Dominica snapped his fingers.
The surrounding walls collapsed instantly.
Kaizen, Wendy, and Dominica all turned their gazes toward the source of the eerie voice they'd just heard. It wasn't an illusion. The voice was real, and it came from the very center of the town.
Simultaneously, the three of them sensed an overwhelming number of lifeforms approaching their location.
"If I'm not mistaken, it's the townspeople," Dominica remarked grimly.
"These people… they've been turned into puppets," he continued, his voice laced with cold resolve. "Listen, the three of us are their targets now. When the fight begins, don't hesitate. Don't hold back. They've become monsters. Killing them is the only way to set them free."
The ground began to tremble as a massive horde rushed toward them.
"I'll take this direction. You two handle the others," Dominica ordered.
"Yes," Wendy responded.
"Understood," Kaizen said curtly.
The once-ordinary townsfolk came into view. Their bodies were grotesquely distorted—bulging muscles tore through their clothing, their faces were twisted with ferocity, and their bulging eyes seemed ready to pop out of their sockets.
"Roarrrr!"
Their growls were primal, beast-like.
Kaizen glanced toward Dominica. The older man's aura flared as he raised a hand. The ground shifted, the soil forming sharp spikes that shot toward the approaching monsters.
"Schlkk!"
"Schlkk!"
"Schlkk!"
Blood sprayed into the air. But despite being pierced through, the monsters refused to die. They kept advancing, gnashing their teeth and clawing at the spikes.
Dominica narrowed his eyes and focused. The spikes impaling the monsters shifted, binding their movements and immobilizing them like grotesque statues.
On the other side of the battlefield, Wendy raised her hand.
Whoosh!
Invisible blades sliced through the air, severing a monster's arm. However, compared to Dominica, her efficiency was lower. One of the creatures nearly broke through her defenses, closing in on Kaizen—until a dark figure intervened.
"Akutagawa Ryunosuke!"
The cloaked assassin stepped forward, his aura sharp and menacing. The edges of his dark cloak twisted unnaturally, transforming into crimson blades.
"Rashomon!"
The blades tore through the monsters with frightening precision. Each swipe cut through flesh as if slicing paper, leaving the monsters helpless as they collapsed one after another.
Wendy couldn't help but glance over, her eyes widening at the display.
"What a brutal technique… Is this the power of the Zoldyck family?"
Though they had briefly shared their abilities earlier, seeing them in action was a completely different experience.
Wendy clenched her fists. "But I'm not to be underestimated! I'm the most gifted warrior of the Fiora royal family!"
Her pride flared as memories of her rigorous training surfaced. While others her age played, Wendy had devoted herself to relentless practice, honing her talents to become a force to be reckoned with.
Now wasn't the time for doubt.
With a determined gaze, Wendy formed a sphere of condensed aura in her hands. To the naked eye, it appeared empty, but Kaizen could see its volatile energy swirling.
"Blade Storm!"
She hurled the sphere at the monsters.
Boom!
The explosion unleashed countless invisible blades, shredding dozens of creatures in an instant.
Kaizen frowned slightly as he observed the technique. "A Hunter's version of Wind Release: Rasenshuriken?"
It was eerily similar to the jutsu, though the aura-based process differed.
Before anyone could celebrate, black threads began to emerge from the monsters' corpses.
The threads wriggled like living creatures, stitching the fallen bodies back together. The reanimated creatures stood taller, stronger, and more grotesque than before. Even severed limbs and bisected torsos crawled toward them, trying to reform.
"Kill you!"
"Kill you!"
"Kill you!"
The guttural roars of the monsters echoed across the battlefield.
Wendy's confidence wavered, but Akutagawa Ryunosuke stepped forward again. The crimson blade from his cloak transformed into a massive jaw, snapping down viciously on the nearest monster.
Crunch!
Bones shattered, and the monster was torn apart. Yet the black threads reappeared, pulling the pieces back together and reanimating the creature.
Kaizen's eyes narrowed. "The threads are the key. Unless we destroy them, these monsters won't stay down."
Dominica noticed as well.
"Kaizen, Wendy! I'll buy you time. Go find the source of these threads!" she shouted.
"Understood," Kaizen replied.
Dominica clapped her hands together. The ground beneath Kaizen and Wendy rose abruptly, forming a towering column that carried them hundreds of meters into the air. From this vantage point, they could see the entirety of the small town.
Below, Dominica's walls of earth held the monsters at bay, but their relentless roars reverberated through the air as they clawed and thrashed against the barrier.
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