Eight Years Ago...
Three men sat inside a meeting room.
The atmosphere was heavy.
One of them clenched his fists and spoke with frustration.
"This year alone... three thousand people died."
"All because of the Devil and his Demon Army."
"And we couldn't stop them."
The room fell silent.
Another man lowered his head.
"And not only civilians..."
"Thirty Demon Butchers were killed as well."
The third man took a deep breath.
"The Devil isn't an ordinary demon."
"He's the strongest demon alive."
"His Demon Army consists of eight Ranked Demons."
"Each one possesses terrifying powers."
The tension in the room grew even heavier.
After a moment, one of them finally spoke.
"Then we have no choice."
"We must send Dhruv Roy and his team."
At that moment, the door opened.
A man stepped inside and looked at the clock.
"Sir..."
"It's time."
Present Day – Eight Years Later
Jay Verma suddenly woke up.
Sweat covered his forehead.
The same nightmare.
Again.
Before he could gather his thoughts, his phone started ringing.
Jay answered the call.
"Where are you?!" a voice shouted from the other side.
"Hurry up and get here!"
The call ended.
Jay sighed and quickly got ready before rushing out of his house.
A few minutes later...
Several hunters stood gathered near a mission site.
One of them noticed Jay running toward them.
"Look who's here."
"The weakest member of the team."
A few others laughed.
Jay heard every word but ignored them.
As he approached, two hunters stepped in front of him.
"Late again?"
"Or were you too scared to come?"
Jay was about to respond when a calm voice interrupted them.
"If you have something to say to him..."
"Say it to me first."
Everyone turned around.
Arjun Das.
The strongest member of Team 23.
One of the hunters frowned.
"And what if we don't?"
Arjun smiled slightly.
"Then try your luck."
The two hunters charged at him.
Whoosh!
Before anyone could react, Arjun grabbed both of them.
BOOM!
He threw them several meters away.
The two hunters crashed into the ground.
Silence.
Everyone stared at Arjun in shock.
"What kind of strength is that...?"
"He's a monster..."
The two hunters lost consciousness instantly.
Arjun simply turned around.
"Let's go."
"We have a mission."
A while later...
Team 23 arrived at a mysterious cave.
A cold breeze flowed from the darkness inside.
Something felt wrong.
Very wrong.
One of the hunters swallowed nervously.
"I don't like this place."
Arjun placed a hand on his sword.
"Stay alert."
The team slowly entered the cave.
Darkness surrounded them.
The deeper they went, the heavier the atmosphere became.
Then suddenly...
Everyone stopped.
Someone was standing ahead.
A demon?
No.
It looked human.
The team cautiously approached.
The man suddenly looked at them with terrified eyes.
"Run!"
"Get out of here!"
"Hurry!"
Everyone froze.
Before they could react—
THUD!
A gigantic hand shot out from the darkness.
It grabbed the man's head.
"AAAAAHHHHH!"
The man was dragged into the darkness.
"RUN!"
"GET OUT OF HERE!"
His screams echoed throughout the cave.
ROOOOOOAAAARRRRR!!
A terrifying roar shook the entire cavern.
Fear spread across everyone's faces.
"Demon!"
"Run!"
The hunters immediately turned and fled.
One of them managed to reach the exit.
He escaped.
But then—
BOOOOOOOM!!
The cave entrance collapsed.
Massive rocks sealed the exit completely.
Jay.
Arjun.
And everyone else...
Were trapped inside.
What they didn't know was that this wasn't an ordinary cave.
It was a portal.
A gateway that led directly to Hell.
Outside the cave...
The hunter who escaped rushed back to the Association Headquarters.
He stumbled into the office, breathing heavily.
"Team 23..."
"They're trapped inside."
An officer immediately stood up.
"What happened?"
The hunter's body trembled.
"There might be..."
"...an 8-Rank Demon inside that cave."
The room fell silent.
The officer's expression darkened.
"I understand."
Back inside the cave...
Jay looked at Arjun.
"What just happened?"
Arjun tightened his grip on his sword.
"Stay close to me."
"There might be an 8-Rank..."
"...or even a 9-Rank Demon here."
Jay's body froze.
"No..."
"It's happening again..."
Arjun frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"What's happening again?"
Before Jay could answer—
Everyone suddenly fell silent.
A shadow appeared in the distance.
Slowly.
Step by step.
It moved toward them.
One of the hunters began trembling.
"H-He's coming..."
The shadow drew closer.
And closer.
Then...
Two glowing red eyes opened within the darkness.
Everyone's breath stopped.
Chapter ends