Early morning.

  As the sky brightened, visibility improved significantly, even though the sun had yet to rise. The members of Team B were already awake, getting up early to resume their unfinished training.

  "Yesterday, the Special-Css Danger Beast, Verdant Chryseis, was taken down by Kurome. Team A is progressing much faster than us—we can't afford to g too far behind," said Captain Kelly, rallying his team. "The Commander has been so good to us, so we mustn't disappoint him."

  The entire team nodded firmly in agreement.

  As before, Team A and Team B split up but stayed within a reasonable distance to support each other if needed. Seryu, in particur, kept a close eye on Yasha, who was physically weaker than the others.

  Throughout the morning, they encountered several Danger Beasts, but very few were Css One or Two, leaving their training objectives incomplete. The most challenging task—hunting a Special-Css Danger Beast—remained unmet.

  ...

  Finally, after completing their targets for Css One and Css Two Danger Beasts, they discovered a Special-Css Danger Beast in a swamp.

  It was a massive, spider-like creature with a bck body, crimson front cws, six legs, and six red eyes. Scattered around it were countless spider eggs. Once the battle began, it was almost certain that a swarm of baby spiders would hatch and attack.

  "This should be the Special-Css Danger Beast known as 'Bloodbath Mother.' Its main body isn't particurly strong, but those spider eggs are the real problem. There are at least a thousand spiderlings, each as strong as a Css Four Danger Beast. They're the real threat here," Kelly warned in a hushed tone. "We need to take it down in one decisive strike. If the Bloodbath Mother dies, the spiderlings will either scatter or cease attacking. The faster we kill it, the better."

  A single Css Four Danger Beast wasn't much of a threat, but a thousand of them? That was an entirely different challenge.

  Without hesitation, Team B sprang into action. Those wielding melee-type Shingu charged forward, while Senna—the only member equipped with a long-range firearm-type Shingu, "Prometheus"—provided cover fire from a distance.

  Prometheus was modeled after the Imperial Arm, "Roman Artillery: Pumpkin," but its power was far inferior.

  Unlike Pumpkin, which increased in strength under greater danger, Prometheus cked such an ability. However, it was still a formidable weapon, capable of performing ricochet shots, bouncing attacks, and other special firing techniques. Its main drawback was decreased accuracy with continuous shooting.

  Despite their best efforts, an instant kill was unlikely. Armed, the Bloodbath Mother immediately activated its defense mechanism—hatching the spiderlings.

  From all directions, a wave of baby spiders surged forth.

  Calling them "baby spiders" was misleading—they were each about half the size of an adult human, merely small in comparison to the Bloodbath Mother itself.

  "Kill it now! Before we get surrounded!" Kelly shouted.

  Working together, they successfully eliminated the Bloodbath Mother before the spider swarm could overwhelm them.

  With the mother dead, the spiderlings either froze in pce or scattered in different directions.

  They had no intention of chasing after them—only the Special-Css Danger Beast mattered.

  Kelly let out a sigh of relief. "Guess we got a bit lucky. Among Special-Css Danger Beasts, the Bloodbath Mother is retively easy to handle—provided you understand its habits."

  The others chimed in:

  "We only just finished our training objectives, but Team A is still way ahead of us."

  "Let's head back. Yasha needs to rest and recover as soon as possible."

  However, just as they were about to leave, they felt the ground tremble unnaturally.

  "More Danger Beasts?!"

  "And from the sound of it, more than one. If they're all Css One, this could be a real problem!"

  "Damn it! Did the bloodstains here attract them?!"

  "Should we call for Team A’s support?"

  Their expressions darkened.

  After a long day of hunting, exhaustion was setting in. The effort to quickly eliminate the Special-Css Danger Beast had drained their stamina. They were in no condition to take on multiple Css One Danger Beasts.

  The concern wasn't whether they could win—the real issue was avoiding casualties. A victory with heavy losses would be meaningless.

  Within moments, the creatures appeared in their field of vision. Five Css One Danger Beasts.

  Seeing this, Kelly made a swift decision. "We should call for backup, or maybe if Commander Seryu—"

  Before he could finish his sentence, Seryu had already drawn the massive sword from her back.

  "Your training is complete. You don’t need to deal with these Css One Danger Beasts. Leave them to me and Koro."

  As she spoke, her expression twisted into a feral grin. A terrifying aura of bloodlust radiated from her, sending a chill down Kelly's spine.

  "Those who dare to harm our comrades—EVIL SHALL NOT BE FORGIVEN!"

  With a furious cry, she commanded, "Koro, hunt down these evildoers!"

  She stomped the ground, causing cracks to form beneath her feet, and unched herself forward like an arrow.

  In one hand, she gripped her enormous sword. With the other, she hurled Koro toward the enemy.

  Most of the team had assumed Koro was nothing more than Seryu’s adorable pet—a harmless companion with little combat ability. But as they worried for Koro's safety, the creature suddenly transformed.

  In an instant, Koro grew into a monstrous beast, rger than any of the Css One Danger Beasts.

  Gone was its cute appearance. Its massive, bulging eyes gred menacingly, mirroring the vicious expression on Seryu's face.

  Seryu, relying solely on her martial prowess, was able to battle a Css One Danger Beast head-on. But Koro? It ripped through them like they were nothing.

  With a single swipe, Koro tore the head off a five-meter-tall bear-like Danger Beast, then casually tossed it into its mouth, chewing noisily. Its powerful jaws crushed the skull effortlessly, bone fragments crunching between its teeth before being swallowed whole.

  In mere moments, Seryu had sin one of the beasts, while Koro had shredded the remaining four.

  Even the wounds Koro sustained healed rapidly. As long as its core remained intact, it was virtually immortal.

  As a biological-type Teigu, Koro was on par with Super-Css Danger Beasts—after all, many Teigu were crafted from the remains of such creatures.

  Even without activating its special ability, "Berserk Mode," Koro utterly dominated the battlefield. Against Css One Danger Beasts, it was complete overkill.

  The rest of Team B stood frozen, stunned by the sheer brutality of the scene.

  Just then, Byn arrived with Team A to check on the situation.

  He had heard the commotion but, knowing Seryu was present, chose not to rush over using "Double Kamui."

  "Master! Koro and I defeated those evildoers!" Seryu called out excitedly, running up to Byn with an eager expression, clearly expecting praise.

  Koro had already reverted to its small, puppy-like form. Wagging its tail, it nuzzled against Byn’s chin affectionately.

  The stark contrast between their earlier ferocity and their current behavior left the members of Team B utterly speechless. They stood there, stunned, unable to process what they had just witnessed.

  PinkSnake