No Time for Heroes

Daion ran, his heart pounding like a war drum. The Hellseeker's roar echoed through the cave, closing in fast. Pain shot up his leg with every step, but stopping wasn't an option. Not now. Not after leaving a man behind to die.

The soldier's screams still rang in his head.

Jack stood at the cave's exit, muscles tense, eyes locked onto him.

"Move your ass, damn it!" he roared. "Haruka, get ready! The second he's through, blow the entrance!"

Haruka nodded, extending a hand. Murmured words. Fire erupted from her palm, illuminating the stacked fuel barrels near the entrance.

Fifteen meters.

Daion could almost feel the fresh air outside. But then—impact.

A monstrous force yanked his leg back.

The Hellseeker had caught him.

Panic twisted in his gut. The beast raised its club and swung. Daion barely managed to raise his sword in defense. The impact was brutal. The blade flew from his hands, clattering against the cave floor.

"No!" Finn shouted, firing his rifle. The bullets barely scratched the monster's skin.

The Hellseeker let out a guttural snarl and sank its claws into Daion's leg. Agony tore through him. He screamed, breath coming in ragged gasps. Fear. Desperation. His hands clawed at the beast, uselessly.

"Shit, I can't kill it!" Finn gasped.

Then—a tingle in Daion's arm. A strange heat.

The glove.

His mind flashed back to Haruka's gem glowing before she cast fire. Could he do the same?

He clenched his jaw, focusing on the sensation in his arm. He raised his palm, aiming at the Hellseeker, willing something to happen.

Nothing.

The Hellseeker growled and drove its claws into Daion's side.

Pain like fire.

Daion screamed. Muscles seized. Blood soaked his clothes. His vision blurred.

At the cave's entrance, Jack clenched his fists. He could run in and help. But if he did, the Devourers would break free. If those monsters reached the city, everything would be lost.

Maybe… the only choice was to leave Daion behind.

"This is his fault!" Minjae spat. "He got us into this!"

Jack shut his eyes for a second, cursing under his breath.

"If a Devourer gets close, destroy the entrance," he ordered Haruka.

She swallowed hard.

Finn kept firing, but the Hellseeker didn't even flinch.

Daion, barely clinging to consciousness, felt his arm tremble.

The glove was glowing.

The Hellseeker yanked its claws from Daion's body and raised them for a killing blow. Its hollow eyes reflected only one thing—death.

No.

Daion clenched his teeth. He refused to die.

Not here.

With his last strength, he screamed—and his arm exploded with blinding light.

A pure energy blast ripped through the Hellseeker's skull.

Half of its face disintegrated in a shower of burning flesh and boiling blood.

The monster staggered back. Daion gasped, body on the brink of collapse. His arm burned like it was melting from the inside out.

No time for pain.

He forced himself to move. His injured leg threatened to buckle, but he had to run.

Ten meters.

Haruka saw the Devourers surging forward—a tide of writhing shadows.

And the Hellseeker… it was still standing.

It wasn't regenerating, but its body still held power. It dug its feet into the stone—preparing to charge.

Jack's throat tightened.

"Haruka, NOW!"

Haruka lifted her hand, flame ready to fire.

But she hesitated. Daion hadn't crossed yet.

"Wait!" Finn shouted.

He raised a hand, chanting under his breath.

The air vibrated. A sphere of compressed energy formed in his palm.

"Close your eyes!"

Finn released the sphere.

It detonated midair.

A blinding explosion of light swallowed the cave.

The Devourers shrieked, disoriented. The Hellseeker stumbled.

"Run, Daion!" Jack bellowed.

Daion didn't think.

He sprinted.

Haruka reacted instantly, launching a fireball straight into the fuel barrels. Flames erupted—but nothing happened.

Time froze.

"What the fuck?" Minjae gasped.

Daion's breath hitched. "Haruka… does your magic cause explosions?"

She shook her head, teeth clenched. "I… I haven't reached that level yet!"

Cold dread washed over Daion.

Fire alone wouldn't ignite the fuel.

His mind raced. "The fire is heating the liquid, but we need the vapors to ignite!"

Jack cursed, glancing at the cave.

The Hellseeker was rising.

