Chapter 67: The Phantom in the Dark

The moment Sai lunged forward, the figure **vanished again.**

Not like **Abyssal Step.** Not like something moving fast.

This was **different.**

One second, it was there. The next, it simply **wasn't.**

Sai's daggers sliced through empty air, the abyssal fire trailing from the blades hissing against the cold night. His instincts screamed, and he spun—just as a **shadow blade** materialized from the darkness, slashing toward his ribs.

He barely deflected it in time, the impact sending a sharp tremor through his arms. He twisted away, resetting his stance. His breathing was controlled, but his heartbeat was **faster than it should've been.**

This thing—**whatever it was—**didn't move like a normal enemy.

It didn't have a pattern.

It didn't even have **a body.**

Lena's voice snapped through the chaos. "It's not solid!"

Kael growled, gripping his greatsword tighter. "Then how the hell do we kill it?"

Ezren's golden abyssal eyes flickered as he studied the enemy. "It's not just a shadow. It's an **echo.**"

Sai frowned, keeping his focus on the shifting darkness around them. "Meaning?"

Ezren's gaze didn't leave the figure. "Meaning it isn't completely here. It's **half in our world, half in something else.**"

Sai exhaled sharply. "Fantastic."

The figure flickered again, **reappearing behind Lena.**

She barely dodged as its blade slashed downward, slicing a deep cut into the stone where she had stood. She twisted away, her chakrams **glowing with abyssal energy,** slicing toward it—**but they passed through like mist.**

Sai **moved before he could think.**

Abyssal Step flickered him behind the figure, his daggers **slashing downward in a twin arc.**

For a split second—**just a fraction of a breath—**he felt **resistance.**

A hit.

Then—it was gone again.

The shadows **swallowed it.**

Sai landed in a crouch, exhaling. "We can hit it. We just need to time it perfectly."

Kael smirked. "Then let's break it apart."

The figure whispered again.

**"You do not belong."**

Sai clenched his jaw. "Yeah, yeah, get in line."

Then—it attacked again.

---

### **The Hunt Begins**

The figure didn't just fight. It **hunted.**

Sai had fought powerful enemies before—**hunters, abyssal creatures, Valeria herself.** But this?

This thing wasn't fighting like a warrior.

It was **stalking them.**

Every time someone moved, it flickered in and out of existence, attacking from **blind spots, striking just as they shifted position.**

Lena deflected a near-fatal strike, but **her arms trembled from the force.**

Kael's sword crashed into the ground where it had just been, shattering stone—but hitting **nothing.**

Ezren moved sharply, avoiding a blade that should have torn through his throat. "It's reading us."

Sai exhaled, shifting his stance.

No.

It wasn't just reading them.

**It was learning.**

Every dodge. Every counter. Every movement.

It was getting **faster.**

And if they didn't end it soon, **it would kill them all.**

Sai flicked his daggers, abyssal fire crackling along the edges.

**Fine.**

If it wanted to hunt them—**he would hunt it back.**

---

### **Becoming the Predator**

Sai closed his eyes.

The battlefield **faded.**

The sounds of combat, the shifting mist, the presence of his allies—**all of it disappeared.**

He let himself fall into **pure instinct.**

No overthinking. No hesitation.

Just the hunt.

His body **moved before his mind.**

The moment the figure flickered back into existence, Sai was **already there.**

His dagger **collided with its form,** a burst of abyssal fire **forcing it backward.**

It tried to vanish—**but he didn't let it.**

He followed.

Abyssal Step flickered him **alongside the shadows, moving with them.**

The figure **hesitated**—for the first time.

Sai saw it.

And he **struck.**

His daggers **tore through its form,** ripping apart the darkness like fire burning through paper.

The figure **shuddered.**

And for the first time—**it bled.**

A thick, inky substance dripped from the wound, sizzling against the ground.

Sai's system **flashed.**

**[Entity Stabilized: Now Fully Present.]**

Kael **moved instantly.**

His greatsword **swung down.**

This time—**it connected.**

The figure **let out a sound,** something between a whisper and a scream.

Sai **didn't hesitate.**

He drove both daggers forward, piercing **straight through its chest.**

The figure **froze.**

Its body **convulsed, twisting unnaturally,** as if trying to escape its own death.

Then—**the shadows collapsed.**

The figure crumbled into **nothing.**

And the night fell silent.

---

### **The Aftermath**

Sai staggered back, exhaling sharply. His body **ached,** the aftereffects of abyssal energy still burning through his veins.

Lena let out a slow breath. "What the hell was that?"

Ezren's gaze remained on the spot where the figure had vanished. "A warning."

Sai wiped blood from his lip. "From who?"

Ezren didn't answer immediately.

Then—**he glanced at Valeria.**

Sai followed his gaze, his stomach **tightening.**

Valeria's golden eyes were **narrowed, calculating.**

She knew.

Sai crouched beside her, his abyssal energy still flickering faintly around him. "Talk."

Valeria exhaled, rolling her shoulders. "You think the Hidden Order is the greatest force that watches the Abyss?"

Sai's expression darkened. "Who was that?"

Valeria's lips pressed into a thin line. "The **Vanguard.**"

Lena frowned. "Never heard of them."

Valeria's eyes flickered. "You wouldn't have. Because they **don't exist.** Not to this world. Not like the Order. Not like hunters."

Sai's jaw clenched. "Then what are they?"

Valeria met his gaze.

"The first hunters," she said. "The ones who tried to **kill the Abyss before it became what it is.**"

Silence stretched between them.

Sai let out a slow breath. "And now they know I exist."

Valeria nodded. "Yes."

Sai leaned back, staring at the stars. His heartbeat was **finally slowing.** His body still felt the lingering weight of the battle, but the exhaustion was settling in.

One enemy had retreated.

And another had **revealed itself.**

Ezren exhaled, rubbing his temples. "This just keeps getting better."

Lena groaned. "Sai. Next time? Maybe don't piss off an **entirely new faction of supernatural assassins.**"

Sai smirked. "No promises."

Kael chuckled, rolling his shoulders. "At least now we know."

Sai's grin faded slightly.

Yeah.

Now they knew.

The **real war** hadn't even started yet.

And something told him—**they weren't ready.**