The silence hanging across the recovery ward was so dense, heavy, and suffocating that Hero could hear the frantic, rhythmic hammering of his own pulse pounding against his ribs. His chest rose and fell rapidly with every breath. Locking his absolute focus onto the ancient, dark, and mysterious consciousness bound deep within his soul, he shouted inwardly with intense desperation, "Samay! What the hell do you mean the world is going to end in five years?! Explain yourself right now!"
Before Samay—the enigmatic, ancient entity bound to his very existence—could issue a response, the heavy digital door of the medical chamber slid open with a soft, pneumatic hiss.
A middle-aged doctor clad in a sterile, snow-white lab coat bearing the gilded emblem of the Hunter Association stepped inside. Adjusting the frame of his wire-rimmed glasses with his wrist, he kept his eyes glued to a glowing blue medical tablet, analyzing the vital parameters one by one.
"Ah, Hero! You're finally awake," the doctor remarked, stepping closer to inspect the life-monitoring apparatus beside the bed. "How are you feeling? Any dizziness or lingering nausea? You've been completely unconscious for two straight days. For a moment, our emergency surgical team genuinely feared your physical vessel wouldn't survive the massive mana-rebound shock. After all, you are merely an F-Rank hunter, and your personal mana reserves are drastically lower than even an average F-Rank!"
Hero suppressed the surge of anxiety and dread tightening in his chest. Tentatively flexing the fingers of his left hand, he replied in a low voice, "I'm... I'm feeling fine now, Doctor."
The doctor jotted a few rapid notes on his tablet before pointing toward Hero's right shoulder, where the reattached limb joined his torso. "Your severed right arm... the one reattached by our emergency response team using advanced surgical mana-stitching. Tell me, how does it feel? Is there any structural stiffness, severe pain, or numbness in the nervous pathways?"
Hero slowly lifted his right hand before his eyes. Faint, thread-like surgical scars encircled his wrist, elbow, and shoulder joint. Yet curiously, there was no pain at all—only an eerie, hollow, and alien sensation.
"No, Doctor... no pain at all," Hero said, closing his fingers into a fist. "It feels completely normal."
"That is exceptional news!" The doctor offered a warm, comforting smile, though a sharp, calculating, and greedy glint flashed behind his lenses. "Rest up for now. I'll review your latest mana-resonance scans and marrow density reports before returning shortly."
The moment the doctor stepped out and the reinforced digital door sealed shut, a sinister thought surfaced in his mind: 'Unbelievable! This is a medical miracle! A trash hunter whose mana reserves are below F-Rank survived such a devastating mana blast? And his severed arm reattached so smoothly? I must immediately notify the Hunter Association Headquarters and black market researchers. This weak F-Rank boy's body could be a goldmine for experimental human research!'
Inside the room, Hero stared intently at his right hand. He traced the skin with his left fingers. The texture, the length of the fingers, the shape of the nails... everything was subtly different from his left arm. It felt completely alienated, as if a piece of a foreign, monstrous entity had been grafted onto his frame.
"Samay..." Hero asked inwardly, his breathing heavy. "This isn't my hand, is it? The one they reattached? As far as I know, no human surgeon or hunter could graft another person's severed limb onto someone else like this. And my mana capacity is lower than an F-Rank, so how could my body accept someone else's limb? Did that explosive mana blast completely obliterate my original arm?"
'Stop spouting brainless nonsense,' Samay's cold, echoing voice resonated directly inside Hero's psyche.
"What do you mean?" Hero froze.
'Your arm wasn't blown to smithereens by the explosion,' Samay revealed mercilessly. 'The blast severed it clean off your shoulder joint. And the limb currently attached to your torso doesn't belong to any human! It is the severed arm of the High Vampire you destroyed when you sacrificed your own limb!'
The revelation hit Hero like a physical blow. The color drained from his face, and a cold shudder ran down his spine.
"WHAT?!" Hero screamed inwardly, panic seizing his chest. "T-They attached a monster's arm to me?! A Vampire's arm?! How is that even possible? I'm just a weak F-Rank hunter with almost zero mana! What do I do now? I have to tell the doctors! I have to inform the Association right away about this mistake!"
