of this.
"Well, no hard feelings, it's just business. It's your fault for being weak. You shouldn't have left your home, you little brats."
"I'll check room number 5. Those fools might not be handling the teachers well. Even with the shackles on, they still have some strength left."
And as he was leaving, a screen began to malfunction, its lights fading... In one of the corridors, a group of people were roaming forward.
"I can't believe those guys are having all the fun over there!" spoke Criminal Hunter #3.
"Lucky bastards," spoke Criminal Hunter #4.
"Right? That's what I'm saying," spoke Criminal Hunter #5.
"Wrong, you fools," spoke Criminal Hunter #6.
"Huh?!" asked Criminal Hunter #3 angrily.
"Did you forget we didn't just kidnap amateurs, but students of Dawn Academy, the number 1 hunter academy in the world?" replied Criminal Hunter #6.
"That's because there's no other," answered Criminal Hunter #4 sarcastically.
"True, but let's not forget they receive support from H.E.R.O.E.S. Once our job is done, we'll be at the top of their most-wanted list," replied Criminal Hunter #3 coldly.
"Ooh, he has a point there," spoke Criminal Hunter #5 worriedly.
"Does it matter? We're getting out of here. Even if they find out what we did, it would take days to find us. We're in a completely hidden place," spoke Criminal Hunter #3.
"It's not just H.E.R.O.E.S; A.E.G.I.S will also come for them, and when that happens, they'll find us in just hours," spoke Criminal Hunter #6.
"Damn," spoke Criminal Hunter #4 with clear fear on his face.
"Dammit, what are you all afraid of, men!?" shouted Criminal Hunter #3.
"We are now inside a hideout. A damn hideout! It's impossible for them to find us___
Crack!
"Huh?"
Criminal Hunter #3 turned and saw behind him that all the lights ahead had shattered out of nowhere, and the corridor suddenly became dark around them, with almost no light left. All the criminals here panicked and raised their weapons.
"Guys, since when did the place suddenly get dark?"
"Just now," replied Criminal Hunter #4.
"Maybe it's just a malf____
"No, we're not alone here. There's something," spoke Criminal Hunter #6 in a serious tone.
"That's impossible! It hasn't even been two hours! It's impossible for them to have contacted anyone! Boss Oliver told me this!"
"Grrr....."
Suddenly, they felt a sound of something behind them, and when they turned, it attacked them.
"Aaah!"
And the screams were swallowed by the darkness inside the hideout....
Elsewhere, inside the hostage room where the students were imprisoned, the students were shocked and terrified, huddled in the corners, crying, looking with fear and horror at the trio.
Leon had resisted, and his face was full of bruises. Ilia's shirt was almost completely torn. Aaron's pants were open, and his face was swollen purple.
"This is the best time I've ever had in my life!" spoke a Criminal Hunter in ecstasy.
"Yeah, I'm getting a new towel," spoke another Criminal Hunter.
"Hey, which one should we choose, Bob? The crying gray one, or that girl who wet herself? Pee? Hey Paul!? What the hell, why aren't you answering, huh?" shouted a random Criminal Hunter.
He turned and saw that Criminal Hunter, his friend Paul, fallen on the ground, his head missing. When he saw this, he was horrified.
"What in the___
Whoosh!
Suddenly, a large hand grabbed his head and swiftly pulled him into a dark corner. All that was heard was a faint scream, and after seconds, everything faded.
The students looked towards who did this and saw a strange thing. They saw a black figure moving, with sharp red eyes, and they realized who it was.
It was a werewolf-like monster standing, holding the blood-covered body of that criminal, terror filling his face as he tried to comprehend what was happening, while its other hand held the head of that criminal named Paul.
They were all horrified by the scene. These people who had crushed them so suddenly were killed within seconds. They felt a terrifying difference.
But this monster simply left. It didn't even glance at them and went in another direction. The students sighed in relief that they were spared, while the others still felt fear and were thinking of escaping while they had the chance.
