"Ughhh..."
"My head feels like it's going to explode."
Arkana slowly opened his eyes, clutching his head in pain. He looked around, confused by his surroundings. Beside the bed, he noticed a bottle of alcohol. He couldn't remember how he ended up in this unfamiliar room, a place he'd never even seen before. His mind was hazy, cloaked in dark fog, as if it refused to reveal what had happened. When had he started drinking so heavily that he ended up in such a deep blackout after just a few sips? There was no answer—just remnants of a hangover and an unsettling feeling creeping into his mind.
"Ugh, I hate this…"
Arkana wiped away his tears, feeling a tightness in his chest, an unbearable mix of disappointment and confusion. He felt as though he'd lost his way, unable to understand why he did something he despised—relying on something that now felt broken. He never imagined that the Khodam he summoned would turn out to be a Tuyul. Accepting that reality was difficult. The revelation hit him like a hard blow, leaving him paralyzed, too heavy to face, too painful to admit. He lowered his head, trying to hold back his tears, but the overwhelming sense of failure kept crashing over him, giving him no space to breathe.
"Why did it have to be a Tuyul?!"
Arkana sobbed uncontrollably, tears and snot running down his face. His face was a mess. Throughout his life, Arkana had always succeeded in everything he tried. Growing up in the slums of his city, he always strove to escape that environment, courageously moving to the capital to seek a better life, surviving by becoming a spirit hunter.
"Someone...please, help me…"
In that moment, memories of Arkana's childhood surfaced—of the time when the Void shattered around his city. He could vividly recall people running for their lives, the surrounding buildings crumbling, the sky filled with thick smoke, and the nauseating smell of burning flesh. Amidst the flaming ruins in the distance, Arkana saw his mother trapped under a pile of concrete and steel, helpless. His cries and pleas couldn't save her.
"Mother…"
Arkana's voice was heavy and filled with sorrow. That helpless feeling resurfaced, like when his world first fell apart. Shortly after calling out to his mother, he saw a monstrous figure in the distance, spewing fire from its mouth.
"NO! MOTHER!"
The monster obliterated a nearby building. It was nighttime, and Arkana could only see the silhouette of the monster with its glowing red eyes, like a gorilla that could breathe fire. The stench of burning flesh and thick smoke etched a horror in Arkana's mind—a horror that 8-year-old should endure. The creature stepped towards him, swinging its fist at the nearby rubble around Arkana.
"AHHHHH!"
Arkana screamed in terror, trying to run with his broken leg.
"HELP!!!"
Then, he heard footsteps approaching.
[tap tap tap]
CLANGGG!!!
The sound of a sword clashing against a solid object rang out.
"Run now!!!"
Arkana was stunned to see a spirit hunter who actually cared about people from the slums.
"What are you looking at?!"
"Run!!!"
Arkana dragged his broken leg, glancing back to see the lone spirit hunter fighting off the horde of Void monsters. Normally, spirit hunters were assigned to protect nobles and city residents, while the slums lay outside the city walls. He attempted to reach the city gates, but the gates were crowded with people fleeing from the slums. He saw people stabbed by gate guards, trampled, and some children who had died, still held by their parents.
"Let us in!"
"Please, save my child!"
People from the slums pleaded, but the guards ignored them. In the distance, Arkana noticed void monsters approaching to prey on the slum residents gathered at the gate.
"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"
The sound of breaking bones, the stench of burning flesh, and thick smoke made the situation a tragic irony for a young child of eight.
BOOOMMM!!!!!
He saw another city gate destroyed, engulfed in flames, lighting up the night's darkness. Everyone ran aimlessly, only wanting to survive. The slums had never been a priority for the people within the city walls. Arkana decided to return to the spirit hunter, hiding as he watched him summon his Khodam. He saw a doll with a coconut-shell head, small limbs, and a terrifying face emerge from a magic circle.
"Isn't that a
Arkana was puzzled. With only a grade C Khodam, the spirit hunter dared to face hundreds of Void monsters. And the Void monster that killed Arkana's mother was a
"Die, all of you!"
Most of the Void monsters that came out were sword-fanged wolves which were grade E Void monsters. Others are grade C and B, while only two are grade A and those are Genderuwo. The hunter targeted weaker monsters to reduce their numbers in the slums.
"It looks like the sword-fanged wolves here are done."
"Now, I have to hold back this Genderuwo."
Arkana watched in horror as the spirit hunter tried to hold off the raging Genderuwo. But in an instant, the hunter's body was flung against the city wall, crashing with a sickening sound. Arkana gasped as he saw the spirit hunter's broken, unmoving form. His arms and legs bent at unnatural angles, blood seeping through the cracks in his worn armor. Though he was still breathing, he could no longer stand.
"Uncle! Uncle!"
"Get up! Don't die, Uncle!"
The spirit hunter opened his eyes, summoning his Khodam, which extended a thread into the hunter's wounds, stitching and mending his broken bones.
"Alright, time to get serious!" The spirit hunter stood, brushing the dust off his armor.
