CHAPTER 4 : Raven

The white room gradually grew calm.
Kurogane was the second to open his eyes. His vision was blurry, his head heavy.
When his eyes finally focused on the silver-haired girl standing before him, they widened instantly.

“...Oh, is this heaven?” he murmured hazily. “Alright then, I’m fine with this. Take me, beautiful angel.”
His hand weakly reached out toward Alice.

Alice blinked in confusion. “W–what’s wrong with this guy?”
Ren, standing beside her, sighed. “He’s... a bit autistic.”
A moment later, Mira stirred awake, groaning. “Ugh... where are we? My head hurts...”
Then Toma slowly opened his eyes, scanning the room warily.

When his gaze landed on the unfamiliar man in the corner — a messy-haired guy with a laid-back expression — Toma immediately jumped to his feet and transformed his arm into a cannon.

“That guy! He’s the one who attacked us! He made you all pass out!”
“Oi, oi, Toma, wait!” Ren shouted quickly.

The man simply raised his hands casually, a smirk curling on his face. “Hahaha... finally awake, huh? But do you realize you’re now in a—”
“HEY, SHUT UP FOR A SECOND!” Alice’s shout cut through the air, silencing everyone. She glared at the man. “Idiot, stop scaring them, moron.”
The man shrugged. “Haha, just kidding. Just kidding.”

Alice sighed and turned back to the others. “Relax. He’s the one I sent to bring you here.”
Then she gestured toward him and introduced him properly.
“His name is Daigo Renzaki — one of the leaders of Xentra.”

Once everyone sat down, the room suddenly felt like an improvised interrogation chamber.
The white walls seemed even quieter, the only sound being the ticking clock on the wall.

Alice sat at the table, fingers interlaced, her expression as cold as a police investigator.
Across from her sat the four — tense, or at least trying very hard to look tense.

“Alright,” Alice began flatly. “Let’s start with you, Kurogane.”

Kurogane straightened up, trying to look dignified, but his expression resembled a student about to fail a math exam.
“Explain what happened at the site where the half-bodied centipede monster was found.”

Kurogane took a deep breath. “Alright, Miss Investigator. I have no idea, because at that time... I was thinking about my unpaid ramen debt.”

Ren snapped his head around. “Ramen debt?”
“Yeah! I ordered the jumbo bowl but forgot to pay. So when that monster showed up, I was thinking, ‘If I die now, who’s gonna pay my debt?’”
Alice closed her eyes. “...Okay. Noted. Possible mild delusional case.”
“Hey! I’m serious!” protested Kurogane.

“Next,” Alice turned to Mira. “You, the girl with the blue ribbon. What did you see at the scene?”
Mira looked up at the ceiling, thinking hard. “Hmm... I only remember the monster’s color. It was kinda pretty! Pink mixed with green — like a rotten watermelon.”
“...A rotten... watermelon?”
“Yeah! It was so funny-looking! I even wanted to take a picture, but my phone died.”
Alice stared blankly. “…Additional note: possible brain malfunction.”

Ren burst out laughing beside her. “Wow, Mira. If there’s a national championship for nonsense, you’d be the winner.”
“Shut up!” Mira snapped. “You were the one panicking and yelling ‘Run to the garage Wi-Fi!’ even though the Wi-Fi was already dead!”

Mira tries to lie

Alice turned toward Ren, eyes narrowing. “Garage... Wi-Fi?”

Ren, Kurogane, and Toma immediately caught on to Mira’s slip and improvised in unison.

Ren shrugged casually. “It was a reflex. Whenever something weird happens, our garage Wi-Fi lags. I thought the monster was a signal bug.”
Alice’s stare went cold. “Oh, of course. Because clearly, a half-bodied centipede appears due to poor internet connection.”

Daigo smirked from the corner. “Interesting theory. You should publish that in the Journal of Eternal Idiocy.”

Ren clicked his tongue. “Tch, this is Kurogane’s fault! If he hadn’t blasted metal music, we could’ve escaped faster!”

Kurogane defended himself, “Hey! Metal boosts morale! You can’t run from a monster without proper background music!”

