A Hunter's Odyssey: Transmigration to Arcantherion

Before Max can answer, the fat terrorist reappears. The clown mask is gone, revealing a surprisingly ordinary face.

He doesn't look menacing anymore, just exhausted. His thick beard and weary eyes give him the air of a worn-out uncle rather than a villain.

"Kid," he says, his voice gruff but steady. "I don't have any personal issue with you. I'll admit being a terrorist was a mistake. A bad choice, but I had my reasons." His jaw tightens. "I need to get back. My daughter's waiting for me."

Max studies him. The man's eyes hold something genuine; regret, desperation. Despite that, Max remains silent, his hatred apparent in the way he glares at the man.

But before the terrorist can corner Max any further, a sudden glow floods the cave. The portal circle hums with energy.

Max and Daniella instinctively take a step back, bracing themselves.

A figure emerges from the light, slowly at first, then all at once.

Well, it's just our brain-dead Alexander Cotilla. Gasping. Coughing. Alive.

"Damn!" Alex wheezes, clutching his chest. "That was dangerous!"

Daniella rushes forward. "What happened?!"

"I… I was swimming in a lake up there," Alex stammers between gasps. "It was fun… until the current swept me away!"

Before anyone can react, Pablo and Kevin burst back into the cave, drenched and panting.

Kevin glares at Alex. "You idiot! I told you not to swim too far!"

"At least he's alive," Pablo mutters, wringing out his sleeves. His usual smirk is gone, replaced by mild irritation.

The fat terrorist ignores their bickering. He turns back to Max, eyes hard. "Kid! I don't care about your excuses. If you know how to use that medallion to get home, tell me. If not, I'll make you."

Max doesn't flinch. "Oh? Let's see how you're gonna do that."

The challenge hangs heavy in the air.

Pablo, Kevin, and Alex don't care much about the fight. They don't share the same urgency to go home.

Especially Alex, who, after dying twice, is now more interested in exploring the strange new world out there.

"This place reeks of old geezer's midlife crisis," he snickers. "Let's go find something to eat."

Kevin scoffs. "Already forgetting the fact that you literally just fell off of a high waterfall?"

"Eh, I got over it." Alex laughs, rubbing the back of his head.

"Just don't do it again," Pablo mutters, right before…

"Aaachoo!!!" A violent sneeze echoes the entire cave.

Alex immediately recoils. "Dude, seriously? Cover your damn mouth! What if you just sneezed out some medieval super-plague?"

Pablo rolls his eyes, but Alex continues rambling, spinning absurd theories about alien germs.

Kevin and Pablo brush it off. But Max…

Max is watching them intently, especially Pablo. His gaze sharpens, as if he knows something they don't.

"Max!" Daniella holds his sleeve. "Please! Take me back home!"

Without saying a word, Max glances at the fake suicide bomber. Moments later, he brushes Daniella's hand off, and walks out of the cave.

***

The ignorant three, brimming with reckless curiosity, make their way back up the plateau. The shimmering lake no longer holds their interest. What truly calls to them lies beyond, hidden in the depths of the untamed wilderness.

At the edge of the northwestern stairs, Pablo sneezes again but waves it off, his enthusiasm undeterred.

"So, should we go down there?"

Kevin doesn't answer. He simply starts descending, his boldness drawing Alex to follow. Pablo hesitates, glancing back as doubt about his condition flickers in his mind. But pride wins out, and he presses on.

The descent is slow, the narrow stone stairs winding between sheer cliffs barely a meter apart. By the time they reach the jungle floor, their knees ache, their breaths heavy.

But then, towering flora greets them, strange, massive, and eerily foreign.

"We're really not on Earth anymore," Pablo mutters, shivering.

"Then where are we?" Alex asks, glancing around warily. "Heaven? Ah, now I wonder what the girls here look like. Maybe there are some angels waiting for us."

"Or maybe demons," Kevin replies flatly, striding ahead without hesitation.

Alex hesitates, suddenly less eager to entertain his own joke. But Pablo, already accustomed to Kevin's grim remarks, simply smirks.

"Come on, Alex! There's nothing to be afraid of. The medallion will keep us alive."

He says it with confidence, unaware that, in that very moment, they almost step beyond the boundary of the Titan's Crown.

And in the trees outside… unseen to them all… something stirs.

Watching.

Waiting.

The wind shifts, rustling the leaves above. A pair of gleaming red eyes flickers in the shadows, unblinking.