And in the midst of all this, Leon felt anger and helplessness, because the monster they were supposed to be trained to kill was the one who saved them. And the worst of all was that it didn't even consider them enemies.
Leon felt like he was nothing more than an insect.
"Damn it, damn it!" Leon hit the ground hard in regret while crying due to his weakness.
For the first time in his life, Leon felt how truly weak he was. He felt the students' words from before becoming thorns piercing his soul. He now wanted to become much stronger than he is now, for what he was born to do.
...
Inside the monitoring room.
"It's good that everything is fine. They are still under the effect of the poison, and those haven't caused anything that would wake them up. Not yet, at least," spoke Oliver.
"Let's see what the others are doing____ What the hell is happening here?!"
What Oliver saw was that most of the screens had malfunctioned, and only three remained. As soon as he saw it, he pressed the alarm button without hesitation because he knew what was happening here.
"Damn it, we're under attack! Everyone gather in the emergency room, now!"
As soon as he said this, he took his bow and went towards the room to meet with the others, because they weren't the only ones here. There was something inside this hideout, and he didn't know since when, but he only hoped the worst wouldn't happen.
.
.
.
.
.
In the meeting room.
"Is this everyone?" asked Oliver.
They all shook their heads because there were only ten. Only ten of them had gathered here. They were all carrying different weapons.
"What, where are the others? Are those bastards having fun or what! We are in a serious situation! Any mistake will lead us to ruin and____
Roll....
There was something rolling like a wheel in the darkness. They all turned towards the source of the sound and stepped back. When it was revealed what it was, it was someone's head. A head he knew.
"It was a head he knew well. It was Paul's head....
What the hell?"
Oliver looked towards the door with a worried and terrified expression. He knew instinctively that there was something behind that door waiting for them. One of the criminal hunters slowly approached it.
Slash!
Suddenly, without any warning, a terrifying werewolf lunged, swung its claws, brutally cut his face, severed his nose, and he fell to the ground.
Ggggaaaaahhhh!
"Damn it! It's a monster!" screamed one of the criminal hunters while another cast magic at it.
What happened was a surprise for Oliver, but he felt a little relieved because he was now dealing with a monster and not a hunter or someone sent by the organizations. This made things a little easier.
"Focus, men! It's a monster! Gather on it!" shouted Oliver.
As soon as Oliver said this, they all relaxed. Even though they were criminals, they were still hunters after all.
First, a hunter wielding a large greatsword charged, and behind him, another with two daggers. The swordsman swung with immense force towards it, the wind shaking. The werewolf quickly lowered its body and stabbed him directly in the stomach.
But as if this was exactly what the dagger-wielder wanted, he instantly teleported behind it—because that was his ability—and when he swung and attacked, but as if the werewolf predicted this, it grabbed him by his leg, slammed him into the ground, and crushed his skull. Meanwhile, someone threw a fireball at it.
It threw the assassin's body and hurled it towards the fireball. His body burned, and he screamed in pain.
"Ggaaaaahhhh!"
"You damn dog!" shouted another.
The werewolf heard the sound and rushed towards a person who had the ability to turn his skin into diamond and was carrying an axe. He swung the axe horizontally. It dodged the massive axe, reached his face, and gouged out his eyes with its fingers forcefully, then pushed him forward. He collided with them, and when they looked again, they saw it had vanished into thin air.
"Damn it!" Oliver cursed.
"Something's wrong. This monster's behavior is different from the usual?" thought Oliver.
Oliver had encountered monsters once before; he knew their nature well. All monsters attack with the intent to kill. They attack as soon as their eyes meet the enemy, by all possible means, and they shared one thing: brutality and violence. But this monster, this thing..."
"It's different. It doesn't attack and kill violently, but kills with professional skill. Every attack, every movement, is calculated precisely. This damn werewolf is...."
Talented in killing.
"Damn it! Be careful, this monster is different from what we've faced. Check every corner," spoke Oliver while charging his bow with fear, loaded with giant wasp venom poison.
