Some days later, in a ward that resembled a hospital, Dana slowly opened her eyes. Hazy, she blinked twice, rubbed them, and pushed herself into a sitting position.

  “Ugh… where am I?” she groaned.

  Beside her, a pink-haired lady jolted awake. The moment she saw Dana sitting up, her eyes welled with tears.

  “Dana! You’re awake!” Tina cried, immediately hugging her.

  “Tina… this is a hospital?” Dana asked.

  “No. You’re in the basement of our hideout.”

  Tina’s expression dimmed.

  “You’ve been asleep for two days straight. Ick— ick— I don’t know what I would’ve done if that vampire had killed you.”

  “I’m sorry for making you worry so much,” Dana murmured, hugging her back and gently patting her shoulder in reassurance. “I promise I won’t be that reckless again.”

  She stood up carefully. “See? I’m okay now. Let’s go meet the others.”

  They stepped out into the lobby, where two men dressed in white were walking past.

  “Dana, you’re awake!” one of them said. “Wait, you shouldn’t be walking yet. You just regained consciousness.”

  “I’m fine. I just overexerted myself. I used too much power.”

  “Oh…”

  The two men exchanged a glance.

  “Well, see you later, then.”

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  The hideout, though underground, buzzed with activity. Teams moved around with purpose: tracking rogue Parahumans and Metahumans, securing sudden rift openings, protecting the public from learning too much about the world’s hidden truths.

  But something felt off today. Even in the bustle, the atmosphere was strangely heavy.

  Dana and Tina entered a small room where three others sat:

  Bella, a crimson-haired woman with a full chest, wearing a red and gold-trimmed outfit.

  Hope, with jet-black hair and a red dress lined in gold.

  Edward, a maroon-haired man dressed in matching colors, the squad’s uniform.

  The moment they noticed Dana, they rushed to her.

  “Dana, you’re back! You scared us,” Hope said, gripping her thigh anxiously.

  “Captain, you slept for two days straight,” Edward added.

  “Goodness, don’t ever pull something like that again.” Bella wrapped her in a tight hug.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t want to put any of you in danger, which is why I went alone,” Dana said.

  Then she paused, scanning the room.

  “Where’s Freddie?”

  The mood collapsed instantly. Faces dimmed; shoulders sank.

  “When we came to rescue you from the vampire,” Hope began quietly, “Freddie stayed behind to stall him so we could escape with you… He never returned.”

  Dana’s eyes went blank. Her limbs trembled. She sank to her knees, covering her mouth as tears spilled out.

  It was her fault.

  If she hadn’t insisted on fighting him…

  If she’d waited…

  If she’d been stronger…

  As squad captain, she was the strongest among them, yet even she was overwhelmed by Max. Freddie had stood no chance.

  He was dead.

  Of course he was.

  A Mystic Hunter wouldn’t be spared.

  Dana broke down, clutching her chest as the others gathered around her, trying their best to comfort her.

  The door opened.

  A man with black hair streaked with grey at the sides stepped in. His beard carried the same streaks. He wore purple robes embroidered with an eastern dragon on the chest and back. His very presence radiated authority.

  “Dana. Good to see you’re awake. Something has come up, there’s a captains’ meeting.”

  His eyes softened as he noticed her swollen face.

  “Maybe you should sit this one out. I’ll fill you in later.”

  He continued, “You remember the squad that was sent to the rift near the Hollowed Confinement? After months of no contact, we finally received a message from them.”

  Dana straightened.

  “They did? But the portal closed after they went in. We all assumed they were gone.”

  “Exactly. The message came as a coded transmission. Logistics is trying to decipher it.” He folded his arms.

  “With the way things look… that place isn’t a dungeon. It’s a world. Imagine what that means.”

  …

  Cold winds swept across an ice-draped land. A lone figure in heavy clothing trudged through the snow. At the base of a tall mountain, she planted a climbing hook and began her ascent.

  Reaching a cave, she paused at the entrance and read the note in her hand.

  “This is where the clues lead… The cave in the frozen lands of the Northern Colony,” Helga muttered, her breath steaming.

  She entered. Icicles hung from the ceiling, but the deeper she went, the warmer the cave grew.

  Then she noticed footprints, not from a stickman. Something larger.

  Stomp.

  Her ears twitched.

  A massive white Beastodon, a monster native to the frozen region, loomed behind her. They are larger than their forest counterparts, its icy blue eyes glowed with a hollow, predatory light.

  It roared.

  Icicles shattered and fell.

  Wind howled through the cavern.

  Helga braced herself as swirling air gathered around her feet.