The Wraith's chest continued to expand. The black mist gathered around it began swirling faster. Raijin already understood what was about to happen in the next few moments. He tightened his grip on his sword with both hands.
"This time…"
His eyes never left the Wraith.
"I won't let it scream."
The moon hung above them, but its light was so faint that it barely touched the cemetery below. The entire area was covered in thick fog. Knee-high bushes, old graves scattered between them, and the same triangle engraved on every grave—filled with cracks and connected by copper plates on all three sides.
The air inside the cemetery felt heavy. So heavy… as if every breath belonged to someone else.
The Wraith's claws buried in Raijin's shoulder slowly dug deeper—but his attention wasn't on the pain.
Images flashed before his eyes.
A field covered in blood…
Broken bodies…
And a scream—
That wasn't his.
The Wraith suddenly pulled its claw back. Raijin's body leaned forward for a moment, but he quickly regained his balance. The Wraith drifted several steps backward through the air. Its feet didn't even touch the ground.
Then—
It disappeared.
Raijin's eyes narrowed.
"To the right…!"
He had barely turned when the Wraith's shadow came crashing down on him from within the fog.
For a moment, Raijin felt as though he was no longer in the Cemetery. The ground beneath his feet had disappeared. Everything around him was red. Someone was standing in front of him… but their face couldn't be seen.
Then the same voice came—
"You… left me…"
The voice suddenly broke apart.
Raijin's eyes snapped open.
He was back in the Cemetery.
The Wraith was directly in front of him. Its claws were only inches away from Raijin's neck.
Raijin gritted his teeth and swung his sword.
Clang—!!
The Wraith immediately retreated. It moved so quickly that Raijin could only see a black shadow disappearing into the fog.
"I'll distract it!"
Kade roared and jumped forward.
His heavy hammer came crashing toward the Wraith.
Boom—!!
The moment the hammer struck the ground, the earth violently shook. The bushes bent under the impact, and the fog gathered around them scattered for a brief moment.
But the Wraith had already twisted its body at the last second.
The hammer didn't hit it completely, but the ground behind it shattered. Pieces of stone flew through the air.
Kade immediately pulled his hammer back.
"This thing isn't just fast…"
He gritted his teeth.
"It's reading our attacks before they happen."
The next moment, the Wraith disappeared.
"Behind you!!" Ishan shouted.
The Wraith appeared behind Kade. Its claws moved straight toward Kade's neck.
Clang!
Ishan's sword came between them and collided with its claws. The impact sent a violent shock through Ishan's hands.
His eyes were completely focused. His breathing was steady.
"It's slow…" he muttered. "It's just… hard to see."
Ishan narrowed his eyes halfway.
He wasn't trying to watch the Wraith itself.
He was reading the movement of the fog before it appeared.
The fog on the right side shifted slightly.
Then the bush behind him moved.
Ishan immediately turned.
"Behind!"
The Wraith appeared there at the exact same moment.
For the first time, a faint look of satisfaction appeared on Ishan's face.
"Got you…"
"Everyone, move back!" Sofiya's voice rang out.
The small sword in her hand reflected the faint moonlight. Her breathing was heavy, but her eyes remained steady.
A faint wave of heat rose around her body. The effects of Hell of Fire had not completely faded.
Her palms were still trembling slightly. Every breath sent a burning sensation through her chest. Hell of Fire had drained a huge amount of strength from her body, and its effects had not completely disappeared yet.
But she refused to let the pain show on her face.
"If I become weak now…"
She tightened her grip on her sword.
"Then none of us will survive."
She stepped forward.
Fast…
And completely straight.
The Wraith lunged toward her—
But this time, she was ready.
Slash—!!
She swung her small sword straight toward the Wraith's chest. The blade passed straight through its body.
The Wraith retreated—
But it still didn't disappear.
Its body spread like smoke for a moment under the attack, then returned to its original form in the next instant.
Sofiya narrowed her eyes.
"This…"
Suddenly—
The scream rang out again.
Louder than before.
All four of them froze for a moment.
The world twisted again.
The ground…
The sky…
Everything seemed to flip upside down for an instant.
A sharp pain shot through Raijin's head. He grabbed his temple. It felt as though someone had driven a sharp piece of metal directly into his brain.
Then—
Clank!
Raijin's eyes immediately locked onto one direction.
The Grim Howler Wraith was defending itself within the fog. Its body was almost completely concealed by the mist, but what could be seen was enough.
"Now!" Raijin shouted.
Kade charged from the front.
"Come on!!!"
He swung his hammer directly at the Wraith.
The Wraith blocked his attack.
At that exact moment—
Ishan disappeared.
Only a faint shadow could be seen.
He attacked from above, but his sword passed straight through the Wraith.
