NOVEL NEXT Chapter 104: Alliance Born of Terror!
Meanwhile in a cave two Mutant Hyena territories away from Bruce's location were the gathered recruits...
Inside the cave, thirty recruits stood together in utter silence.
The air felt heavy, too heavy. The gloom of the cave seemed to press against their chests, squeezing every breath out of them.
Fire torchlight flickered along the rough stone walls, casting long shadows that wavered and twisted like they had lives of their own. Dust floated lazily through the beams of light, drifting downward like falling ash.
No one spoke. No one dared to. They just stared at each other both with wary and fear of what's to come...
These were supposed to be proud Awakened, each with unique classes, talents, and the arrogance that came with power. But now their shoulders were tense, their jaws clenched, their eyes flickering nervously around as if expecting death to appear at any moment.
Even their breathing was quiet, muted, shallow, careful.
Because every single person in that cave knew exactly why they were here.
The threat they faced was not a beast. Not a monster. Not an S-ranked abomination.
It was just one recruit. A single human. Who awakened thesame time range as them...
Yet that single human had pushed thirty A-rank Awakened into the same cave, trembling at the thought of facing him alone.
Someone stepped forward from the group, drawing every gaze immediately.
He didn't force them. He didn't bark orders. He simply took a slow, deliberate step into the center, and it was enough. Everyone instinctively made way for him.
His presence was sharp, commanding, a mix of charisma and quiet danger. He had long black hair tied into a ponytail, his robes neat and flowing, making him look like a battle-hardened strategist rather than a frontline fighter.
Nobody questioned him. Nobody asked who he was. Nobody objected or made noise about his actions.
Fear of Bruce had snuffed out everyone's ego long before now. But there was more, this man had an aura that told them he could lead. So no need to compete.
He met all their eyes, one by one, then finally spoke.
"My name is Dominic Saviour," he said calmly, his voice steady enough to cut through the tension. "Until this is over, I will act as the leader of this temporary alliance."
No objections. No murmurs of disagreement. Just silence… and acceptance.
Dominic continued, his expression unchanging.
"You all know why we chose to gather," he said. "You know exactly why we stopped hunting beasts and fighting each other but started moving toward this cave."
He paused, letting the weight of his words sink in.
"A rising threat has become too dangerous. Too overwhelming. If we don't join hands, every single one of us will die in the most brutal way possible."
A few recruits shifted uncomfortably. Someone swallowed hard.
Dominic's eyes narrowed.
"You've seen it yourselves," he said. "What he's done. How easily he kills. How little resistance matters. If any of us tries to face him alone… we die. If we split up… we die."
His tone darkened. "So this alliance, this cooperation, is for one purpose only. To kill Bruce Ackerman. Once he's dead, this alliance ends. After that, you can go back to whatever you want. Fight for points, hunt beasts, kill each other, I don't care."
Silence filled the cave again. No one argued. No one questioned. They all knew he was right.
Someone at the back whispered shakily, "He's like a demon... What the fuck is his class. You guys might not know Claire Redwyn, but I'm close friends with her, we came from thesame academy. I know her class, I know how impossible it is to resist her class."
Everyone remained silent as the recruit continued.
"Her talent is almost psychic despite it affecting blood. Yet Bruce was not only able to resist it but also kill her. You guys don't know how shocked I was when her death to Bruce's hands was announced. For him to kill her like he killed others, his class must be in another level entirely."
Everyone hearing the recruits frowned and went into deep thought upon hearing the girl that spoke. They had also seen the announcement of Claire Redwyn death, but they never thought she was strong. Per this recruits words she must indeed be strong...
Some others who knew strong recruits like Aria Stormheart, Donn Chit also dropped words about how great strength those people should have as A-ranks but all died at Bruce's hands... It made them all wonder what Bruce's class is exactly...
"Even the almighty Ozai from the Thorne family stood no chance... We all thought it was a fluke when Bruce first killed Ozai..." Another recruit said causing everybody to let out weary sighs...
And they from their former discussions, they knew that none of those here had ever seen Bruce in this trial. Meaning all those who saw Bruce had been killed...
Their hearts grew heavier as they feared him more and more...
"Cough~ Cough~ No matter what, we have to kill him, he's a real demon..." A guy coughed tiredly and said...
Dominic didn't deny it. He simply exhaled slowly through his nose.
"Demon or not… demons can be killed. But only if we stop acting like fools and work together."
The group nodded stiffly. Some with determination. Some with fear. Some with nothing but desperation.
But before Dominic could continue, a tremor ran through the cave, not physical, but emotional. A single recruit near the entrance stiffened suddenly, eyes going wide in terror.
"He's coming…"
Every head jerked up. Gulp could be heard audibly.
Maps were summoned instantly, all thirty wrists glowing in unison as holographic displays flickered to life.
And there it was.
A single dot. Moving. Racing across the map with impossible speed.
Bruce Ackerman!
His dot cut through Hyena territory like a falling star, his dot being this fast in the map, one can only imagine how fast he was actually, how many kilometres he was covering per seconds... If only they know he wasn't going at full speed..
The distance was huge, but at the rate he was moving…
Minutes. Only minutes.
One recruit's hands trembled. Another clutched their weapon so tightly their knuckles turned white. Several gulped loudly, unable to hide the sound.
Dominic's jaw tightened as he stared at the map.
"He's coming," he repeated quietly with a sigh.
The storm was on its way. And there was no running anymore. But one question still stands, can they really kill him? Can this alliance born of terror slay the undefeated Monster of this trial?