Herman, sensing the incoming threat, turned and tried to flee. But before he could take a single step, Elian shouted with mocking laughter:
— Where do you think you're going, Herman? You're not going anywhere! — and in the blink of an eye, dark fangs burst from his body, piercing through the air and pinning Herman to the ground.
Herman jerked violently, struggling to break free, but Elian's dark energy held him tightly. Panic flared in his eyes.
— YOU MANIAC, YOU BASTARD! LET ME GO! YOU'LL KILL US ALL! — he screamed in desperation and rage.
Elian only smirked—cold and merciless.
— Goodbye, worthless trash, — he whispered, just as the meteor, surrounded by black lightning, plummeted downward.
The meteor raced toward the earth at terrifying speed. Just as the explosion became inevitable, Elian unleashed his dark power. In the final moment, he teleported Herman, the meteor, and himself far away from the devastated city. The explosion was massive, echoing across the skies, but the three of them had reappeared in a completely different place.
The blast annihilated everything in its path—shockwaves leveled cities—but in this new location, there was no destruction. Only dust from the impact slowly settled across the scorched ground.
When the explosion died down and the ashes cleared, nothing remained at ground zero but barren, charred land. However, in the other location where Elian had transported Herman, the city was still intact, though traces of damage remained.
Journalists from a helicopter monitored the catastrophe, trying to understand what had happened. They reported live:
— The clash of two of the strongest hunters has led to massive destruction. This was a true battle, and the devastation is unimaginable. We are currently trying to locate these lunatics, but so far, they remain unseen…
Elian stood silently before the defeated Herman, lost in grim thoughts. He felt no remorse, only emptiness and dissatisfaction. Herman, barely lifting himself onto one knee, sneered through a fatal wound.
— You… lunatic… — he whispered, too weak to rise. — You threw yourself into your own attack just to contain me, heh… But you don't understand — you won't get away with this.
Elian only laughed, his eyes glittering with icy fury.
— I don't care, — he said softly, almost in a whisper.
He raised his hand, and from its shadow emerged a sword forged from dark matter. The blade shimmered in his grip, and without hesitation, he swung it — a clean, precise motion.
Herman's head fell to the ground. His body moved no more.
— Anyone who stands in my way… is already dead, — Elian said coldly, his voice like a winter wind.
Suddenly, the roar of a helicopter broke the silence. The journalists, realizing they had found their target, shouted into their microphones.
— There they are! That was Herman, the SS-rank Hunter number ten — and he's been slain by an unknown hunter! We've found his killer!
Noticing the helicopter, Elian quickly masked his face. His eyes burned with icy determination.
The reporters continued their broadcast:
— We've found him — the masked hunter… As you can see, he possesses a power that defies all logic and human understanding!
Without wasting a moment, Elian vanished like mist, dissolving into the air, leaving behind only silence and ruin.
— Someone's still alive, — he muttered to himself, wi
th a dark, confident smile. — But not for long.