Half its face was gone, but it was still coming.

The Devourers, drawn by the scent of blood, crawled closer.

Time was up.

"Then what the fuck do we do?!" Jack roared.

Daion's mind clicked.

"Oxygen!" he gasped. "We need oxygen to make it combust instantly!"

He pushed himself up, barely able to stand. His pulse thundered in his ears.

"Finn!" he shouted. "Tell me you have something with oxygen!"

Finn groaned. "Damn it, stop yelling!"

He traced a precise pattern in the air, forming a glowing blue circle.

A magic grenade.

"Starving Wind Grenade!" Finn murmured, clutching the swirling sphere in both hands.

The core pulsed—oxygen, condensed and volatile.

Without hesitation, Finn hurled it into the flames.

The sphere hovered—then collapsed into an invisible shockwave.

Oxygen flooded the fire.

And then—

BOOOOOOOM.

The explosion consumed the cave in an instant.

Boulders crashed down like falling meteors.

The Hellseeker barely had time to shriek before it was crushed under tons of rock. Blood and viscera burst in a grotesque spray.

The remaining Devourers were buried alive.

The roar of the blast faded.

Only the sound of settling stones remained… and the ragged breaths of the survivors.

A nearby guard stumbled to a corner and threw up.

Daion could barely stand. His clothes were drenched in blood—his own.

But anger burned hotter than pain.

He glared at Jack. "You didn't even know how to blow up a fucking barrel?"

Jack shifted uncomfortably. "...It was our first time using explosives, I thought it'd be simple—"

"You made me haul volatile fuel without knowing how it worked? Are you an idiot?!"

Jack scowled but didn't argue.

Then—CRACK.

A deep, bone-chilling sound from behind.

The rubble shifted.

The Hellseeker moved.

With its last strength, the beast roared and lunged at Daion—claws outstretched.

Jack moved.

He tackled Daion to the ground just as—

SHLACK.

His short sword pierced through the monster's mouth, straight into its skull.

The Hellseeker went still.

Then—its body convulsed.

Jack barely had time to pull his sword free before—

BOOM.

The Hellseeker's flesh burst, drenching them in burning blood and gore.

The stench of death was suffocating.

Jack gritted his teeth. "We did what we could…"

Daion trembled, rage boiling beneath the exhaustion.

"Go to hell."

He swung at Jack—

But his strength gave out.

Darkness swallowed him as he collapsed.

Jack stared at him for a moment, then signaled the group.

"Pick him up. We're heading back to SteelWall."

They thought it was over.

But deep in the forest, something stirred. Heavy footsteps echoed in the darkness—creatures returning home. And all they found was ruin.

Their den, destroyed.

Their kin, dead.

Blackness.

Daion's body burned. Muscles twitching, moving against his will.

Was he awake? Or trapped in a damn nightmare?

A voice echoed in his mind.

Laughter. Mocking.

He recognized it instantly.

He tried to scream, to curse—but he couldn't.

That god's image flickered in his mind like a phantom.

"Don't tell me… you actually thought you'd be the hero?"

The images shattered.

"Keep this up, and you'll just die."

The voice vanished.

Daion was left in the void. Alone. For what felt like hours, trapped between dreams and reality… until a searing pain tore through his arm.

His rest was over.

Gasping, he shot upright.

His right arm burned, like someone had poured acid over his skin.

Looking down, he saw them—dark veins, creeping up his arm from the glove. Thin, unnatural lines spreading like corruption beneath his skin.

The crackle of fire pulled him from his thoughts. The sun was fading, bleeding into the horizon.

The metallic stench of blood clung to the air, mixing with the bitter taste of medicine still in his mouth.

"That wound looks nasty."

Jack's voice.

Daion hadn't even noticed him sitting there. Jack watched his arm, a flicker of interest in his eyes—and unease.

"It showed up after I transferred the Hellseeker's energy into you."

Daion stiffened.

"You… what?"

Daion swallowed, his throat suddenly dry.

Instinctively, he opened his interface.

Omega Energy Absorbed: 140Ω

His glove looked… darker. No other changes. But he felt different.

Jack continued. "First transformation happens at 250 points. You've been out for hours. We already claimed the reward and were about to leave, but…"

Daion grabbed him by the collar.

