The battlefield was chaos—at least for the monsters.
The strength of the S-Ranks was overwhelming. Monsters exploded at the mere point of Rein's finger. Some were torn apart in seconds by Toma's blade, a blur of deadly precision.
Toma glanced up mid-swing and shouted,
"Rein! Head outside and assist Master Shigara! I've got things under control here!"
"Roger that!" Rein replied, leaping into motion as he dashed outside.
Above the Kami Clan Dojo, the messengers of the Oregons had vanished—but their magical residue lingered in the air like smoke after fire. Hein, one of the Twelve Outers, stood atop the dojo, tracking the remnants of their mana. His cloak fluttered in the breeze as he surveyed the battleground below.
"Orgeons those bunch. Only them can summon these denizens of the Forgotten Realm… They were definitely here. But where did they go?" he muttered, narrowing his eyes.
Hein knelt, running his fingers over the air, sensing the magical energy that still clung to space like echoes refusing to fade.
"Mana doesn't just vanish," he continued, "Unless they've developed a space-time distortion technique. But if so, why leave traces behind? Are they baiting me? Do they know I'm tracking them… or am I just overthinking this?"
His mind raced, pieces of a puzzle refusing to fit. Something wasn't right.
Outside, Rein had already joined Master Shigara, cutting down the remaining monsters. Though the tide of battle had turned, a chill crawled up Rein's spine—an unshakable feeling that they were being watched. Then he saw it: a shadowy blur standing on nothing, silent but it's movements looked like it was searching for something.
Though it radiated no hostility, its mere presence was disturbing.
"These noises are irritating," Hein muttered. He raised his hand, and suddenly, the monsters froze in place.
Everyone paused—stunned. Shigara's warriors hesitated for just a moment… then seized the opportunity and struck. But before their weapons could land, Hein clenched his fist.
Boom.
The monsters exploded into liquid gore, silencing the battlefield.
The students stared in disbelief. Even Shigara was speechless.
Rein looked toward the floating shadow, his thoughts spiraling.
"Even with Toma, there's no way we could defeat that being… That shadow… Did it just save us? Wasn't it one of them?"
He was pulled from his thoughts by the cheers of the students below, celebrating their survival.
"I almost died… If Rein Hunter hadn't stepped in…" one student whispered.
"We survived!" another cried with relief.
But Rein's eyes remained locked on the shadow.
"I can't afford to let my guard down."
High above, the shadow moved.
"Tsk. A human hunter noticed me? Annoying. I thought I was using high-level stealth. Guess I still have a lot to learn… But I can't leave witnesses."
In an instant, he vanished without a trace.
Rein exhaled slowly.
"He's gone… But something is wrong with this world. Monsters appearing out of nowhere. Random power awakenings. Beings with unmatched presence… There's more going on than we hunters realize."
Toma emerged from the dojo with the students trailing behind.
"Is everyone okay?" he asked.
"We made it," Shigara replied, dropping to one knee, exhausted.
The master looked up at Rein.
"You sensed it, didn't you? That presence."
"Yeah… It was ominous," Rein replied, before turning away.
"Toma!" he called out. "I'm returning to headquarters. You take care of things here. We'll meet again soon."
With a flick of his hand, a teleportation magic circle lit up beneath him, and he vanished.
---
High above the clouds…
Hein reappeared, his expression dark.
"Inferior beings interfering with my investigation…" He clenched his fist. "I didn't want to spill blood unnecessarily…"
But then—he felt it. A familiar presence.
A broad smile crossed his face.
"We have a visitor."
From the sky, a figure descended.
"Pathetic," Hiddan sneered, grinning as he faced Hein. "There you are. What in the cosmos have you been up to?"
"Why did you miss our last gathering?" asked Kailan, a graceful woman in flowing white robes, her blue eyes gleaming with light.
Hein smiling responded.
"You all look well. I've been investigating traces of the Ou—"
"So this is the planet you claimed was valuable to our cause?" Hiddan interrupted, a smirk playing on his lips. "Guess I'll go take a look for myself."
And with that, he vanished into the air.