It felt as though he had swung his sword through empty air.
A decoy.
Kade had pulled the Wraith's attention back toward himself.
Then—
"Now!!" Sofiya shouted.
The glow of her small sword was still visible.
But—
The Wraith suddenly turned.
And its eyes locked directly onto Raijin.
In those eyes—
Pain…
Anger…
Despair…
Suffering…
Everything was clearly visible.
And behind all of it was something that looked strangely like a plea.
For a few moments, the Wraith didn't attack.
It simply stared at them.
Its breathing was heavy. The black mist coming from its body slowly circled around it.
Then its eyes moved toward Sofiya's injured waist.
Something strange flickered across its face for a moment.
Almost as if it felt sorry after seeing her wound.
Raijin noticed that change.
"You…"
His voice became quieter.
"You know what you're doing."
The Wraith gave no answer.
It simply continued staring at Raijin.
Everyone could feel the strange emotion coming from the Wraith. They all wanted to kill it, but there was also an inexplicable hesitation in their hearts.
As if their own hearts were standing against them.
The Wraith suddenly lunged toward Raijin.
Raijin froze for a moment.
His hands loosened.
The Wraith's eyes were fixed on him.
And suddenly, Raijin felt…
As if he had seen those eyes before.
Long ago.
Perhaps in a time he could no longer remember.
The scream echoed through his head again.
This time, it came with only one incomplete voice—
"You…"
Raijin's breath stopped.
His concentration broke for a single moment.
The Wraith didn't waste the opportunity.
It lunged straight toward Raijin—
Its claws reached toward his chest.
But—
Boom!!
Kade stepped between them.
He swung his hammer and struck the same arm the Wraith was attacking with, hitting it with all his strength.
A sharp metallic sound spread throughout the Cemetery as the Wraith's claws collided with the hammer.
The ground beneath Kade's feet cracked.
His body was pushed backward, but he didn't allow the Wraith's hand to reach Raijin.
"As long as I'm standing…"
Kade gritted his teeth.
"You won't even touch him."
Raijin's eyes became focused again.
He took a deep breath.
He raised his sword.
And—
He swung with all his strength.
Slash—!!
He aimed directly for the Wraith's Nexus Seed, intending to split it in two.
But the sword passed straight through the Wraith.
As if it had never been there.
At the same moment—
Sofiya drove her small sword straight into its stomach.
And Ishan's sword tore through the Wraith's shoulder.
All three attacks—
At the same time.
Raijin's attack came from the front.
Sofiya's came from below.
And Ishan's came from above.
Three different directions.
Three different weapons.
But one target—
The Grim Howler Wraith's Nexus Seed.
Yet the Wraith remained standing.
It screamed.
This time—
Like a human being crying.
Its outer form slowly began to break apart.
As though its body had never been made of anything solid.
For a few moments, Raijin could clearly see the graves behind the Wraith through its body.
But the Wraith didn't disappear.
It was still there.
Only…
Its presence was weakening.
The Wraith's body became transparent, almost like smoke.
There was still a faint trace of humanity in its eyes.
Raijin pulled his sword back and took two steps away while keeping his guard up. Then, without looking back, he gave an order in his trembling voice—
"Everyone, get outside the five-meter radius."
He looked toward the grave.
"No one enters within five meters."
Sofiya, Ishan, and Kade understood exactly what he meant.
All three immediately moved away from the broken grave.
Then—
Another scream.
This time, Raijin felt as though countless heavy hammers had struck his brain at once.
He staggered for a moment but managed to steady himself.
The other three weren't in the same condition.
Their eyes remained forcibly open, as though something was pulling them from within. Blood began flowing from the corners of their mouths.
Raijin saw them and understood.
If this continued any longer…
All three of them would die right here.
"Just focus on me."
He spoke quietly and stepped inside the five-meter radius.
His body was telling him to move back.
His mind was screaming at him not to enter.
But Sofiya, Ishan, and Kade were standing before him.
If he retreated…
Then after the next scream, perhaps none of them would be able to remain standing.
Raijin closed his eyes.
He took a long breath.
Then he moved forward alone.
The moment he crossed the boundary, the pressure of the screams on the other three weakened.
The Grim Howler Wraith's attention was now completely focused on Raijin.
The sword in Raijin's hand glimmered faintly under the moonlight.
He looked around.
The Wraith was extremely fast now.
Moving from one place to another through the fog.
The fog was no longer still.
It was swirling…
As if it were alive.
Raijin held his sword in front of himself.
He didn't try to see the Wraith.
He only tried to listen for it.
But he heard nothing.
Then—
The fog behind him shifted slightly.
Raijin ducked.
Slash!
The Wraith's claws passed just above his hair.
Raijin immediately turned and attacked.
Clang!
His sword struck the Wraith's arm.
