The arrow sliced through the air, whistling toward Johnquis's chest. The Runner moved like lightning. One arm blurred upward, claws flashing.
CLACK!
The arrow was caught between two fingers.
The shaft splintered in its grip.
Everyone froze.
The three Eater Blades surrounding them stood stunned, their mouths half-open. The spearwoman still held her weapon aloft, but her arms had gone stiff.
The bowman's voice cracked.
"W-What the hell…?"
The Runner's eyes glowed faintly, focused not on them but on Johnquis, as if checking for injuries. It tossed the broken arrow aside and took one slow step forward.
The spearwoman backed up.
"No way… why didn't it strike?"
The shieldbearer muttered,
"That runner, It caught the arrow... for him?"
Johnquis stood still, breathing hard.
"I told you… he's not your enemy."
The Runner exhaled…A low, guttural snarl that rolled into a full, deafening ROAR.
"KRAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!"
The sound thundered through the mall like a shockwave, rattling windows, cracking tiles beneath their feet. Dust rained down from the upper levels.
Birds scattered from broken rafters above. A nearby glass display case exploded from the force.
The three Eater Blades covered their ears, nearly knocked off balance. The bowman dropped his next arrow. The woman cursed under her breath, eyes wide with panic.
"Shit—SHIT—it's pissed off!"
Up above, at the ruined top floor balcony.
Rex froze.
He had been standing silently, surveying the mall. When the roar echoed upward, he snapped his gaze toward the source.
He recognized that sound instantly.
His hand slowly clenched around the hilt of his blade.
"That scream…"
His eyes narrowed, burning with fury.
"The Nemesis."
He stepped forward from the shadow, the light catching his violet eyes and glowing Eater Blade.
"Finally..."
The roar died out, but the air still trembled from the echo.
Johnquis reached out instinctively.
"Wait! Hey, calm down—"
But the Runner was gone.
In a flash of motion, it vanished. It raced forward, crouched low to the ground like a predator unleashed.
Straight toward the archer.
"SHIT—!"
The archer yelped, trying to nock another arrow.
WHAM!
The shieldbearer threw himself in the way, slamming his arm forward as a glowing wall of hexagonal light shimmered into place.
[Skill: Dashing Mountain - Blood Cost: 7%]
"DASHING MOUNTAIN!"
The Runner crashed into it, claws screeching against the barrier like steel on steel. The force shoved them both backward, the shieldbearer sliding across the floor, boots grinding stone.
"FUCKING HELL! IT'S STRONG!"
The spearwoman leapt forward.
"Form up! This isn't just some random Runner—"
The bowman scrambled behind cover.
"THAT'S—THAT'S THE NEMESIS!"
Johnquis charged between them, arms wide.
"STOP! You don't understand! He's angry but he won't kill if we just back off!"
The Runner snarled, fangs dripping, eyes burning violet.
It wasn't listening.
Johnquis turned towards it.
"LOOK AT ME! It's over! I'm okay! Please, just stop!"
The Runner paused for half a second. I'ts chest heaving, claws twitching at its sides.
The archer, still trembling, muttered,
"It hesitated…"
The shieldbearer, still keeping his skill shield up, spat,
"No hesitation. That thing was going for the kill."
The spearwoman grit her teeth, rage seething in her breath.
"Fucking Nemesis…"
She twisted her grip.
"YOUR HEAD IS MINE!"
She lunged.
[Skill: Spear Thrust — Blood Cost: 4%]
"SPEAR THRUST!"
The blade cut through the air, aiming straight for the neck.
It ducked under the strike, spun low, then twisted into a brutal kick.
BOOM!
The woman flew backward and smashed into a crumbling wall, debris raining down.
The archer didn't wait.
[Skill: Arrow Rain — Blood Cost: 5%]
"ARROW RAIN!"
Dozens of glowing arrows appeared in the air and fell like a storm.
The Runner grabbed Johnquis and leapt. Dodging through the rain.
The shieldbearer watched, stunned.
"That Nemesis… it's protecting him. What the hell's going on?"
The Runner dropped Johnquis onto the shattered carousel and launched forward again, claws ready.
Johnquis stared, breath caught in his throat.
"…No way. No fucking way this is happening. Not again..."
The carousel groaned beneath Johnquis as the Runner launched away from him.
The spearwoman, still coughing from the hit, rose with blood dripping from her mouth. She wiped it away with the back of her hand and shouted hoarsely:
"STICK TO FORMATION! WE'VE TAKEN DOWN LEVEL TWOS BEFORE!"
The archer leapt onto a broken kiosk, aiming down from the high ground.
"On your mark!"
"NOW!"
The shieldbearer roared forward, dragging his heavy tower shield with both arms. Sparks trailed as the bottom edge scraped the broken marble. He activated a skill, voice echoing:
[Skill: Faultline Charge — Blood Cost: 6%]
"FAULTLINE CHARGE!"
He dashed forward like a battering ram, the ground cracking beneath his charge. The Runner responded instantly.
The Runner didn't back off.
It met him head-on.
The shieldbearer grinned.
"Too slow!"
BOOM!
The impact sent shockwaves through the floor, tiles shattered, dust exploded into the air.
But the Runner didn't fall.
Instead, it turned sideways mid-impact, letting the shield glance off its shoulder, then drove its elbow into the man's temple.
CRACK!
The shieldbearer was lifted off his feet and hurled into a storefront. He flipped midair, crashing through a heap of broken shopping carts.
The spearwoman tried to flank the Runner, dashing from its blind spot. She kicked off a broken makeup counter, diving toward it with a second skill:
[Skill: Spear Piercer — Blood Cost: 9%]
"SPEAR PIERCER!"
She thrust mid-air.
The Runner twisted just enough, the spear barely scraped its side but with the force of her lunge, she couldn't stop.
It caught her mid-thrust.
CLACK!
Claws clamped around her ankle.
"NO—!"
It swung her like a hammer, smashing her body into the glass railing. The railing exploded, glass shards raining as her limp body hit a plastic signboard below.
The archer didn't waste the moment.
"FUCK YOU!"
He activated a second skill:
[Skill: Pulse Shot — Blood Cost: 8%]
"PULSE SHOT!"
A glowing red arrow formed and fired with a high-pitched whine.
The Runner saw it coming but didn't move.
The arrow hit its shoulder.
THUD!
It staggered slightly… but then looked up.
A slow, twisted grin spread across its face.
"...Oh shit."
The Runner ran straight up the wall.
"WHAT THE—"
He fired more arrows in a panic. One. Two. Three. Each missing as the creature ricocheted between the pillars, ceilings, and support beams.
The archer swung wildly, trying to keep up.
TOO SLOW.
The Runner landed behind him, claws plunging into the kiosk floor as it vaulted upward and kicked him in the back, sending him flying through the air.
He crashed into the rubble that sealed off the first floor.
"AHHH—!"
He hit hard, blood spraying from his mouth as he slumped down, wheezing.
The Runner dropped beside him, crouched low.
Its mouth opened wide, jaws unhinging.
"SKRRRRAAKK!"
Rows of jagged, glistening teeth ready to tear straight through the archer's neck.
That face...
The same face Johnquis saw that day.
The face that devoured Randy.
The face that ripped Mars apart.
The face that slaughtered Lex.
And now...That same monster wasn't hunting. It was protecting.