The shaking of the earth made the hunters turn their heads to where the hills were. The forest was burning, and a landslide was happening. The birds and animals were striving to escape.

“Move the fold to the west!” Parker commanded.

The remaining heralds moved the fold and the hunters inside followed. As soon as the orcs managed to get in, the hunters started shooting them before they could even attack with their spears and arrows. Kino, despite suffering from his wounds, tried his best to aim his gun. He couldn’t count how many wraiths he had taken out. All he could think of was how it should all end soon, and the plan to disappear from everyone’s sight so they assumed he was dead should be done soon as well.

The sound of shattering glass distracted a few hunters from the back. Solar had returned and broke the fold, her body covered with dirt and blood.

“You’re back!” Aran was relieved to find a teammate returning as promised.

Solar smirked at him. “Let’s get this all done, shall we?”

The dealers handled the front lines swiftly. Parker was able to take out a huge number of the B-types despite the wounds he’d been receiving. In one swing of his sabre, he could slaughter five of them at a time. Calix and the remaining dealers did their best just like the young captain. In a short period, his swordsmanship skills had improved.

The heralds eventually drained all their energy into maintaining the fold. The hunters lost their defensive advantage as it cracked to pieces. “Shit!”

More orcs attacked the hunters. But the numbers steadily reduced till they managed to finish every single one of the monsters on the western side of the forest. But in exchange, they had lost 15 more hunters.

The raid was officially done. The hunters should be cheering, but the injuries they’d suffered from this terrible raid couldn’t bring any happiness. Adding to the fact they’d lost colleagues and friends; the heralds had no energy left to apply healing to their co-hunters.

Everyone was silent as they travelled in the woods to make it back to shore. Only the groaning and cries could be heard. Even Kino was exhausted from crying out of pain. He remained quiet while his dislocated arm pulled the empty gun from the ground. His left shoulder and legs were already numbed. He feels like a robot with his head empty from what he has gone through. He didn’t even accomplish his planned fake death.

I just want to go home.

“Hold on. We're almost there,” Calix told him, the guy had a limping leg. Kino nodded at him. He bit his lip to prevent the urge to produce new tears.

The hunters marched quietly into the woods, but hot strong winds were felt behind everyone’s back that made them stop in their tracks. Kino turned around and found everyone’s frightened faces. He opened his mouth to ask what was wrong when the next gush of wind, much stronger than the last, sent the hunters flying along with trees and rocks. Thunderous roars from the heavens soon followed.

The remaining heralds tried their best to form a new fold to protect everyone, but every time they did, it broke from the mix of powerful winds, and energy coming from the southern village they had just left.

Kino gripped a tree trunk and saw a large Gate up in the red skies. A huge flying rock hit his face causing his head to spin and lose his hold, but Julius behind him managed to grab his wrist.

“Kino!”

“Julius! Help!”

It was an S-rank gate. The most powerful Gate. The S-rank gate he saw in the middle of the city before was nothing compared to the Gate he’s seeing now. It’s much larger and stronger. The radius is much wider that, even without looking back, he knew it caused the ocean waves to be extra violent.

The hunters hadn’t reached half the forest yet, and now a powerful Gate added to their misfortunes.

“Everyone keep walking until we reach the shore!” Parker’s voice drowned from the cold winds. His nose was broken from bleeding. The heralds kept forming folds only to break at each try. They were very hopeless.

Soon enough, they heard a deep growl coming from behind. It was loud and monstrous enough to send shivers down everyone’s spines.

“Don’t look back! We’re retreating!”

Cries and screams were produced from the crazy phenomenon. One by one, each of the 29 surviving hunters was wiped out, getting pierced by wood branches attacking from behind.

What is happening?!

“KYAAAAAAH!!!”

“AAAAAAAAHHH!!!”

“HELP!!!”

“AAAAAAACKKKK!!!”

Flying bodies were everywhere, blood and flesh scattered in every direction. One body was cut in half and flew in front of Kino’s eyes. It was one of the dealers in the Maxi Team that used to hang with the Parker Team. The guy was still alive and carried by the strong winds like a piece of cloth. “HELP ME!!! ACK!!!” but his hysterical voice was eventually cut off as long, sharp branches attacked his torso.

