I can say with absolute certainty that anyone who's risen above rank A in the Hunters' Guild… isn't human.
I say this even though I'm stuck at C-.
I couldn't keep up with my companion Katya, nor with Saint John, who was blocking us from chasing after "the Knight," and it looked like Alexander had slipped away with him onto the rooftop… they were already quite a ways off.
The tavern lay in ruins, the patrons and the courtesans fled—everyone except the barkeep, who kept screaming curses at us, lamenting the fate of his beautiful place, his customers, his workers, and the "ladies" who'd scattered.
He shouted, his fat body swaying back and forth without stopping:
"Katya! You and your friends—you're the reason for all this!
I swear you'll pay for this when it's over, and I'll make you come back to serving customers, whether you like it or not!"
But Katya just gave him a faint smile, then kicked him hard, sending him flying out the nearest window, all while dodging the gorgeous flames that John was twisting around him as he guzzled wine.
Even then, nothing distracted her from her target.
With her lithe grace, Katya moved with astonishing speed—her footsteps barely touched the ground before she lunged at John with her daggers, and he parried her attack with equal ease.
Katya is fast, deadly, and a master assassin… but she's facing a high-ranking saint: John, who has a massive mana reserve and pure, flawless holy spells.
She tried hitting him with "Tracing Light" magic, but he simply deflected it with a wall of wind…
That gale blocked half of my own spell, which really annoyed me.
I shouted as I unleashed a blast of light and fire spells, but they did nothing against him…
I felt ashamed of my weakness, then screamed again:
"Why did you start this?!
Why are you hunting the Knight?!
Do you want him dead?!
What has he done to you?!"
But John wasn't moved by my yelling. He just took another gulp of wine and regarded the dancing flames around him with a calm smile:
"I don't like upsetting a young lady," he said politely, "but, my dear…
I'm a man of principle.
And my principles don't allow emotions to interfere with my work.
My insight tells me forgetting that Knight would be the wiser choice… if you value your survival."
He spoke gently and respectfully, as he saw Katya ease up on her assault.
"And do you really think forgetting is that easy?
Asking someone to erase a person they've come to care for, admire, and who's left an impact on them?
If you believe that, you're just an arrogant fool, old man."
Katya cried out, her gaze fixed on the ceiling, on the gaping hole above… then she raised her eyes toward the fourth floor.
She drew her daggers and launched herself with a force I'd never seen before.
As for me, I did my part—bolstering her defenses and speed until they reached madness.
Katya shot forward like an arrow, weaving through the fire spells that tore through the place, scattering marble and wood, engulfing what was left of the tavern.
Getting close to John at that moment was impossible… that's not the kind of thing a support mage like me could do.
But Katya?…
Katya mastered it.
Katya is more beautiful, stronger, and the deadliest in close combat.
How I envy her!
With the hilt of her dagger, she slashed John's face, forcing him backward.
But she didn't stop—she followed up with a swift punch, finishing what she'd started.
"Quickly, now, Alruna! Get out!"
Katya shouted, and I obeyed instantly.
I knew climbing up from inside the tavern was no longer an option, so I bolted outside.
No sooner had I stepped out than I heard a strange rumble, without warning.
People gathered, and I thought, "What's happening?!"
Suddenly, a fiery glow appeared in the sky…
Daylight vanished in an instant.
A massive shockwave and violent tremor followed, people scrambling everywhere.
I couldn't grasp what had happened until I came to, finding myself sprawled among scattered debris and marble, amid the screams of bystanders, the rushing Hunters, and a Guild megaphone blaring:
"Warning: Creature of the Dragon Classification detected. Rank: S+!"
A colossal dragon…
Ash-white, it soared above us.
With a flap of its wings, it unleashed winds and rubble.
It struck me hard as I watched it crash down onto a nearby block…
The entire area was wiped from existence.
Houses shattered, marble flew, flames danced arrogantly over the ruins.
I struggled to breathe… my mind was foggy, my legs barely holding me up.
People pushed and shoved, Hunters sprinting toward the dragon's location.
Buildings collapsed all around us.
But I survived, and I managed to save a small family—a sister and her brother…
Their father, however, died. I knew at a glance from his mangled body pierced by a huge marble shard.
As people fled in all directions, I wondered to myself:
"How did this madness begin?
And who in the heavens can stop it?""
I broke into a run through the chaos, gasping and stumbling, when I remembered my true purpose… the Knight.
I pushed aside my shallow wounds and the tears that wouldn't stop, despite my exhaustion.
Behind me, the dragon was rising again—massive, terrifying, its flames consuming the ground.
Only then did I realize that those Hunters who'd reached it before us… were already dead.
They hadn't even managed a worthwhile strike.
Suddenly, a building above me gave way.
I saw it collapse but didn't have enough mana to shield myself—or even cast a simple survival spell.
I understood then that this might be the end.
I was so tired… I closed my eyes and surrendered.
…
A soft laugh.
Then light.
A blinding golden beam split the sky, banishing everything.
For a moment, I thought it was salvation… paradise.
As it faded, I turned—and there he stood beside me.
I recognized him by his confident stance, his solemn silence.
Leader of the Seven Saints.
The one intent on harming the Knight.
Leon himself had intervened to save me.
An S+–rank Hunter.
He didn't look at me, even though I was so close.
Yet I felt a gentle, potent healing spell flow through me without a word.
I began to heal…
For a few seconds, I almost lost myself… but the dragon gave us no reprieve.
From afar, its shape emerged, its glowing eyes unleashing fire that tore at the sky.
Despite the distance, a wall of roaring flame surged toward us, sweeping over a hundred meters.
I thought it was the end again.
But…
the fire split in two.
The wave parted, shattering everything to its right and left, and I stared in astonishment.
She appeared…
the Lady Intervenor.
Her red hair streamed in the hot air, her smile gleaming like her massive blade.
She greeted him with effortless grace:
"Oh, Leon… I didn't know you'd finally arrived toward The Platinum Keystone.
Shouldn't you have informed me, blessed boy?"
She was Frida, known as the Lady of the Burning Heart Guild.
Her rank: S–.
Leon answered without glancing her way:
"There was no need.
I reached my Church of the Sacred Relic only moments ago…
My apologies, my lady.
I now stand before an overwhelming… heavy… duty.
My duty compels me to remain here."
He fell silent, gazing at the dragon, then said to me:
"Rise…
This is not your place.
Find your purpose elsewhere, if you wish to live."
His words were harsh… painful, but honest.
I knew he was right—yet…
I had to find the Knight.
To repay him in some small way.
I nodded in gratitude, then sprinted off without looking back.
Leon and Frida remained unmoving.
And the dragon… faced them alone.
All I felt was the heat of the flames behind me, the howling wind, the boiling sky.
But I looked the other way…
I saw clouds gathering, and rain beginning to fall on the far edge of the city.
I smiled inside…
I know that rain…
I know whom it belongs to.