Acorn Town had turned into a living hell.

The demon and his minions had dragged the small town into an abyss of endless suffering. The innocent townspeople didn’t even have time to sound the alarm or call for help before the entire town was subjected to total destruction.

The torrential rain poured down, mixing blood and mud together. In his black panther form, Shinya ran through the rain, splashing through the filthy water that soaked his jet-black fur. The cold piercing to the bone.

On his way, Shinya saw three or four withered beasts surrounding the corpse of a woman. She was holding a child in her arms, and the boy seemed to still be alive.

The boy’s eyes were wide with terror, but in his despair, he had lost the ability to speak. The withered beasts would soon finish devouring his mother, and then it would be his turn.

Shinya recognized him—this was the same Andrew who had thrown rocks at him the day he transformed into a beast, calling him a monster. Despite Andrew’s hatred toward him, Shinya’s mind still flashed with the thought of saving him. After all, he was alive, and there was still a chance to save him.

So Shinya slowed down.

Aoshi seemed to see through his thoughts, but he didn’t approve of Shinya’s actions.

Shapeshifters weren’t good at fighting dark creatures. It was already a struggle just to protect themselves.

"Not far ahead is the Selt Cliffs. Go south around them, and you’ll find a shortcut to Northsail," the giant bear, tired and weary, stood beside his son, carefully instructing him on the next steps. He deliberately blocked Shinya’s view so he couldn’t see Andrew.

Shinya glanced down at the ground under his father’s feet, which was constantly stained with blood. He couldn’t bear to let his father fight alone any longer. He knew that while the dark creatures’ poison wasn’t fatal to werewolves, it severely weakened their regenerative abilities.

If they kept up this fight, Aoshi would eventually die of exhaustion. Shinya couldn’t ask his father to bear more than he already had.

But at the very least, he could—

"Father, I can fight too. We can still help those who are still alive—"

Before Shinya could finish, Aoshi abruptly shifted back to his human form.

He took the crying Irene, wrapped her up again, then tied the knotted sleeve around the black panther’s neck, securing baby Irene to Shinya’s chest.

"You can’t fight. Listen to me, we’re barely holding on as it is. We can’t save anyone else. Take her and go, head to Northsail and find the Dawn Prayers."

"You have to come with me," Shinya pleaded.

"Yes, I will." For the first time in a long while, Aoshi smiled.

Behind that strained smile, two beams of red light flashed past.

A blade descended from the sky, plunging into Aoshi’s unprotected back.

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Aoshi let out a cry of pain as a spray of deep red blood erupted from his wound.

In a rage-filled roar, his body turned into a misty white fog before reforming into his giant bear form.

He spun around quickly, swiping his massive paw at the attacker, shielding his son and the infant from harm.

Shinya stood frozen in shock at the sudden turn of events, realizing he needed to help his father.

Just as he was about to step forward, his father’s voice stopped him.

"Go!!!"

"Father!"

Shinya didn’t want to abandon his father, but he knew he wasn’t strong enough to face this attacker.

The attacker looked humanoid, but different from the ghouls they had encountered. Shinya couldn’t sense any corruption from its body, only an indescribable, pure darkness.

Unlike the ghouls that used claws, this one wielded a sword. In some ways, it seemed more like a person.

Its swordsmanship was impeccable. Every strike and defense was sharp and precise. Clearly, its combat ability was on an entirely different level compared to the ghouls and withered beasts they had encountered earlier.

Shinya didn’t know what kind of dark creature this attacker was. He could only watch helplessly as it gradually overpowered Aoshi, putting the already-injured giant bear in an even worse position.

Shinya wanted to help, but baby Irene cried even harder, and he suddenly realized that rushing in could put her at even greater risk.

As he hesitated, three ghouls came charging toward him from the distance, shrieking like ravenous beasts.

"Run!! I’ll find a chance to catch up as a falcon!" Aoshi urged again during a brief pause in the battle.

Shinya took one last look at his father before finally making the painful decision to sprint toward the Selt Cliffs.

Sensing that his son and Irene had successfully escaped, Aoshi breathed a sigh of relief.

What he didn’t expect was that the attacker’s movements also slowed down.

The two strange red lights on the attacker’s head flickered in the rain like candles swaying in a storm.

After one of Aoshi’s strikes, the attacker stumbled and fell to the ground, barely managing to prop itself up with its sword.

"...You… too… go. Run…"

The darkness wrapped around the attacker like a cocoon, binding it in layers as it struggled to break free.

Aoshi was shocked that the attacker could speak. Only now did he realize what this being was.

It was an Enslaved Fiend, a weapon of slaughter created by demons, the most powerful of all creatures that could be enslaved by demons. Their raw material was carefully selected humans.

"An Enslaved Fiend with self-awareness…?" Aoshi couldn’t believe it.

But whether he believed it or not, the fact remained—the Enslaved Fiend had stopped moving, standing still like a pitch-black statue in the rain.

Aoshi decided to retreat, though he didn’t completely lower his guard. He backed away while keeping his eyes on the Enslaved Fiend.

By now, the three ghouls had caught up. Aoshi knew Shinya couldn’t handle them alone, so he immediately turned around and ran in Shinya’s direction.

The Enslaved Fiend remained motionless. Aoshi glanced back at it one last time, and only then did he feel at ease. He transformed from a giant bear into a flame-patterned leopard, speeding up his pace.

The ghouls couldn’t catch up to Aoshi in his leopard form, and he had plenty of time to reach Shinya.

Aoshi sighed with relief.

The flame-patterned leopard leaped into the air, transforming into a falcon and soaring toward the sky.

Suddenly, a massive shadow blocked out what little light remained in the rainstorm.

The falcon looked up to see a flying figure approaching at incredible speed.

It was the demon!

Just when they were about to leave the town, it seemed there was still no escape.

But Aoshi wasn’t ready to give up. He nimbly darted between the town’s buildings, trying to lose the demon in pursuit.

However, he had underestimated the demon’s destructive power.

The demon had no intention of dodging the buildings. He plowed straight through the town’s stone walls and bell tower, letting the bricks and stones crumble around him.

Aoshi desperately controlled his flight, dodging the flying debris time and again, but he couldn’t evade the demon’s spiked mace.

The falcon was struck, blood gushing from its head as it plummeted from the sky.

In mid-air, the demon grabbed the falcon’s wings and changed course, flying back toward the Enslaved Fiend.

In his final moments of consciousness, Aoshi glimpsed the distant figure of the black panther running outside the town.

Behind the small figure, three ghouls were in hot pursuit.

"Child… I’m sorry. This time, I can’t help you any longer."