The tiled floors of the platform were covered in grit. Most of the materials and equipment for the day’s work was left out in the open so that when the workers returned from their long lunch, they could just pick up where they left off.

  The station wasn’t much different from other underground subway platforms. The two corridors led down to opposing platforms bisected by the tracks running in between. A few emergency lights were emitting enough of a glow that Grim had a clear view of both platforms.

  Mae, you here?

  There was no answer. There was a light crackle, but as far as he could tell, his voice was getting through.

  “Hsst!” Nobu’s hiss cut through the eerie silence and drew Grim’s attention to a form on the tracks.

  “Mae!”

  She was leaning against a polished marble wall at the far end of the platform. As Grim and Nobu approached, she held a finger to lips.

  Mae, what-

  Before he could finish, Halmae shook her head forcefully. The message was clear: don’t.

  “I’m fine,” she said hoarsely in defiance of her obvious injuries. “It went down the tunnel after the girl.”

  Without a word, Nobu jumped down from the platform and stared into the pitch black subway tunnel.

  “It?” Grim repeated.

  For the first time since he’d known her, he saw Halmae hesitate before she spoke. Not out of fear, as far as he could tell, but out of uncertainty. And if anything, that worried him all the more.

  “Big boy,” she replied with a laugh that sounded like a cross between a croak and a gurgle. “Someone’s been taking their vitamins. It was big enough to swing a two-handed sword like a twig.”

  While the two spoke, Nobu trained his eyes in the darkness straining his senses to pick up on any detail his [night eye] might be able to pick up.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  After months sitting behind a desk, he was excited to be back in the field again. If anything, his time away from battle felt like a valuable respite. That is, until Garou rushed off into a battle he couldn’t win and Nobu was forced to follow.

  They were lucky that these two sunbae were close enough to help, otherwise Nobu was more than certain they would’ve been lost. But it wasn’t just that.

  The girl, Heekyum, was acting strangely. She was a ranger, a long-range archer by profession, but she barely did anything during their battle. True, the confines of the station were narrow which meant any distance between herself and the monsters was also distance between herself and her teammates.

  But more than that, she had kept Nobu between herself and the lycan at all times. Almost as if she were using him as a human shield.

  The thought was an unnerving one, so he turned his attention back to the tunnel ahead of him.

  At first, he felt it. A rhythmic vibration, as if someone were thrumming the earth beneath his feet. He followed the path of the vibration with his eyes and looked for any details. The first glint of light in the distance looked almost like a mirage. But it came again and again, almost exactly in time with the vibration.

  Then his eyes picked out the massive shadowy figure in the distance.

  “It used skills,” Halmae interrupted. “[Stone skin] for sure. Maybe [charged hit].”

  Nobu blinked while Grim took stock of his partner’s state. There weren’t any major injuries, just a few abrasions that required bandaging. More worryingly, her left arm hung weakly at her side.

  “Dislocated,” she said, catching his eye.

  Nobu spoke before Grim could respond.

  “Monsters can’t use [stone skin].”

  There was a slight tremble in the man’s voice, and with good reason. Monsters that used skills were uncommon enough and generally they were to be avoided. But most monster skills were active skills that could be countered or avoided. [Stone skin] was a buff and monsters that could increase their own stats or abilities were avoided at all costs.

  “Maybe you were mistaken or-”

  A hard look from Halmae was enough to stop Nobu mid-speech. The years following the Break had been hard ones. The litany of scars criss-crossing her arms and legs told a story. But the book on her face sent a message: namely, shut up.

  For the second time today, Nobu looked away.

  “We should head back up and get the bandages before leaving. You’ll need a medic to see to your shoulder and-”

  In a swift motion, Halmae took her left arm and pulled the arm out straight. The telltale, and somehow wet, crunch drew a frown from Grim’s face.

  “I’m fine, let’s go.”

  Normally, Halmae’s defiance and never-quit attitude was something Grim admired, but this time he hesitated. With everything going on, it felt more than ever that the two of them were far in over their heads.

  But Halmae had walked to the edge of the platform and let herself drop onto the tracks with a heavy thump! before walking down the tunnel, following the path the monster had walked just minutes earlier.