Saya raised her rifle as she looked through the holographic sight. She prepared to deliver the final blow to the wounded mutated dog.
'Finally. After that mess with the cannon, at least I'll finish this.'
That way Yuu will praise her, right?
But then...
There was a feeling of emptiness there. As if space itself was being drained of existence.
Behind the mutated dog, swirling energy began to manifest. The vortex was black. The darkest darkness writhed in that place.
"What...?"
Saya stopped looking through the scope and lowered her pink rifle slightly. Then she focused her gaze forward.
"W-what is that?"
The swirling energy quickly grew, expanding until it took solid form.
A dark being emerged.
It had no face. Or rather, it had something resembling a smooth, featureless black helmet on its head. Instead of hands, it had long swords fused directly to its arms. It could be considered as if its limbs had been replaced by sharp blades.
"This is no normal enemy..."
The dark being stood motionless for a second. It only moved its head and although it had no eyes, it seemed to be assessing its surroundings.
Then, in a movement so fast that even Saya's eyes barely caught it, it pierced through the mutated dog.
The mutated dog literally exploded into pieces, as if every molecule in its body had been torn apart simultaneously.
"That's..."
×××
"What the hell is that thing?!"
Rei let out those words of disbelief from where she had been fighting zombies.
The girls had finished eliminating the horde just in time to witness the appearance of the new enemy.
Dark being turned its "head" toward Saya. Despite having no eyes, she could feel it watching her.
Choosing her as its next target.
Then it disappeared.
"Saya! Behind you!"
Thanks to Saeko's shout, Saya turned just in time to see the dark whirlpool behind her.
The black being materialized from that whirlpool as it began to raise its long, sharp sword-like arm to launch a slashing attack.
Without hesitation she jumped.
She jumped from the third floor of the building downwards.
Her rifle disappeared into particles of light when her concentration was broken by fear.
This was understandable, since the enemy this time was terrifying. It was a type of enemy they weren't used to.
She landed awkwardly on the ground while panting and hid behind a destroyed car.
"Wha... I almost died..."
The other girls quickly regrouped at street level.
Saeko, Rei, and Jin-ah looked clearly exhausted. There was zombie blood on their clothes, sweat on their foreheads, and their breathing was heavy.
They had been fighting continuously for the last few minutes.
Even with enhanced stats, they were still humans who could get tired, and even more so when they had killed hundreds of zombies in those few minutes.
—...
The dark being ignored them. Its head was still fixed in the direction where Saya had hidden.
Saeko frowned slightly as her fingers tightened around the hilt of her katana.
"That monster... it's not from the virus."
Because its physical constitution was different.
Jin-ah nodded.
"I can't sense any life in it. It's as if... it doesn't really exist."
Rei swung her spear around and placed it behind her back.
"How do you fight something that doesn't exist?"
At that moment, Shizuka threw potion bottles at them. The liquid inside the glass bottle was yellow.
[Stamina Potion]
—Grade: Low
—Rank: 2 Star
—Description
A potion bottle made by a novice Alchemist.
Drinking it can restore some lost stamina.
...
Since Shizuka had risen to Level 2, her understanding of the exclusive skill "Alchemist" had also increased, so she could now create 2-Star potions.
The girls thanked her and quickly drank it. The cool, slightly sour taste went down their throats and quickly spread throughout their bodies.
Instantly, they felt some of the fatigue leave their limbs. Their ragged breathing also returned to normal.
—...
The dark being finally moved again. Where it had been stood only the black whirlpool, and with another black whirlpool, it appeared directly in front of Jin-ah.
The girls' eyes widened.
The monster seemed to be conscious enough to make a tactical move. Because...
It went after the support first.
Jin-ah quickly backed away before shouting.
"By this light, fly and find your mark."
An impact point appeared on the enemy's chest. And the yellow projectile shot out of the crystal in a straight line toward that marked point.
The yellow ball hit the dark being squarely in the chest.
And did absolutely nothing.
"Ah."
It was immune to Jin-ah's light.
×××
From a distance, Yuu and Yue watched. Shizuka ran towards them after delivering her potions.
"Yuu... What is that thing?"
Even she, Yuu's Emanator with enough power to destroy planets and galaxies, was sensing something from the monster.
"It's weak... still... it makes my soul tremble."
Even Yue felt it.
"It's a Herald of the All-Devouring Void."
"Herald?"
"Umu. A minor fragment of the Void. A scout, basically."
Yuu calmly watched as the monster dodged Saeko's attack.
"It seeks concentrations of life and existence to mark them for later consumption."
He used his Omniscience, and instantly knew everything about that monster.
"And the girls...?"
"They are exactly the kind of concentration of existence that would attract one."
Because they are Pathstriders who were directly connected to the Pillar of the Multiverse. That's why their existences shone more brightly compared to other existences.
Furthermore...
A new Pillar of the Multiverse had been born, and unlike the previous Pillar, this new Pillar was gathering followers.
The Void That Devours All found its existence problematic and begun to act more actively.
Yue looked at Yuu with worry.
"Should I help them?"
He considered the question as he watched Rei being thrown into a car by the Herald's sword-arm strike.
"Not yet. They need to learn how to face threats like this without relying on you or me."
"But they could die."
"I won't let that happen. But they need to grow. And growth requires challenge."
'Hah... I'm a terrible teacher.'
×××
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