Gate Breakers

Chapter 4: Status Screen

The air around them was thick with unspoken questions, and Nureha, despite everything, knew she had to give them answers.

Taking a deep breath, she began.

“It all started when we entered the dungeon,” Nureha began, her voice steady but filled with quiet pain. “We were sent in to raid an F-rank gate. We cleared the first boss room, nothing out of the ordinary, and then something strange happened. Right after we cleared the room, a hidden gate appeared out of nowhere. We decided to investigate it, thinking we could handle whatever came next.”

Kieran and Tobin remained silent, leaning in, listening intently, their faces still tight with worry.

When we entered the hidden gate, we were met with an entirely different atmosphere. The air felt heavy, and everything seemed darker, like we had entered another world. And that’s when we encountered the Weeping Demon Clown.”

Her brothers’ faces hardened with anger, but they said nothing. They knew how dangerous it had been inside the dungeon.

“It wasn’t like any monster we had faced before. It was smart, dangerous, and cruel. We fought it for a while, and even though it didn’t take long, some of us were injured. But... I was hurt the worst. And then…” She hesitated, the words nearly stuck in her throat. “They left me behind. The others, Yumi, Jared, Raizo... they all just ran. I don’t even know why. They just... ran, leaving me there to die.”

Her eyes began to water, but she quickly wiped the tears away, trying to focus on the story. Her brothers’ faces had hardened with anger, but they said nothing. They knew how dangerous it had been inside the dungeon.

“I woke up in a labyrinth cave,” Nureha continued. “It felt like hours before I managed to get up, and even then, I could barely stand. I found myself in this strange underground town, like something out of an old medieval Japanese story. There were these strange ruins everywhere, old gates, and buildings that felt... ancient. The air was cold, and it felt like something was watching me.”

She paused, her breath hitching as she remembered the moment she had felt something stir within her, deep inside that forsaken town. The voice that had called out to her—distant, malevolent.

“It was there, in that town, where I found it. An altar. And on that altar… a relic. It called to me. I don’t know why, but I felt drawn to it,” Nureha added, but she didn’t mention the voice she had heard, the powerful and terrifying entity that had claimed her as its vessel. Kuzonoha, the nine-tailed fox, was still a secret she kept locked deep inside her.

“Then...” Nureha trailed off for a moment, her gaze drifting to the window. “Then I was attacked. The clown came back, laughing at me, taunting me. But I didn’t die. Somehow, I reached for the relic, and when I touched it, everything changed. There was this immense surge of power, and the clown... it didn’t stand a chance.”

Her brothers exchanged glances. Kieran clenched his fists, his jaw tight, but Tobin placed a hand on his shoulder, trying to calm him down.

“The clown... you killed it?” Kieran asked, his voice low, as if he was trying to process the information.

“I think so,” Nureha replied, her voice barely above a whisper. “But it wasn’t just me. Something else happened. Something I don’t understand.”

Before her brothers could press her for more details, the door to the hospital room opened again. This time, two men in black suits entered. They were tall, composed, and their cold demeanor immediately sent a chill through the room.

One of the men, his dark eyes hidden behind thin glasses, spoke first. “Nureha, correct?” His voice was authoritative, but not unfriendly.

“We’re from the Hunter Association. I’m Agent Bell, and this is Agent Novak. We have some questions for you regarding the dungeon raid.”