Within moments of leaving the Essence Warrior HQ, Riku stood atop the Hayashi Clan tower. With one focused breath, he summoned 15 colossal dragons, each identical—sleek obsidian scales with glowing azure eyes, wings stretched wide, and Essence sigils pulsing along their bodies like ancient markings. Each dragon landed before the members of Unit Vanguard Blaze, gently bowing their heads.
"They'll get you to Kanagawa in 20 minutes," Riku announced, his voice calm but commanding.
As each warrior climbed onto their designated dragon, Riku mounted his own. The skies over Tokyo shimmered with raw power as all fifteen dragons soared in formation across Japan, heading south toward Kanagawa Prefecture.
Arrival in Kanagawa – 20 Minutes Later
The dragons descended silently in a remote mountainous region outside Yokohama, where recent reports of vanishing civilians and erratic Essence signatures had originated. The skies were dim, and the area was unusually quiet.
The team dismounted, and Riku gave a signal—dragons vanished into Essence clouds, waiting for the next summon.
They began scouring the area, searching for any abnormalities.
Within 30 minutes, they found it.
Kaito Sorimachi, the stealth expert, called everyone over. Hidden beneath layers of moss and shattered debris near an abandoned station was a deep claw mark—far too large for any regular beast, etched into stone. Alongside it, blackish-green fur and a faint trail of Essence traces flickered in and out of view, as if something was distorting reality in its wake.
"This is fresh," Reika Muro muttered. "And not natural."
Riku studied it closely, narrowing his eyes.
"There's two culprits behind all of this," he said. "One's a rogue beast... and the other, I'd bet, is a Wielder."
Team Division
Knowing time was critical, Riku quickly assigned groups:
Toru with Daigo
Yumi with Sora
Reika with Kaito
Hajime with Hina
Naoko with Amari
Zenji with Mikio
Arata with Kuro Emi
Riku would go alone.
As the team prepared to split, Yumi stepped forward, trying to hide her blush.
"Riku… can I be assigned with you this time?"
He looked at her gently, but firmly shook his head.
"I can protect myself," he said. "And as team leader, I need to make sure everyone else is positioned right. This isn't about favorites—it's about trust and precision."
Yumi looked down, her face flushed. "…Right. Of course. Sorry."
"You're one of the strongest here. I need you leading too."
She gave a small smile. "Got it, Riku."
As the 8 search teams moved deeper into Kanagawa's dark forests and eerie ruins, a silent breeze passed through—almost like a whisper. Watching them from afar, two hidden figures stood on a cliff.
And somewhere deeper in the prefecture…
The beast stirred.