The roar didn't fade.
It multiplied.
From every fissure around the volcanic basin, molten cracks split open — and from those glowing wounds in the earth, lava beasts crawled free. Smaller than Vulcarion, but shaped by the same fury — their hides were molten black, eyes glowing amber, every breath hissing steam. The air filled with their screeches, the sound of claws scraping rock.
Kael cursed under his breath. "It's spawning a nest—"
Hunnt's eyes narrowed, pulse steady despite the chaos. "Then we burn the nest down."
Without waiting for orders, he moved — boots cracking the molten crust beneath him. Anchor Step. Each stride planted deep, balanced even as tremors rippled through the earth. The heat rolled in waves, but he didn't falter. His gauntlets glowed, faint veins of red pulsing beneath the black steel as Armament Haki coated his fists.
The first lava beast lunged, jaws wide — Hunnt met it head-on.
A sharp twist of the hip — Redirect — the monster's weight shifted off balance, and he drove a left hook straight through its skull. The impact cracked the air like thunder. Its molten body folded in half before exploding into slag and sparks.
Another pounced from behind. Hunnt ducked, felt its shadow, then pivoted. His heel carved through the ash — Pulse Drive — momentum surging up from the ground through his arm. His gauntlet struck the creature's torso with seismic force. The beast disintegrated mid-air, scattering molten fragments across the basin.
More came. Dozens.
Hunnt exhaled, eyes half-lidded, Observation Haki flaring.
He could feel them — movements in the heat, ripples through the smoke, even the faint shift in air before each lunge. Every heartbeat within his range flashed in his mind as flickers of red. His world shrank to rhythm and instinct.
Three more beasts lunged from different angles.
He side-stepped the first, catching its claw mid-swing; redirected its momentum into the second; then crushed the third's neck with a straight downward blow. The molten blood splattered across his armor, sizzling instantly — but his Haki burned hotter.
He didn't even flinch.
Another swarm closed in. Hunnt slammed his fists together, sparks bursting from the friction. "Come on then."
They obeyed.
He met them like a storm — fists striking in rhythmic bursts.
Every motion was deliberate, every hit carrying the weight of the volcano itself. He wasn't a blur — he was solid, grounded, immovable.
Each step echoed like a drumbeat. Each strike landed like thunder.
"Hunnt!" Kael's voice came through the smoke. "You're too far ahead!"
Hunnt didn't answer. His focus was absolute.
A claw scraped his shoulder — shallow, but burning. He twisted, smashed the attacker's head sideways, then grabbed its corpse mid-fall and hurled it into the next beast. The collision burst in a shower of flame.
He looked down at the smoking gash on his shoulder — skin blackened through the armor. He reached for his pouch, bit the cork off a potion, and drank. The liquid hissed as it met the burn, the cooling effect almost shocking his body back to motion.
"Still standing," he muttered, exhaling steam.
More beasts came crawling from the fissures. The ground glowed like veins of hellfire beneath his feet. Hunnt slammed his fist into the ground — the explosion of force from Pulse Drive shattered the surrounding rock, sending molten fragments flying. Several monsters were thrown back, shrieking as they dissolved into magma.
At the center of the chaos, Hunnt stood unflinching — a black figure surrounded by firelight, the Eternal Mark faintly glowing through his gauntlet's cracks. The symbol burned like a vow.
Far across the field, Kael, Alder, and Seren were still battling Vulcarion Basal. The massive wyvern had not moved far, but its roars shook the valley like rolling thunder.
"Hunnt!" Kael's voice rang again over the roar. "We can't hold it — we need you back here!"
Hunnt turned toward the voice — only to see several lava beasts rushing Kael's position, their molten claws slicing through the haze. Kael dove aside, firing from the hip. His shots glanced off armor, leaving trails of steam but little else. One claw caught his leg, tearing through the outer layer of his armor.
Kael gritted his teeth, reaching for his satchel. His fingers fumbled before he downed his first potion, coughing as the burn dulled. He forced himself upright and fired again, even as the ground trembled under Vulcarion's massive steps.
Hunnt smashed through two more beasts and leapt forward, sprinting across the broken ridge to reach him.
A pack cut him off mid-run. He clenched his fists, then planted both feet, channeling all power downward. His gauntlets hummed — red lines glowing brighter — before he drove his palms forward.
"Get. Out. Of. My. WAY!"
The ground erupted. The shockwave ripped the lesser monsters apart, fragments scattering like shattered glass. The molten air burned his lungs, but he didn't stop. His vision tunneled — all focus on his allies.
By the time he reached Kael, his breathing was heavy, his skin blistered from the heat — but his stance never faltered.
"Still alive?" Hunnt asked, half a smirk on his lips.
Kael reloaded, eyes flicking toward Seren and Alder, still fighting the wyvern head-on. "Barely. But they're not gonna last if this keeps up."
Hunnt looked over the battlefield. Seren stood in front of Vulcarion's burning shadow, shield raised, unyielding.
The wyvern's flames reflected off her armor like sunlight off a dying star.
She had seen him fight. She had seen him throw himself into the fire to protect them all.
Now it was her turn.
Seren raised her cracked shield, voice hoarse but fierce. "Over here! Face me!"
Her words cut through the firestorm.
Vulcarion turned, molten eyes locking on her form. It roared, the sound shaking the world — and every vent along its chest burst open, spewing flame. The light swallowed her whole.
Kael flinched. "Seren—!"
But when the flames died down, she was still there — armor cracked, shield fractured, smoke rising from her shoulders — still standing.
Breathing hard. But standing.
Alder whispered, voice low with disbelief. "She's not even flinching."
Hunnt's fists lowered slightly, the faintest trace of respect in his eyes. "No. She's holding."
And then, Vulcarion's vents flared white.
Kael felt the air pressure change through his Haki. "Everyone brace—!"
Vulcarion unleashed another roar — a sound that tore through the molten air like a shockwave of hate and heat.
The cracks across its armor glowed pure white. Flames spiraled upward, consuming the smoke.
Second Rage Mode.
The mountain had awakened again — but this time, so had they.