"Geron? What happened brother? Void dammit Geron, speak!"

  "I... I..."

  "Geron! Snap out of it! What the hell happened?"

  "Nikra... I saw it, sister. I have seen it all, and couldn't do anything to save her. He was too fast, too close, and now she is gone..."

  "Save who, brother! Start making sense?!"

  "Focus, Nikra... Reach out to our siblings and tell me what you seell me you feel the same void as I do!"

  "N-no... This ot be true. She ot be gone... She swore she would never leave the Citadel without us... How?"

  "Tarak has betrayed us, sister. We are all alone now..."

  ~Nikra and Geron, shortly after the death of the Fifth

  The cws on his toes scraped against the ground as Leo came to a halt just a step away from the ruined building. The desote ers of the Wastend crept into his field of visio for now, he paid them no mind. Instead, in one fluid motion, he seized the edges of the shattered wall and pushed with everything he had, propelling himself to the top of the ruiructure.

  Leo's cws immediately sank into the rubble beh him, and he kept himself low. Though not an ideal position, it was still preferable to entering through the street. Not even True Stealth could hide him there, while here, the buildings at least offered covers in the form of broken walls and piles of debris.

  A bird's-eye view would have been much better, but no... I have to see what happeo that bloody thing. If it's dead, then I o know. Leo shook his head, tearing his gaze away from the lone row of standing buildings.

  Carefully maneuvering through the ruins, the eainted Wastend gradually came into view, and it did not disappoint. What, not even an ho, was shielded from all three sides by walls made of buildings, now only a single row remained, leaving behind heaps of rubble and the occasional half-standing wall.

  The scorched ground didn't ge even a bit. However, Leo quickly noticed that the influence of the Wastend had somehow mao seep into the ruins and the adjat road. Though not pletely overtaken, it was a close call, and he was willing to wager that soon, even the very ruiood in would bee part of the Wastend's domain.

  Fuck... Either I just stirred up a hor's , or the buildings were somehow slowing down the spread of the Wastend... And going by the fact that the st wall was pletely untouched and free from the cursed nd, the tter seemed like the more reasoion.

  Alright, so I might have fucked up a bit... Void damnit, Leo. You just had to release this hellhole oire city…

  The only silver lining in this entire mess was the fact that, from what he was seeing, the popution of the Wastend had been reduced to half of its inal numbers. Evidently, the Juggernaut kicked more Voidlings on its way to him than Leo initially expected.

  Speaking of that bloody thing... Where are you?

  The Juggernaut owerful, Leo would give the beast that much. However, the fact that it didn't e to finish the job when he y defeated oreet hihat something might have happeo it. After all, there was no reason for the Voidling to leave perfect prey behind after demolishing aire street to chase it.

  e on. Be dead, you dumb pile of muscles. Leo grumbled as he jumped onto another pile. Pieces of walls, floors, and furniture y scattered everywhere, yet the Juggernaut was o be seen…

  It wasn't until he was halfway through the third building that a fsh of color caught Leo's eyes. He quickly dropped from his current position and watched as dark blood flowed out of a gap in a massive heap, glinting in the light of the evening sun.

  Careful now…

  Slowly, Leo climbed around the pile that cealed the source of the blood. As he peered into the gap, a wide grin spread across his face. There, barely cealed by the rubble, a massive, skinless hand tried to reach the end of the hole. It y motionless, lifeless, and a single use of Identify firmed the Juggernaut's demise.

  So even you 't survive numerous buildings falling down on your head. Good.

  Staying on the side of caution, Leo prodded the hand with a stick he had found amidst the ruins. Despite that, the hand stayed still, aher Identify nor the upgraded Hunter's Pulse returned any signs of the Juggernaut still being alive.

  Alright then. Like they say, you only live once.

  With that sihought in mind, Leo thrust his hand into the gap, driving his sharp cws into the monster's bulging muscles. Devour activated immediately, ae the Voidling having died some time ago, the dams broke open, and Essence spilled into his body in waves.

  In parison, while a single Cursed Human barely gave him a tweh of his Essence reserves, the body of the Juggernaut already filled his soul to the maximum. Moreover, Devour opped drinking, hungry for more power. Leo even thought about stopping but quickly abahe notion. His ability had to have a reason for tinuously draining the massive beast.

  The ao that question arrived in the form of a notificatio before Leo could read it, the ruins c the Juggernaut's body trembled, a cloud of dust repg the monstrous form.

  Shit!

  Nearly stumbling over his own tails, Leo swiftly spun around araced his steps back to the previous building. The ruiructure behind him shook once more, and the echoes of screeches filled the air.

