In another part of the city,

Pillars of smoke and fire billowed into the sky as explosions rattled the city's core. The air was thick with the acrid stench of burning fuel, mixed with the sharp, metallic tang of scorched metal. Buildings groaned and cracked, their foundations quaking under the relentless assault.

A massive, twisted creature loomed in the heart of the chaos, its enormous body coiling and thrashing as it tore through the streets. Each movement sent shockwaves rippling through the ground. The sound of its roars echoed off the walls, deep and guttural, vibrating the air around it.

Eight heads, each gaping with venomous fangs, hissed and snapped in every direction. Their eyes, wide and bloodshot, flickered with rage and hunger. Thick, dark saliva dripped from the edges of their jaws, sizzling as it hit the cracked pavement below. The heads turned, swaying independently, snapping toward anything that moved, their tongues flickering in the smoke-choked air.

The creature's body was a mass of writhing muscle and scales, dark as the void, its form shifting like liquid as it surged forward. It moved with terrifying speed, its long, serpentine body crashing through everything in its path. Every strike of its tail sent concrete flying, and each of its heads slammed into nearby buildings with deafening force, crushing steel and stone under their weight.

The stench of sulfur and rot hung heavily in the air, mixing with the acrid smell of burning debris. The creature's breath was hot and fetid, each exhale causing the air around it to shimmer, thick with the scent of decay. Acid dripped from its fangs, sizzling as it corroded the pavement beneath it, leaving blackened scars on the street.

Everywhere it went, destruction followed. Buildings cracked and splintered, collapsing under the weight of its onslaught. Cars were tossed aside like toys, their metal bodies crumpling as if they were made of paper. The streets buckled and cracked under the creature's crushing weight, leaving gaping fissures that seemed to pulse with dark energy.

At the forefront of this destruction, the Genesis Squad was holding their ground, their efforts nothing short of heroic.

Andrew, muscles flexing as his energy blazed from his hands, dodged a massive tail swipe from the hydra. The creature's teeth snapped shut with a thunderous sound, missing him by inches. Evelyn, standing on a nearby rooftop, flung debris with her telekinetic powers, keeping the hydra's attention split, while Felix, the brute of the squad, hammered away at one of its heads with a warhammer, sending shockwaves through the air.

"We need to focus on the heads!" Andrew barked, eyes burning with determination. "Cut them off one by one, or this thing's going to wipe us out!"

Felix grunted, landing another heavy blow, but it didn't do nearly enough damage to make a dent. Evelyn's telekinetic attacks were equally ineffective, pushing the hydra back but not enough to keep it from regenerating. The beast hissed with fury, its many heads lashing out at them in unison, each one more vicious than the last.

Derek sat atop a crumbling skyscraper, legs dangling over the edge. The remnants of a chocolate bar sat in his hand, half-eaten, while his eyes lazily scanned the chaos below. The city was burning, its cries for help muffled by the ever-present roar of destruction. He took another bite, chewing slowly as he observed the Genesis Squad from a distance.

He looked relaxed—almost too relaxed—but behind that calm exterior, his mind was sharp, calculating. He understood the weight of every passing second. For every moment he delayed, someone died. A child was crushed under debris. A mother torn apart by a beast. A survivor too slow to run. He didn't need to see it to know it was happening. That knowledge sat heavy in the back of his mind, coiled like a second spine.

Still, he hadn't seen a trace of Lila. He'd cut down wave after wave of monsters since his return, but no sign—not even a whisper. And now… now people were starting to notice him. Even in the middle of hell, a man in gleaming white armour cutting through monsters like paper was hard to miss.

But fame wasn't what he was after.

Below, the creature roared—a sound that vibrated the bones and stabbed through the smoke like a declaration of dominance. Derek squinted down at the hydra, eight heads flailing with rage, slamming into buildings and swallowing everything that moved. The devastation was total.

"Well, that's a hell of a show," he muttered, tone dry as sandpaper. He wiped his fingers on the wrapper and flicked it aside, calling up his Appraisal skill with a flick of thought.

"Appraisal."

[Target: Eight Headed Hydra]

Rank: D-

Threat Level: Severe

Derek snorted. "I'll give them five minutes before they're paste."

The Genesis Squad fought valiantly, but the difference between effort and effect was brutal. Andrew's fists blazed with energy as he ducked and weaved, Evelyn hurled debris from her perch, and Felix swung his warhammer like a man possessed. But it was like trying to punch holes in a hurricane.

"Focus on the heads!" Andrew yelled, voice cracking with desperation.

Derek raised an eyebrow. " So this is the government secret weapon "

He let out a long sigh, leaning forward as if contemplating a dive. The squad's efforts were noble, but nobility didn't win battles. Power did. Ruthlessness. Experience. He had all three.

At level 20, with stats that would make most elite hunters cry in the shower, Derek wasn't just watching the battle. He was weighing it.

And yet…

His jaw tightened slightly as his gaze drifted across the ruins. Smoke, fire, blood. He'd seen this before—too many times. The System hadn't chosen him for his compassion, but it had given him a choice. Sit still and let good people die… or jump in.

Andrew's frustration echoed loudly below. "Damn it… We're getting nowhere."

"Should we fall back?" Felix called out, barely dodging a spray of acid as one of the hydra's heads hissed in his direction.

"We can only do so on orders," Andrew growled. "And everyone dies if we leave."

Derek stood up, rolling his neck with a soft crack. He took one last bite of chocolate and let the wrapper catch the wind.

"All right," he said softly. "No more audience."

"System, let's make this interesting."

[Activating Skill: Thunderclap Strike]

A surge of lightning shimmered across his body as the Tempest Walker Mk I exosuit activated, gleaming white with streaks of crackling blue. His form blurred—then launched forward, diving into the chaos like a lightning bolt aimed at the heart of destruction.

As he fell, Derek's eyes locked onto the hydra.

He wasn't here to play hero.

But he sure as hell wasn't letting this thing take another life.

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