The shadows of Vengeance

Rayal's obsession for revenge had reached a dangerous level. He trained harder than before—faster, stronger, more ruthless. His sparring partners could barely keep up, and the once-friendly matches had turned into brutal encounters. His fists hit with reckless fury, his blade struck without hesitation, and every session ended with fresh bruises and open wounds—not just on him, but on those unlucky enough to face him.

He didn't care.

Pain no longer mattered. His body could break, but it didn't change the past. Layla was gone. Thousands were dead. The dragons were still out there, still breathing, still laughing in their monstrous way. The only thing that mattered was killing more.

Elric watched in silence, his fists clenched as he saw the change in his friend. Akira, usually quiet, couldn't stay silent any longer.

"You're losing yourself, Rayal," she muttered after one of his sparring sessions.

He barely turned to look at her. His knuckles dripped with blood—some his, some not. "I lost myself the day they died."

Elric stepped forward. "You're not the same anymore."

Rayal let out a bitter laugh, his voice hollow. "None of us are. Layla is gone."

The words hit harder than a blade. Elric's jaw tightened, but before he could say another word, Rayal was already walking away.

That night, he went to the surface alone.

The cold wind bit at his skin, but he didn't feel it. His only company was Dragonista, the only creature he trusted. He moved like a shadow, hunting the dragons one by one. Their bodies piled up beneath his blade, their roars fading into the empty night. Nothing could stop him.

Until he found the egg.

It was massive—larger than any he had seen before, pulsing with a faint, sickly glow. He placed a hand on it, and the surface felt wrong—both warm and ice-cold at the same time. His breath caught in his throat.

Something inside… was alive.

The Spy and the Secret Within

Meanwhile, inside Hetlyl, the Hunter Association had bigger concerns.

A mysterious figure had been spotted near the ruined outskirts. The guards captured him, dragging him before the council. His face was scarred, his eyes sharp, and his expression unreadable.

"Who are you?" King Daigona demanded.

The man lifted his head, his voice eerily calm. "I come with knowledge. A warning."

The council murmured, but Daigona raised a hand, silencing them. "Speak."

The man took a slow breath. "Some humans… they willingly go to the Hollow Dragon Temple. They kneel before the King Dragon and ask to be transformed. They want to become Hollow Dragons."

The room erupted.

"Lies!" someone shouted.

"This man is working for them!" another accused.

"Of course not, idiot! Why would he tell us if he was their ally?"

Rayal's squad stood at the edge of the room, watching the chaos unfold. A spy hunt was declared.

"We find the traitors before it's too late," Daigona commanded. "Hetlyl must remain pure."

The leader squad moved in secret, searching for evidence, questioning the people. But nothing was found.

Elric sighed, frustration thick in his voice. "Is there even a spy?"

Rayal's eyes darkened. "How am I supposed to know?"

Akira remained silent, watching everyone.

They didn't realize it yet, but someone was already watching them.

The Surface Battle – A Deadly Encounter

While the council fought over suspicions and spies, the hunters on the surface had their own mission—to collect dragon corpses for weapon research. But the dragons had other plans.

The team moved carefully, pulling apart the beasts' remains, searching for scales, claws, bones—anything that could be reforged into new weapons.

Then, the ground rumbled.

The wind shifted.

A deep, bone-chilling roar echoed through the air.

And then they saw it.

A new kind of dragon.

Its body was sleek, its wings jagged like obsidian, its eyes glowing with unnatural intelligence. It was different from the others—faster, deadlier.

One of the hunters didn't even have time to scream. The dragon moved in a blur, and in a single moment, his body was ripped in two.

Panic spread like wildfire.

"They're evolving!" one of the squad leaders shouted.

Elric gritted his teeth, drawing his sword. "Then we'll have to evolve too."

The battle began, blood staining the earth once more.

A Final Warning

As the fight raged above, the egg in Rayal's hands began to crack.

The air grew heavy. The glow intensified.

Rayal took a step back, his heartbeat loud in his ears. He didn't know what was inside, but he had a feeling it would change everything.

In Hetlyl, the captured man gave a final warning. His lips curled into a knowing smile.

"You still don't understand, do you?" His voice was soft, almost mocking. "You fight the Hollow Dragons… but you don't see the truth."

Daigona's eyes narrowed. "What truth?"

The man leaned forward, whispering words that sent a cold shiver through the room.

"The real war… hasn't even begun.".

Rayal sat alone on the outskirts of Hetlyl, staring at his reflection in a pool of still water. His body bore fresh wounds, but the deeper scars were not physical. He had spent months consumed by vengeance, throwing himself into battle after battle, hunting dragons without hesitation or fear. Yet, despite all his strength, all his relentless training, the emptiness inside him only grew.

Then came Akira.

At first, Rayal barely noticed the change. Akira, who had always been fierce and determined, started acting differently. He began speaking more, offering words of encouragement to recruits, even sharing rare moments of laughter. He no longer treated battle as a path of destruction but as a duty to protect those who could not defend themselves.

Rayal was confused by this change. But as days passed, he found himself drawn to Akira's way of thinking. He started talking to him more, listening instead of simply reacting. Akira reminded him that they were not just warriors—they were human. They fought for a reason beyond revenge.

One night, as they stood guard on the surface together, Akira finally spoke the words that broke Rayal's shell.

"You can't keep living like this, Rayal. You're stronger than anyone I know, but what's the point of all that strength if you lose yourself?"

Rayal clenched his fists, looking at the horizon. For the first time in months, his rage didn't feel like the only thing keeping him going. He took a deep breath and let go, even if just a little.

And just as Rayal and Akira started to rediscover their lost humanity, the world around them continued to change.

The army of dragons, once 100,000 strong, had doubled in size. Through an unnatural breeding process, their numbers had exploded, now standing at a staggering 2,000,000. The threat was greater than ever.

But this time, Rayal and Akira weren't just fighting to kill. They were fighting to protect.