Toma, who had been quiet the whole time, finally spoke. “You guys are too noisy. I was busy looking for a rock to throw.”
“A rock? To attack?” Alice asked, half-annoyed.
“No, to sell later. It looked rare — like plasma.”
“Oh my god.” Alice rubbed her temples. “Do you people realize you were being attacked by a MONSTER, not having a picnic!?”
“Eh, but it was kinda funny,” Mira added. “Kurogane stepped on the monster’s tail and slipped like in a cartoon!”
“LIES!” shouted Kurogane.
“It’s true! You even screamed ‘MOTHER!’ before you fell!”
Ren fell to the floor laughing. “HAHAHA! ‘MOTHER!’ Seriously!? Since when do you yell that!?”
“It was instinct! I thought I was dying!”

Alice slammed the table hard. “ENOUGH! ONE MORE BULLSHIT AND I’M BLOWING THIS ROOM UP!”
Silence.
The four of them immediately sat up straight, hands folded like school kids caught cheating.

Daigo watched the scene calmly, cracking open a water bottle. “At this rate, we’ll get real info in three days.”
Without warning, he threw the bottle straight at Kurogane’s head.
Thwack!
“OWW! WHY ME!?”
“Reflex,” Daigo said casually, sitting cross-legged on the floor. “Usually works to make people honest.”
Kurogane rubbed his head. “Man, you’re a barbaric old dude.”

Alice glared. “Now — from the beginning. No nonsense, no drama, no rotten watermelons, and definitely no Garage Wi-Fi.”

The four exchanged glances, then sat up straight.
“Yes, ma’am.”

Finally, with slightly embarrassed smiles, they began recounting the real incident — from the purple light bursting from the ground, the strange static-like monster noise, to Toma almost getting swallowed by a small rift before they all blacked out.

When the story ended, Alice stared at them for a long moment... then turned to Daigo.
“…I’m not convinced these people are normal.”
Daigo shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. They’re alive. Lucky they didn’t die from that gamble.”

When Alice heard about Toma’s power, she could hardly believe it and immediately ordered Daigo to test him.

Toma stood in the middle of the training room.
His hands trembled as faint energy rippled around him.
As soon as he activated his transformation mode, the Union’s power gauge began to blare loudly.

[LEVEL OUTPUT: RANK S – Lower Tier]

Everyone stared at the screen, mouths agape.
“Hah!? How can a Rank F have power equal to Rank S!?” Mira shouted.
“He’s not even past beginner Awakening!” Ren added.

Alice ran a hand down her face. “Okay... that’s insane.”
Then she looked at Toma silently, before finally smiling faintly.
“Alright then, I have an offer. Toma — would you like to join my team?”

Toma looked serious for a moment, then shook his head. “Sorry. I can’t. I don’t want to leave my friends.”
Alice sighed. “I see... That’s too bad. I could’ve introduced you to some pretty girls at the Union and given you unlimited cafeteria access.”
Toma immediately straightened up. “I’M IN!”
Ren, Mira, and Kurogane screamed in unison.
“HEY HEY HEY! WE’RE NOT SPLITTING UP!”
“IF WE SPLIT UP, WE’RE DEAD, MAN!”
“TOMA, YOU STILL OWE ME FROM ELEMENTARY SCHOOL!”

Alice stared at them, speechless. “You three... want to join too?”
“YEP.”
“Of course.”
“With pleasure!”

Alice initially refused, but after constant persuasion, whining, and yelling, she finally gave in — with one condition.
“Fine... but you’ll have to reach at least Rank B first.”

Kurogane raised a hand. “How strong is Rank B?”
Alice blinked. “Huh? That’s common knowledge. Don’t tell me you don’t know?”
“Nope,” they all answered together.
“One Rank B equals ten Rank Cs.”
“And a Rank C equals...?”
“One Rank C equals five Rank Ds.”
“And Rank D equals...?”
Alice grabbed her head. “AAAHH!! YOU GUYS KNOW NOTHING!”
“Sorry, we’ve been busy doing more important things than memorizing kid-level rankings,” Ren said casually.
“Hehe, true,” Mira added with a grin.

(Flashback)
“Hey Mira, this one looks good!” Calls Kurogane
“Which one? Let me see!”
“Do girls actually like... p*rn videos?” Ren asked innocently.
(Back to present)

Alice sighed deeply. “Whatever. Just listen.”

