A small boy ran inside an abandoned house, his breath uneven and broken.
He quickly shut the door behind him and stumbled toward the window.
With trembling hands, he held onto the edge and slowly peeked outside.
What he saw froze him in place.
Monsters were everywhere.
They chased people through the streets like wild beasts, tearing through anything in their path. Screams echoed endlessly—men, women, children… no one was spared.
The boy's pupils shook violently.
His vision blurred as fear gripped his mind.
A cold shiver ran through his entire body, starting from his spine and spreading to his limbs.
His legs gave out.
He dropped to the floor.
Slowly, he pulled his knees close to his chest and buried his face between them, trying to block everything out.
But the screams… they didn't stop.
Far away, Medusa stood before the massive monster.
His deep, dark eyes locked onto it without fear.
He slowly pulled his right foot back, lowering his stance.
The tip of his sword dragged across the ground, creating a sharp scraping sound.
Then—
He moved.
In a single burst of speed, he shot forward, slicing through the air like a shadow.
The distance between him and the monster vanished instantly.
The monster reacted.
Its massive tentacles shot toward him from all directions.
But Medusa didn't stop.
He twisted his body mid-air, dodging the first attack, then slashed through another tentacle with precise movement.
A clean cut.
The severed part fell to the ground with a heavy thud.
From the cut surface, a mixture of black and green gas leaked out, spreading into the air like poison.
Medusa pushed forward, cutting through anything that came in his way.
He raised his left hand.
Strange symbols began to appear around it—glowing, shifting, alive.
They formed a perfect circular pattern around his palm.
The air around his hand started to distort.
Medusa clenched his fist tightly.
For a brief moment—
Everything went silent.
Then—
BOOM.
A large section of the monster's body burst apart.
The impact sent shockwaves through the area.
The monster let out a horrifying scream.
"AAAAHHHHHH!!"
Its body twisted violently, reacting to the pain.
But Medusa didn't stop.
He formed another magic circle—this one more complex, more intense.
Lines overlapped. Symbols rotated.
Energy gathered faster this time.
A sphere of fire began forming in his palm.
At first, it was small—
Then it grew.
And grew.
The heat around it distorted the air itself.
Medusa raised his hand high—
—and threw it.
The fireball cut through the air and struck the exact same spot where he had attacked before.
The explosion followed instantly.
The monster's body jerked violently.
It roared in agony, lashing out blindly.
Tentacles slammed into buildings.
Debris flew everywhere.
It had lost control.
Medusa moved calmly through the chaos.
Dodging.
Watching.
Waiting.
Then, he extended his hand once more.
A massive magic circle formed beneath the monster.
It spread outward, covering the entire area around it.
From that circle—
Black flames erupted.
They surrounded the monster from all directions, trapping it inside.
The flames didn't burn like normal fire.
They consumed.
Slowly.
Relentlessly.
Thick black smoke began to rise.
Within seconds, the entire area was covered.
Nothing could be seen anymore.
Only darkness remained.
Elsewhere, the knights of the Adventure Organization were struggling to maintain control.
"Move! This way!"
"Hurry up!"
"Don't push—stay calm!"
But no one listened.
Fear had taken over.
People pushed, screamed, ran without thinking.
Everyone wanted to survive.
Even children were caught in the chaos, crushed between panicking adults.
The knights tried their best to hold the line.
But the number of monsters kept increasing.
They were everywhere.
One knight fired a magic spell, taking down two monsters—
—but three more took their place.
"We can't hold them!" someone shouted.
Another knight yelled:
"Inform the Adventure Organization! We need backup NOW!"
Without hesitation, one of them turned and ran.
Inside the house, the boy remained frozen.
The sounds outside had only grown worse.
He slowly lifted his head.
His breathing was still shaky.
With hesitation, he crawled closer to the window.
He looked outside again.
And then—
He saw it.
A child.
Alone.
On the ground.
A monster stood right in front of him.
The child tried to crawl backward, his movements slow and desperate.
The monster followed.
Step by step.
The boy inside the house watched.
But his body refused to move.
"M-me… what should I do…?" he whispered.
"Should I… save him…?"
His hands trembled.
His heart pounded loudly in his chest.
The child outside cried out:
"P-please… don't…!"
"Please… let me go…!"
The sound pierced through the boy's mind.
He quickly covered his ears.
"No… no…"
"I don't want to hear this…!"
But it didn't stop.
The screams grew louder.
Closer.
Then—
A memory surfaced.
Medusa's voice.
Clear.
Calm.
"If someone is in danger in front of you… what will you do?"
Back then, the boy had laughed.
"No… unless I see myself in them… I won't help."
Medusa had simply smiled.
"Sometimes, just thinking about helping is enough."
"And if you do help… maybe one day, it will come back to you."
The boy's breathing slowed.
His thoughts raced.
"Should I…?"
"If I fail… I'll die too…"
Silence.
Then—
He closed his eyes.
For a moment, everything stopped.
Then he opened them again.
This time—
There was something different.
He forced himself to stand.
His legs shook violently.
He almost fell—
—but caught himself using the wall.
Step by step, he moved toward the door.
Each step felt heavier than the last.
His hand reached for the handle.
It was shaking badly.
Still—
He grabbed it.
And slowly—
He opened the door.
Outside—
The monster had reached the child.
The child threw whatever he could find—stones, broken wood—
Anything.
But it wasn't enough.
The monster moved closer.
Inside his mind—
Medusa's voice echoed again:
"You just need to take one step…"
"Don't think about winning or losing…"
"Just move."
The boy looked around quickly.
His eyes landed on an iron rod lying nearby.
He grabbed it tightly.
His grip was weak—
—but determined.
Without thinking any further—
He ran.
As he approached—
The monster stopped.
It turned its head.
Slowly.
Its dark eyes locked onto him.
For a moment—
Everything felt still.
In those eyes—
The boy saw himself.
Small.
Afraid.
But moving forward anyway.
The monster moved.
It lunged toward him.