My supplies were low but the cavalry was finally here.
I knew it before I heard them. The building shook in a way that felt deliberate. Controlled. Not like the chaos from the first day. Heavy footsteps echoed up the stairwell along with voices that were calm and practiced.
People who knew what they were doing.
A knock hit my door hard enough to make the chair wedged under the handle rattle.
"Civilians inside. Announce yourself."
I froze for half a second. Then I realized something important.
Monsters did not knock.
"I'm here," I shouted back. My voice cracked but I did not care. "I'm injured. Foot fracture."
There was a pause. Then the furniture blocking my door shifted from the other side like it weighed nothing. The chair slid away. The couch scraped aside.
The door opened.
Standing in the hallway were three people in reinforced gear and one person who stood out immediately.
Dark Hopper.
He looked exactly like he did in the clips online. Black and green armored suit. Visor shaped like a pair of narrow eyes. His legs were bulky in a way that did not look natural, plates layered over plates like they were designed to take recoil rather than impact.
All I really remembered about him was that his superpowered kicks could tear most monsters apart.
Seeing him in person made that feel very real.
"Civilian secured," one of the guild members said. "Any hostiles inside?"
I shook my head. "No. Just me."
Dark Hopper nodded once. "Good. Pack what you need. We are moving fast."
I did not argue.
I had already prepared for this moment without realizing it. Duffle bags by the bed. Clothes. Documents. Food I had not finished. Everything I could carry without slowing myself down too much.
Walking was hell.
Two of them offered to carry me but pride got in the way. I hated that about myself. I leaned on a shoulder instead and dragged my broken foot along as we moved down the hallway.
The corridor outside my apartment looked like a warzone. Blood. Scales. Cracks in the walls where something had been kicked through them. One door was gone entirely leaving nothing but splintered wood and darkness.
I did not look inside.
The stairwell was worse. We went down slowly. Every step sent pain shooting up my leg and I had to bite my tongue to keep from making noise. Dark Hopper stayed at the front the entire time. Every few floors he would leap down the center of the stairwell and land without a sound.
When something moved in the shadows he moved faster.
A blur. A thud. A wet crack.
Then silence.
Outside the building the city looked different.
Smoke hung in the air and parts of the street were blocked by overturned cars and debris. But there were people. Soldiers. Guild members. Healers. Actual organization. Monsters lay in pieces along the road like someone had gone through and cleaned house with extreme prejudice.
We were herded toward armored trucks parked a few blocks away. I saw other civilians being escorted out of nearby buildings. Some were crying. Some looked empty. A few were injured worse than I was.
No one left behind.
The ride to the bunker was quiet. The inside of the truck smelled like metal and antiseptic. Someone handed me a bottle of water and I drank it in one go without realizing how thirsty I was.
The disaster shelter was underground. Deep. Layers of reinforced concrete and glowing runes embedded into the walls. The moment we passed through the entrance I felt something settle in my chest.
Safety.
For the first time since the invasion started I allowed myself to relax.
They processed us quickly. Names. Classes. Skills. Injuries. Everything logged by people who moved like they had been doing this for years.
When they saw my foot they waved over a healer immediately.
What I did not expect was how normal it all felt.
The healer was a woman about my age wearing a simple robe with a glowing symbol stitched onto the chest. She knelt in front of me like this was a routine checkup.
"Fracture," she said after a glance. "Clean break. No mana contamination. You are lucky."
She placed her hands around my foot and closed her eyes.
Mana flowed.
I felt it immediately. Warmth spreading through the brace and into my bones. The pain dulled then faded entirely. There was a strange sensation of pressure like something was being gently pulled back into place.
A system notification flickered in my vision.
Healing Spell Applied
Minor Regeneration
Bone integrity restored
Muscle and ligament damage repaired
It was over in minutes.
She pulled her hands away and smiled. "Try standing."
I hesitated. Fear held me back more than pain ever had.
Then I stood.
No stabbing agony. No weakness. Just a faint soreness like a bruise that had already started to fade. I put weight on my right foot slowly expecting the worst.
Nothing happened.
I took a step.
Then another.
I laughed again. This time it was real.
"I can walk," I said. My voice sounded different. Lighter.
She nodded. "Mana responds well to belief. Do not waste it."
I thanked her more times than was probably necessary and moved aside so she could help the next person.
Later I found a quiet corner of the bunker and sat down on one of the benches. My duffle bags rested at my feet. My revolver sat heavy in my lap.
I stood again.
I walked back and forth.
No limp.
No pain.
The System chimed softly like it was pleased with itself.
I opened my status. Health full. Mobility restored. Mana pool stable.
For the first time the words Magic Knight did not feel like a joke.
I clenched my fist and felt mana respond. Subtle. Waiting.
I looked inward. Felt the presence of the island bound to me. Distant but real.
The Summoning Circle.
The Ascension Hall.
The Equipment Hall.
All of it waiting.
I took a slow breath.
Now I can actually test out my abilities.