'If you commit such unfathomable stupidity, have you considered the catastrophic consequences?' Samay warned in a frost-laced tone.
Hero's racing thoughts ground to a sudden halt. The terrifying reality of the situation washed over him. If he revealed to the Hunter Association or the medical board that the limb of a High Vampire—a higher-tier monster—had been successfully grafted onto a human body, what would they do?
They would cease viewing him as a human hunter. They would file charges, label him a dangerous biological anomaly, and lock him away in a black-site facility. He would become a lab rat for dark research on how a weak F-rank human could host monster anatomy. And the ultimate outcome? He would spend the rest of his life rotting behind the titanium bars of a hidden dungeon prison.
A cold sweat drenched Hero's back. He swallowed hard and made a definitive choice: He could never speak a word of this to anyone.
"Samay..." Hero asked hesitantly, "Will having a High Vampire's arm cause my body any fatal complications? My mana is lower than F-Rank, so how can I survive this demonic energy?"
'Are you experiencing any discomfort right now? Test your internal mana flow yourself,' Samay instructed neutrally.
Hero closed his eyes and channeled his inner, extremely faint Mana Core. He began circulating his mana through his body's internal mana-pathways. Thin, weak streams of azure mana—far lower than standard F-Rank capacity—sluggishly flowed down his spine, circulating through his left arm, torso, and legs. However, the moment he attempted to push that mana into his right shoulder, the energy slammed into an invisible, rock-hard barrier at the shoulder joint. The mana refused to cross over.
"Samay! My mana can't pass into my right arm! The mana channel is completely blocked!" Hero exclaimed in alarm.
'That is only natural,' Samay replied calmly. 'It is not your native limb. It belongs to a high-tier demonic creature. Under normal circumstances, when a monster's limb is attached to a human body, the toxic Demonic Energy inside it would tear through the human nervous system and instantly destroy the heart—especially for someone like you, whose mana is below F-Rank!'
"Then... how am I still alive?" Hero asked, bewildered.
'Because you unconsciously deployed your own 'Diversion' technique,' Samay revealed. 'When that demonic arm was being stitched onto your body, your internal Diversion skill redirected the flow of the toxic demonic energy. You diverted the lethal corruption away from your vital organs and trapped it within the shoulder joint barrier! It is solely because of your own Diversion technique that the demonic energy remains contained and you are still breathing.'
A wave of profound relief washed over Hero. "Thank you, Samay... My own Diversion technique saved my life. But tell me... with this vampiric arm, can I still execute my core combat skills—my Diversion technique and Blaster technique?"
'Execute them?' A shadowy hum echoed in Samay's tone. 'Foolish boy. Due to the dark anatomical structure embedded within that arm, when you use your Diversion technique to manipulate mana trajectories and unleash destruction via your Blaster technique, despite your sub-F-Rank mana reserves, the sheer explosive force generated will be ten times greater than your normal output!'
Hero's eyes widened in sheer disbelief. "Ten times?! Even with sub-F-Rank mana? Are you serious? Will you teach me more advanced, destructive variations of Diversion and Blaster linked to this arm?"
Samay instantly shattered his excitement with a blunt retort: 'Out of the question! You are currently a pathetic, weak F-Rank hunter who hasn't even finalized his official guild registry. Focus on your recovery instead of dreaming about power you cannot control.'
BAM!
The heavy doors of the chamber swung open abruptly. This time, it wasn't the doctor, but two armored enforcement officers from the Hunter Association, flanked by two high-ranking tactical investigators. The metallic insignias on their chest plates gleamed under the harsh lights.
"Hunter Hero," the lead investigator announced in a commanding voice. "You are required to accompany us to the Hunter Association Headquarters immediately for urgent questioning."
Hero noted the grim expressions on their faces. 'Taking me in for interrogation the second I wake up... even though I'm just an F-Rank hunter, something massive must have happened on the frontlines.'
Without offering a shred of resistance, Hero stood up and followed them out.
Deep beneath the city, beneath a deserted rocky wasteland, lay a hidden subterranean bunker...
