Vivienne took a deep breath as she stepped further into the expansive kingdom. The towering spires of its castles gleamed under the sun, a sight both majestic and intimidating. Beside her, Hunter scanned their surroundings, a thoughtful expression on his face. "This is a great kingdom," he remarked. "But whose is it?"
Before Vivienne could respond, they were ambushed by a group of armored guards. The guards were massive, their imposing figures casting long shadows over the ground. To their shock, Vivienne recognized one of the guards as the monster she had slain earlier. The creature had risen from the dead, now a grotesque version of its former self—a zombie.
Hunter's eyes widened, and without hesitation, he drew his knife, channeling energy into it. A massive electric field crackled to life around him, pulsating with raw power. Vivienne felt the surge of energy between them, a bond that allowed her to withstand the forces Hunter unleashed. The electric field engulfed the undead monster, causing it to writhe in agony, its decayed form twitching as it struggled against the painful assault.
With a final surge of energy, the electric field shattered the monster's body into countless pieces, reducing it to atoms. But just as Hunter turned back to Vivienne, the monster began to reform, reconstructing itself into its original, monstrous shape. It unleashed a fearsome roar and transformed into its most powerful form, charging directly at Hunter. In an instant, it struck, cleaving Hunter's body in two.
Vivienne gasped in horror, her heart racing at the sight of her partner severed. But even as her anger surged, Hunter's voice rang out, calm and steady. "Don't unleash the Arcana Veil, Vivienne. Let me handle this." To her astonishment, his body began to reassemble, as if the brutal injury had never occurred.
The monster, now enraged, unleashed a torrent of slashes and blows, trying to overpower Hunter. Yet, with his foresight ability, Hunter was able to see the attacks before they even occurred. He moved with an agility and speed that was impossible to comprehend, dashing forward faster than light itself. The monster could barely register Hunter's movements before he struck.
Hunter's attacks landed with precision, sending the creature sprawling backwards. As the monster was hurled away, Hunter summoned multiple shadow clones of himself, each one mirroring his movements perfectly. The monster, now thoroughly confused by the onslaught of duplicates, struggled to discern which Hunter was the real one. With each shadow attacking in tandem, Hunter drained the monster's strength, weakening it until it was nearly incapacitated.
Finally, Hunter recognized he had sent the monster flying an impressive distance—10 kilometers away. "I knew it would be sent 10 kilometers because I have the ability to analyze the information around me," he said, a hint of satisfaction in his voice.
From this safe distance, Hunter gripped his knife tightly and focused his energy. Channeling his power, he aimed at the creature and unleashed a freezing blast that lowered the temperature around the monster to absolute zero. The beast screeched in agony as ice encased its body, rendering it immobile and finally defeating it.
After Vivienne and Hunter stood victorious, their moment of triumph was short-lived. A figure emerged from the shadows, its body slightly distorted, as though reality itself struggled to contain him. He wore a long coat and floated above the ground. "Where am I? Where's my bus? I don't know anything!" the man exclaimed, his voice filled with confusion.
Vivienne and Hunter exchanged wary glances, both feeling an unsettling aura emanating from the stranger. "Who is this guy?" Vivienne wondered aloud, her instincts on high alert. Before they could investigate further, the environment around them began to distort; time itself seemed to falter and crack.
Realizing the gravity of the situation, Vivienne and Hunter quickly combined their powers. They focused intensely, working in unison to mend the time distortions—stopping time and sealing the cracks that threatened to tear reality apart.
"What is happening? Who is that person, and how could he cause this?" Vivienne asked, her brow furrowed in concern.
"I don't know for sure," Hunter replied, his expression serious. "Even my future sight can't predict where he will go next."
Meanwhile, at a distance in the agents' base, life continued as usual, untouched by the chaos that had erupted. They had never encountered such turmoil, save for Saber's confrontation with the monster.
Hazel surveyed their surroundings with a sense of relief. "Our place is very nice; there are no more threats," she said, confident in their safety.
Olivia chimed in, "Maybe it's because we're in a village equipped with advanced technology. The village has power-nullifying devices, so anyone who enters loses their powers—except for agents with special cards."
She continued, "This village also has a form of consciousness, like robots. They can defend themselves and are considered alive."
Unbeknownst to them, two slimes watched from the remains of a ruined building, plotting their next move.
Noxifer turned to Luxtheron, a mischievous grin spreading across his face. "What will we do next?"
Luxtheron replied, "We will cause chaos again, but later."
Noxifer nodded in agreement. "Alright."
Back in the throne room, the true-form monster sat silently on its throne, observing the unfolding events with keen interest, ready to make its next move.
To be continued.