Snap

The Domain materialized, but this time it was different.

The pitch-black ground spread outward and stopped.

A visible boundary formed at the edge, a wall of concentrated black fog marking where his Domain ended and reality began.

Unlike Before, it spread eight hundred meters in all directions.

The hundreds of manifestation-corpses floated above as always, projections of his guilt and despair.

But the wolf corpses around him–

Damian activated the Devourer Art, and the Domain’s fog surged forward simultaneously.

And they finally merged.

The black energy and fog became one, flowing across every wolf corpse in the clearing at the same time.

Dozens of bodies began to disintegrate simultaneously, being absorbed completely, flowing into Damian and through him into the Domain itself.

Damian stood perfectly still, feeling each corpse being absorbed and reformed inside his Domain.

One by one, the wolves appeared in the air above him.

Not as manifestations of despair like the usual.

But as actual animated corpses, physical bodies reconstructed from the essence the fog had consumed.

Dozens of massive wolves floated suspended in the crimson sky.

The A rank alpha hung largest among them, its body three times the size of a normal wolf.

And the black fog rose from the ground in thick streams, moving with purpose and terrible intelligence.

It flowed toward the devoured corpses, the ones that now belonged to his Domain completely.

Filling them with his despair, his will and his absolute authority.

Damian’s breathing steadied despite his heart pounding like thunder.

He could feel it now.

The connection between his Domain and the corpses he’d devoured.

The devouring principles acting as the bridge that let him claim them, despair acting as the force that animated them.

His voice came out quiet but absolute, carrying throughout the Domain.

"Awaken."

The silence stretched impossibly long.

Then–

All eyes opened at the same time.

The glow was identical across every wolf, that terrible red illumination that marked them as his.

And then they moved.

Every corpse descended from the air simultaneously.

BOOM

BOOM

BOOM

The massive wolves hit the pitch-black ground like falling boulders, each impact shaking the entire Domain and sending ripples through the surface.

The A rank alpha landed last with a sound like thunder, its enormous form towering over the others.

And in a single unified movement spanning dozens of corpses–

They knelt before him.

Thud

The sound echoed through the Domain like an avalanche.

All of them faced toward Damian, waiting for his command.

Dozens of wolves kneeling before their killer in perfect submission.

And in the center of it all stood Damian, his own crimson eyes reflecting the light from dozens of undead gazes.

A smile spread across his face, slowly widening.

’After so many failures... I finally did it.’

His gaze swept across the kneeling wolves.

His eyes gleamed with quiet satisfaction.

’This power... this is just the beginning.’

His gaze then lifted to the hundreds of manifestation-corpses still floating above.

Projections of his guilt and despair that had always filled his Domain.

’With my control now... I should be able to make them disappear... Control when they’re visible and when they’re not.’

His hand rose slowly and with a wave, the hundreds of manifestation-corpses vanished, dismissed by his will

Only the kneeling wolves remained, their crimson eyes still glowing in the darkness.

"Worth it... Every second was worth it for this."

Snap

The Domain collapsed.

Damian pulled up his status screen, navigating to the Domain information.

The text had changed completely.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Domain of Despair

A hybrid Domain capable of making any person within its boundaries feel the full weight of their negative emotions and experience absolute despair.

Host can use his own negative emotions to power the Domain. The more the host understands the essence of despair, the more powerful the Domain becomes.

Current Range: 800 meters

Internal Mode: Creates illusions that feel nearly real to targets, manifesting scenarios based on their specific sources of despair. The illusions adapt to each individual’s psychological weaknesses.

External Mode: Black fog devours corpses of enemies personally killed by the host, absorbing them into the Domain itself. Devoured corpses can be manifested within the Domain and animated by the host’s will.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━

He read it once, memorizing every word.

’Hybrid Domain... A mix of Mental and Physical Domain characteristics.’

His jaw clenched with satisfaction.

’Eight hundred meters of range... Two distinct modes for different situations...’

He closed the status screen with a wave of his hand.

The forest around him was peaceful. Birds chirped in the distance, sunlight filtered through leaves overhead, the wind carried the smell of earth and growing things.

So different from the nightmare weeks of constant hunting and being hunted.

****

[Present]

"There are many powerful beasts in our world."

The sloth’s voice pulled Damian back to the present, slow and weighted with meaning.

"Times are changing... Soon, many would want to break their chains..."

Damian said nothing.

Because he already knew the careful balance the Federation had maintained for decades was about to shatter completely.

’Monster hordes... Beast uprisings... The world’s going to burn, and there’s nothing anyone can do to stop it.’

The thought sat heavy in his chest, but he kept his expression neutral.

"Can you help me find the way back?"

The sloth’s eyes focused on him more clearly.

"This whole area is my territory..." He gestured vaguely with one long arm. "And if you keep moving that way, you will find your way out."

The direction he indicated was roughly east.

Damian stood quietly for a moment.

Then he spoke carefully.

"I know this is asking a lot, but... can you allow my organization members to train in your territory?"

"..."

The silence stretched until it became uncomfortable.

Then the sloth whispered, his voice barely audible.

"You can do whatever you want... Just don’t disturb my peace..."

He paused, and something in his expression hardened fractionally.

"Also, I won’t be protecting anyone. If they die, they die."

Damian bowed deeply.

"Thank you for... everything."

For the shelter, for not killing him when he was unconscious, for allowing the Hound to bring him here in the first place.

The sloth’s eyes closed again, already dismissing him.

Damian straightened and turned toward Kuro, a genuine smile crossing his face.

"Let’s go, Kuro."

The raven’s head tilted, his crimson eyes dimming slightly.

’Kuro doesn’t want to leave...’

The thought came through their bond clearly, tinged with reluctance and sadness.

Damian’s smile softened.

"We’ll head to Tranquil City first. Get some Phoenix from the restaurant we went to before."

Kuro’s eyes brightened immediately.

’The Phoenix! The burning drink! Stupid human remembered!’

The excitement flooded through their connection, making Damian’s grin widen.

"Yeah, that one. We’ll drink until neither of us can stand, just like last time."

Kuro hopped up and down on the Hound’s head, his enthusiasm impossible to contain.

But then he stopped, turning back toward the Hound and the sloth.

His mental voice went quiet, losing the usual childish edge.

’Kuro will keep coming back, Gramps... Hound...’

The Hound’s eyes glowed brighter for a moment, communicating something that made the raven go completely still.

The sloth’s eyes opened again, focusing not on Kuro but on Damian.

"I will say this again..." His voice carried a weight that made the air feel heavier. "Cherish the raven."

Damian met that ancient gaze directly and nodded.

"I will."

Two simple words, but he meant them with everything he had.

Kuro was family.

Damian walked toward Kuro, who hopped off the Hound’s head and landed on the ground with a soft thud, expanding rapidly as his size increased.

Damian climbed onto his back with practiced ease, settling into position and gripping the feathers.

"Ready?"

’Ready! Kuro wants Phoenix now!’

The wings beat once, twice, lifting them into the air with powerful strokes.

Damian looked back as they rose above the trees.

The Hound sat motionless at the base of the tree and the sloth had already closed his eyes again, returning to his eternal rest.

And somehow, despite everything, Damian felt like he was leaving something important behind.

But forward was the only direction that mattered now.

Kuro turned east, his wings catching the wind.

The forest stretched out below them, endless and wild, full of beasts that would soon be breaking their chains and flooding into human territories.

But that was a problem for another day.

Today, Damian was going home.