Verlyn had never truly been silent since that battle. In the last three days, the city had turned into a giant graveyard—the smell of burnt flesh still hung in the air, and the sky was filled with soot that refused to fade. The adventurers worked nonstop, but the emotional state of the citizens was far worse than the damage to the buildings.
And it all began with one name.
Sakuya Makoto.
Makoto felt their stares every time he walked past the ruins. Suspicious, fearful looks, quietly carrying anger. Some whispered behind doors. Some turned their faces away. Some even refused to step aside when he passed.
He knew that.
But he pretended not to hear.
Beside him, Lyona followed his steps without saying much. Her eyes were tired, yet still watching Makoto like a guard afraid to look away even for a second.
"Don't mind them," Lyona finally said.
Makoto nodded slowly. "I'm trying."
Before Lyona could continue, from afar came the voice of an old woman—shaking, but filled with anger.
"That's him!"
"That cursed boy who brought the fog into the city!"
"Before he came, Verlyn was safe!"
People began gathering.
Makoto froze.
He was ready to accept any accusation… but it still hurt to hear them.
A large man pointed at Makoto furiously.
"The fog appeared the moment he arrived. Strange monsters showed up after he passed through. Even the Mist Strangers hunted him! That's no coincidence!"
Lyona stepped forward, snapping, "Makoto didn't—"
"Shut up, mist girl!"
"Even your hair color is suspicious!"
"What disaster are you two planning to bring next?!"
Lyona gritted her teeth, almost drawing her weapon.
Makoto gently held her arm.
"Lyona. Enough."
But that voice—the dark one inside Makoto's head—laughed softly.
"Interesting. They hate you. As they should. You are a threat to them… just like I was."
Makoto didn't answer, but his face lost all color.
---
The crowd grew louder, but suddenly the ground shook violently. A purple crack opened in the middle of the city plaza—a new threat. Adventurers screamed, backed away, some pulling civilians to safety.
Lyona instantly stood on guard. "A Dungeon Wave… again?"
Makoto felt his chest tighten.
"No. This isn't just a dungeon wave."
The energy was identical to the Mist Strangers.
Too identical to be coincidence.
The voices of the citizens who had been accusing Makoto turned into fear… and then instantly into new accusations.
"Again, because of him!"
"That creature yesterday also appeared after he came!"
"Damn it, he's a bringer of disaster!"
Lyona slammed her spear's handle into the ground.
"Shut up! If Makoto wasn't here, you'd all be dead yesterday!"
But panicked citizens rarely listened to reason.
As the first monster—a humanoid reptile with a skull-like face—emerged from the crack, the people ran while still shouting:
"Kill Makoto! Drive him out of the city!"
Makoto closed his eyes.
He wanted to be angry.
Wanted to deny everything.
But the voice in his head spoke first:
"Look at them, Makoto. This world does not need you. But it needs your power…"
"…the same power I had."
Makoto opened his eyes—and they reflected the crack's dark energy.
"I'm not like you," he muttered.
"Oh, you will become far more than me."
---
The humanoid reptile attacked.
Makoto jumped, striking its jaw with an Impact Pulse… but the Pulse changed, cracking the air like shattered glass and releasing black-violet sparks.
Lyona watched with horror.
"Makoto… your Pulse—that's not your magic."
Makoto didn't answer.
He struck the monster until it broke into black dust—dust that even the wind avoided touching.
The crowd saw it and grew even more terrified.
"He's changing!"
"That's not human power!"
"Run! Don't go near him!"
Lyona turned back, yelling at them, "If you all run, then who's protecting the city?!"
But the citizens only cared about one thing:
Staying away from Makoto.
Makoto stared at his right hand… now pulsing with thin black patterns, like cracks spreading across his skin.
"That is evolution. Not a disease."
"Shut up," Makoto spat the words like poison.
But his voice sounded desperate.
---
The dungeon crack pulsed harder. Three new humanoids appeared, each holding weapons that looked like liquid metal.
Makoto stepped forward again, but Lyona grabbed his shoulder.
"You're already overloaded, Makoto! I can—"
Makoto pulled away from her grip.
"I'm the one they're after. If I step back, they die."
Lyona didn't have time to respond.
The first humanoid monster slashed, and Makoto raised his bare hand—blocking the blade with his palm.
Nearby adventurers screamed.
"Insane… is he even human or—"
Makoto shattered the blade, then struck the monster's chest until it collapsed.
A burst of dark energy erupted.
The monster dissolved like heated mist.
Lyona saw everything, and she was afraid… not of the monsters, but of Makoto's change.
"Makoto… you're not just exhausted. Something is attaching itself to you."
Makoto panted, head lowered—and the voice whispered:
"Nothing is attaching. It's the part of you that finally woke up."
---
When the last monster fell, the citizens gathered again—not to thank him.
But to point at Makoto's face.
"What came out of your body earlier?"
"That's cursed magic!"
"You're the source of this wave! You triggered the crack!"
"We need to drive him out!"
Lyona stood in front of Makoto, raising her spear, eyes glowing with fury.
"Whoever touches Makoto first… goes through me."
The citizens stepped back, but their whispers cut like blades:
"Tch… the mist girl protects him."
"Strangers always bring trouble."
"We're not safe as long as he's here."
Makoto bit his lip.
It hurt more than any physical wound.
The voice stroked his mind softly.
"You see now, Makoto? The world rejects you… but your power will never reject you."
Makoto closed his eyes.
His chest felt ready to burst.
And the dungeon crack pulsed again…
signaling the third wave was about to appear.