"I… can't fail again…"
"I… will protect them all."
The air froze.
Jake's breathing echoed softly, as if time itself had stopped.
Before him stood the colossal monster — a shadowed titan beneath a cracked violet sky, split by two clashing lights: a radiant blue from Jake Hill, and a deep, menacing purple from the giant of destruction.
The two auras collided midair, shattering the heavens like glass.
Blinding light pierced through the clouds. Winds roared, forming a swirling vortex that devoured dust, fire, and the ruins of Sena City.
The earth trembled. From above, blue and purple lightning crossed in a violent dance — a duel between two forces that should never have existed in the same world.
Jake's gaze was unwavering, his eyes blazing with resolve.
The monster stared back, a cruel grin carved across its steel-black face.
A single second of silence.
Then the world exploded.
---
"AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
Jake roared, leaping skyward like a living blue meteor.
His magical aura cloaked him, spinning into a blazing vortex that thundered with every kick through the air. In one breath, he shot forward—BOOM!—and slammed into the giant's chest.
The impact shook the entire battlefield.
Blue light flashed so brightly that the citizens of Sena shielded their eyes. The explosion's roar echoed like a thousand storms colliding.
"Come on, Jake…! YOU CAN DO IT!!"
one of the soldiers screamed from the crumbling gate.
Jake pressed forward, his fists driving deeper into the monster's steel chest as he growled,
"RAHHHHHHHH!!!"
But the giant's grin didn't fade.
As if Jake's blows were meaningless.
With a single, slow yet terrifyingly powerful motion, the monster swung its arm — swatting Jake away like a ragdoll.
BOOMMM!!!
Jake's body was hurled high into the night sky, spinning violently.
The air whistled in his ears, and below him — the world was a sea of fire.
"No… Jake's down!!"
Voices of panic echoed through the city.
Jake hovered midair, staring at the sky now drenched in purple light.
Pain burned through every nerve; every bone screamed.
He looked up at the moon — pale, cold, merciless — and smiled faintly.
"Did I… fail?"
he whispered.
A flood of memories rushed in: laughter, the clash of swords, and a voice he knew too well.
"You're too soft, Jake!"
"At this rate, you'll always be a loser!"
Rei's voice rang inside his mind.
Jake closed his eyes. "You're right, Rei… I am weak."
Then — silence.
One last breath before his body plummeted from the sky like a dying star.
---
But hands reached out.
The Indosvara soldiers dashed forward, catching Jake before he hit the ground.
"Catch him!!"
"Hurry!!"
Jake collapsed among them, gasping for air. His voice cracked as he forced the words out,
"Sena… must not… fall…"
The soldiers turned toward the gate.
In the distance, the monster stepped back — only to suddenly charge again.
---
BLARRRR!!!
The gates of Sena City exploded.
The shockwave tore through the air, toppling towers, flinging people across the streets. Stones the size of wagons flew; homes shattered; bodies scattered.
Screams filled the night.
"Run!!!"
"The monster's breached the gate!!"
Flames clawed at the sky.
The air stank of blood and burning metal.
Amid the chaos, Ryu, Evelyn, Leon, Asta, and a young woman stood frozen, staring at the hellish scene before them.
"Quick, we have to go!!" Evelyn shouted, tears of fear glistening in her eyes.
"She's right!" Asta added. "We can't die here!"
Leon turned to Ryu. "Come on! Move!"
But Ryu didn't budge.
His gaze was hollow — yet behind it burned a fire of rage, threatening to consume him.
"No… I won't run anymore."
"If I die here, I'll die fighting!"
"I'll make you pay… you damned monsters!!"
His scream tore through the air.
Evelyn froze, then grabbed his arm tightly.
"Ryu! We have to survive first! If you die now, who will avenge them?!"
Ryu paused — then nodded grimly.
Together, they ran — alongside hundreds of terrified citizens scrambling to flee the collapsing city of Sena.
---
Suddenly, the sky darkened.
The colossal monster vanished into a swirl of purple mist — as if the air itself had devoured it.
Silence fell. People stared upward, confused.
"He's… gone?"
"Is it over…?"
But the calm didn't last.
