The serene order of the Serium Realm was shattered in the span of a single night.
Shinjiru woke to alarms echoing through the Core Citadel. Crimson-and-black auras flashed across the walls, the warning of Stage 3 Krawlers moving beyond containment. The normally disciplined Academy grounds were in pandemonium—students and low-ranked Himen scrambling to defensive posts, the low hum of Travel Bands warping in distress.
Masaru met Shinjiru at the training hall, his face tight with urgency. "It's worse than anticipated. Multiple Krawlers breached the outskirts. They're headed toward the Essence Grove. We have civilians trapped, and the Elite are mobilizing now. You… you need to move, Shinjiru."
Shinjiru's heart hammered. This was no controlled training. This was war.
The First Clash — Real Danger
The Krawlers came like living nightmares. One of the Stage 3 monsters, tentacles writhing with corrupted red veins, advanced on a cluster of students. Shinjiru felt his aura flare, violet streaks blazing with silver, his chains almost vibrating with anticipation.
Instinct took over. He darted forward, kusarigama in hand, chaining a precise strike that tore through one of the Krawler's armored limbs. Another student collapsed behind him, frightened, but Shinjiru grabbed their hand, pulling them clear just as the Krawler's maw opened to strike.
It was his first real kill. The Krawler screeched as it disintegrated into corrupted essence fragments, the smell of scorched energy filling the air. His heart raced, but the realization hit him: this was no simulation. People could die here.
Kaoru appeared beside him, aura blazing white-gold, striking another Krawler with surgical precision. "Control your fear, Shinjiru," Kaoru warned. "Chaos is a test. Not just of skill, but of mind and spirit."
Rebellion Sparks — Ranko Hoshi Emerges
While Shinjiru and the Academy fought the Krawlers, another crisis unfolded. Ranko Hoshi, long simmering in dissent, used the chaos as cover. The rebellion erupted in the Intelligence Quarter, targeting facilities, archives, and Travel Band stations.
Shinjiru's communication line crackled. Miyu Kage's voice was tense, ivory-blue flickering:
"Shinjiru… it's Ranko. She's using this chaos to destabilize us. Some Himen are siding with her… it's a full-blown rebellion."
Shinjiru's mind reeled. The Serium Realm was not just under attack by Krawlers—it was fracturing from within. Allies could not be trusted entirely; every step was a calculated risk.
Into the Boneyard — First Exposure
The Elite deemed a strategic strike necessary: Shinjiru, Kaito, and a select squad would attempt to contain Krawlers moving toward The Maw. Their path cut through the Boneyard, a forbidden zone. The air grew colder, heavy with corrupted essence. Gravity warped, and floating bone spires loomed ominously.
Shinjiru's aura reacted instinctively, violet-silver streaks brightening as the corrupted essence reached out to him. Stage 3 Krawlers here were unlike anything he'd seen. They were intelligent, predatory, and their attacks warped reality itself.
A massive serpentine form slithered from the shadows: Orochi no Kyōfu, his father's killer, now in full Stage 3 manifestation. Its multiple jaws snapped, each lined with corrupted teeth, eyes glowing ember-red. Shinjiru's breath caught—this was the enemy who had changed his life forever.
Chaos Combat — Applying Elite Lessons
Shinjiru moved instinctively, chaining techniques learned from Kaoru, Ryuzen, Akihara, and Tensei Raidon. His kusarigama phased through minor essence shields, cutting through corrupted limbs. Speed taught by Setsuna allowed him to evade devastating tentacles, while Hibiki's psychological drills gave him the mental resilience to remain calm amidst the sensory overload of the Boneyard.
But even with his training, the Krawler was relentless. Each strike met resistance; each maneuver forced him into split-second decisions where failure meant death.
"Remember restraint!" Kaoru's voice echoed in his mind. "Control, don't rage."
Shinjiru adjusted mid-strike, targeting the Krawler's essence nodes, exploiting weaknesses in its corrupted aura. The battle was a brutal dance of life and death, with Shinjiru using every shred of skill, strategy, and moral judgment he'd learned.
Moral Crossroads — Sacrifice Awareness
During the fight, a second Krawler lunged at an Academy squad pinned behind a collapsed spire. Shinjiru could save them only by overextending himself. He hesitated, memories of his father's warnings flooding his mind. "You cannot save everyone… but you can choose where to act," Haruto's voice echoed.
With measured precision, Shinjiru rerouted the Krawler, using the environment, his aura, and chain mastery to shield the squad. The Krawler roared, trapped momentarily, allowing the students to escape—but Shinjiru took a direct strike to the shoulder. Pain lanced through him, yet his aura flared brighter than ever.
He realized, even as he blocked the strike, that the hybrid essence inside him was awakening in unprecedented ways. This was only the beginning.
Climactic Tension — Orochi's Recognition
Orochi's multiple heads swiveled toward him, ember eyes glowing with recognition, almost human in intelligence. It hissed, a voice echoing in the corrupted ether:
"Arakami… you… hybrid… my reckoning… will not be denied…"
Shinjiru's heart thundered. This wasn't just a fight. This was the moment where all his training, his father's secrets, and the chaos of the rebellion converged. If he survived, he would emerge not just as a powerful Himen—but as a force capable of changing the balance of Serium itself.
The Elite watched remotely, their auras flaring, silently acknowledging that Shinjiru had grown beyond their expectations. For the first time in history, a human-Himen hybrid faced a Stage 3 Krawler head-on—and lived to fight.