22
Ch.22 Monster
"With three Disaster-class monsters, an S-rank should've shown up by now. How long do they plan to leave them be?"
Soon after, screams loud enough to be heard from a distance rang out, as if shelters were being torn apart.
With the ground-shaking tremors resonating everywhere, isn't this going too far?
What are the S-ranks doing...? Are they waiting for me to come out before making their move?
It's unlike Yoo Anna not to have appeared by now.
Did that guy from A-City have some kind of command authority over her?
"...Tch."
In the end, I transformed into my monster form and rushed toward the source of the monster's presence.
The streets were eerily empty, as if everyone had already evacuated—only the tremors and screams of monsters filled the city.
Oddly enough... In a city with no one left.
The presences had gathered in one spot, unmoving.
"Grrrr..."
"So we finally meet, Black Cat."
Despite sensing something was off, I approached—only to turn my head at the sound of clapping.
Simultaneously, the monster presences vanished, and the screams and tremors stopped.
In their place stood two women who appeared to be heroes. The moment they entered my field of vision, they began emitting irritating sounds and vibrations.
"Did you come expecting prey, stupid cat?"
"Kyyaaaooww!"
The screams and monster vibrations had been a ruse—bait created by these two using their abilities.
Realizing I'd been lured, I immediately roared and leaped back.
But Yoo Anna dropped from the sky, blocking my path.
"Black Cat, you're not escaping this time."
With the man who seemed to be the S-rank from A-City and Yoo Anna both here, I immediately sank into the ground.
But then, a wall-like barrier buried underground blocked me.
If it could stop my intangible form, this wasn't an ordinary wall—it was an ability.
"Too late, kitty."
With a sharp chang sound, the sky split like ice, and a transparent prison formed around me and Kage.
Yoo Anna recoiled in shock, shouting,
"Wait, what are you thinking?!"
"What do you mean? Didn't I already say?"
As the S-rank hero Kage finished speaking, he clenched his fist in the air. Transparent swords, shields, and armor—glowing just like the walls—materialized around him.
"I'm hunting the Black Cat. Alone."
"Are you insane?! If we work together, we can do it without risk—!"
"Are you insane? I told you from the start—this is my chance to prove my superiority over you. If we team up, your impurity would taint the purity of my strength."
As I listened to Kage and Yoo Anna argue, I scraped my claws against the ability-constructed walls.
Incredibly durable... I'd sensed it when I hit the underground barrier, but even I can't break this.
This prison won't open until one of us—either Kage or me—falls.
"Black Cat will be hunted by me, Kage, alone. And the fact that I'm stronger than Starlight will be witnessed by everyone in W-City—and A-City's citizens too."
At Kage's declaration, the two women who'd been emitting sounds and vibrations pulled out cameras and antennas from their pockets.
Portable broadcasting equipment—I'd seen it before. As Yoo Anna facepalmed in disbelief, the two women pointed their cameras at Kage and me.
"Well then, this is A-City's most popular content—Monster Execution Broadcast."
Like a duel arena, the small prison expanded.
When Kage lowered the visor of his transparent armor, it darkened and began glowing gold.
The overwhelming pulse of his ability—there was no doubt the prison walls had durability to match.
"Quite the thrilling spectacle for the uncivilized citizens of W-City, no?"
The moving fortress aimed its spears at me and charged.
***
"That fucking idiot...!"
Yoo Anna clicked her tongue in disgust at Kage's pride-driven stupidity, crossing her arms as she watched the Iron Fortress.
The two women inside were narrating Kage's exploits, turning the monster hunt into entertainment.
When she checked the broadcast on her phone, tens of thousands were already watching.
In a way, it made sense.
Most cities desperately suppressed footage of battles with monsters.
The sight of heroes getting injured could incite public unrest.
So for citizens, Kage's broadcast was intensely stimulating.
A monster hunt livestream—it was also an expression of his immense confidence.
The unshakable belief that he could never lose.
"Monster Black Cat continues fleeing from Kage. And why wouldn't it? The walls of his Iron Fortress can withstand even Annihilation-class attacks. For a Despair-class monster, facing armor and spears forged from such power must be true despair."
True to their words, the Black Cat kept darting around the prison, searching for an escape.
Kage hadn't landed a direct hit yet, but his strategy was to exhaust the monster, whittling it down bit by bit.
All that frantic movement was just playing into Kage's hands—eventually, the spear would strike.
And that moment came sooner than expected.
"Ah! Kage's spear just pierced the Black Cat's foreleg! The Black Cat leaps back, creating distance before sinking into the ground. Kage follows up with a devastating strike—another direct hit!"
Though slower than Yoo Anna, Kage's speed was more than enough to corner a monster in confined space.