  Fot about that bloody thing turning into dust... Still, should be worth the scare if what I think just happened. Leo huffed as he climbed through the debris, finally reag the end of the ruins. O leap was all it took to safely nd on the same street he came from.

  Diving bato the tall red grass, Leht back the dismissed System notification.

  You have successfully devoured a Cursed Juggernaut, LVL: 11. Devour's special ability mao e: 1 Might and add it to your strength. May your future hunts be even more fruitful.

  Worth taking a peek, so fug worth it...

  A single addition to Might may not be mu the long run, but at this point, every siribute ted. Besides, Might was Leo's weakest side, so raising it even by one point ged a lot, especially sidering all the pertage boosts he possessed for this attribute.

  Forty-five pert... I don't even have half as much frace, and this should be my main attribute... Whatever, maybe it's for the best. 't have Might gging behind too much, and I don't want to spend points there if I don't have to for now.

  Dismissing the message, Leo looked up at the setting sun, its dark red rays bathing the world with its dying light. It was only a matter of time before the star would disappear behind the horizon, plunging this part of Earth into nightmarish darkness.

  All around, shadows had already begun to grow stronger, and even Leo's meager senses mao pick up the ge. Not even his true affinity could help against what was ing... The night was slowly waking, and whoever remained outside would have to face its wrath.

  Time to go.

  As this simple thought settled in Leo's mind, a sudden wave of crity surged through him, washing away all worries, tumultuous thoughts, and needless emotions. It felt as though a switch had been flipped in his soul, and in that moment, the primal instinct of the beast he had bee resurfaced for the first time since Prime's Rage had deactivated.

  For a fleeting moment, Leo eaihe thought of resisting, of suppressing those instincts and shoving them bato the hole they crawled from. However, before he could do that, the echoes of Nikra's past words reverberated in his mind.

  'Those new instincts will coexist with your own sciousness, for they are now yours. Live with them and, as you said, adapt...'

  It was normal to fear the unknown, to run from problems that scare us. But Leo couldn't... no, shouldn't run anymore. These instincts, though they shook him to the very core, were now an integral part of who he was. And denying a part of oneself never ended well…

  Adapt or die... Isn't that right, System? You really like proving the truth of those words... Leo mused with a wry chuckle.

  Like an animal, he dropped to all fours, his cws sinking into the ground. A surge of primal instinct roared within him, fueling his every move. Without a moment's hesitation, he luowards the building across the road, running like a devil was on his heel.

  As one unit, Leo and the instincts of a Night Hunter guided his body up the building's wall, digging new handholds with each move. Even his tails assisted in the climb, and he couldn't help but take notice of how easily they respoo his instincts' ands.

  Like an army of voices inside my head, all fighting for the same goal.

  It should have made him stop, make him end this madness, but Leo didn't want to. He and the nature of the Night Huill had a long way to go, but if he didn't embrace it now, they would be always at war from this point on. This, Leo knew deep inside his soul.

  'Live with them...'

  Evehe first Cursed Human walked into their path, it stood no ce against their bined might.

  They desded upon the beast like fallen angels plummeting from heaven, bdes extended and ready to cleave through flesh... The Voidling's head began to fall, but they were off within a blink, disappearing from sight before the monster's body even colpsed.

  This was the power of ay focused purely on two goals. Surviving and pleting its assigask. Not even the roars of the waking Nightmares in the background could push them off course, and with each passing sed, Leo learned more and more about the creature he had bee.

  Before long, a familiar area came into view — the street below still stained by the blood he had spilled this m. And as Leo stopped at a roof's edge, Night Hunter's instincts slowly backed off, returning full trol to its rightful owner. But despite that, they didn't disappear just like after the deactivation of Prime's rage. Instead, he could still feel them lurking underh the surface, ready te forth at a moment's notice.

  Good to have you with me. I swear that one day we will bee one, just as you showed me... A primal roar immediately respoo Leo's thoughts, and he didn't even attempt to stifle the ughter that escaped his throat. True Stealth would take care of it anyway.

  Talking to a bestial part of myself... Man, now I'm definitely going mad. But after what I just experienced, being mad might not be so bad.

  The instincts of a Prime Night Hunter are stirring, and you have answered their call, weling them into your soul. The first and hardest part of Synization is behind you. What you do depends wholly on you, User. Will you plete this process, or will you be fighting shadows until the end of time?

  Sn, Leo dismissed the message. I won't leave things half-finished, System. Now that I'm aware of what lies beh the surface, there's o resist. This is a part of me, and I have no iion of discarding it. Nikra's story taught me enough about that…

  So no System, this is not a choice. Leo shook his head lightly, gazing at the sun disappearing behind the horizon. Not when there is only oion to choose from.

  Well done, Nikra's Legacy. I will be waiting.

  Chaos65