The Veilwalker

The events of the cosmic mana wave had already made it to the network of the empire. The people in the Sol system were the most affected. Why it had not impacted any of the inhabited planets in the system, the fact it came so close had the people fear the worst.

But the ones who truly had the worst of it were the parents who learned of the demise of their kids who were on the spaceship heading for Mars.

They had received notice of their children's deaths once their smartwatches confirmed their last pulse. Those who did not receive any were at least hopeful that their children were not taken. Most tried calling their kids but could not reach them. Some had even called their schools demanding an explanation.

The local government even tried calming down the agitated parents but could not do much as the parents demanded they give them their children, even if it was just their bodies. While the government complied, another news that took the whole empire by storm spread like widefire.

A student had survived the cosmic mana wave! A miracle that was unheard of.

Some people had even doubted the authenticity of the news but for those who had connections to workers on the Mars' orbital rings had received confirmations of it being the case. This had sparked hope for some parents, but they knew better than to be too hopeful. Regardless, it was a piece of news that had gotten the entire empire's attention.

Though the identity of the student was not revealed, the curiosity of the majority was sparked.

The question now was, 'Who was the mysterious student and why was he the only one to have survived? What made him different?'

...…..

In a location a couple of thousand light years away from the Milky Way galaxy, a group of people, hunters, were fighting a cluster of void creatures segregated around a piece of flat continent floating in the void. This flat continent had its own atmosphere and ecosystem. From the void, one could see the beauty it had. The continent was surrounded by waterfalls that fell off its edges into the void.

The continent was displaced to this location by a cosmic mana wave, along with the void creatures. These creatures were eating away at it. Continents such as these were a new creature as a result of the influx of magical energy in the universe. They were rich in mineral resources that could be used for a variety of applications. From buildings, spaceships, weapons and suits for traversing outer space.

The plants found on such continents also had their uses. They could be used in brewing potions that could instantly restore a person's thorn limbs or even increase a hunter's cultivation level.

When the continent popped up on the radar of the empire, a team was sent to secure it. Heading this team was Zol Knight, a hybrid human who was more on the horned side of the spectrum. Zol was a Class S hunter, also referred to as Mortal Gods or Hero Hunters by the people, put in charge of the Sol system and the ones in its vicinity as its guardian.

Primarily based on Mars with a branch of the family, Zol, along with a group of mostly Class B hunters went to secure the continent since it was closer to the star fiends he was in charge of. Fortunately, the void creatures they encountered were mostly C-Tier ones.

Zol Knight stood at a height of 2.5 metres, with dark hair and patches of white, and dark eyes. He stood in the void in his techno armour, overseeing the hunters as they flew around making short work of the void creatures. A few more minutes and they would be done.

"Sir, there's something you should know." A voice came from the speaker embedded in his suit. He waited for the news before saying anything.

"A cosmic mana wave displaced some students on a trip to the Hunter Academy from Earth. One student was reported to have survived the displacement."

As soon as Zol heard the news, his attention shifted to the position of the spaceship behind him. Though it was currently in stealth mode, he could still see it as clear as day.

"Are you sure of what you are saying?" he asked, still sceptical of what he heard.

"Yes sir. The head in charge of the orbital rings' operations confirmed the authenticity of the news." Came the reply from his speakers.

Zol was quiet for a moment, mulling over the news and the possible scenarios that could have resulted in such an outcome. Even he as an S-Class hunter could only stay alive for a few days before he succumbed to sleep forever and was the ultimate powerhouse in the empire!

"Change of plans. Once we secure the continent, we make our way back." He instructed the ship crew and returned his attention to the fight happening below him.

'This should be interesting.' His thoughts trailed as he watched on.

...

The fortunate students who were not displaced were gathered together in a shared common room, having their own thoughts and discussions about what they went through. Some were still shaken by the experience of losing their friends and classmates. Isolating them in individual rooms would have driven them crazy, so it was reasoned they were brought together to keep each other company.

Although the majority wanted to return home, getting on a spaceship now scared them, and new arrangements had to be made.

Ross Bangu was among the said students, and unlike the rest, he had a relieved look on his face. They had all heard about how one of the students, called Alexander Gray, survived the experience. While they couldn't reach out to their loved ones yet, the news gave them something to think about.

'Hahaha…. Alex, you lucky bastard. I knew there was no way you could have perished. You have such an unyielding spirit.' Ross quietly thought to himself with a smile on his face. While he had no idea how his friend survived, he was glad, nonetheless. Of course, that was not to say he didn't feel for his other classmates who perished, but there was nothing he could do about that.

This, however, robbed some people the wrong way.

"Bold of you to be smiling when we lost a few of our friends." A voice Ross knew all too well echoed. He turned to the person and replied, "I'm sorry about that, Brad. But you of all people should know that I wasn't all that close to the lot of them."

While the remark could be cruel to some people, that was how he honestly felt. He never shied away from how he felt at any given moment.

"…" Brad had no response to that.