I Can Extract Game Items-Chapter 226: WHEN THE HUNTERS ARRIVE

Author’s Note: Do Not Unlock.

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The corridor exploded into chaos.

Gunfire ripped through the air like tearing fabric, muzzle flashes strobing the darkness as Oni soldiers poured in from reinforced blast doors on both sides. These weren’t the disposable guards Aleman’s team had torn through earlier — their movements were sharper, coordinated, and backed by enhanced reflexes. Several wore glowing veins beneath their skin, unmistakable signs of Fruit of Corruption consumption.

"Contact front and rear!" Sable shouted.

Aleman didn’t hesitate.

"Form up!" His voice cut through the noise. "Ridge, front wall. Vera, suppress sound on our six. Dante— burn lanes, controlled!"

The team snapped into motion instantly.

Ridge slammed his fists into the ground.

CRRRK—!

Stone erupted upward, forming a jagged barricade just as a hail of bullets slammed into it, sparks and debris flying. Dante stepped forward, palms glowing white-hot as he released a sweeping arc of plasma fire down the left corridor, forcing Oni troops to scatter and dive for cover.

Vera closed her eyes, fingers splayed.

The thunder of gunfire behind them abruptly muted — not silence, but distortion. Sound twisted into nausea-inducing waves, making enemies stagger, clutch their heads, and miss their shots wildly.

Aleman vanished.

Shadow Step.

He reappeared in the middle of a cluster of Oni soldiers, Thunder Spear already crackling.

The first man didn’t even see it coming.

Aleman thrust forward.

KRAKOOOM—!

Lightning detonated from the spear tip, blowing the soldier backward into two others. Aleman twisted, swept low, and slammed the spear into the floor. Electricity raced outward along the metal grating, stunning half a dozen guards at once.

"Supers!" someone yelled from the Oni side. "Send the supers!"

The temperature dropped.

Aleman felt it immediately — that wrongness again. The oppressive pressure he’d felt earlier intensified, coiling around his senses like a predator waking up.

Three figures stepped out from the smoke.

One hovered inches above the ground, eyes glowing sickly green, air warping around him.

Another’s arms had transformed into elongated black blades that pulsed like living flesh.

The third smiled calmly — far too calmly — as crimson sigils rotated around her wrists.

"Great," Dante muttered. "Upgraded assholes."

Detective Wright’s voice snapped through the comms, sharper than before.

"Aleman — confirm hostile supers. These aren’t standard. Readings suggest heavy enhancement. Be careful."

The hovering Oni super tilted his head, staring directly at Aleman.

"So," he said, voice echoing unnaturally. "You’re the one they call Aleman."

Aleman didn’t respond.

He moved.

Shadow Step carried him directly at the hovering super — but mid-blink, the man’s eyes flared and space buckled. Aleman was violently shoved sideways mid-teleport, crashing through a stack of crates instead of striking cleanly.

He rolled to his feet instantly, Thunder Spear raised.

"Telekinetic interference," Aleman said calmly. "That one can mess with space."

"On it!" Hex shouted.

Hex raised both hands, eyes glowing blue as he slammed his ability into the environment. Lights burst, panels sparked, and the facility’s internal systems screamed in protest.

The sigil-wielding woman hissed. "Technopath— kill him!"

She flung her hands forward.

Crimson glyphs shot through the air like blades.

Sable stepped in front of Hex, arms raised.

The glyphs slammed into her — and bounced, redirected in a sharp arc that sent them slicing straight back into the Oni woman’s shoulder.

She screamed, stumbling.

Ridge charged the blade-armed super, stone fists colliding with living steel. The impact thundered through the hall, both of them skidding backward.

Dante vaulted over Ridge’s shoulder, releasing a compact fireburst directly into the blade-user’s chest.

The Oni super laughed — then exploded, body rupturing as the corruption inside him destabilized.

Aleman was already moving again.

He closed the distance on the telekinetic Oni in a blur, Thunder Spear thrusting repeatedly, lightning crashing again and again. The Oni screamed, barrier flickering — until Aleman feinted low, then Shadow Stepped above him and drove the spear straight down through the man’s shoulder.

The barrier shattered.

The Oni fell.

For a moment — just a moment — it seemed like they were winning.

Then the walls shook.

BOOOOOOM—

The entire facility trembled as something slammed into the outer structure.

Everyone froze.

"What the hell was that?" Dante whispered.

Detective Wright’s voice came through, tight and urgent.

"Aleman... satellite just picked up a high-speed inbound. Massive energy signature. This is not—"

The feed cut.

The ceiling above the central hangar imploded.

Metal screamed. Concrete shattered. A deafening shockwave blasted outward as something punched through the roof like a meteor, slamming into the floor with bone-rattling force.

BOOOOOM—!

The impact sent everyone flying.

Aleman skidded across the floor, barely stopping himself with his spear embedded in the ground. Ridge was thrown into a wall hard enough to crack stone. Dante slammed down, coughing. Vera screamed as the sound wave shattered her concentration.

Dust filled the air.

Debris rained down. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Then— footsteps.

Slow. Heavy. Deliberate.

A figure stood at the center of the crater.

Tall. Broad. Cloaked in black armor etched with glowing crimson runes. A long coat fluttered around him, untouched by the chaos. His presence alone crushed the air, making it hard to breathe.

Aleman felt it instantly.

This wasn’t like the others.

This was different.

The man looked up, eyes glowing a deep, predatory red.

"Well," he said calmly, voice carrying effortlessly through the ruin. "Looks like I arrived just in time."

Sable whispered, barely audible, "Who... is that?"

The man’s gaze locked onto Aleman.

A slow smile spread across his face.

"Aleman," he said. "The extraction anomaly. The one Oni’s been arguing about whether to kill or recruit."

He took a single step forward.

The floor cracked beneath his boot.

"I am Kurogane," he continued. "High Enforcer of Oni."

Aleman tightened his grip on the Thunder Spear.

Kurogane tilted his head, amused.

"And judging by the bodies... you’ve made quite the mess of my supply center."

The corrupted energy in the room surged, responding to him.

Kurogane raised a hand.

Every remaining Oni soldier straightened instantly, fear and reverence etched on their faces.

"You have courage," Kurogane said. "I’ll give you that."

His eyes burned brighter.

"But now—"

The air collapsed inward.

"—you face someone who hunts supers for sport."

The Chapter ends as Aleman steps forward, lightning surging, shadow twisting around his feet — knowing, deep down, that this fight is on an entirely different level.

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