At Bypass Village—
the battle was slowly turning against the Hollow Gang.
Matt watched as more of his gang members were pushed back by the combined attacks of the Fire Invokers and Bomb's traps.
His grip tightened around his massive hammer.
"...Enough."
He was about to step forward himself—
when a gang member rushed toward him.
"Sir!"
Matt frowned.
"What?"
The gangster stopped to catch his breath.
"We must retreat!"
"Boss order!"
Matt's face immediately soured.
"...Why?"
The member swallowed.
"Looks like the White Hat are on their way."
For a moment, Matt was silent.
Then he clicked his tongue.
"Tch."
"What a waste."
He swung his hammer onto his shoulder.
"Fine."
"Let's go."
The order spread quickly.
"Retreat!"
"Fall back!"
The remaining Hollow Gang members immediately withdrew from the battlefield.
John watched them disappear into the distance.
Then let out a long breath.
"...Phew."
"They're gone."
Nearby, Kuro looked over the damaged battlefield.
Burn marks.
Craters.
Broken weapons.
He exhaled slowly.
"...That could've been worse."
At Kor Village—
the remaining attackers had already disappeared into the surrounding bushes.
The battlefield finally became quiet.
Fein looked around.
"Is it over?"
Takeru kept his eyes on the forest.
His hand remained on his weapon.
"...Not yet."
Fein blinked.
"They retreated."
Takeru nodded.
"Which means they're still alive."
The Wolfbeast commander continued scanning the trees.
Until he was sure the enemy was truly gone—
he wasn't lowering his guard.
At Hiraki Village—
Kaito stood at the village gate watching the last Hollow Gang members retreat into the forest.
Jori stretched his shoulders.
"Heh."
"That's assassin style for you."
Ling laughed.
"It's nostalgic."
"Working together like the old days."
Kaito gave a small nod.
"...Yeah."
The battlefield around them was finally settling down.
The soldiers began gathering the wounded.
Archers lowered their bows.
The smoke slowly dispersed.
Kaito looked toward the distant road.
"Now we wait for Mayor Gein."
Jori nodded.
After everything that had happened—
everyone wanted to know whether the convoy had made it safely to Lorum Village.
At Lorum Village—
the battle had ended, but the tension remained.
Gein had already left with a portion of his troops, returning toward Hiraki Village to reorganize his forces.
Saito stood near the mansion entrance, looking over the exhausted soldiers and villagers.
"We need to be prepared."
Takashi nodded beside him.
"This won't be the last attack."
A few moments later—
Kaito arrived with Ling and Jori.
Not long after, Bomb and Kuro entered the village as well.
Saito immediately looked at them.
"Is everything okay?"
Kaito nodded.
"All villages are under control."
"The enemy retreated."
Bomb stretched his arms.
"Bypass is safe."
Kuro grinned.
"And Kor didn't have much trouble either."
Saito let out a relieved breath.
"Good."
For the first time all day, his shoulders relaxed slightly.
Then—
the village gate opened again.
Everyone turned.
A group of men dressed in white suits entered.
At their front—
Shiro.
Herion and Mina followed behind him.
Shiro walked toward the group.
"Saito..."
He glanced around at the damaged village.
"...Looks like I'm late."
Saito shook his head.
"It's okay."
"Everything is under control."
Then his expression became serious.
"You have any information?"
Shiro's smile disappeared.
For once, he looked completely serious.
The others immediately noticed.
Kuro frowned.
Bomb crossed his arms.
Even Kaito became attentive.
Shiro looked directly at Saito.
"...Looks like I need to tell you what your enemy really is."
Saito blinked.
"What?"
The atmosphere suddenly became heavy.
Whatever Shiro knew—
it was important enough to make him travel here personally.
Inside the meeting room—
everyone had gathered around the table.
The atmosphere was far more serious than before.
Shiro's words had immediately caught everyone's attention.
Takashi blinked.
"...What now?"
Bomb looked confused.
"What's a Calamity Table?"
Meanwhile—
Saito simply blinked.
As always.
Shiro sighed.