Oliver watched and saw a slight dust fall from the ceiling, and when...
"Damn it, it's above us!" shouted Oliver and jumped away from his spot.
But the others couldn't. The werewolf lunged and killed them quickly. It killed the magic casters brutally, tore their necks violently. Oliver seized the moment of its brutality and fired three arrows at it.
All of them hit its body, and the poison spread through its veins.
"Yes, take a nice nap, you damn bastard!" shouted Oliver.
When that monster was hit by the poison, the criminal hunters smiled sadistically because they knew it was nearly impossible for anyone to survive that. Even the teachers, although they took a dose 1/10 the strength of the poison, were still in a coma. That trick was what enabled them to capture these students.
"Aaaaahhhh!"
"Let's kill that bastard!"
"I'll skin you alive, you damn monster!"
As the criminals rushed towards it, they didn't realize it was a trap. The cry of victory soon turned when they realized it wasn't affected by the poison and it attacked them.
What happened next could only be described as a massacre. It tore open one's stomach, ripped out all his entrails, used them like a rope to pull another, and with a swift movement, grabbed his jaw and ripped it from its place. But it didn't stop there; it grabbed his head after his jaw was torn, ripped his head off, pulling with it the spine connected to his skull, and used it as a sharp whip to attack another.
Oliver saw everything happening in shock and immediately ran away, terrified by the scene. The others didn't even realize he had fled until...
"Damn it, damn it, what the hell is this thing?!"
"Just where did this monster come from?!" thought Oliver in fear.
Currently, only three remained out of ten, and not even a minute had passed since their fight began. Oliver knew they would lose. He had to escape immediately. While running, a corpse was thrown at him, and he rolled on the ground against a wall. When he looked forward, there was a corpse staring at him with a terrified expression.
"Fuck! Fuck!" cursed Oliver.
Oliver kicked the corpse aside, and when he saw its shape, he saw the werewolf covered in blood, with three arrows stuck in its body, staring at Oliver with a dead gaze while approaching him step by step...
"No, no, stay away!" screamed Oliver in terror.
"It's over," spoke kuro.
"Wait, this monster... it just talked! Is it actually a hunter?!" Oliver was shocked.
"If it's a hunter, there might be a chance!" thought Oliver.
"Hey, hey, let's negotiate! What do you want?" spoke Oliver.
"To pay the price," replied kuro coldly.
"Price? You mean, the price for kidnapping these kids? We're sorry, okay? We didn't realize they____
"No..... you're wrong, very wrong," spoke kuro in a voice colder than ice.
"Why then?" asked Oliver with confusion on his face.
"You tore my bag. The free, good thing I got here today. And you didn't even give me enough time to use it, before one of your followers broke it."
"What, just..... for that..... just for that you killed over 60 people?! Just for something stupid like that?!" screamed Oliver.
"Absolutely," replied kuro in a cold voice.
"Why? Why then! Why go this far just for a damn bag?!"
"You're really asking why?" kuro mocked.
"Because this is my logic. The logic of the strong. And you?..... weak. This is the law of the world. The logic of the weak is to be kicked by the strong."
"And isn't that what you did here?"
"I had no choice!"
"People like you always use that excuse when things don't go your way. And your fate is always to die like insects," spoke kuro while getting closer to him.
"Die, you damn devil."
Oliver fired an arrow, saturated with blue light. It shot out like an energy wave, pierced kuro's body, and created a large hole in it.
"Hahaha, you didn't expect that, did you?"
"As I said,"
"??!!!"
kuro grabbed Oliver's neck and started choking him to death.
"People like you must die like insects, to become a lesson for others."
"No..... no!" screamed Oliver in despair.
"Don't worry, it will be over quickly."
kuro raised his claw and ended his life. Then kuro knelt, touched the hole, and began to feel unbearable pain, but it started to heal, albeit very slowly. kuro looked with a tired face towards the forest and left.
There is still one last job he needs to complete.