"Watch this, kid!"
He began gathering his Spirit Ki, and…
THWACK!!!!!
From out of nowhere, the event unfolded so quickly that Arkana's eyes couldn't follow. The spirit hunter was hit by a devastating punch from the Genderuwo, leaving his body a mangled mess. Arkana was in shock, frozen, unable to speak as he saw the hero who saved him lying disfigured. The spirit hunter's Khodam was now just prey for the Genderuwo.
"Uncle?"
Arkana's voice was weak. He couldn't bear to witness the scene, bowing his head in despair. Through the smoke and flames, he saw the silhouette of the monster devouring the hunter's Khodam before turning its fiery red gaze on Arkana, reaching out to grab him.
SWOOSH!!!
The monster's hand was severed, and Arkana's gaze fell on the back of another spirit hunter, merged with his Khodam. His broad, furry back had black stripes and a long, sharp-toothed tail. Blood dripped from his katana.
"What are you looking at, you useless slum rat?!"
"You ignorant slum dwellers!!!"
The intense, hateful fierce glare from the man who had rescued him left Arkana in shock, causing him speechless and cry silently, he simply fled from that place. While dragging his feet, he saw the hand of the dead hunter's Khodam who had saved him. Clutching the severed hand of the dead hunter's Khodam, he attempted to move away from the scene.
"Damn I thought that monster was trying to hit the city wall"
"You know what, I better let the monster kill that boy", the man's face full of hatred.
The monster screamed as if it was angry and its eyes became brighter. As it opened its mouth, the monster began to spit fire.
thud, thud, thud, roll.
As the monster's head rolled on the bloodied ground, the monster's body fell to the ground. The ground shook as if there was a small earthquake in the area.
BANG!!!
"Looks like the second Genderuwo that destroyed the city gate has been defeated by Eris"
As the spirit hunter Aris gazed at the gate engulfed in a wave of flames, he saw the silhouette of Eris, casually resting a large riffle gun over her shoulder.
"I believe the task here has completed" Eris began to lift and move her large rifle.
While the two spirit hunters were busy eliminating the Void monsters that had invaded the city, they allowed the lowly Void monsters continue to roam the slums. Even Aris and Eris opted to watch the slum dwellers slaughtered by Void monsters. For them, the lives of the slum dwellers were not something worth fighting for. From a distance, they saw Arkana with his broken leg dragging his tiny body, while he clutched tightly to the spirit hunter's Khodam, who had sacrificed its life to save him.
"Hey boy"
"Do you know why the spirit hunter died?"
"He wasn't a brave man, he was just an idiot trying to be a hero", Aris laughed.
"Do you even know the hunter's name?"
Arkana was taken aback as he thought that the two spirit hunters were still quite distance from him, yet in an instant, they stood right before him.
"I don't know his name"
Drops of sorrow streamed down Arkana's face. He is now left with only the remnants of the spirit hunter.
"That man is both stupid and feeble."
"Sarid Leudit was his name."
"Hahaha even his death was ridiculous", Aris shook his head and chuckled, finding the hunter's death absurd.
Arkana couldn't contain his anger, he clenched his fists and...
PLAKKKKKK!!!!!!
Arkana was blown away by a slap from the male hunter who who has united with his Khodam. The female spirit hunter, Eris seemed satisfied to see Arkana thrown away and helpless.
"You'd be better off dead, son of a b*tch!"
"How can you have the audacity to lay hands on a noble like me?"
"I am Aris Jokorda!!", Aris cast a sharp glance towards Arkana, locking eyes intently.
Aris and Eris are twins belonging to the noble Jokorda family. They are both A-ranked spirit hunters assigned to protect the city's residents and nobility.
Despite being thrown away, Arkana still kept a firm grip on Khodam Sarid's hand. He then eventually lost his consciousness.
"Looking back it's painful to remember that tragic event"
Arkana held his head which was still dizzy and started to stand up. He was still staggering when he stood up. He stared into a mirror on the vanity , seeing his reflection—his pitiful, defeated self.
"Summon Tuyul."
A small creature with big eyes and a head bigger than its body appeared, with a bald head, it looked like a child wearing only shorts. Arkana looked again at his Khodam, then burst into tears, cursing the fact that it was a Tuyul. Still unwilling to accept his Khodam, Arkana returned it.
"It's time to train harder to become stronger!"
While staring into the mirror, Arkana saw his pitiful face. He then screamed while looking up at the ceiling of the room.
"JUST WAIT!"
"YOU THINK I'LL GIVE UP?!"
"I WILL BECOME THE SPIRIT EMPEROR!"
Arkana has made up his mind to pursue the title of Spirit Emperor and become the most powerful hunter ever.
"WHO ARE YOU?!"
"WHY ARE YOU IN MY ROOM?!"
A stranger stood at the door, arms crossed over his chest. Arkana squinted, trying to remember how he ended up here. The stranger approached him and pushed Arkana out of the room. Embarrassed, Arkana looked down. Once outside, he realized that in his drunken stupor, he had stumbled into the wrong room next door.