A figure wrapped in a pitch-black cloak navigated a dimly lit underground tunnel before coming to a stop in front of a massive, seamless concrete wall. Pulling back his hood, he whispered an arcane incantation toward a hidden mana-rune embedded in the structure.
Rumble!
The monolithic wall parted sideways, exposing a hidden passageway that led into a subterranean chamber. As he stepped inside, he was met by a circle of sinister figures seated around a dark stone table. Every individual present wore a grotesque mask forged from synthetic human skin, marked with glowing crimson runes. The thick, suffocating stench of cruel, monstrous mana filled the room.
This dark cabal called themselves the Demonic Group Organization.
The newcomer took his designated seat and presented his report, his voice trembling slightly.
"Sirs... our operation on the Demon War frontline has suffered a setback," he reported nervously. "The High Vampires dispatched from the Demon Realm successfully constructed the grand Blood Formation to summon the Demonic General into this world. However, high-ranking S-Rank hunters from the Association caught wind of the ritual and intervened, disrupting the spell. We must rebuild the Blood Formation immediately to complete the General's arrival and claim dominion over this world!"
An elder cultist sitting opposite him let out a harsh, mocking laugh.
"Fool!" The elder slammed his fist onto the table. "Do you think constructing a Blood Formation is child's play?! That ritual released such a massive wave of ambient demonic mana that even if the Association couldn't pinpoint our exact coordinates, they now know a high-tier demonic ritual is active within this country! Rebuilding that formation would require an entire year of collecting raw mana and blood sacrifices! Where do you expect us to harvest that much power?!"
The elder leaned forward, eyes burning behind his mask. "Furthermore... the Vampires deployed were Deeper S-Rank monsters! How could such entities fail?!"
The reporting cultist bowed his head in fear. "Sir... because the strike team dispatched by the Association consisted of their absolute top-tier S-Rank hunters. Our forces were overwhelmed."
"They did not fail entirely," a deep, thunderous voice reverberated from the head of the table. A towering figure sat there, his eyes glowing with terrifying crimson light.
Silence instantly fell over the room.
The leader spoke slowly, "I have received a direct telepathic transmission from the Demon Realm... sent by the Demonic General himself. The General has already crossed the planar boundary. He is currently somewhere in this world!"
"WHAT?!" gasped the cult members. Expressions of manic joy and absolute horror crossed their faces. A Demonic General walking the Earth meant the total annihilation of human civilization.
"Do not celebrate prematurely," the leader warned coldly. "He has crossed over, yet no mass destruction has been unleashed. This indicates something went wrong during the dimensional transit. He may be injured or severely weakened. Our primary objective is to locate the Demonic General immediately. Simultaneously... we shall initiate Plan-B!"
At the mention of 'Plan-B', malicious grins spread across the faces of every cultist present. They finalized their tactical assignments and vanished into the shadows.
Meanwhile, inside the maximum-security Investigation Room at the Hunter Association Headquarters...
The room was completely reinforced with mana-dampening alloy walls. At the center of the room sat a heavy steel table, behind which sat two of the Association's most formidable figures: Kane and Arthur.
Kane maintained a stern, imposing posture, while Arthur observed Hero with calm, analytical eyes.
As Hero was brought inside, both men gestured politely for him to take a seat. Following Elena's detailed report regarding her previous encounter with Hero—specifically how an officially registered F-Rank hunter with sub-F-Rank mana capacity demonstrated uncanny survival tactics and unique Diversion techniques—Kane and Arthur had agreed to handle the interrogation with utmost respect rather than hostility.
Kane leaned forward, locking his gaze with Hero's, his voice measured and remarkably polite.
"Hunter Hero... you are officially registered as an F-Rank hunter, and your measured mana capacity is lower than standard F-Rank levels. Yet, according to Specialist Elena's report, you possess extraordinary Diversion and Blaster capabilities that defy your official rank. We are not here to treat you as an enemy. We simply require the truth... Tell us, despite your sub-F-Rank mana, which high-tier Spirit have you formed a secret contract with?"
Hero took a slow, deep breath, realizing that his next words would dictate whether he walked out of this room as a hero—or an outlaw.
He opened his mouth and said, "I am..."