Heavy footsteps echoed through the hallway.
Slow.
But with every step, the floor shook a little more.
Yoru's claw hardened instantly.
His body was already running on adrenaline.
Outside, there were black vehicles, armed Eclipse agents, and snipers watching from the distance. And inside the building, something else was coming too.
Something that definitely wasn't normal.
Sairi's ice barrier cracked after another sniper shot.
CRACK.
"Move!" she shouted again.
Yoru finally reacted.
The three of them rushed out of the broken room and sprinted into the dark hallway.
Behind them—
BOOM!
The wall exploded.
Pieces of concrete flew through the corridor.
"These guys are seriously going to blow this whole building apart!" Yoru shouted.
"They don't care!" Sairi shouted back.
Ren was running in front of them.
Completely calm.
Which honestly annoyed Yoru even more.
"Why are you so relaxed?!" he yelled.
"I'll panic later."
"Helpful."
Another loud sound rang out.
THUD.
Something huge landed at the far end of the hallway.
Everyone stopped at once.
Two glowing red eyes appeared in the darkness.
Yoru's heartbeat sped up instantly.
"...Again?" he said slowly.
The thing stepped out of the shadows little by little.
Tall.
At least seven feet.
Black armored skin.
Long arms.
Its face looked almost human.
Almost.
But its mouth was unnaturally wide, like a smile had been carved into it permanently.
"Experimental Hunter Unit," Sairi said in a low voice.
"Please tell me it's weak."
"No."
"Of course."
The creature tilted its head.
Crack.
Then it locked eyes with Yoru.
"Target... confirmed."
Yoru raised his claw immediately.
"Why am I ALWAYS the target?!"
The next second—
The monster charged.
Fast.
Way too fast for something that big.
"Split!" Ren shouted.
All three of them moved in different directions just before the creature smashed through the center of the hallway.
BOOM.
The entire corridor shook.
Yoru landed near the side wall and counterattacked at once.
Dark aura burst around his claw.
SLASH.
The hit connected.
But only barely.
The creature's armored skin was only scratched. A shallow cut appeared, nothing more.
"You've gotta be kidding me..."
The monster swung at him immediately.
Yoru ducked.
The wall behind him exploded completely.
"Yoru!"
Sairi launched ice spikes toward the creature.
Sharp frozen spears hit its body—
But it still didn't stop.
Ren suddenly appeared at its side.
"Move."
"What—"
Too late.
Ren grabbed Yoru by the collar and threw him aside.
The next second, the creature's arm smashed into the spot where Yoru had been standing.
BOOM.
The floor cracked.
Yoru slid across the ground.
"Could've warned me first!"
"You're welcome," Ren said casually.
"How are you still this calm during this?!"
The creature roared.
The distorted sound echoed through the entire hallway.
Outside, the gunfire was getting closer.
Eclipse agents were already entering the building.
"This is bad," Sairi muttered.
"No really?" Yoru snapped back.
Ren's expression finally changed.
It turned serious.
"Listen carefully."
He dodged another attack while speaking.
"There's no time to fight it here."
"Then what do we do?!"
"We run."
The creature charged again.
Ren raised one hand.
For the first time, Yoru felt his aura clearly.
Sharp.
Violent.
Purple energy flashed for just a second.
BOOM.
An invisible force slammed the creature into the side wall.
The hallway cracked even more.
Yoru's eyes widened.
"...Okay, what the hell was that?"
"No time."
Ren turned.
"GO!"
The three of them started running again.
The building felt unstable now.
Pieces of the ceiling were falling.
The sirens outside kept getting louder.
From below, Eclipse agents were shouting.
"Third floor secured!"
"Target moving east side!"
"Don't let them escape!"
Yoru clenched his teeth.
"Did they bring the whole army?!"
"Pretty much," Ren said.
Sairi suddenly stopped.
"Wait."
Her eyes narrowed.
"Front."
At the end of the hallway, more agents were waiting.
Weapons raised.
Already aimed.
"Found them!"
Gunfire broke out instantly.
"DOWN!"
Ren pushed Yoru and Sairi both to the ground.
Bullets tore through the wall above them.
Concrete exploded around the corridor.
Yoru's heartbeat was going wild now.
Monster behind them.
Agents in front.
Snipers outside.
"Any genius plan?!" he shouted.
Ren looked at the side wall.
"Yeah."
"Finally."
Ren kicked the wall.
Nothing happened.
Yoru blinked.
"...That was the plan?"
"Wait for it."
One second passed.
Then another.
And then—
CRAAAAASH.
The entire wall collapsed.
Cold rainwater rushed in immediately.
An escape path opened.
Yoru stared at him.
"You could do that the whole time?!"
"Yep."
"I hate you."
"Later."
The three of them jumped through the broken wall.
Rain poured down heavily outside.
A narrow alley stretched below them.
The landing was rough, but they managed.
"Move, move, move!" Ren shouted.
Behind them, Eclipse agents kept firing from the windows.
Bullets hit the alley walls.
Sparks flew everywhere.
Yoru ran and shouted, "I'm seriously starting to hate this city!"
Ren actually laughed.
"Now you sound normal."
"Shut up!"
Suddenly—
BOOM.
The upper floor exploded.
The monster jumped out of the building and landed hard in the alley.
Concrete and glass rained down around them.
The ground cracked beneath its feet.
Yoru stopped instantly.
"Nope."
The creature slowly stood up.
Rain slid over its black armored body.
Its glowing red eyes locked on Yoru again.
"Persistent little thing..." Ren muttered.
The monster let out another roar.
The whole alley shook.
Yoru slowly raised his claw.
The dark aura around him mixed with the rain.
Fear was still there.
Very clearly there.
But this time—
He wasn't running.
His red eyes glowed a little brighter.
"Fine..."
He looked straight at the creature.
"...come here."