Kai felt... rattled himself, a brief dissonance cutting through the haze of his fiery rage.

'When did I get so strong?'

The question echoed in his mind, as impossible to ignore as the adrenaline surging through his veins. He had known strength before—Zara's gift, surviving trials, and relentless days of honing skills had forged him into an individual far beyond ordinary. But this? This was something entirely different. His body no longer felt like his own. No longer human, but that of a predator unleashed, a harbinger of destruction.

Zara’s beastial abilities had transformed him, elevating him to a level that rivaled feral creatures feared by men. But now, he has become too monstrous, even in his own opinion. Something deserving the dread of beasts—a predator of predators.

His gaze sharpened, fixing on the towering invader, drenched in blood and ash, with height towering above all others like a symbol of destruction and despair. Kaiser clenched his jaw, his fingers curling tightly around the hilt of a fallen hunter’s short blade.

Without hesitation, he surged forward.

And the world shifted.

The ground beneath him blurred into streaks of color as his body moved faster than it ever had before. The smoldering air and ashes itself seemed to part, giving way, unable to keep pace. Despite using his mere legs, it felt as though he was riding the wind, or a motorcycle with force so swift and untethered that the earth could barely hold him. His body felt impossibly light yet carried a destructive momentum that could tear through steel.

However, instead of being disoriented and troubled in processing the passing surrounding, his senses processed it as if his only running.

In an instant, the distance between him and the beast closed. As he entered the pain invader’s range, a startling clarity washed over him. Time slowed, each detail crystallizing in his heightened senses—the acrid stench of scorched earth, the oppressive heat licking at his skin, the frantic, erratic movements of the invader as it flailed its massive limbs.

Even the wildly thrashing invader, once so fast and deadly to his sight seems slow. It had seemed untouchable before, impossibly fast and devastatingly strong. But now, he could sense its frenzied movements as if it's a crude punch from a stranger, flying towards a decently trained boxer, making it avoidable with ease. The difficulty of sensing its clawed hooves mobility visibly decreases in his perception, while his reaction time was more than enough to fair against the blind creature. Actually, he felt like his at the same level as the terrifying invader in terms of capabilities.

Still, in sheer physicality, the invader was undeniably superior than him. It also boasted terrifying speed and durability, but Kaiser had the edge in reflexes, precision and agility. And while the beast relied on primal instinct, its lack of intelligence left it woefully unprepared for a foe like him. Eyeless, and with the smoldering environment further hindering its primary sense of smell, left it pitifully blind to its surroundings. Added that its intellect and combat comprehension paled miserably compared to his put it at extreme disadvantage.

Then again, if counting only his inherited power from Zara and additional strength gained from leveling up after defeating three invaders, he might have been inferior to this creature under normal circumstances without the rage burning within him, fueling a skill that multiplied his original strength to support his vengeance.

Spotting a gap in the invader's erratic movements, Kaiser shifted his weight, dodging under its massive legs and darted through with inhuman precision. He slid to the beast’s under-side in the blink of an eye, the blade tip poised against its filthy, matted fur.

He can only grimace at the weapon durability and sharpness inferiority. Making a quick stab difficult. But with a burst of force, Kaiser forcefully drove the blade forward. The weapon groaned under his crushing grip, the wood of the hilt cracking, iron within compacting and blade slightly bending, nevertheless, the short sword found purchase with brute force. Halve of it tore through the creature’s skin and flesh.

The invader’s pained shriek tore through the air, a piercing cry that sent a shiver of cruel satisfaction through Kaiser's fury-clouded mind. But it wasn’t enough—not nearly enough to quell the storm within him. His wrath demanded more. These vile creatures had invaded their peaceful land, disrupted the villagers' joyous farewell festival, and left behind a trail of death and despair.

For that, they would suffer.

His grip tightened on another stray blade as the beast thrashed, trying in vain to shake nothing off. Kaiser's indifferent eyes silently burning with cold, merciless darkness simply watch it. There was no pity in his heart—only the unrelenting need to make this invader regret every step it had taken into this place.

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This beast, this vile creature, had brought ruin to a night meant for joy. It had turned laughter into screams, happiness to sadness, soothing coldness of night into scorching heat and ashes, stolen lives that could never be replaced. The image of the Chief’s kind smile flickered in his mind—a memory now tainted with the weight of loss, everyone's lost among the many who stayed behind to fight.

If these invaders hadn’t come, the village could have had one last night of peace. They could have celebrated, shared stories, foods, danced, and bid farewell to their old home with dignity. Instead, the ground was a graveyard, littered with the bodies of the fallen relatives of fleeing escapees.

His only regret is that, only one invader was left standing to suffer his wrath.

All he could do was make the most of it.

A dark smirk tugged at his lips, his voice low and venomous as he muttered, “Pitiful thing… I’ll make you regret ever stepping foot in this land.”

The invader thrashed violently, blind to the greater predator staring daggers at it. The former devourer had become a miserable prey, and Kaiser intended to savor every moment.

Furthermore, this particular invader was literally asking for it. Killing so many Hunters and Volunteeres, leaving their bloody weapons behind. Ironically, its struggle to survive had brought its own demise, a far more merciless one, at that.

