A low rumble echoed through the vast halls of the headquarters as Ryuji and his group came to a stop before a colossal stone gate that looked as though it held up the mountain itself.
As tall as a fortress wall and carved with ancient symbols worn away by time, it marked the main entrance to the Organization's headquarters. Behind them stretched a maze of barracks, training grounds, libraries, and countless buildings, a city hidden behind massive walls.
Ryuji had spent nearly three weeks living within those walls.
Three weeks without seeing the outside world.
His gaze lingered on the enormous gates.
A strange feeling tightened in his chest.
It wasn't fear.
It was anticipation.
Just a few steps away, Aeryn watched him in silence. Perched on her shoulder, a small black cat with crimson eyes slowly swayed its tail, staring at the young man without blinking.
She immediately noticed the unusual spark in his eyes.
Not the cold intensity he carried into battle.
This was different.
It was excitement.
A faint smile tugged at the corner of her lips.
"So... he really is just a seventeen-year-old boy after all."
A deep rumble shook the ground.
The massive gates slowly began to open with the heavy groan of ancient stone.
Sunlight poured through the widening gap.
Then the outside world revealed itself.
Ryuji stepped forward.
The moment his foot crossed the threshold, he stopped.
His eyes widened.
An enormous city stretched before him beneath the morning sun.
Cobblestone streets wound through rows of medieval buildings. Slate rooftops overlooked bustling markets filled with colorful fruits, spices, and strange artifacts. Children laughed as they darted through the crowds while merchants loudly called out to passing customers.
The scent of freshly baked bread mixed with roasted meat and fragrant herbs.
Church bells rang somewhere in the distance.
Horse-drawn wagons rolled across the stone roads.
The city was alive.
For the first time since arriving in this world, the calm mask on Ryuji's face cracked.
A faint light appeared in his eyes.
Until now, his days had been filled only with training halls, endless corridors, and battles.
But this...
This looked exactly like the fantasy cities he had spent countless hours exploring through games, anime, and manga.
Deep down...
He was still just a seventeen-year-old otaku.
And for the first time, that fantasy stood before him in reality.
His gaze wandered endlessly.
The buildings.
The signs.
The balconies.
Every tiny detail drew his attention.
Around them, people gradually stopped walking.
Conversations faded.
Then applause erupted.
"They're Hunters!"
"They're leaving on another mission!"
Children waved enthusiastically.
Elderly people respectfully bowed their heads.
Some even threw flowers into the street.
None of them knew where the Hunters were going.
None of them understood the dangers waiting ahead.
To them, these men and women were simply the guardians of humanity.
And that was enough.
Ryuji continued walking almost absentmindedly.
His eyes never stopped exploring.
He failed to notice that the group had already left the main avenue.
He didn't realize they had turned into a quieter street.
Nor did he notice they had entered a large cathedral.
...
Silence.
A deep, sacred silence.
Ryuji blinked several times.
His thoughts slowly returned to reality.
A dry voice shattered the quiet.
"So... does our ticking time bomb even listen when people talk?"
Leon.
As charming as ever.
Aeryn rolled her eyes.
"You really talk too much."
Without warning, she smacked the back of Ryuji's head.
"Ow!"
He jumped and instinctively rubbed the sore spot.
Only then did he look around.
A vast cathedral.
Ancient wooden pews.
Colorful stained-glass windows casting soft light across the stone floor.
Everyone else was already standing around a strange magic circle engraved into the ground.
Edward stared at him with obvious disappointment.
Bayron struggled not to laugh.
Leon simply looked at him with undisguised contempt.
Edward let out a long sigh.
"Tell me... did you hear even a single word of the briefing?"
Ryuji froze.
"Uh... I..."
Nothing came.
His mind was completely blank.
Edward slowly closed his eyes.
"Bayron."
"Yes, Commander?"
"You'll explain the mission to him later."
"Understood."
Ryuji scratched the side of his cheek awkwardly.
"Sorry..."
No one answered.
As Aeryn walked past him, she quietly muttered,
"Leaving you alone with Roy was clearly a mistake."
Ryuji simply sighed.
At the center of the cathedral stood a man dressed in pure white robes.
His face was utterly expressionless.
His eyes seemed almost empty.
As though every trace of emotion had long since vanished.
Beneath his feet lay an enormous magic circle covering most of the cathedral floor.
Edward gave a silent nod.
The Hunters stepped forward without hesitation.
Ryuji followed.
The priest slowly raised both hands.
His fingers began tracing intricate patterns through the empty air.
Each movement was impossibly precise.
As though he were sculpting something invisible.
The runes beneath their feet lit up one after another.
A pale blue glow spread across the circle.
The air trembled.
The stained-glass windows rattled.
Then—
Light exploded.
Everything disappeared beneath a blinding flash.
...
When Ryuji opened his eyes again, it wasn't the light that struck him first.
It was the smell.
Heavy.
Dry.
Ancient.
Death.
He instinctively held his breath.
The landscape around them had completely changed.
An endless wasteland stretched as far as the eye could see.
Bones covered the ground.
Human skeletons.
Bleached skulls.
Gigantic rib cages and vertebrae belonging to creatures so massive they defied imagination.
Some skeletons were so enormous that they resembled hills.
Twisted black trees surrounded the area, their branches reaching toward the gray sky like the hands of the damned.
Not a single leaf remained.
Even nature itself seemed to have abandoned this place.
There were no birds.
No insects.
Only the mournful whistle of the wind weaving through countless bones.
And that smell.
It lingered everywhere.
Edward slowly rested a hand on the hilt of his sword.
The humor had vanished from Bayron's face.
Even Leon scanned the surroundings with icy caution.
Ryuji remained silent.
His eyes swept across the endless sea of bones.
The hairs on his arms stood on end.
This wasn't merely an abandoned battlefield.
The land itself still remembered the slaughter.
As though time had never managed to erase the scars carved into its soul.
They had entered a graveyard.
The graveyard of the Calamities.
And the silence surrounding them carried the unsettling feeling that something, somewhere within this endless wasteland, had been waiting for them all along.