The Hunter’s Unseen Foe

Outside Xuyang School.

Inside a black luxury sedan.

The brown-haired girl sat quietly in the back seat, her laptop resting on her lap, her fingers rapidly tapping the keyboard. Her discarded sunglasses lay carelessly beside her, and faint dark circles beneath her eyes lent her an air of weariness and fragility.

“Miss, if you’re tired, you should rest. Don’t push yourself too hard.”

The man in the driver’s seat spoke. For this young woman, who had single-handedly propped up her family and secured her qualification among numerous candidates, he had always maintained a respectful and compassionate demeanor.

“It’s fine, Uncle Mo.”

Accustomed to treating everyone with respect, the brown-haired girl offered a faint smile.

She inquired, “Is there any new information regarding… Liu Yu?”

“I’ve found something new. Someone saw a person in a black overcoat emerging from near Liu Yu’s home late at night. Here’s a photo, but it’s quite strange.”

Taking the photo from Uncle Mo’s hand.

“This is…”

Under the night sky, beside a dim streetlight, a figure clad in black emerged from a stairwell; the photograph had perfectly captured that fleeting moment.

Putting aside for a moment the question of why someone would be taking photos there in the dead of night.

‘What’s so strange about it?’

The brown-haired girl voiced her question.

“Please take another look, Miss.”

“What’s going on? They’ve vanished?”

The brown-haired girl stared at the photograph in disbelief; the figure in black, who should have been there, had suddenly disappeared as if they had never existed.

“I had many people test it. Everyone could see it the first time, but on the second look, it vanished without a trace. My preliminary conclusion is that it’s an ability that affects our brains. The person remains in the photo, but we are being interfered with and simply cannot perceive them.”

Uncle Mo explained.

“Then, do you think this person is connected to Liu Yu?”

The brown-haired girl asked. For her, this was the most crucial question; a mysterious anomaly, its origins unknown, was approaching her kin with unknown intentions.

‘If…’

‘If it happened again, like last time, she didn’t know if she would have the courage to go on living.’

‘This was her last remaining family.’

“While it’s not a certainty, I’d say it’s about eighty to ninety percent likely.”

“So, the possibility is quite high, then?”

After a moment’s thought, the brown-haired girl spoke again. “Please find out which Hunters are currently in Dongchuan; I’ll go visit them immediately.”

“No need to check; I can introduce you to one of my protégés.”

Uncle Mo chuckled. “His name is Yao Jing. He recently resolved a major incident here, and he also graduated from Xuyang. He’d be perfectly suited for this task.”

“Then I’ll trouble you, Uncle Mo.”

“Don’t worry, Miss. I’ll even risk my old reputation to get him to work for you.”

With the roar of the engine starting, the car began its journey toward their destination.

****

In a dark alley in Dongchuan that no one could find.

Two figures, bundled tightly in black, were meeting.

“Are you the one she mentioned?”

The slightly shorter figure in black asked, their voice hoarse, sharp, and unpleasant, making it impossible to discern their gender.

“Mm.”

The relatively taller figure in black nodded, then, recalling something, she looked puzzled.

“Why are we meeting hidden away here? I thought we were supposed to meet at the nearby coffee shop?”

No sooner had she spoken than the shorter figure retorted.

“Do you really think we can meet like this in public? We’d probably be arrested after just a few steps.”

‘Well, couldn’t we just take them off then?’

The taller figure grumbled inwardly. She was curious to see what this person, so thoroughly concealed, actually looked like, but knowing their likely personality, they’d probably refuse to uncover themselves even if it killed them.

‘But how were they supposed to walk around dressed entirely in black? It wasn’t as if there was a convenient alley leading straight to their destination.’

“What are you still standing there for? Let’s go.”

The shorter figure urged, seeing that she was heading towards the bustling main road outside.

“…”

Too weary to bother with this person’s baffling behavior, the taller figure responded listlessly.

“Coming, coming.”

“Dee-doo, dee-doo.”

The sudden blare of police sirens made the two figures, one ahead of the other, exchange glances.

Xiu Lan pulled back her right foot, which she had just stepped forward, and said weakly.

“Maybe we should wait a little longer.”

“They’re not here for you!”