She started explaining the Union’s ranking system.
“In the Union, there are nine ranks.
The highest is SSS — those Xentra members don’t even handle world-level issues anymore. They’re part of the exclusive dimensional investigation teams. One SSS equals ten upper SS.”

“Next, Rank SS,” Alice continued. “They’re the strongest individuals alive. Fame, money, power — all of it. Only ten Rank SS exist worldwide. And this old man,” she pointed at Daigo, who was casually picking his nose, “is one of the former Rank SS from our continent.”
“WHAAAT!? THAT GUY!?” Kurogane shouted.
“Shh! Don’t give ego! He’ll start bragging again,” Mira whispered.

“Then Rank S,” Alice said, “only twenty exist globally, and three in our continent. And I’m one of them,” she added shyly, twirling a strand of her hair.
“Oh, I see,” Toma replied flatly.
“WHAT’S WITH THAT REACTION!? YOU’RE NOT IMPRESSED!?”
Ren raised a brow. “Oh, uh, should we be? Wow—”
“Ugh, forget it,” Alice groaned, slamming the table. “Moving on!”

“Rank A usually handles inter-regional incidents, Rank B cleans up leftover monsters, and Rank C through E are... normal workers.”
“What about Rank F?” Mira asked.
Alice smirked. “Don’t know. But judging by you guys, it’s garbage.”
“RUDE!” Kurogane yelled.

After things calmed down, Alice stood up. “Now you understand how strong you need to be to join?”
“Eeeh, how do we even reach Rank B? I get tired lifting a box,” Mira and Kurogane groaned in unison.
Alice smiled mysteriously. “Don’t worry. Leave it to me.”

She left the room briefly, then returned with two people.
“Tadaaa~ These are my trusted allies.”

A gentle woman with soft lavender hair waved kindly. “Hello~ I’m Erika, Summoner Rank A.”
Beside her stood a large man with glasses. “Yo. Name’s Daichi, head of Union Strategy Unit 4.”

Kurogane froze the moment he saw Erika.
“UOOOOH—ehem—hello, Lady Erika. Might I ask... are you perhaps an angel?” he said dramatically, kneeling and taking her hand.
Erika just blinked in confusion.
“What a loser,” Mira muttered.
“Yeah, absolute trash,” Ren agreed.

Alice continued, “Erika will train Mira, since your abilities both involve beasts and monsters. Daichi will train Kurogane.”
“Whaaat, I wanna be trained by Erika! Not some old dude!”
“BASTARD!” Daichi roared furiously.

Alice sighed. “Enough. Training starts today. Daichi, Erika — take them to the training hall.”
“Yes, ma’am~!” they said cheerfully, dragging away Mira and Kurogane, who were still bickering.

Ren glanced around. “Hope I get a cute trainer too... hehehe.”
“Eh, what about me?” he asked innocently.
“Your trainer’s behind you,” Alice said casually.
Ren turned — and saw Daigo sleeping face-down.
“...Son of a—”

“And me?” Toma asked.
“You’re different. The best training for you is out in the field. Coincidentally, there’s a Rank A monster in Hajua City.”

That day, their training began.

Ren trained with Daigo — though their sessions looked more like a comedy routine.
“Teleport behind the wall!” Daigo commanded.
Ren tried — and appeared right in front of the wall, nearly kissing it.
“...I almost died,” he groaned.
“Hahaha! But hey, at least not inside the wall!” Daigo roared with laughter.

Meanwhile, Mira trained with Erika.
They got along at first — until Mira accidentally commented on Erika’s outfit.
“Wow, your clothes look like expensive pajamas!”
The summoner’s eye twitched.
Moments later, she made Mira tame an actual Level A beast she summoned herself.

Kurogane... was the most unfortunate.
Daichi, still holding a grudge from being called “old man,” gave him hellish physical drills.
“RUN UNTIL YOU CAN’T INSULT OLD MEN ANYMORE!”
“I REGRET EVERYTHING!!” Kurogane screamed in agony.

By evening, they all returned to Toma’s house after their first day of training — tired, sore, but laughing together.
For Mira, Ren, and Kurogane, it was their first time actually seeing Toma’s home — usually, they just hung out at the garage or Ren’s place.
The house was huge, with tall pillars and elegant decor.