But the Wraith's body suddenly turned into smoke.
The attack passed through empty air.
"Again…"
Raijin's eyes narrowed.
"It doesn't keep its body completely solid."
Suddenly—
The Wraith appeared from the other side.
Raijin immediately stepped back and avoided its claws.
The Wraith launched three consecutive attacks.
The first—
Raijin blocked it with his sword.
The second—
He ducked underneath it.
The third—
Passed close to his shoulder.
Raijin counterattacked, but the Wraith once again turned into smoke.
It reappeared several meters away.
Then—
Another Wraith appeared in front of him.
Raijin's eyes widened.
A second one was on his right.
And a third was behind him.
Three Wraiths.
Three directions.
"An illusion…?"
Raijin attacked the one behind him.
His sword sliced through smoke.
A fake.
At that exact moment, the Wraith in front of him transformed into its true form.
Its claw came toward Raijin's chest.
Raijin reversed his grip on his sword and blocked the claw.
Clang!
The two remained locked against each other for several moments.
The Wraith's eyes were extremely close to his.
Then suddenly—
A scream.
Pain shot through Raijin's head.
He squeezed his eyes shut, but this time he didn't release the Wraith.
He felt its movement.
The Wraith was about to retreat.
Raijin stepped toward it at the exact moment.
"Don't let it escape…"
He gritted his teeth.
The Wraith disappeared again.
But this time, Raijin didn't chase it.
He remained where he was.
He watched the fog.
A slight movement on the right.
Then the left.
Then above.
"You…"
Raijin slowly raised his sword.
"You're trying to confuse me."
The next moment, the Wraith appeared above him.
Raijin raised his sword.
Boom!
The collision numbed Raijin's hands.
The Wraith swung its other claw.
Raijin leaned backward.
The claw passed close to his face.
Raijin spun and attacked its ribs.
Slash!
This time, the attack connected.
The Wraith's black mist split apart.
But its body began turning into smoke again.
Raijin stepped back.
For the first time, he carefully observed the way its body changed.
"When it gets hit…"
He spoke quietly.
"That's when it phases."
The Wraith appeared in front of him again.
But this time, Raijin was ready.
The Wraith's chest was rapidly expanding.
Its head slowly moved backward.
Raijin understood.
"Again…"
The Wraith was about to scream.
But this time, Raijin was prepared.
He didn't retreat.
He moved forward.
"To scream…"
He pulled his sword back.
"You have to become still."
The next moment, Raijin moved forward like lightning.
Slash—!!
His sword shot toward the Wraith's chest.
The Wraith tried to phase at the last possible moment.
But Raijin changed the direction of his attack.
The blade struck its shoulder.
The Wraith was thrown backward.
A cloud of black mist burst from its chest.
Raijin stared at it and exhaled.
"I found it…"
His voice was quiet.
"Your weakness."
But—
Raijin had been keeping the Wraith directly in front of him the entire time.
Perhaps that was exactly what it wanted.
Raijin's attention was completely focused on it.
The other three were temporarily outside his field of vision.
And the Wraith changed its target at that exact moment.
It suddenly turned around.
Then—
It attacked.
But this time, not Raijin.
All three turned around at once.
It was too late.
Sofiya had already fallen to the ground.
Deep claw marks covered her waist, and blood was flowing from the wounds.
The attack had been so fast that no one had even had the chance to react.
Kade immediately dropped to his knees beside her.
"Are you okay?"
Sofiya gritted her teeth.
"It's nothing… I can handle it."
She placed her palm over the wound.
Blood was still seeping between her fingers.
Kade looked at her.
"That isn't a scratch."
Sofiya looked back at him.
"But I can still fight."
Raijin and Ishan also reached them.
For a few moments, the four of them looked at one another.
Then—
A sound.
Like someone dragging their fingernails across metal.
Slowly…
Dragging…
And unbearable.
The next moment—
Raijin, Ishan, and Kade could no longer hear anything.
Completely.
As if someone had sealed their ears shut.
Raijin tried to say something.
"Sofiya—"
But he couldn't hear his own voice either.
He immediately brought his hand to his ear.
Nothing.
No sound of the wind.
No rustling of grass.
No sound of Ishan's breathing.
No sound of Kade's hammer.
The entire world had suddenly fallen silent.
The fog grew even thicker.
And the Grim Howler Wraith could now attack from anywhere.
But…
The Wraith was still visible.
Its eyes glowed in the darkness.
And for the first time—
It wasn't screaming.
Raijin's eyes narrowed.
"It's not letting us hear…"
He thought to himself.
"So we won't know when it's coming."
But then another question arose within him—
If there is no sound…
Then where will the next scream come from?
Raijin's entire body became completely still.
And then…
The fog behind him moved.