The three of them moved quickly, weaving through the broken pillars and jagged stone ruins that made up this twisted battlefield. The further they got from the massacre near the tree, the more muffled the sounds of fighting became — screams and steel echoing through the crimson haze.
Tenma kept glancing over his shoulder, half-expecting the Eclipse wielder to appear behind them at any moment. His legs ached, his head throbbed from the blow, and his weak sword felt like dead weight in his hand.
Takumi limped slightly, one arm wrapped around his ribs where the upperclassman's kick had left a bruise that burned every time he breathed. He refused to complain, though. If Akari noticed, she didn't say a word. She was focused — scanning every broken wall and shadow for threats.
Finally, they reached what looked like the remains of an ancient temple — pillars wrapped in ghostly ivy, a broken marble floor covered in old bloodstains that had turned brown over who-knew-how-many battles.
Akari motioned for them to crouch behind a crumbling stone wall. She dropped into a squat herself, resting her sword across her knees.
> "We'll catch our breath here. Don't get too comfortable — we can't stay long."
Takumi sank to the ground with a pained hiss, wiping sweat from his forehead. Tenma sat beside him, pressing the back of his hand to his swelling jaw. For a moment, the only sound was their ragged breathing and the low wind that swept through the ruined temple.
Takumi looked at Akari. "Why'd you help us? You could've left us to die."
Akari shrugged. "Waste of good numbers. You two might not look like much now — but you've got something most of the others don't."
Tenma frowned weakly. "And what's that? A useless sword?"
She didn't flinch. Instead, she met Tenma's eyes dead-on. "Hope. You're scared, but you're not hopeless. That matters here. The ones who break first — they're already dead. You two? You've got a chance, if you don't waste it."
Takumi looked down at his hands, still smeared with blood that wasn't his own. He forced out a breath. "So what's your plan, Akari? You said you're forming a party. How does that help us survive?"
Akari's expression turned grim. She drew her sword and traced a line in the dirt with the tip. "Look — everyone here thinks they're the main character. Lone wolves hunting S-Rank swords to unlock the Dragon God's chamber. But the truth is, most of them are just food for the stronger ones."
She pointed to the dirt line — then drew a circle around it. "Alone, you'll get picked off. Together, we can fight off scavengers, share kills, and watch each other's backs while we search for S-Ranks."
She paused, her eyes flicking to Tenma's dull sword. "And maybe — just maybe — find out what this world really wants from us. Something doesn't add up."
Takumi tilted his head. "What do you mean?"
Akari narrowed her eyes. "Why give you a sword that weak? There's no point — unless it's hiding something. Maybe the ranks aren't everything."
Tenma blinked. "You… think my sword might… not be useless?"
Akari didn't promise him anything. But she didn't look away, either. "I think this game's rules aren't as simple as they want us to believe."
Before Tenma could process that small spark of hope, a distant rumble made all three of them stiffen. From deep within the ruins, an unnatural howl rose — like metal grinding on bone, carried on the wind.
Takumi's knuckles whitened around his blade. "What was that?"
Akari's eyes hardened. "Not everyone here is human anymore."
Tenma shivered. "What does that mean?"
She glanced between the two boys. "When someone dies, their sword's core can be absorbed by the killer. But some players… they go too far. They don't stop with one or two kills — they take dozens. The power warps them, twists them into monsters. We call them Reavers."
As if summoned by her words, a shadow slithered between two distant pillars — a huge, misshapen figure dragging a blade that scraped sparks from the stone. Its eyes burned like dying embers in a skull-like face.
Takumi swallowed. "You're telling me that thing was once a student?"
Akari stood, tightening her grip on her sword. "Yeah. And if we're not careful, we'll be next."
She looked at Tenma and Takumi — two battered boys who had no idea how much darker this world could get.
> "Listen close: we move as one. If we fight, we fight together. If one of us falls behind, we drag them back up. That's how we live."
Takumi forced a small grin, pain and fear mixing with determination. "Got it. Besides — we've got an S-Rank, right? I won't let this sword go to waste."
Tenma stared at his own battered blade, turning it over in his shaking hands. Maybe — just maybe — Akari was right. Maybe it wasn't the sword that would decide whether he lived or died… but what he chose to do with it.
The monstrous Reaver's hiss echoed through the ruins — a reminder that trust wouldn't be enough. They would need courage, cunning, and a strength they hadn't found yet.
Akari's eyes gleamed like sharpened steel. "Stay close. From here on out… the real hunt begins."
Somewhere, far beyond the pillars, the Eclipse owner stood on a crumbling balcony overlooking the battlefield — his cloak whipping in the crimson wind, Eclipse resting on his shoulder. He watched the ruins with cold amusement.
> "Run, hide, gather your little party," he murmured to no one, his voice like a blade sliding free of its sheath.
"In the end… only the strongest survive."
---
To be continued…