The walk back to the base felt heavier than any battle they had fought so far, not because of physical exhaustion, but because of what they had just witnessed. The unknown type hadn’t attacked, hadn’t even tried to engage directly, and yet it had left behind a deeper impact than the Colossus. Arata Kurozawa walked at the front, his pace steady, his gaze fixed ahead, but his thoughts were sharper than ever. That creature hadn’t acted like a predator. It had acted like something observing a system, gathering information, testing responses. That meant one thing—it would come back, and next time, it wouldn’t be guessing.

Yuna walked slightly behind him, her bat resting against her shoulder, but her usual relaxed posture was gone. She wasn’t tense, but she wasn’t casual either. "...I don’t like enemies that walk away," she muttered, her voice quieter than usual. "Feels like we’re the ones being hunted." Reina didn’t disagree. Her eyes stayed on the surrounding structures as she moved, scanning every shadow, every broken window, every possible angle of approach. "It wasn’t retreating," she said calmly. "It was concluding." Miyu added immediately, "...Which means it gathered enough data to act next time." That sentence alone made the air feel colder.

Airi stayed close to the center of the group, her steps controlled, her breathing steady, but her thoughts weren’t calm. She could still see that smile in her mind—the unnatural, deliberate expression that didn’t belong to something mindless. "...So next time," she said softly, "it won’t hesitate?" Kaede’s voice came from above, carried lightly through the air. "...No," she said. "Next time, it won’t test. It will execute." That answer settled deeply, not dramatic, not exaggerated—just true.

They reached the base without interruption, but the silence around them felt wrong, like something was missing. The gates closed behind them with a heavy sound, sealing them inside, but it didn’t bring relief. If anything, it made the pressure more focused. Inside, the others looked at them immediately, reading their expressions before any words were spoken. They didn’t need explanation. Something had changed.

Reina stepped forward first. "New type confirmed," she said. "High intelligence behavior." Miyu followed. "Adaptive. Predictive. Not reactive." Yuna exhaled slowly. "...And annoying," she added, though her tone lacked its usual edge of confidence. Airi didn’t speak. She just stood there, still processing what they had seen.

Arata stepped into the center.

Silence followed instantly.

Because when he spoke—It mattered, "They’re learning," he said, No one questioned it, Because they had seen it.

The system flickered.

[ SYSTEM STABILITY: 61% ]

[ NEW ALERT DETECTED ]

[ HUNTER-TYPE SIGNAL IDENTIFIED ]

Arata’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Hunter-type.

The system continued.

[ CLASSIFICATION UPDATE: UNKNOWN TYPE → HUNTER-TYPE INFECTED ]

[ DESCRIPTION: HIGH INTELLIGENCE / DATA COLLECTION / ADAPTIVE RESPONSE ]

[ WARNING: HUNTER-TYPE WILL PRIORITIZE HIGH-VALUE TARGETS ]

That last line changed everything.

Yuna tilted her head slightly. "...High-value targets?" she repeated.

Miyu answered immediately. "...Us."

Reina nodded. "Specifically Arata."

Airi’s chest tightened slightly.

Kaede’s voice came from the entrance now—closer this time, not distant like before. "...That means it won’t attack randomly," she said. "It will target weakness."

Yuna smirked faintly. "...Good luck finding one," she said, though her tone wasn’t as confident as before.

Kaede looked at her briefly, "...Everyone has one," she replied.

That hit harder than expected, Arata didn’t react outwardly, But he understood.

The system flickered again.

[ NEW SUB-QUEST GENERATED ]

[ HUNTER RESPONSE PROTOCOL ]

[ OBJECTIVE: SURVIVE FIRST HUNTER ENGAGEMENT ]

[ CONDITION: PROTECT CORE UNIT ]

[ CORE UNIT: HOST – ARATA KUROZAWA ]

Airi’s eyes widened slightly. "...It’s specifically telling us to protect you," she said.

Reina didn’t hesitate. "Then we do exactly that." Miyu added, "...But we also need to understand how it fights. Otherwise we’ll lose eventually."

Yuna cracked her neck slightly, her energy returning in sharp bursts. "...Then we don’t wait for it," she said. "We hunt it first."

Kaede shook her head slightly, "...That won’t work," she said.

Everyone looked at her.

"...Why?" Yuna asked.

Kaede’s answer was simple.

"...Because it already knows we’ll try that."

Silence, Heavy, Uncomfortable, Because that made sense.

Arata stepped forward slightly, "Then we force it," he said.

Reina looked at him. "Force it to engage?" Miyu’s eyes sharpened. "...Controlled bait strategy."

Yuna’s grin returned slowly. "...Now that sounds fun."

Airi looked between them, uncertainty flickering in her eyes. "...Wait... bait means..." She didn’t finish.

Because she already knew, Arata answered anyway, "It will target me," he said, That was enough.

Reina spoke immediately. "Then we build around that." Miyu nodded. "Layered defense. Predictive positioning." Yuna smirked. "...And when it shows up, we break it."

Kaede didn’t agree immediately.

She watched Arata, Longer than before.

"...You’re willing to risk that?" she asked, Arata met her gaze, "Yes." he said

No hesitation, No doubt, Kaede’s eyes narrowed slightly, Not in disagreement, In evaluation.

"...Then don’t die," she said.

Yuna laughed softly. "...That’s your advice?"

Kaede didn’t respond, Because she wasn’t joking.

The base shifted into preparation mode immediately. Positions were adjusted, fallback routes established, vantage points reinforced. Reina coordinated defense lines with precision, ensuring no angle was left unguarded. Miyu mapped engagement zones, predicting possible entry points based on surrounding structures. Yuna moved between positions, testing reaction times, ensuring everyone was ready to respond instantly. Airi stayed near the center, but not passively—she prepared supplies, checked injuries, and positioned herself where she could support quickly.

And Kaede—Took the highest point available.

Silent, Still, Watching everything, Night fell slowly, The city grew darker, Quieter, Heavier, Time passed, Minutes, Then more, Nothing happened.

Yuna clicked her tongue lightly. "...What, it changed its mind?" she muttered.

Miyu shook her head slightly. "...No. It’s waiting."

Reina added, "Or watching for weakness."

Airi’s grip tightened slightly.

"...I don’t like this," she whispered.

Arata stood at the center, Still Waiting, Because he knew—It would come.

And then—It did, No sound, No warning.

Just—A shift, A presence, Kaede reacted first.

"...Left sector," she said instantly.

Reina turned—But there was nothing.

Then—Movement, Not from the front, Not from the sides, From above.

The Hunter dropped, Silent, Fast, Directly toward Arata.

Yuna moved instantly, intercepting with a full-force swing, forcing the creature to adjust mid-air. The Hunter twisted unnaturally, landing lightly instead of crashing, its movement controlled even after disruption.

Reina fired immediately.

The Hunter moved—Not dodging randomly—But precisely out of the line of fire.

Miyu’s voice cut sharply. "...It predicted the shot!"

Kaede fired from above.

This time—The bullet grazed, Not a miss, But not clean.

The Hunter stepped back.

Its eyes—Focused, Locked on Arata, Yuna grinned.

"...Yeah," she said. "Come on."

Arata stepped forward, No hesitation.

Because this—Was the fight they had prepared for, The Hunter moved again.

Faster than before, More precise, No wasted motion.

This wasn’t a test anymore, This was execution And the real battle—Had finally begun.