While everyone else was able to avoid the tentacles, Finn, being unable to see, had no time to react just by sound alone, given how fast they were.

“Gah…!” Finn coughed out blood as the tentacle pierced straight through his human flesh, straight in the stomach. He tried to move his hands and pull it out, but in his current state, the tentacle was far too strong.

[Tch… this isn’t good… I can’t save you, my power hasn’t been restored enough yet…] Zelestria muttered impatiently, unable to do a thing.

‘Is this how it ends?’ Finn thought as time seemed to slow down around him. ‘Being blind… is truly a catastrophe.’

[Hang in there, Finn!] Zelestria cried, voice strained with emotion. [I can’t fully save you, but I can prolong your life by a little bit…!]

Just as his consciousness began fading away, Finn felt it coming back to him. It still wasn’t enough to provide him with the strength to push the tentacle away, but it would keep him alive — for now.

Iris took aim and tried to shoot the tentacle pinning Finn down, but there were too many in the way — some of which were going for her as well.

“Tch… what do I do…!”

Suddenly, a shadow jumped up into the air and grabbed the three tentacles blocking Iris’s angle with his huge frame before slamming down into the ground, grasping them tightly as if they were his lifeline. His cheeks were puffed out, red, as he used all his strength to help save the teammate who once saved him.

“ARGH… GO… SHOOT IT…!”

Iris, not wasting any time, took aim with her sniper and let out a clean shot that struck the tentacle pinning Finn down, causing it to let him go and retreat while splaying Finn’s black and red blood everywhere.

“Hah… hah…” Finn gasped for air, clutching the hole in his abdomen painfully. Iris quickly flew down as Zelestria continued to work on healing him behind the scenes. With the little power she had remaining, it should be enough to let Finn keep his life, so long as he does not receive any more wounds.

Finn may have been saved, but unfortunately, his savior was not.

“AHHHH!” Pang Zi was launched into the air by the three tentacles, finally unable to hold them all down anymore.

“Rampager!” Tian Long cried out, narrowly avoiding a tentacle as he watched his friend being slung into the air like a slingshot.

And then, time seemed to come to a standstill as the three tentacles spun and converged on a single point — piercing through Pang Zi’s body all at once.

“K-KUH…” He gasped as the sharp tendrils penetrated his chest and stomach, holding him up in the air like meat on a skewer. He coughed blood out of his mouth, eyes widened in shock and pain.

But then, as everyone watched on speechlessly…

“FUCK… I’M NOT… GOING DOWN… WITHOUT A FIGHT!”

Rampager roared in fury as the ferocious red aura of the Brawler Angelica coated his body. His eyes turned blank with rage as he squeezed the three tentacles piercing his body between his arms, as tight as he could. His muscles bulged, veins seen below the skin, and he grit his bloodstained teeth tightly with emotion.

“UNDYING… RAGE…!”

As he yelled the Ability’s name, a massive explosion of energy erupted around him, blasting the tentacles to pieces. The Baron’s expression remained unchanged, signaling that he hadn’t received any damage at all, but to Pang Zi, that was enough.

He fell from the ceiling, and Tian Long hurried over to catch him in his arms, tears in his eyes, while everyone else distracted the Baron.

“Pang Zi…” He whispered gently as he stared down at his long-term friend’s bloodstained face, hands trembling with emotion.

“Hey… don’t cry… you bastard… hack, cough…” Pang Zi coughed out blood, but there was a faint smile on his face. “For the first time in my life… I did somethin’ worthy of telling the kids… tell my tale to them, yeah? Ah, but… cough… leave out the bad parts.”

“Tell them yourself, idiot…” Tian Long cried, sniffing and desperately trying not to let the tears fall.

“Ha…” Pang Zi chuckled slightly, steadily getting weaker and weaker. “I wish I could… but… heh, it wouldn’t be as dramatic, no?”

“Pang Zi…” Tian Long bit his quivering bottom lip, shutting his eyes tightly.

“Hey… before I go… tell the others this,” Pang Zi whispered, voice slowly dying out and eyelids getting heavy.

“Joining the Big Five… was the best decision I’ve ever made.”

Tian Long’s eyes snapped open as Pang Zi’s closed, and his arms fell limply by his side.

He was gone.

Tian Long clenched his fists around his friend’s bloodstained shirt and cried out with all his heart.

“PANG ZI…!”

– Outside the Door –

Jim, who had heard Tian Long’s heartfelt cry, closed his eyes and leaned against the wall before sighing deeply.

“… Looks like they’ve learned their first bloody lesson, huh?”

Over the years, Jim had many of his comrades fall. Most died brutal, gruesome deaths — deaths he had to witness first-hand. The amount of horror and gore he had seen, the number of the dead eyes of his teammates staring back into his soul… they were uncountable.

But pain is a valuable teacher. And the lessons it taught would be unforgettable, more so than any human’s teachings.

To have growth, one must experience loss. To achieve success, one must first experience failure.

That was the lesson Jim wanted to teach this new generation of Ghost Hunters. Even if it meant sacrificing some of them to help engrave that concept into their young minds.

Blowing out on the cigarette, he had been smoking, Jim glanced up at the rotten ceiling.

“Sorry, kids. Even if ya hate me after this for not helpin’… even if ya blame me for yer friend’s death… this is a bloody lesson ya must learn.”

The world out there was a cold, brutal place. This was just the beginning. If this new generation of Ghost Hunters aren’t prepared for it now, they’ll break down in no time.

And the death of a close friend… was the best catalyst to turn someone ready.

Jim knew that all too well.