Renzo stood at the edge of the crowd, his eyes fixed on the growing distortion in the air.
The purple light pulsed again.
Stronger this time.
The soldiers near the barricade began shouting orders, their voices tense.
Scientists hurried away from their equipment, clearly unsure what would happen next.
Renzo quietly stepped back.
One step.
Then another.
Kensei-Ryu immediately noticed.
"Oh?"
"The brave observer is retreating."
Renzo turned around and began walking away from the scene.
"I'm not stupid."
The sword god laughed softly.
"Care to explain?"
Renzo shoved his hands into his pockets as he moved through the thinning crowd.
"Look around."
Sirens echoed through the district.
More military vehicles were arriving.
Police were pushing civilians farther away from the barricades.
Renzo spoke calmly.
"If a monster appears here, the military will kill it immediately."
Vulcanos responded in his usual steady tone.
"Which means no rewards for you."
Renzo nodded.
"Exactly."
The streets grew quieter as he walked farther from the industrial zone.
Most people were heading toward the disturbance.
Curiosity was a powerful force.
But Renzo knew something they didn't.
When the first gate opened in his previous life, monsters didn't only appear from the center.
Some creatures slipped through unstable edges of the gate.
They wandered.
Hunting.
Lost.
And those monsters often appeared far from the main site.
Renzo stopped at a quiet intersection and leaned against a streetlight.
His eyes scanned the empty street.
"If the gate opens…"
Kensei-Ryu finished the thought.
"Something will escape."
Renzo nodded slightly.
"And when it does…"
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"I'll be waiting."
Vulcanos hummed in approval.
"A hunter who understands patience."
Minutes passed.
The city noise continued in the distance.
But here, the street was quiet.
Too quiet.
Renzo's senses sharpened.
Then—
A strange vibration traveled through the ground.
Very faint.
But unmistakable.
Renzo looked toward the industrial district.
The sky above the buildings briefly flashed purple.
The gate had opened.
Kensei-Ryu laughed softly.
"There it is."
Renzo straightened slightly.
Then he heard something.
A sound echoing from the nearby alley.
Claws scraping against metal.
Slow.
Heavy.
Renzo turned his head toward the dark alley.
The air felt colder.
A low growl rumbled from the shadows.
Vulcanos spoke quietly.
"Your first material."
Renzo slowly pulled Chrono Fang from his side.
The blade reflected the dim streetlight.
A pair of glowing red eyes appeared in the darkness.
Then the creature stepped forward.
It looked like a wolf.
But larger.
Much larger.
Its body was covered in dark armored fur.
Its claws dug into the concrete as it moved.
Saliva dripped from its fangs.
A system notification appeared in Renzo's vision.
Monster Detected
Type: Shadow Fang Wolf
Rank: F
Kensei-Ryu chuckled.
"Your first hunt in this life."
Renzo rolled his shoulders slightly, loosening his muscles.
Memories of countless battles flowed through his mind.
Twenty-three years of experience.
Even if his body was younger now…
His skill remained.
Renzo raised the blade slightly.
The wolf crouched.
Growling.
Then it lunged forward.
Renzo moved.
One step.
Clean.
Precise.
Chrono Fang flashed through the air like silver lightning.
SLASH.
The wolf's body slid across the pavement.
For a moment, everything became silent.
Then the monster collapsed.
A faint blue window appeared before Renzo.
Monster Eliminated
+1 Level
Current Level: 2
Renzo slowly exhaled.
His first monster in this timeline.
Dead in a single strike.
Kensei-Ryu laughed loudly.
"Oh, this is going to be fun."
Renzo wiped the blade clean on the pavement.
Then he looked down at the corpse.
Because monsters were more than experience.
They were materials.
And materials meant better equipment.
Vulcanos spoke calmly.
"The forge awaits."
Renzo smiled faintly.
"Yeah."
And somewhere in the distance…
More monsters had just entered the world.