The pain kept pounding in Ryuusei's body. His breathing was short, his chest rising and falling frantically as he tried to process what had just happened. Death had not only sent the Beast... he had also sent the Black Herald.

It was no longer a hunt.

It was an execution.

"You want to end this," Ryuusei muttered under his breath. He wants to see me dead as soon as possible.

Around him, the landscape was devastated. Columns of smoke rose over the rubble, and cracks in the ground bore mute witness to the fighting. In front of him, the Black Herald's figure stood unwavering, his obsidian sword resting on his shoulder. His dark cloak fluttered like a living shadow, and his presence exuded an unsettling calm.

"You are taking too long," the Herald said in a deep, distorted voice. Finish dying, human.

Ryuusei raised his hammer. His arms were shaking, but he couldn't give up.

"I'm going to resist!" He roared, rushing to the attack.

The clash was immediate. The sword and hammer collided with a force capable of splitting the sky. Shock waves destroyed the nearby trees, and the ground was fragmented into a thousand pieces. Ryuusei teleported repeatedly, attacking from different angles, but the Herald predicted every move with chilling ease.

"Boring," the Herald whispered, blocking each blow with one arm.

"Shut up!" Ryuusei bellowed, feeling his fury crackle inside him.

But then, the Herald changed its strategy.

"When I'm done with you, I'll go get your family."

Ryuusei's hammer came to rest in mid-air.

"I'm going to rip out their organs one by one. To make them scream while I slowly tear them apart.

Ryuusei's stomach sank as if he had been thrown into an abyss. His breathing became erratic. A cold sweat ran down his back.

Fear.

The Herald noticed it... and smiled sadistically.

"Ah... So this is your real fear.

Ryuusei tried to move, attack, but his body didn't respond. His mind was caught up in the image of his family being massacred.

And at that instant, the Herald struck.

A devastating impact hit him in the stomach. It was as if five trucks had hit him at once. His bones creaked. Blood gushed out of his mouth. His body was thrown through, piercing a tree and tearing it apart in the process.

He fell to the ground in convulsions. His breathing was erratic, his eyes unfocused. The pain was unbearable. His conscience was reeling.

Death was approaching.

The Herald moved slowly, enjoying every second of his agony.

"It's over," he whispered, raising his sword for the final blow.

The black edge descended.

Ryuusei tried to move, but her body was unresponsive. His muscles screamed in pain. His mind, however, had only one thought.

I don't want to die.

A burst of light interrupted the attack.

The Herald stopped, frowning. He turned his head.

Ryuusei, barely conscious, also looked.

Something else had entered the scene.

And then, the earth trembled with the arrival of an even more monstrous presence.

The Beast.