The fiery inferno raged on, consuming the once-vibrant village in a chaotic dance of orange and crimson. Sparks leapt into the air, and smoke coiled like serpents, choking the night. But amidst the chaos, one figure moved with unnatural grace—a shadow among the flames. The Player, in the surviving hunters eyes were chillingly relentless.

A dark beast, much smaller was darting through the battlefield like a predator honing in on its kill. The last invader—a massive, eyeless monstrosity—shrieked and thrashed, its clawed limbs tearing at the ground in a frenzied attempt to defend itself from the tormenting fathom, leaving pang on its body in his every passing.

It's far bigger, stronger, and monstrous in appearance but it was no match for the line player.

Not now.

Not with the searing rage that coursed through his veins.

Kaiser’s dark eyes burned with purpose as he sprinted toward a fallen spear, its shaft broken but its tip still sharp enough to serve. Without missing a beat, he snatched it up, spun in a blur of motion, and drove it into the invader’s flank with monstrous force. The spear splintered, its jagged edge burying itself deep into the beast’s thick hide. The invader howled in pain, flailing wildly, but Kaiser was already gone, disappearing into the smoke like a wraith.

He reemerged a heartbeat later, another weapon in hand—a battered sword left behind by one of the fallen it had killed. The blade’s edge was dull, its surface tarnished with soot and blood, but it didn’t matter. Kaiser lunged, driving the blade into the creature’s high shoulder. The weapon bent under the strain, groaning against the invader’s tough hide, but Kaiser forced it deeper with sheer, unrelenting strength powered by inextinguishable wrath.

However, he didn’t stop there.

He couldn’t stop.

Because it just felt so nice to be superior, free from metal and physical retrains for once without shackles holding him back from venting all his frustrations. As someone who tends to choose composure over anger, this was a rare moment where he could fully unleash his dissatisfaction with the world.

And the poor thing was like a massive target for his rage. Once so fearsome and savage, coming to an abundant land as a monstrous harbinger of despair with nothing in mind except hunger. Was reduced to a blind creature, under a Hunter's torturous onslaught.

To the invader's nightmare, it was completely hopeless. Not only was it blind, and its senses weakened. The tormenter was ruthless, dancing around while evading its futile attempt to defend, bringing agony after agony in its irresistible passing. As he did, it weakened, drowning it deeper in the depths of helplessness, to the same despair it had put the courageous defenders.

On the remaining hunters that survived, it was akin to viewing a twisted performance. The invader’s screeches echoed through the night, a twisted symphony of agony that's strangely satisfying to the few audience witnessing it.

The Player was like a demented craftsman, nailing the weapons of the fallen as paints to a monstrous, living canvas. The battlefield became Kaiser's forge, and the invader is his masterpiece of torment.

When the swords around ran out, he switched to broken axes, discarded arrows, spears, even splintered stakes—everything became a weapon in his hands, . Kaiser nailed the invader’s body with relentless precision, each strike pushed in to inflict maximum pain, assuring it dug deep. The beast’s once-formidable form was now a grotesque display, its hide bristling with impaled weapons like the twisted creation of a mad artisan, the painting made with all his rage.

Kaiser moved with an almost feral intensity, his strikes unending, his presence suffocating. The invader’s wild thrashing slowed, its massive body trembling under the weight of its torment.

Even the four Hunters began feeling pity for the poor thing despite its vile deeds.

But Kai's fury was far from spent, his pent up stress was yet to be drained. And now, his troubled where to get more nails even though the invader's body was littered by mariads of weapons — blades, daggers, spears, axes, arrows, stakes.

Luckily finding a long knife buried on the ground, he nonchalantly pulled it out and dashed towards the bloody beast without delay with heart filled with mindless fury. Disregarding the invader increasing savagery, as it neared its death.

However, amidst the chaos, a faint cursing groan of a man cut through the roaring flames and the invader’s anguished cries. Kaiser’s heightened senses caught it instantly, and he froze mid-step, his gaze snapping to the source of the sound.

There, leaning against the charred remains of a tree, was a wounded hunter. Blood pooled around his mangled leg, and his pale face glistened with sweat. His wide, fearless eyes locked onto the rampaging creature closing in on him.

The invader, despite its pain, caught the scent of its helpless prey. A guttural snarl rumbled from its throat as it turned toward the direction of the wounded man. With a sudden, desperate burst of energy, it lunged.

'Oh, sh*t.'

He became too careless, too focused on his task to pay attention to the surviving hunters. Three of them were still capable of running, if not limping to move to a safer distance, but that unfortunate man was immobilized.

By then, Kai was already back to his senses. Many had already died, he can't add another due to his recklessness.

Besides, he can't die unlike them.

His body moved on instinct. Before they met, he was between the hunter and the charging beast, launching his arm to shift its gaping maws trajectory. His fist rattled the pointy teeth, and it felt like he punched a solid iron. Thankfully, the powerful fist forced its aim to tilt aside, saving the man from harm. However, Kai cursed the beast *dental health* for the fangs given in, letting the lingering momentum of his own fist push it forward into the hungry chasm within.

The invader’s jaws snapped shut, and pain erupted through him as razor-sharp teeth sank into his forearm.

“F*ck your dentist!" Kaiser hissed through gritted teeth.

His caught.