The silence after the massacre rang louder than any scream.
The stench of scorched blood lingered in the underground chamber. Crimson mist curled like snakes around Asari's feet, refusing to fade. Aicha sat quietly behind him, her gaze lost in the charred symbols that lined the broken pillars. Her hands trembled faintly. Not from fear—but from the realization that they had crossed yet another threshold. One they couldn't return from.
"Asari," she whispered, voice cracked. "Are we… still human?"
Asari didn't answer. His eyes were fixed ahead, where the cavern twisted downward into a black crevice. That was where the Pulse led him. Not one born of instinct or sight—but Eather. It called like a heartbeat buried deep in stone.
"We move," he said. "Something waits down there."
Aicha nodded. She'd learned not to ask what. Whatever he sensed… it was always real.
They descended.
Each step into the crevice was like sinking into a drowning dream. The walls began to pulse with Eather—dark and ancient. This wasn't the Velmara continent's typical flow. This was untouched. Raw. Corrupted.
And something was feeding on it.
A low growl echoed from deep within. It wasn't an animal—it was worse. Something that once wore skin and now wore the abyss like armor.
Aicha raised her hand slightly. "It's the Glutton Stone again…"
"No," Asari replied, tightening his grip on his blade. "This isn't just a test anymore. This place has become a nest."
They reached the base of the descent. The space opened into a circular underground coliseum, buried beneath thousands of tons of forgotten ruins. At its center stood a beast—a towering figure shaped like a man, but its bones jutted from its flesh like broken spears. It breathed mist, and with each exhale, the walls cracked slightly, unable to contain the Eather pressure.
The creature turned.
Its eyes were hollow. But something deeper watched them.
[Eather Entity: Glutborn Titan]
Classification: Aberrant Sovereign (Rank Unknown)
Eather Signature: Devour Type – Prime Corruption
Aicha gasped. "It's an Eather Spawned Sovereign…"
Asari didn't hesitate.
He stepped forward, blade drawn, letting the void pulse around him. His presence distorted the air. Shadows bent unnaturally.
The creature moved—fast, impossibly so for its size. It lunged. The ground shattered.
Asari met it head-on, his blade screaming through the air.
Devil Cry: Domination – Echo Carve.
The slash left a line of silence in the air, severing sound itself. The beast reeled, bloodless but staggered.
It roared, releasing a pulse of corrupted Eather. The blast slammed Asari into the pillar, stone crushing beneath him—but he rose instantly, unphased.
His breathing steadied. Blood dripped from his lip.
"Too slow."
He vanished.
Ghost Walking: Phantom Step – Veil Pierce.
A blur. A shimmer. Then the Titan screamed.
Asari appeared behind it, arm coated in void threads. The creature's back exploded in shards of bone and tar-like ooze. But still, it moved.
It slammed its fist into the ground, creating a shockwave of gravity. The floor twisted, dragging Asari back toward it.
Aicha stood, Eather trembling around her. Her hand formed a sign. "I'll support you!"
Pulse of Verdant Ward – Binding Ring.
Chains of green Eather wrapped the Titan's arm. It roared, ripping some apart, but enough held for Asari to get close.
He raised his sword again.
Devil Cry: End Chapter – Soul Sever.
A black crescent flew through the beast.
It didn't scream.
It simply froze—then shattered into dust, consumed by its own Eather.
The silence returned.
Asari dropped to one knee, breathing heavier than before. "Too many techniques… wasted."
Aicha rushed to him. "You're bleeding."
"I'll live."
He stood slowly. "That wasn't the true threat. This… was just bait."
At the edge of the arena, a new presence revealed itself. A single cloaked figure stood atop the broken statues. Thin. Graceful. A woman, perhaps. Her voice was quiet—but it carried across the cavern like thunder wrapped in silk.
"You killed my toy."
Asari's eyes narrowed. "State your name."
"Names are for those who walk in light. You—are in my grave."
She raised her hand. The ruins behind her ignited in silver flames.
[Unknown Entity Detected: Eather Designation – Whispered Queen]
The Pulse warned him.
This was no ordinary foe.
The Queen descended slowly, her feet never touching the ground. "You're not from here, boy. You carry the smell of Dummer… of slaughter."
Aicha stepped forward. "Don't speak like you know him."
The Queen smiled.
"Oh, child. I don't know him. I know what he will become."
And with that, the flames expanded.
The darkness welcomed them again.
---
"When you walk the path of the cursed, you do not return to light. You become its hunter."
– Chapter End Quote