The assignment was unexpected.
Despite the party being E-rank—with Kazuki and Kairyuuha still officially marked as beginners—the Guild handed them a dungeon quest. Rumors of strange energy fluctuations in the area had caught attention, and adventurers were scarce.
Still, Team Emberlight accepted. Yuno, Kael, Mei, Reiya, and Thora prepared alongside Kazuki and Kairyuuha, nerves mixed with resolve.
The dungeon was cold and stale. Twisting halls of moss-ridden stone welcomed them with snarling goblins and reptilian crawlers. The group handled them in formation—Reiya cleaving enemies with sharp, practiced arcs; Mei casting flame bursts with graceful flicks; Thora using brute force to crush armored beetles; Yuno and Kael coordinating mid-range and support; Kazuki backing them up with a cautious precision.
But something was off.
As they descended deeper, the enemies became too strong. A mutated ogre appeared—nearly C-rank. A shadow-laced serpent lunged from the walls. Kairyuuha and Kazuki took the front, reacting in sync. Kairyuuha’s movement was fluid, his footwork near flawless, each strike laced with a chill that lingered.
Kazuki impressed the team as well. Though he lacked flashy magic or deadly strength, his timing and courage made the others respect him.
Then… they reached the final chamber.
A putrid fog rolled in.
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The dungeon boss emerged—a massive, skinless chimera, stitched together with exposed muscle and black veins pumping toxic energy. Its scream split the air like a thousand blades. Bloodlust flooded the room, freezing even seasoned fighters.
“Everyone back!” Mei shouted, raising a barrier.
Reiya rushed in first, sword clashing with the beast’s claws. It roared and slashed across Thora’s side, blood spraying. Kael pulled him back, casting a desperate healing spell.
Kairyuuha’s body trembled—not from fear, but anticipation.
“This… is not normal,” he muttered, clutching his twin daggers. “It’s distorted.”
The monster hurled Yuno into the wall. Kazuki rushed in to shield Mei from a tail swipe. The party was falling apart—until Kairyuuha stepped forward.
He bit his lip, blood dripping onto the dungeon floor. “I need more… More speed. More power.”
His breath slowed.
In that instant—his regeneration activated. Flesh stitched itself back. His aura pulsed.
“I must become… distorted.”
His blue and red eyes ignited, glowing like twin stars.
Suddenly—he vanished.
Blink. He appeared behind the beast.
Blink. Beside it.
Blink. Above it.
There were dozens of him. Shadows of Kairyuuha stacked on top of each other, flickering, phasing, dancing in warped space.
“Blade Technique: Slash of Darkness.”
His voice echoed unnaturally. One strike. The chimera roared, its shoulder cleaved open.
Then—
“Barrage Darkness Array.”
Black slashes tore from every direction. The walls shook. The beast thrashed in agony.
The team stared, speechless. Kairyuuha’s form blurred and bent logic, bending light and space itself.
And then—
“Silent Cleave.”
No sound. Just motion.
A blink later, the boss’s head slid from its neck.
Silence.
The monster fell. The team stood in shock. No one spoke—not even Kazuki.
But instead of a reward room opening—
A rift tore open.
Darkness sucked them in before they could react.
They hit the ground hard. An eerie silence filled the air. Grey mist curled along their boots. Dead trees stretched around them like skeletal fingers.
A figure emerged, laughter echoing unnaturally.
“You humans are quite amusing,” he said, a sadistic grin curling on his pale lips. “So fragile. So easy to distort.”
He wore ragged robes, runes glowing faintly from his skin.
“I am Deyrith, the Twisted Sage,” he declared. “I wonder what I’ll learn… when I peel away your sanity.”
Fear gripped the group—except for Kazuki and Kairyuuha, who stepped forward with unblinking stares.
Deyrith smiled wider.
“Oh? Brave little anomalies. Let’s see how long your will lasts.”
