The wind howled through the artificial ruins of the training zone, kicking up clouds of dust. The air still vibrated from the clash against the Class C Neoforms, their lifeless husks lying motionless on the cracked ground. Kaizen and his team caught their breath, assessing their next move.
"That wasn't so hard," Rika commented, stretching as her golden gaze swept across the area. "Do we keep going or wait for another wave?"
Kaizen was about to reply when a deep rumble suddenly echoed through the zone. This wasn't part of the simulation.
An explosion erupted in the distance, shaking the ground beneath them. A wall of the structure collapsed in a cloud of debris and flames, sparks flying into the frigid air. The academy's sirens wailed at full alert.
"This isn't normal," Hiroto murmured, his voice tense.
Kaizen narrowed his eyes. A figure burst through the flames, hurled violently against a still-standing section of the wall. A second figure—massive and gleaming—pursued, tearing through everything in its path.
"A fight…" he realized. "A hero and a villain are battling here."
The two combatants paid no attention to the students, entirely consumed by their brutal struggle, oblivious to the destruction they left behind.
"We need to get out of here," Akiko said, urgency lacing her voice.
"Tundrath, back—" Kaizen started.
A piercing whistle cut him off. Before he could react, a shockwave from the battle sent a massive chunk of concrete hurtling straight at Tundrath.
The impact was sickening.
The creature's agonized roar echoed through the complex—a deep, guttural cry unlike anything Kaizen had ever heard. Tundrath, his most resilient creation, staggered. Its left flank was torn open, thick black blood oozing onto the dust-covered ground.
For a moment, the world seemed to freeze. A cold wave shot through Kaizen's body.
Impossible.
He had designed Tundrath to withstand the harshest conditions, the most brutal assaults. Never had he seen it this vulnerable.
"Shit! We have to help it!" Hiroto shouted.
Kaizen wasn't listening anymore.
A crushing pressure gripped his chest. His gaze locked onto the gaping wound—the torn flesh, the slow trickle of blood. His creation. His first. His masterpiece.
"I can fix it."
He dropped to his knees, pressing his hands to the injury. His Alter activated instinctively, fingers trembling from the effort. Cells began to reorganize beneath his palms, blood solidifying as tissues attempted to regenerate.
But something was wrong.
His breathing grew ragged. A hollowness crept into him as his energy drained too fast. He was losing control, destabilized by panic and the sheer rage of feeling powerless.
The cells moved too quickly, erratically. The wound started to close, but with abnormalities—irregular growths, hybrid tissue that no longer resembled Tundrath's.
Kaizen grimaced. He was failing.
Rika grabbed his shoulder and shook him. "Stop! You're making it worse!"
He looked up at her, his gaze clouded with raw fury. "I have to fix it!"
"Not now!" she shouted. "If we stay here, we're dead!"
Another tremor rocked the ground. The fight between the hero and the villain escalated, sending fresh waves of destruction through the area. Their Alters shattered structures, an entire section of the building beginning to collapse.
Kaizen closed his eyes for a moment. He was helpless. Without a controlled environment, without preparation, he couldn't save Tundrath on his own.
"Dammit..."
He forced himself to stop his Alter and slowly stood up.
"We're taking it with us," he decided, clenching his fists. "We'll find a safe place."
As the team retreated, Kaizen stole one last glance at the battle raging behind them. And in that moment, he realized something.
He was insignificant in this chaos.
And that had to change.
Black smoke still rose into the sky as they moved away. The sound of explosions faded, but the sting of weakness remained lodged in him. They finally reached a sheltered area behind a collapsed wall. Kaizen sank to his knees beside Tundrath, who was breathing heavily.
He placed a hand on its flank, heart pounding. The adrenaline was wearing off, leaving behind a dull ache in his chest. He had almost lost it. His first real failure.
Heavy footsteps signaled the arrival of Professor Shiba. His gaze swept over the scene, expression grim.
"Mori…" His voice was calmer than usual. "It was reckless to stay in the combat zone for so long."
Kaizen gritted his teeth but didn't respond immediately. He knew Shiba was right, but his mind was still trapped in the image of Tundrath wounded, in his inability to prevent it.
"Tundrath will survive, but it will take time," Shiba continued, his tone measured. "And you need to understand that alone, you won't always be in control."
Kaizen lowered his head slightly. He already knew that. But hearing it from an experienced hero only made the truth sting more.
He wasn't strong enough yet.
And he had to change that—no matter what it took.