Incubus Living In A World Of Superpower Users
Chapter 190: Bronze Rank Beast

Chapter 190: Bronze Rank Beast

The team moved together with a pace that didn’t feel rushed, but carried the weight of purpose behind every step.

They weren’t just reacting anymore. They were responding, watching, adjusting, and pulling students into the fold as they passed, not out of duty, but because there was simply no time to wait and hope someone else would do it.

The forest wasn’t getting better. If anything, it was still falling apart. The deeper they moved, the stranger things got.

Trees that had been upright just an hour ago now leaned at awkward angles. The ground felt uneven in strange ways, not soft like mud, but swollen and cracked beneath the surface, as if something underneath was moving slowly and without permission.

And everywhere around them, the students were struggling.

Some ran when they saw the group, not knowing who they were, just trying to escape from anything that moved.

Others dropped to the ground in exhaustion when they realized they weren’t being chased anymore.

A few called out names that no one answered, or screamed into the trees as if yelling might somehow bring their teammates back.

It didn’t matter who they were or what school they came from. Ethan didn’t ask. Sera didn’t ask; none of the girls asked.

If someone could still move, they got pulled in and kept close. If someone was too far gone, they were lifted and carried without complaint.

There was no rank. No pride. Just choices. And the right ones were clear.

Ethan led the group through one of the more stable parts of the ridge, the trees opening slightly above a dry streambed that hadn’t seen water in years.

His footsteps stayed steady, his sword still in hand, but relaxed by his side. He didn’t need to hold it up unless it was time to strike. And right now, they had other things to deal with.

Sera stayed close to the middle, her spear resting against her shoulder like it belonged there. She wasn’t tense, but she was ready.

One of the boys tripped beside her, and she caught him before he hit the ground. She didn’t scold him.

Just helped him stand and gave him a quiet nod. That was enough to keep him moving.

Ahead, the twins scouted without saying a word. Evelyn moved like she already knew where the next opening would be, slipping past tree roots and between fallen logs with clean, practiced steps.

Everly stayed close to the edge, eyes scanning the treeline, not because she expected trouble, but because she could feel it waiting there.

They didn’t run far ahead. They stayed just close enough that their presence could be felt, weaving in and out like wind you could trust.

Mei brought up the rear, checking each student as they passed, making sure no one fell behind.

One girl stumbled, shaking from too much blood loss, and Mei was already beside her, wrapping a cloth around her side and moving her arm over her shoulder to carry half her weight.

She didn’t say much, but she didn’t need to, as her calm made people breathe easier.

It was strange, the way the group moved. There were no orders. No hand signals. No shouting above the noise.

But somehow, it worked. They moved like people who had done this before. Not this exact situation, maybe.

But something like it, something bad, and that shared understanding kept them together.

More students joined. Some limping. Some are dragging their bags. A few were holding broken weapons that they probably didn’t even realize were broken.

No one asked questions. No one was turned away. If they could move, they were welcomed in. If they couldn’t, someone made sure they didn’t fall behind.

It wasn’t perfect. But it was working.

And then the mood changed.

It didn’t happen with a scream or a crash. It happened quietly.

The kind of quiet that doesn’t make sense in a place like this. The kind that makes you stop walking without knowing why.

Ethan noticed it first. He slowed down just slightly, his head turning a bit to the side like he was listening for something only he could hear.

The air around them felt off. Not heavy, exactly, but thick. Like it was waiting.

Then the ground shifted.

Not a full tremor. Just a low change in balance that made every footstep feel like it landed slightly off center.

The soil sagged under his boot in a way it hadn’t five minutes earlier, and he adjusted without thinking.

That’s when he saw it.

Just ahead, past the next clearing, a figure stepped into view.

It wasn’t one of the students. And it wasn’t like the other beasts they’d seen so far.

It came out of the treeline with quiet steps, moving slowly and steadily, not like it was hunting, but like it already knew where they were going to be.

The trees didn’t sway. The leaves didn’t rustle.

Even the air seemed to pause for a moment.

Ethan raised a hand, palm out, and the entire group stopped behind him like they had trained for it.

No one asked what he saw. They waited quietly as he had been the one who had been leading them, so they had placed their hopes on him.

A few of the students behind them crouched without being told.

Sera came up beside him, her grip on her spear shifting just slightly.

And then it emerged fully from the trees.

The beast was tall. Thick. Covered in armor that didn’t look natural, but hardened like volcanic stone.

Its front claws dug into the dirt with every step, and its eyes... they weren’t wild like the others. They were steady. Clear. Focused.

It was a bronze-ranked beast.

And it wasn’t supposed to be here.

Not in this zone. Not in this phase. Not this close to the evac window.

But it was here.

And it had already noticed them.

The moment stretched.

Ethan didn’t move.

The beast didn’t growl. It didn’t charge.

It just lowered its stance.

Its shoulders dipped. Its claws flexed once.

It was being prepared.

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