Chapter 82: Accusation
They staggered through the portal, gasping for breath, blood and dust clinging to their clothes—but they were alive. The real world greeted them with pale light, clean air... and the strange, unsettling feeling of returning to a reality that remained blissfully ignorant of the horrors they had faced.
-« No time to rest," Jonah said, his voice clipped and urgent, not even waiting to catch his breath. "We’re heading straight to the Hunters’ Bureau. Someone needs to hear this."
The others didn’t respond. They were still in shock. The dragon’s corpse, the blistering attacks, Naël’s death... and, above all, Isaac. What he had become in the darkness. What he had done.
An hour later, they reached the regional Hunters’ Bureau—Île-de-France Branch. The building was stark and utilitarian: raw concrete walls, reinforced security checkpoints, armed guards stationed at every entrance.
-« Urgent," Jonah said firmly at the reception desk. "Anomalous mission report. Rank C dungeon. Encountered... an unknown entity. Extremely dangerous."
The receptionist barely glanced up, typing briskly on her terminal, cross-referencing their portal exit report.
- « Urgent report? For a C-rank?" She raised a skeptical eyebrow. "You flagged it as a ’visual anomaly’ and ’humanoid form’?"
- « Yes," Jonah growled. "And it’s not just some random glitch. We’re talking about a humanoid dragon-like creature. It took out the dungeon boss in one hit, then waited for us to show up so it could kill us too."
- « Understood," she replied, finally looking up with a more serious expression. "We’ll have you debriefed. But... you’ll need to wait. The report room is currently occupied."
She motioned to two assistants in white coats.
- « The hunter Isaac Nohr is injured. Take him to Medical Room 2."