What is going on?! What kind of enemy is—

Kino looked behind and met Julius’ terrified eyes. “J-Julius, what is—” But Julius puked blood on his face. The latter’s cheeks paled in horror.

“K-Kino, w-we’re g-gonna die. I’m scared—” A branch pierced his skull from behind, popping out his eyes and mouth. Blood and chunks of brain matter scattered on Kino’s face. He couldn’t believe what he’d just witnessed. He began trembling in fear.

“JULIUS!!!”

“HELP!!!” He heard familiar voices coming from above. The two men were swinging in the strong winds. Just like Julius, branches pierced their bodies from different directions. Ellis's head was decapitated while he screamed for his life, and Calix lost his left arm and a leg.

“E-ELLIS!!! C-CALIX!!!” Kino gripped onto a chopped tree trunk tightly. One of his arms reached for them only to get stabbed by multiple thin branches.

“ACK!!!” He screamed in pain.

“KINO! HELP ME!” Aran was flying in his direction. He couldn’t recognize the guy for a second as there was a huge hole in his head, revealing his skull and brain. His body was covered in blood and multiple holes could be seen. Kino grabbed him with his bleeding arm. He couldn’t believe his teammates were dying a horrible death right before his eyes.

“ARAN!!!”

Aran screamed for help. It was very painful to look at. “SAVE ME! I-I DON’T WANT TO DIE! I BEG YOU, I DON’T WANT TO—AAAAACKKK!!!“ The poor boy’s body was attacked by another series of branches from head to torso, it was powerful enough to cut his arm off. Kino gripped the flesh more tightly as if his friend was still there.

“NOOOOO!!! ARAN!!! AAAAAAACKKK!!!”

The traumatic moment before his eyes shattered him to pieces. He watched his friends and the rest of the hunters brutally die. Like Maxi, Norman, Leon, Darwin. Every one of them didn’t want to die. Every one of them was looking forward to returning home to their loved ones waiting for them to get back.

“AAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!” Kino’s weakened body was ultimately carried in the air. Pain entered his flesh and bones from all parts. It was his turn. All he could do was embrace his death and pray he lost consciousness soon to end his suffering completely.

I’m sorry, Reno, Morris; the people I’m leaving behind. Please forgive me. I love you.

But all of a sudden, something triggered inside him. Kino opened his eyes and felt something different in his body. He couldn’t feel the pain anymore. Instead, he felt light. His wounds were instantly healed, yet his mind was wired from mixed emotions. Large veins throbbed around his head. He couldn’t think properly. Memories of his friends flashed in his eyes, even memories he didn’t even know existed.

Pale-bluish arms pulled the branches out of his body. He felt powerful. The awakened guy levitated higher in the sky as if gravity held no sway against him. From above, Kino’s pitch-black eyes watched all the chaos. The sight of his comrades’ corpses earned him a chuckle as if it was the funniest thing he’d ever seen. He couldn’t feel any sympathy, but joy bloomed in his heart, filled to bursting with happiness. It was oddly satisfying.

"This is pathetic."

He spoke in the Altera language. The young man tried to stop laughing but he couldn’t. He covered his lips with the back of his hand but his shoulders kept shaking. He stretched his arms at the back of his head and watched closely. “Let’s see.”

His eyes spotted a giant B-type wraith responsible for this gruesome scenery. It was a living tree monster with two large arms that served as its legs. In the middle of its huge trunk body was a transparent head where its large eye core was located. It is technically easy to defeat the wraith with its exposed core, but it’s deadly from the way it attacks. Kino with unfamiliar memories in his head knew what the creature was. As the tree monster spotted the man still in the air, its hundreds of branches piercing corpses, trees, and various kinds of debris aimed to attack him.

“What kingdom sent their tree watcher over here?” Kino shouted angrily in the Republic’s native language. He didn’t know why but he felt happy upon the death of his colleagues, so why does he slowly feel angry and miserable? He glared deadly at the monster. “I should’ve annihilated every one of your kind when I got the chance,” he muttered to himself, cracking his neck to the sides and gliding towards the giant.