Beyond the gate, hundreds of two-to-three-meter monsters began to march in unison, their shadows swallowing the firelight.
They moved like a black tide.
The ground quaked beneath their steps.
"Damn it!" Asta cursed. "They're coming straight for Sena!"
The Indosvara commander drew his sword.
"ALL UNITS, TO YOUR POSITIONS!!!"
"DON'T LET A SINGLE ONE THROUGH!!!"
Archers, cavalry, and mages readied themselves.
The air rang with shouts and the clatter of armor.
The shattered gate now stood guarded by thousands — humanity's last line of defense.
"Archers, ready! Aim for the red mark on their chest — that's their core!"
"Hold until my command!"
The air tensed.
Silence.
Then—
"FIRE!!!"
Hundreds of glowing arrows soared into the sky, raining down like a storm of light.
Monsters were struck — but still they advanced.
Screams and roars merged into a symphony of death.
Steel clashed with claws.
Blood mixed with dust.
Magic and metal split the night apart.
---
"Ahhhhhhhhh!!!"
The soldiers roared — some thrown back, some struggling to rise beside fallen comrades.
The commander stood at the front lines, his eyes reflecting the violet glow of the horde.
"DO NOT RETREAT!!"
"WE ARE THE LAST WALL OF HUMANITY!!"
"FIGHT YOUR FEAR!!"
His words echoed, though the archers' hands trembled.
They watched their friends torn apart, dragged into the darkness.
Yet none fled.
They fired again. And again.
Until their bows snapped, until their fingers bled.
---
Then — from the rubble — a flash of blue light streaked forward.
"Hey, what's with that face?"
A sharp, mocking voice — but filled with confidence.
The commander turned — and there stood Sai, bloodied but burning with fierce resolve.
"You shaking, huh?"
He took a step forward, eyes locked on the monsters.
"A real man never backs down… even when he knows he'll lose."
"What matters… is pride."
The commander froze.
The remaining soldiers stared at Sai — their final spark of hope.
Sai looked toward the oncoming horde.
"If they break through Sena…"
"Then where the hell would my pride go?"
He glanced back, a faint grin on his lips.
"Watch me… and remember this, Commander."
"I'll show you… what a real fighter looks like."
---
In an instant, the ground trembled.
Blue light flared across Sai's body, forming runes in the air.
ZRAAKKKK!!!
He vanished.
In a fraction of a second, streaks of light sliced between soldiers and monsters, cutting through everything in their path.
The air burned.
Blue symbols danced in the sky like ancient sigils, glowing between fire and blood.
One slash. Two. Three.
Then — too many to count.
Monsters fell, cleaved apart, turning to black ash before their bodies even hit the ground.
Sai roared — each breath a storm of energy.
"YAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
A blinding explosion of blue light engulfed the battlefield.
In less than a minute, the monster vanguard was obliterated.
Sai's footsteps etched glowing circles into the earth, pulsing like the heartbeat of a titan.
The surviving soldiers stood frozen — speechless.
"Is this… the power of the legendary mage from Brama Hill…?"
the commander whispered in disbelief.
Sai stood amidst the ashes, chest heaving.
His aura dimmed slowly, leaving only the scent of ozone in the air.
For the first time that night —
a small victory belonged to humanity.
---
Sena bled.
But the fire in their hearts did not die.
Within two months, the ruins rose again.
The gates rebuilt. The army reformed.
And among it all, one place became the new beacon of hope:
The Monster Hunter Training Academy.
---
That morning, Jake Hill stood tall before hundreds of young recruits.
Behind him, the banner of Indosvara fluttered beneath the first sunlight after a long, dark age.
Ryu, Evelyn, Leon, Asta, and the others stood at the front row.
Their eyes burned not with fear — but with determination.
Each placed a hand over their chest.
Their voices roared as one:
"For humanity. For Indosvara!"
Jake smiled faintly.
The scars on his face hadn't healed, but his eyes burned bright.
Ryu stared straight ahead, his fists clenched tight, his vow echoing only within his heart:
"I'll kill you all, you damned monsters…"
"Without mercy."
The sky stretched endlessly above — blue, yet scarred from the night before.
And beneath it all,
the fire of mankind's resistance had just begun to burn.
To be continued...