Owen's POV
The wind howled around me as I landed atop the rooftop, boots scraping against the wet steel. The neon lights of Shanghai flickered below, unaware of the storm about to be unleashed.
I narrowed my eyes and muttered to the system, "Tell me… are there any Nightcreatures or cursed vermin in this city I can kill? I need to warm up before Tyarent shows his ugly face."
The system responded instantly with a pulse of data across my vision.
---
[SYSTEM SCANNING – LOCAL SECTOR…]
THREATS DETECTED: [3]
1. Nightcrawler Pack
Location: Eastern District Sewers
Threat Level: C+
Status: Active – Preying on homeless victims in lower tunnels
2. Possessed Revenant
Location: Abandoned Theater Ruins
Threat Level: B
Status: Aggressive – Former actor turned cursed phantom, devours human emotions
3. Bloodwing Matron
Location: Hovering above Industrial Complex Tower
Threat Level: A-
Status: Hostile – Lures victims with song, drains life force.
---
I smirked and cracked my knuckles.
"Perfect," I muttered, eyes narrowing.
"Let's take it in ascending order… Start with the Nightcrawlers. Warm-up round."
I stood tall, the wind brushing through my coat as I leapt off the edge, the skyline blurring past me. Beast instincts flared to life, and a dark grin formed on my lips.
"Tonight, we hunt."
________________________________________
The rancid stench of rot and stagnant water filled my nostrils as I descended the rusted ladder into the lower levels of the Eastern District's underworld. Every step echoed through the tight tunnels. The cries had stopped about ten minutes ago—but I knew I was close.
I pulled my hood over and adjusted the matte black mask across my face, its subtle fang-like edges glowing faintly in the dark. A low growl echoed somewhere ahead—inhuman, guttural.
----
[System Notification]
Approaching Target Zone – Nightcrawler
Pack Leader 20 meters ahead
Hostages Detected: 4
Initiate Stealth Mode?
----
"No," I muttered. "Let them know death has come."
I walked forward, boots splashing through the shallow water as I approached a flickering maintenance light—just in time to hear the shrill scream of a woman echo through the tunnel.
"Please! Somebody help us!"
The creatures appeared just past the bend—gaunt, pale-grey bodies with elongated limbs and claws that clacked against the concrete. Red eyes locked onto their prey—four homeless victims bound and shivering near a leaking pipe.
One Nightcrawler turned toward me and hissed.
"You're late to the party, stranger," it snarled, voice rasping like knives scraping bone.
I tilted my head, voice cold behind the mask. "Funny. I was just about to say the same to you."
The creature lunged.
[Combat Initiated: Nightcrawler Pack – Threat Level: C+]
I slid to the side, grabbing its wrist mid-swipe and slamming its body into the sewer wall with a bone-cracking thud.
Another came from behind. I pivoted, catching it with a roundhouse kick to the face that launched it into a broken pipe.
The pack screeched in fury, now realizing I wasn't some lost fool—I was death wrapped in shadows.
A third one jumped, claws aimed for my throat. I summoned my Beast Aura, a crimson flare of primal energy exploding from my core. My hands shifted slightly—claws of my own emerging, glowing faintly with the power of the Beast Lord.
"I don't need weapons for trash like you," I growled, grabbing the creature mid-air and slamming it to the floor. I tore its limbs apart with one swift motion, blood hissing into the water.
The rest scattered for cover. I didn't let them.
One by one, I hunted them through the tunnels—slamming heads against walls, impaling torsos with summoned spectral fangs, breaking bones like twigs. Their screeches turned to whimpers.
The last one tried to run.
I appeared behind it in a blur, whispering coldly, "Tell the other monsters in this city… the King of Beasts has awakened."
Then I drove my claw through its spine.
Silence returned to the sewers.
The hostages stared wide-eyed as I approached.
"Who... who are you?" one of them whispered.
I knelt and cut their bindings with a flick of my beast-claw. "No one," I said softly, my voice altered by the mask. "Stay out of these tunnels from now on."
One old man looked at me in awe. "You're not one of the heroes, are you?"
"No," I said as I turned and disappeared into the shadows. "I'm what comes when heroes aren't enough."
----
[System Notification]
Nightcrawler Pack Eliminated
Threat Level: C+ Neutralized
Reputation: +20 (Urban Myth)
Human Lives Saved: 4
Beast Power: +4%
----
I surfaced from the sewer exit minutes later under the flickering street lamps. I took a deep breath of the night air.
"One down," I muttered. "Next stop—the Revenant."
And with that, I vanished into the fog.