As they stepped inside, Toma asked casually,
“So, how’s your status? Any improvements?”
“Yeah yeah, you just wanna brag,” Mira muttered.

Ren raised a brow. “Not much. Agility and Strength went up by 20.”
“Mine too, plus some Stamina,” Mira said.
“What about you, Kurogane?”

They all turned to him — he was staring at his status screen, frozen.
“...Why the dumb face?” Mira asked.
“C-check my status out.”

Ren peeked at the holographic screen.
“Strength 28… Durability 32… Stamina 23… Luck... 40,231... Speed 25—WHA—!?!”
“YOUR LUCK IS OVER FORTY THOUSAND!?”

“WHAT THE HELL!?”

“Did you awaken too!?” Ren shouted.

“I-I don’t know... but there’s a lock icon beside it.”

“What’s that mean?”

“Maybe I can’t use all my Luck yet.”

“What a waste! Combined with your skill, that’s OP as hell!” Mira said.
Kurogane slumped. “And here I was, feeling happy for once.”
Toma patted his shoulder. “Don’t worry, Kurogane. You’ll always be below me.”
“SCREW YOU, YOU—!”
Laughter filled the house.

In the living room, they froze upon seeing an old photo — the five of them as kids, standing beside their long-lost friend, Kazuma.
Toma smiled faintly, then quickly changed the subject.
“Hey, let’s hit the game room!”

The room was incredible — five PC setups, a massive TV, and stacks of board games.
They turned on the Hero Forum, laughing at gossip and ridiculous headlines — until one report caught their eye.

BREAKING NEWS:
Several Rank S fugitives have escaped from Union’s Elyseam Branch Prison.

They looked at each other silently.
Then Kurogane grabbed a controller. “Anyway, let’s play.”

Meanwhile — Somewhere Far Away

Six Rank S fugitives dashed through dense forests, chased by dozens of Xentra agents.
Leading the pursuit was a Rank S Xentra — Adur, a blonde, broad-shouldered man radiating power like a lion.

“They’re gaining on us, boss!”

“There — a dungeon!”

They ran for it, desperate to escape.

Once inside, their trackers went dark.
But as they descended deeper, something felt off.
There were no monsters on the first floor.
The walls were carved with strange runes.

At the end of the corridor stood a massive humanoid statue, its eyes half-open.
Below it was an inscription:

“PROJECT RAVEN.”

“Wh-what is this place, Boss...?” one of them stammered.
The fugitive leader scanned the room. “I don’t know.”
Another, the calmest among them, murmured, “This dungeon isn’t from this world... It’s Union-made. A failed experiment.”

They ventured further until they found the core chamber.
Dozens of glass pods lined the walls — each containing half-organic, half-mechanical human bodies.

“Holy crap...”
“Boss, we need to get out of here!”

Suddenly, the floor trembled.
From the ceiling, a blue hologram flickered on:

“Welcome back. Experiment Raven has completed. Would you like to open the result?”

They exchanged horrified looks.
“Y-yeah, open it!” shouted the leader.

“Access denied. Please enter password.”
“WHY ASK IF YOU NEED A PASSWORD!?”
“Boss, quiet down! They’ll find us again!”

Then — click.

“Password accepted. Opening Experiment Raven result.”
“Huh?”

A large pod at the back hissed open, releasing thick steam.
From within emerged a small child — naked, eyes clear like glass.

He looked straight at the Rank S fugitive and said,
“Papa.”

“HAHA! HE CALLED YOU PAPA!”
“SHUT UP BEFORE I KILL YOU!”

They all stared, bewildered — whose child was this? What was this place?
As they explored a bit more, the leader crouched down before the boy.
“What’s your name?”
“Name...? What is that, Papa?”
“Hmm... seems he doesn’t have one.”

He glanced at the writing on the wall. “Then how about... Raven? Like that word over there.”
“Raven... that sounds nice, Papa!”
The boy smiled brightly, pure and innocent.
“What’s Papa’s name?”
“Papa’s name... is Karsid. Karsid Otona.”

His comrades gave him strange looks, but Karsid just scratched his head with an awkward grin.
And so, they took the boy with them as they left the dungeon —
unaware that the world had just opened the curtain to its next dark chapter.