"Awakened One?!" Irene sensed a surge of powerful youki rapidly approaching.
The Earth expedition team also saw the approaching monster through their surveillance cameras. "Prepare for combat!"
As the Awakened One got closer, they finally saw it was Luciela.
"Where's Kid?" Luciela leapt down from her sister's back. "Rafaela needs help."
"That's Rafaela?" Irene's face changed. "What happened?"
"Where's Kid?!" Luciela had no patience for stories. "Hurry up and treat Rafaela or she's going to eat someone!"
"Kid went north," Irene said. "I'll contact him right away." Of course, she used a communicator. Even the Claymore girls got to enjoy the perks of Earth tech.
Up north, after a brutal fight, the three male Awakened Ones had been defeated, but more than half the Claymores were injured. Kid noted that several of them clearly lacked combat experience and didn't have enough courage during battle. But he also knew this was just the beginning. The real threats among the Awakened Ones hadn't even made their move yet.
That included the Silver-Eyed Lion King. The second wave was only just starting to move out. The hard battles for the Claymores were far from over.
Kid still wanted to help the Claymores, but then he got a call from the expedition base—Rafaela had awakened, and powerful enemies were closing in from the south. Suddenly, he felt stretched too thin. The northern fight would be brutal, but the south didn't look good either. He had to choose—support the Claymores in the north, or head back to the south.
Kid cursed this chaotic timing, took one last look at the resting Claymores, then turned and flew south without hesitation. His duty was in the south—to protect the Earth exploration outpost and the team.
As for the north, there would be casualties, but in the end, the Claymores would still win.
Wait—midflight, Kid turned back. At a speed no ordinary person could perceive, he buried a seed in the north. With that, maybe the Claymores could avoid some of the losses.
Meanwhile, in the south, the Descendants of Dragons had already appeared on the grasslands and were closing in on the Earth base.
The defenses were set. Human soldiers once again had to face a superhuman species from another world. These humanoid beings were over two meters tall, muscled, and unbelievably strong.
"Monster septuplets, huh?" Haozi muttered, amazed at how identical they looked.
"You just don't know better," someone said. "Watch Animal World sometime. A lot of animals look the same to us, but they're actually different. We just can't tell."
Actually, that was a wrong assumption. The Descendants of Dragons had never shot an episode of Animal World.
"Humans, don't block our path," one of the Descendants of Dragons said. They didn't want to hurt civilians and acted like disciplined soldiers. Although their alliance with humans wasn't exactly close, they didn't feel any real hostility either. In fact, they respected the courage some humans showed.
"This is the Earth expedition base. Please take a different route." The one giving the order wasn't Zhang Dong this time but Captain Mark from the U.S. team—a battle-hardened veteran who had just returned to the frontlines after an illness. "If you come any closer, we'll open fire."
Mark's local dialect was thick, but the Descendants of Dragons understood just fine. "Human, you really intend to block our way? Are you ready to deal with the consequences?"
"Wait, Commander," one of the Descendants of Dragons stepped forward. "These are the Earthlings from the intel—the ones controlling the Sky Castle. They're useful to us."
"Earthlings… I remember now." The leader nodded and took big steps toward the human base, instantly raising everyone's anxiety levels. "Earthlings, I need your Sky Castle."
"...What?" Mark couldn't understand him. His dialect wasn't good enough to catch 'Sky Castle.' "Translate that."
A soldier with a translator device rushed over. "Captain, he's saying 'Sky Castle.' He might be referring to our landing ship."
How did they know? Mark had no idea every move they made was being monitored by the God-Eye. "You can't have the landing ship. Don't come any closer—this is Earth territory!" No wonder he was a U.S. soldier—his tone was way tougher than Zhang Dong's.
"We will enforce Earth law within our base. Any intruders will be shot on sight." Mark's words were repeated by the translator, converted through a machine into brainwave signals, and sent straight into the Descendants of Dragons's minds—they understood it clearly.
But the Descendants of Dragons looked down on humans. They didn't believe Earthlings had weapons that could harm them. On this continent, they were the apex. "Earthlings, don't make me angry."
Boom!
Right as the Descendants of Dragons finished speaking, before any of them could act, a massive explosion rocked the Earth expedition base.
Mark jumped. "What just happened?!"
It was the Awakened Rafaela—she had finally lost control. Even though An Rong had injected her with an overdose of tranquilizers, the hunger was too strong to suppress.
Her tail lashed violently. Even Luciela couldn't calm her down anymore. One of the buildings had already been smashed apart by her sweeping tail.
"Increase the dosage!" Sonny shouted.
"It's already too much—it'll kill her!" An Rong warned. The amount she'd used was enough to knock out a dinosaur.
"Oh God, she's gonna tear down the whole base!" Sonny groaned, covering his face.
Rafaela's mind was slipping fast. Drool poured from her mouth like a waterfall, splashing to the ground. "Organs..." That overlapping, inhuman voice made everyone shiver.
"We've got to do something or she'll destroy everything!"
"Can we restrain her somehow? At least the tail?" An Rong suggested.
But no one could get close. One hit from that tail would mean instant death. None of the Claymores dared approach except for Luciela. Irene and Ophelia only made Rafaela more agitated if they got too close. To her, they weren't her sister—only Luciela was.
An Awakened One going berserk inside the base... the consequences would be unimaginable. Everyone thought of the same person—Kid. Only Kid could stop her. Please, let Kid get back in time.
Suddenly, a faint rumble hit their eardrums—the sonic boom of supersonic flight.
"Kid's back?!" No one had ever missed him more than now.
But that's what a superhero should be—showing up right when everyone needs them most. Taking on others' burdens and becoming exactly what people need.
Everyone looked up. A dot in the sky was growing fast—it was Kid. His cape stretched taut behind him. His hat still sat firm on his head in midair. White gloves tucked into his pants pockets, he flew like it was no big deal.
From a distance, Kid could already see a building had been wrecked, and the Awakened One surrounded by people. Outside the base were seven strange beings—not Awakened, but maybe even stronger. He was already wondering what they were.
Whoosh! Kid stopped midair and just stood there. "Looks like you folks need a hand."
With a wave, a surge of the Force pinned Rafaela down. "Rafaela, can you hear me? Try to pull your human side back together."
No response. The tranquilizers weren't totally useless—they'd dulled her enough that she could only feel hunger. Her body was just running on instinct now.
There was no way she could regain her human form. Not right now.
'Guess she just needs to sleep it off,' Kid thought. He landed, then placed his hand gently on her big feline head. A pulse of Ripple knocked her out cold.
"Get some rest," Kid said softly as Rafaela's massive body shrank down, turning back into her naked human form. Luciela would take care of her.