Pulling the ‘idiot’ blocking the way behind her, Robin curiously peered out at the scene outside.

While the two had been chatting, hidden in the alley, the entire street had undergone a drastic transformation.

Collapsed buildings, cracked roads, continuous gunshots ringing out, and colossal… white rats occasionally scurrying past. It was as if they had suddenly stumbled onto the set of an apocalyptic film.

‘Rats?’

‘Weren’t they extinct?’

“Let me see too, hmph.”

“Don’t push!”

Xiu Lan squeezed past Robin, moving outwards. The alley possessed a peculiar structure, narrow at the entrance but wide within, normally allowing only one person to pass at a time.

However… feeling the soft sensation of the black-clad girl’s body pressing against hers as she squeezed by, Robin stood even more firmly.

“Honestly, stop holding me back!”

Gasping for breath as she finally squeezed out of the alley, Xiu Lan complained about her companion’s recent actions. Yet, what puzzled her was that Robin, who usually loved to bicker with her, remained completely silent this time.

“Hey, hey, did your brain short-circuit? Why aren’t you saying anything?”

Unfortunately, Robin, who was silently chanting ‘I’m not a lesbian, I’m not a lesbian’ in her mind, was still lingering in the afterglow of that wonderful sensation, completely unable to respond to Xiu Lan’s prodding.

“Tsk.”

Ignoring her ‘crashed’ companion, Xiu Lan meticulously surveyed her surroundings.

About half an hour had passed since they had first hidden in the alley.

Yet, in such a short span, the street had been devastated and rendered deserted. Could it be the ‘High-Tier Species’ that Duo Shi had once mentioned?

At the thought, Xiu Lan immediately felt like retreating. A group of ‘Low-Tier Species’ blood kin was already flashy enough; she couldn’t imagine what unique skills a ‘High-Tier Species’ might possess.

“Cough, cough, can you hear me?”

A man’s voice, crackling with static, echoed from above.

Xiu Lan looked in the direction of the voice, spotting a spherical object suspended in mid-air, within which stood a diminutive man.

He was currently gesticulating wildly inside the sphere, appearing highly excited, while the giant rats Robin had seen earlier were gathering one by one beneath him.

“Good afternoon, dear citizens! Do you like the gift I’ve prepared for you?”

“Through my tireless efforts, I have finally resurrected the ‘Rats’ that went extinct during the Great Migration and imbued them with the power to survive in this era. Rejoice, citizens, for you are the first to witness this new life.”

“He must be a member of the ‘Evolutionaries’.”

Robin, finally freed from her mental assault, also stepped out of the alley.

“E-vo-lu-tion-ar-ies…? What in the world is that?”

“They’re a bunch of lunatics.”

She explained. “They’re a former extremist organization, reportedly originating from a government research department before the Great Migration, providing longevity-extending technology to certain high-ranking officials and dignitaries.”

“Later, when the ‘Black Blood Species’ arrived, they switched to researching ‘Black Blood’.”

“In previous years, they were almost constantly active, with minor events every three days and major ones every seven. They would frequently emerge to test their new creations.”

“It wasn’t until the Regulatory Bureau finally raided their stronghold that they quieted down for a while. To think they’ve reappeared recently. I truly don’t know how these people’s brains are wired.”

Robin complained, rubbing her temples.

“So, hitting this guy isn’t against the law, then?”

“Of course. Even if you kill him, the Regulatory Bureau would probably give you a ‘Courageous Citizen’ medal. What are you doing?”

Finally noticing her companion’s strange behavior, Robin asked curiously.

At that moment, Xiu Lan was shifting back and forth, mimicking the motion of throwing a javelin.

“I’m adjusting the trajectory, trying to knock him down in one go. He’s too high up, and I can’t fly.”

The black-clad girl explained.

Shadows couldn’t stray too far from her body, but stones could. She decided to use the power of shadow to hurl a stone. Not to kill, but simply to knock him down, ensuring he received a harsh lesson.

“This position is about right. You, move further back, even further, yes, yes, that’s about it.”

The power of shadow surged into her right hand.

With a powerful heave, Xiu Lan threw.

“Boom!”

Accompanied by a colossal sonic boom, the stone, like an arrow released from a bowstring, shot towards the flying apparatus in the sky, trailing turbulent air currents.