The one-sided assault continued, the Black Cat's pained cries growing more frequent as damage accumulated.
[Is the Black Cat really getting hunted? For real?]
[It can't even run away!]
[This is Kage. You W-City morons kept yapping online about Starlight being stronger—now you see reality?]
[They got lucky with Mirage and started disrespecting Kage. So satisfying to watch this!]
[Starlight can't do anything, huh? The Black Cat's a joke to Kage, right?]
[Kage is strong. Maybe he just had bad compatibility with Mirage?]
As the Black Cat's suffering intensified, the chat flooded with messages.
Some W-City citizens expressed unease about the Black Cat being hunted, but most accepted it—after all, it was just a monster.
[The Black Cat can't die!]
[Hang in there, Black Cat! Don't die!]
[You bastard! Why come to W-City and pull this shit?!]
[Are you guys in the chat sane? Why defend a monster?]
[Freaking lunatics. This is W-City's standards?]
A few cheered for the Black Cat, but even W-City's citizens couldn't openly support a monster.
A-City's viewers worshiped Kage—it seemed his victory was assured.
Then, as injuries covered its body, the Black Cat stopped fleeing and faced Kage.
"Grrrrrr..."
At that sound—one Yoo Anna had never heard before—her body jolted.
A low, vibrating pulse. Overwhelming bloodlust.
The Despair-class monster, Black Cat, had decided to fight.
Only now did Yoo Anna realize—the Black Cat hadn't attacked Kage even once this entire time.
She hadn't noticed earlier because... The Black Cat had never seriously attacked her either.
Her eyes widened at the revelation.
"The Black Cat stands its ground against Kage! Even a beast knows when escape is futile. But hunting cornered prey is Kage's specialty—based on its movements so far, we predict—"
"No."
Yoo Anna's trembling voice cut into the broadcast.
The A-rank hero narrating turned to her as she spoke quietly,
"The Black Cat hasn't even attacked properly yet. What kind of assault will it unleash?"
Her tense whisper carried foreboding,
"The real Black Cat starts now."
"KOOOOOOOORRRR!"
"B-Black Cat just—?! KYAAAA!"
A deafening roar shook the prison as the Black Cat's form shifted.
Black flames engulfed a growing tiger—Kage expanded the prison, likely planning to contain the inferno.
But his usual tactics failed.
"Hisss—SHAAAARK!"
The Black Cat morphed into a massive serpent, unleashing a petrification ability.
The surroundings turned white as stone—Kage blocked it with his ability-shield.
Instantly, the Black Cat transformed again into a shadowy mass of tentacles, coiling around him.
"B-Black... Cat? Wh-what?! It keeps changing into different monsters...?!"
"The Black Cat's an amorphous monster. It was in the report."
"How many abilities does it—Kage, look out!"
"GRROOOAR!"
With another bestial roar, a condensed sphere of lightning struck Kage, detonating on impact.
Then, morphing into a bewitching fox, the Black Cat surrounded him with countless floating fire orbs.
Watching this, Yoo Anna understood,
"Reconnaissance... It's testing which abilities work on Kage..."
The tables had turned—the Black Cat's rapid form shifts gave Kage no reprieve.
Finally, it settled on the fox form.
Mimicking Mirage—the monster Kage had struggled against—it wielded illusions and telekinesis.
Flames licked the prison walls as even the broadcast footage distorted under its hypnosis.
"Guh... Where are you...?! Black Cat...!"
In the burning forest illusion, the Black Cat lounged arrogantly as telekinetic force seized Kage.
Then—BAM BAM BAM BAM!—it slammed him violently against every surface.
Kage's armor could block any ability, but not sheer kinetic force—his one weakness.
The prison filled with pulverized debris, a white haze obscuring vision.
Only Kage's body—repeatedly crashing against his own indestructible walls—remained visible.
"Kage! No!"
The horrific spectacle of an S-rank being toyed with—this was why monster battles were never broadcast.
Yoo Anna swallowed hard, glancing at the rapidly scrolling chat,
[Is Kage dying?! Is he actually dying?!]
[WTF is this?! Is this broadcast real?!]
[That's Black Cat?! THAT'S Black Cat?!]
[What do we do?! Kage is gonna die!]
[It's one-sided! What's Starlight doing?!]
[Did the Black Cat just decide to fight for real?]
[You fuckers! What have you done?! If Kage dies, that thing will rampage through W-City!]
[Open the shelters! I'm right under it! Let us escape before Kage dies!]
[Why is Starlight just watching, you bitch?! Trying to kill an A-City hero?!]
[Kage! Snap out of it!!]
[Why did you provoke the Black Cat and cause this, you A-City bastards?!]