Earth didn't end when it was supposed to.
One hundred and seventy-eight years ago, the first rupture appeared.
At first, nobody understood what the fuck they were looking at. The sky cracked open in places where nothing should exist. The oceans began pushing things out that had no right to breathe Earth's air. Entire coastlines were erased in hours. Ships vanished. Cities flooded with blood before anyone could even react.
Then the gates started appearing on land.
Black tears in reality. Standing there. Silent. Waiting.
And sooner or later, something always came out.
Bullets didn't stop them. Missiles barely slowed them. Humanity learned quickly that the world they had built meant nothing anymore. Strength wasn't measured in weapons. It was measured in survival.
Then the changes began.
Bodies adapting. Bones strengthening. Senses sharpening. Some people woke up different. Strong enough to enter those gates. Strong enough to fight back.
Hunters.
Not heroes.
Not chosen.
Just people the world forced into a job nobody wanted.
One hundred and seventy-eight years later, humanity was still alive.
Not winning.
Just not dead yet.
______
Bombay Headquarters of the Rein Family.
"Damn it…"
Arthur stared at the screen, unmoving.
Thirty-eight thousand.
Gone.
He refreshed the page again.
Still gone.
"…Bullshit."
His jaw tightened. His fingers hovered over the trackpad, like he could drag the money back into existence if he tried hard enough. He already knew who it was. There was only one person in this house reckless enough to pull this shit without saying anything.
He grabbed his phone and called.
It rang.
Twice.
She picked up.
"What."
No hello. No hesitation. Just attitude.
Arthur exhaled slowly through his nose.
"Why the fuck did you pull thirty-eight thousand from the account."
Silence.
"…What?"
"The account," he said, forcing the words out steadily. "Three withdrawals. Same name. Yours."
Another pause.
Then, casually. "I needed gear."
Arthur leaned back in his chair, staring at the cracked ceiling.
Needed gear.
Of course.
Always needed something.
Never thought about what came after.
He looked back at the screen again. The number looked worse the longer he stared at it.
"You needed all of it?" he asked.
Her tone sharpened instantly. "Watch how you talk to me."
Arthur swallowed.
She was A-rank.
His beloved elder sister.
She walked into places he wouldn't last ten seconds inside.
She killed things he couldn't even imagine standing in front of.
And still—
This number was his responsibility.
"Get your ass here," he said quietly.
Silence.
"…What did you just say?"
Arthur forced himself not to back down.
"Come here," he said. "We need to fix this."
"You don't order me around."
He knew that.
He knew exactly how that sounded coming from him.
Still—
"If this keeps going," he said carefully, "the account's fucked."
Silence stretched between them.
"…You're serious," she said.
"Yes."
Another pause.
"…Fine. I'll come."
The line went dead.
Arthur lowered the phone slowly.
His chest felt tight. Not anger. Not exactly fear. Just the weight of knowing he couldn't afford mistakes. Not his. Not anyone's.
He looked back at the number again.
Still broken.
Still real.
His phone vibrated again.
Unknown number.
Arthur frowned and answered.
"…Yeah."
"Arthur Rein. Association broadcast. S-rank emergence confirmed in the Arabian Sea. All hunters are advised to avoid coastal zones until cleared."
Arthur blinked once.
S-rank.
That meant the real monsters were out.
The kind that erased cities.
The kind people like him stayed the fuck away from.
"…Noted," he said.
He hung up.
The room stayed quiet.
Arthur stared at the balance again, fingers tightening slightly against the desk.
The world could burn.
The ocean could spit out nightmares.
Didn't change the fact that this number was still his problem.
—
Arabian Sea — Western Indian Ocean Sector
The sea wasn't moving.
That was the first thing Ragnar noticed.
No waves. No wind pushing the surface. Just flat water stretching endlessly under the gray sky.
"That's not normal," Murray muttered.
"No shit," Arin replied.
Miss Sham stared forward, eyes narrowed.
"Yeah," she said quietly. "This fuck hell is an S-Gate zone. Normal stopped applying a long time ago."
Then the ocean sank.
Not like a wave. Not like something swimming.
The entire surface lowered, like something underneath was pushing the world itself down.
"…Contact," Ragnar said calmly.
The first creature rose.
Massive. Armored. Wrong.
Then the second.
Then the third.
Three S-rank monsters.
Arin grinned faintly.
"Well," she said. "This is gonna be a pain in the ass."
Ragnar didn't smile.
"Formation," he said.
And the Arabian Sea prepared to kill them.