"How the hell can you talk to me like nothing happened?"

Jack blinked. "What?"

Daion's grip tightened.

"You made me let a man die!"

Jack's expression hardened. "That was your choice."

The words hit like a gut punch.

Daion's jaw clenched. Rage. Frustration.

"Because you threatened to leave me behind! I don't want to die, but I can't stop hearing his screams. What kind of leader does that?!"

Jack exhaled sharply.

"Listen—without me, you'd already be dead. You're just a rookie who knows nothing."

Daion's fists shook.

Jack shoved him—hard.

Daion hit the ground with a painful thud.

The gap in strength was undeniable.

The air grew heavy.

Haruka and Finn shifted uncomfortably.

From the sidelines, Minjae watched, amused.

"You left him to die."

"Yeah. To survive."

Jack didn't hesitate.

A chill crawled up Daion's spine.

"You didn't even hesitate…" he whispered. "I was a coward. I let him die. But you… you never doubted, did you?"

He was shaking.

Despite the warmth of the fire, he felt cold.

Jack crossed his arms.

"This world has one rule: survive."

Daion squeezed his eyes shut.

"Did you hesitate when you told Haruka to collapse the cave?"

Jack went quiet for a moment.

"Of course. But it was either you or—"

Daion's stomach twisted.

"So you'd leave any of us behind if it meant surviving."

It wasn't a question.

Jack froze.

Daion stepped closer, voice rising. "You wouldn't, right?!"

"I WOULD DO EVERYTHING TO AVOID IT!"

For the first time, Jack snapped.

"But if I have to choose between a stranger and the people under my command—my decision is clear."

Silence.

Jack turned away, walking toward the fire. Conversation over.

Haruka pulled her knees to her chest, curling into herself.

Finn stared at Jack, his expression unreadable. Anger? Pity? Maybe both.

Daion swallowed.

"If it was an entire town… if we had to risk our lives to save them. What would you do?"

Jack barely glanced over his shoulder.

"The right thing."

Daion felt his chest tighten.

That… wasn't an answer.

But he didn't push further.

With his body still weak, he sank down next to Finn and Haruka.

His sword was strapped to his back.

"I thought I lost it…"

Finn didn't take his eyes off the fire. "If you have a sheath, your weapon returns after some time."

His voice was tired.

Haruka absently traced patterns in the dirt, lost in thought.

Daion stared into the flames. The screams still echoed in his head.

"Why didn't that thing die when I blew its head off? And… how the hell did I even do that?"

Finn glanced at him—not with pity, but understanding. He was a rookie too. Maybe he'd been through this already.

"Hellseekers are scouts," he explained. "They move ahead of an attack to gather intel, so they're built tougher."

He shrugged. "As for what you did… no idea. Never seen anything like it."

His tone wasn't convinced. More like he was trying to reassure Daion.

But then—

Click.

Something in Daion's mind clicked into place.

"Wait. You said Hellseekers come before an attack?" His voice was tense.

Finn frowned. "Yeah… why?"

Haruka met his gaze, equally confused.

Then—Finn realized it.

His face paled.

"That means… SteelWall—"

He didn't get to finish.

DONG.

The city's bells rang.

Loud. Urgent.

Echoing through the trees.

Finn and Haruka shot to their feet.

"The bells…" Haruka whispered.

Daion frowned. "So what?"

A figure emerged from the shadows—Minjae.

His expression said everything.

Jack stood abruptly, turning toward the city. His jaw tightened.

"They only ring when—"

BOOOOOOM.

The ground shook.

A deafening roar split the air.

Fire. Smoke. Explosions.

SteelWall was under attack.

Daion's heart dropped.

He spun toward his team. Everyone reached for their weapons.

He took a step forward, ready to run—

But no one followed.

He turned.

They were all watching Jack.

Waiting.

Jack stood still, eyes locked on the rising smoke. His fists clenched.

Daion met his gaze.

For a split second, Jack's expression flickered.

'Right after I said I'd do the right thing… What are the fucking odds?'

Jack inhaled deeply.

His expression hardened.

And then, he spoke.

"We're leaving."