Prologue

This hunter is extremely talented…

The creature dodged the blade by a hair’s breadth.

Before it stood a hunter cloaked in dark garments that fluttered with every movement. The hood concealed part of his face, while a mask covered his features. Only his eyes remained visible through the narrow slits.

The sword swept past its face, illuminating the graveyard with the symbols etched along its length. Each movement left a fleeting trail of bluish light in the darkness.

He’s dangerous. I’d better not play around…

— I’ve killed many hunters.

Before surging forward, the creature reached for its own forearm and began to slowly unwrap the bandages covering it.

The cloth strips fell to the ground.

Beneath them, ancient burn marks traced irregular lines across its skin.

It then pointed its hand toward the ground, as if drawing a sword.

Its fingers remained extended and joined, rigid, while the thumb folded against the palm.

An irregular, reddish energy, resembling flames, descended from its forearm and extended to its fingertips.

The shape of a sword began to form.

There was no metal.

The sword was forged from restless spectral energy. Its edges seemed to evaporate into the air like flames that never extinguished, while shadows drifted through its core.

For an instant, terrified faces emerged in the form of flames.

Mouths agape, eyes wide open, as if screaming for help.

They looked like souls trying to escape.

The creature gazed at it and offered a faint smile, as if enduring an ancient pain.

It was a weapon capable of intimidating many.

Perhaps not a hunter.

Then it lunged forward.

The two weapons collided.

CLANG!

The impact showered red and blue sparks into the darkness.

The hunter stepped back, pivoted his body, and struck again.

The creature blocked.

CLANG!

A low cut.

It leaped backward.

Another strike at chest height.

It sidestepped.

The spiritual weapon mirrored every movement of its arm, lengthening and warping as the creature attacked. With every blow, it left behind a red trail in the air that took a few seconds to fade.

— But you are different, hunter.

The hunter charged without hesitation.

The creature attempted a counterattack, but he parried the blow with a swift twist of his blade.

Then he raised his free hand.

In a swift motion, the hunter reached beneath his garments and pulled out a small parchment.

The words written upon it began to glow.

The creature recoiled.

— No…

The parchment dissolved into ashes.

The surrounding tombstones trembled.

The earth beneath their feet began to shift.

The creature rushed forward before the ritual could finish.

Its blade ran through the hunter’s shoulder.

He staggered.

For a moment, it seemed he would collapse.

Yet he remained standing.

He’s wounded!

The creature smirked.

This is my chance.

It closed in.

The hunter tried to lift his sword once more, but his arm gave out for a fraction of a second.

Agony shot through his wounded shoulder.

That was all it took.

The creature appeared right in front of him.

The two swords clashed.

CLANG!

The impact echoed across the cemetery.

For a moment, both stood motionless, their blades locked against each other.

Eye to eye.

The hunter breathed with difficulty.

The creature grinned.

Then the hunter noticed something strange.

The creature’s sword began to unravel.

Not like a blade shattering.

It was simply losing its form.

Fragments of spectral energy dripped from the blade, evaporating into the air like smoke.

The hunter’s eyes widened.

The creature seized the moment.

The spectral sword dissolved partially, freeing the creature’s arm.

Its hand gripped the hunter’s arm.

— What…?

It pulled him violently closer.

The hunter tried to strike again, but there was no longer any room.

Then the creature opened its mouth.

Fangs bared.

And sank into the flesh, right between his neck and shoulder.

— AAAAAH!

The scream echoed through the cemetery.

The hunter dropped his sword for a moment and grabbed the creature, trying to tear it off his body.

The pain was unlike anything caused by a blade.

Deeper.

As if something were burning inside him.

The creature clamped down harder.

Then…

A light flared beneath the young man’s garments.

Faint at first.

Barely noticeable.

The light intensified.

A bluish glow began to pulse near the hunter’s chest.

The small pendant hidden beneath his clothes radiated a searing blue light.

The creature tried to pull away.

But it was too late.

A wave of energy coursed through the young man’s body.

FWOOSH!

At the exact instant of the shockwave that repelled the creature, its claws—sunk deep and clawing in desperation—hooked firmly into the edges of the mask concealing the hunter’s face. With the brutal force of the light’s impact, the monster was hurled backward, tearing the mask off by force as it flew.

Its body slammed heavily against a tombstone.

CRASH!

It hit the ground, rolled a few meters, and immediately clapped a hand over its face.

Its skin was smoking.

— AAAAARGH!

The creature looked down at its own hand.

Parts of its fingers were burned.

It slowly raised its eyes back to the hunter.

His face was now entirely exposed.

He was still standing, swaying on his feet.

One hand pressed against the bite wound.

The other clutched the pendant that still glowed beneath his clothes.

The creature’s eyes widened slightly.

Beneath the faint glow of the pendant stood no weathered veteran, but the youthful face of a prodigy whose talent defied logic.

— Well, well… — the creature muttered, catching its breath and smiling with a mix of surprise and contempt.

— So you’re just a young hunter. I must admit, you are a formidable opponent.

The blue light kept pulsing.

I’d better stay alert. He has plenty of tricks.

The pendant’s glow began to fade.

The creature remained still, watching closely.

Then it smiled.

The young man tried to raise his sword again, but he was weak.

— It’s a pity you won’t live to enjoy the talent you possess, young hunter.

The creature lunged to deliver the final blow.

The red energy stirred once again along its arm.

The Soul Eater extended once more, its spectral form writhing like a live flame.

— This is your end!

What?!

Something erupted from the ground.

A tall, gaunt, black creature with broad shoulders, no face, and a lumbering presence materialized between them, bound by chains around its arms and legs.

The spectral blade plunged straight through the dark entity’s body.

Yet it uttered no sound of pain, remaining impassive and showing no physical reaction to the impact.

CLANG!

The creature’s arm was stuck.

I can’t pull it out.

The creature looked up.

Above, just behind the black entity’s shoulder, a silhouette emerged against the dark sky.

The young hunter was airborne.

Leaping toward it, wielding his sword with both hands.

He brought the blade down with all his strength, unleashing a powerful airborne slash.

The creature tried to yank its arm free.

Nothing.

It was pinned.

The slash was coming.

With no other choice, the creature dissipated the spectral sword.

The energy vanished from its hand.

Freed, it snatched its arm back out from inside the entity at the very last second.

The blade missed its face.

I’m faster.

But the enchantment…

The arc of enchanted blue air from the sword struck its face.

A flash.

Pain.

Darkness.

The creature fell to its knees.

Its hand went instantly to its face.

Blood.

So much blood.

It touched its own face, feeling the warm liquid stream through its fingers.

For a few seconds, it remained on its knees, groaning in agony.

Then it extended its fingers into the sword formation.

Energy began to gather, attempting to take the form of the spectral blade.

But before it could coalesce, the energy flickered…

and dissolved into the air.

The creature stared at its hand in shock.

— You’ll pay for this! — the creature snarled.

More than pain… I lost my way home.

The creature stood up.

And fled into the darkness.

Behind it, silence returned to the cemetery.

The young hunter slumped against the cold stone of a tomb. His hands fumbled along the dirt ground until they met a familiar coldness. Pulling it back, he fitted the mask firmly over his face again.

— What took you so long, my friend? — he asked with a faint smile, referring to the dark creature he had just summoned.

Then he pressed his hand to his shoulder.

The wound still burned where the fangs had sunk deep into his flesh, right between his neck and shoulder.

But that wasn’t what worried him most.

He touched his mask…

The creature now knew his identity.

And then, he closed his eyes.

That night, neither of them had won.

Both would carry scars for the rest of their lives.