Long fingers curl around a thick branch.

Silent.

Patient.

Hungry.

The three continue their journey through the dense forest, pushing deeper into the unknown. Kevin leads the way, his pace steady and unbothered, as if he belongs in this alien wilderness.

Alex, on the other hand, does what he does best, filling the silence with endless chatter. "Think there's some hidden city out here?" he muses, hopping over a root. "Like, I don't know… elves? A lost kingdom of warriors? Ooh, maybe we'll find a tribe of jungle babes—hot ones, of course."

Kevin grunts, not bothering to respond.

Pablo sighs, wiping the sweat from his brow. "Do you ever shut up?"

"What? I'm just trying to lighten the mood!"

Neither of them responds.

Alex sighs dramatically and looks up at the towering canopy above them. "Man, you guys are so boring…"

Then Kevin stops. Completely still. Not even a twitch.

Alex, too busy rambling, doesn't notice and slams right into him.

"Oof! Hey! Why'd you stop?"

Kevin doesn't answer.

Alex frowns. Something feels off.

Kevin's body is rigid, his shoulders tense. His eyes, wide, locked on something ahead, burn with an eerie mix of terror and thrill.

Alex reaches out and lightly taps his shoulder. "You good, brother?"

But still, no response. Kevin is staring straight ahead. His breath is shallow, his fingers curling and uncurling at his sides. It's like he's frozen between two instincts, fight or flight.

Alex follows his gaze. And then, he sees it.

A shadow, high in the trees.

Something massive crouches between the thick branches, partially hidden by dense foliage. At first, it looks like an overgrown primate, at least until it shifts.

The creature's two powerful legs grip the trunk of the tree, its massive, hunched form balancing effortlessly as it clings to the bark. A single elongated arm drapes over a nearby branch, long fingers twitching.

Then, it slowly tilts its head. And Alex's blood runs cold.

Red eyes. Glowing, predatory. Unblinking.

A set of four jagged fangs gleam in its mouth, two protruding from its upper jaw, two from the lower. Its long, coarse fur moves with the wind, strands swaying like overgrown vines.

"Uh, Kevin…" Alex whispers, unable to tear his gaze away. "What the hell is that?"

The creature blinks slowly. And then… it moves.

With terrifying speed, it lunges from its perch, swinging effortlessly through the trees. Leaves and branches snap violently as it moves, the entire canopy shaking beneath its weight.

It's fast. It's way too fast.

Alex stumbles back, a strangled noise escaping his throat. His pulse hammers in his ears, knowing it's coming right for them.

"P-pablo! Run!"

But Pablo, always two steps ahead, already stands near the gap leading back into the Titan's Crown territory. His voice cuts through the panic.

"Kevin! Alex! Get back here!"

Alex doesn't need to be told twice. He crawls, then stumbles to his feet, running for his life.

But Kevin?

Kevin does not. Instead, he grins. A wild, reckless grin.

His legs bend slightly, his entire posture screaming readiness. His hands curl into tight fists.

"This is it…" he breathes, his voice shaking with excitement. "This is what I'm looking for!"

Alex's eyes bulge in disbelief. "The hell are you talking about? Run, idiot!"

But Kevin does the opposite.

He charges. Roaring like a lunatic, he sprints forward, arms pumping, a challenger rushing to meet his opponent. Thinking he is immortal in this world, he prepares for the worst bout.

The creature swings closer. Its massive form crashes through the lower branches, the sheer force shattering bark and splintering wood.

Kevin roars, throwing a punch, and...

BANG!!!

Well, his punch never connects. The creature's colossal arm slams into him first. The impact is like a bomb going off.

Kevin's body soars through the air, crashing against the cliffside.

CRACK!!!

He collapses at Pablo's feet, unmoving. He doesn't turn into a hologram, and a horrifying realization claws at Pablo's chest. The Chronis Medallion might not bring Kevin back from death anymore.

On the other hand, Alex skids to a stop behind a tree, panting. His entire body trembles as he sees the full size of the beast.

It's enormous. Four, no, five times bigger than the largest gorilla he's ever seen. And it's staring right at him.

Right at that moment, a notification suddenly flickers into his vision.

[ALERT!]

[You are facing Hipfisaxu, a dominant predator of this forest.]

[ALERT!]

[You are already outside the Titan's Crown territory at the moment. At your current level, survival is impossible.]