"I figured you wouldn't know."
Then he looked around the room.
"Scrapper is one of the Calamity Table members."
The reaction was immediate.
Kaito frowned.
Kuro's expression darkened.
Saito looked between them.
"...What's wrong with you two?"
Kuro stared at him.
"Don't tell me you've never heard of them."
Saito pointed at himself.
"...Should I have?"
Kuro groaned.
Kaito shook his head.
"Even us Noctarion have to be careful when dealing with them."
That finally got Saito's attention.
"...That serious?"
Shiro nodded.
"The Calamity Table isn't a gang."
"It's a group."
"A very dangerous group."
Bomb crossed his arms.
"But Scrapper is alone, right?"
Shiro immediately shook his head.
"I wouldn't underestimate him."
His voice was calm.
But firm.
"I've known him long enough."
The room became quiet.
Then Shiro looked down slightly.
"...We were friends once."
No one spoke.
Even Kuro stayed silent.
For the first time, Shiro looked genuinely troubled.
Saito noticed it immediately.
His expression softened.
"...You don't need to tell us if you don't want to."
Shiro looked at him.
For a moment—
then smiled slightly.
"...No."
"I think you deserve to know."
The room fell silent once again.
Waiting for Shiro to continue.
Years ago...
When Shiro was only ten years old—
he wandered through his father's territory as usual.
The streets were busy.
Merchants shouted.
Children ran through the market.
Shiro happily explored everything he could find.
Then—
he heard shouting from a nearby alley.
"Your device is trash!"
A group of boys stood around another child.
The boy sat on the ground holding a strange metal gadget.
One of the bullies grabbed it.
"This thing doesn't even work!"
Then threw it at him.
The device hit the dirt.
The boy stayed silent.
His head lowered.
The bullies laughed.
Then a voice came from behind them.
"Hey there, bullies."
The group froze.
They turned around.
Standing there was Shiro.
One of the boys immediately paled.
"Crap."
"It's White Hat's son."
Another swallowed nervously.
"Let's go!"
Without another word, the group quickly ran away.
Leaving the alley empty.
Shiro watched them disappear.
Then looked at the boy on the ground.
The boy quietly picked up his damaged device.
Dust covered it.
Shiro walked over and crouched beside him.
"Hey there."
The boy flinched slightly.
Shiro smiled.
"I'm Shiro."
The boy remained silent.
Shiro pointed at the gadget.
"Looks complicated."
The boy looked down.
"...Scrapper."
Shiro blinked.
"Huh?"
The boy spoke a little louder.
"My name."
"...Scrapper."
For the first time—
Shiro got a good look at him.
A quiet kid.
A bit dirty.
Holding strange pieces of metal and machinery in his hands.
Not much of a talker.
But his eyes never left the device he was trying to fix.
Flashback
The alley became quiet after the bullies left.
Shiro stood in front of the boy and smiled.
"Let's be friends, Scrapper."
Scrapper immediately shook his head.
"I can't."
Shiro blinked.
"Why?"
Scrapper looked down at the broken device in his hands.
"...I'm a nerd."
Shiro stared at him for a moment.
Then laughed.
"So?"
Scrapper looked confused.
Shiro put his hands on his hips.
"I don't care."
"I want to be friends with you."
Then he stretched out his hand.
"Come on."
Scrapper looked at the offered hand.
Nobody had ever done that before.
For several seconds he hesitated.
Then slowly—
he reached out.
And grabbed it.
Shiro immediately grinned.
"There we go."
With one pull, he helped Scrapper back to his feet.
The two boys stood facing each other.
Shiro pointed toward the distance.
"Let's meet near the White Hat base tomorrow."
"I'll be waiting."
Scrapper blinked.
"You will?"
Shiro nodded.
"Of course."
Then he turned around and started walking away.
"See you tomorrow, Scrapper!"
The boy watched him leave.
The alley slowly became quiet again.
Scrapper looked down at the damaged device in his hands.
Then toward the direction Shiro had gone.
For the first time that day—
a small smile appeared on his face.
Then he carefully held his device and walked out of the alley.