Erik burst from the lake, gasping for air, eyes darting across the fog-drenched shoreline.
Where were they?
Then he spotted them—Elsa, dragging Eri onto the muddy shore. Her cloak clung to her frame, soaked and heavy. She dropped beside Eri and immediately pressed her hands to the girl's chest before breathing into her mouth.
"Come on… breathe," Elsa muttered.
A few tense moments passed. Then Eri jerked up, coughing violently, spitting lake water into the dirt.
"Ugh, oh gods! I thought I was dead!" she wheezed between gasps.
Relief crashed over Erik like a second wave. He trudged up the bank, water dripping from his hair and armor. "Do you know where we are?"
Elsa glanced up, voice tight but steady. "Yeah… this is Hozori Lake."
The name landed with weight. Erik had heard of it, but never laid eyes on it—until now. The lake stretched wide, almost the size of the capital, but it looked haunted. Fog clung to the surface like smoke from a dying fire. Even with the sun up, the mist refused to lift.
"What the hell was that monster?" Eri's voice was raw, disbelief cracking through it. "That wasn't natural."
Both she and Elsa looked to Erik for answers.
He ran a hand through his soaked hair. "I'm not sure. I've got a theory, but…"
He didn't finish the thought. Saying it out loud would make it real.
"If it's what I think it is… we have to kill it. Today."
Eri's brows knit. "What is it?"
"A Karken," Erik said, his tone grim.
Elsa's eyes widened. "But… aren't Karkens supposed to look more human? Big, hunched, four-limbed?"
"Usually. But I read a theory once—it's possible multiple bodies can merge. Mutate together."
Eri grimaced. "Great. So now we've got fused corpses crawling out of the woods?"
She opened her mouth to press further, but Erik raised a hand, then glanced at Elsa. This wasn't his story to explain.
Elsa caught the look and nodded. She turned to Eri, her voice quieter. "They used to be people."
Eri blinked. "What?"
"When someone dies… overwhelmed by fear, rage, grief—anything intense enough—it traps their soul in the body. The emotion festers. Warps them. They come back wrong."
Erik watched as the truth landed. Eri didn't flinch, but her silence was telling.
"They need mana to survive," Elsa continued. "Without it, they die in weeks. But the more they consume, the more they mutate. Grow. That one we saw… it's probably killed dozens."
"Feeding to stay alive," Eri muttered. "And the more it feeds, the worse it gets?"
Elsa nodded.
The weight of it all pressed down on them. Erik stared into the mist curling off the lake, mind already calculating. That thing would only grow stronger with time. If they waited until tomorrow, it might be too late.
"Shit. I lost all my arrows," Eri said, checking her waterlogged quiver.
Erik shot her a deadpan look. "Maybe I should've left you back in town."
Eri glared. "Are you calling me useless?"
He said nothing. Just stared.
She stood taller, brushing wet hair out of her face. "Fine. I'll show you what I can do."
She drew her bow. Erik tilted his head, curious. Above them, a flock of swans glided low over the lake, cutting silent lines through the fog.
Eri pulled back the string—and an arrow formed out of thin air.
Elsa gasped. "Materialization magic?"
Not surprising. Erik had suspected it the moment he met her. She was too confident, too quiet about her real skills.
"So this is it," he muttered.
Eri loosed the arrow. It sliced through the air and struck a swan dead-on in the head. Before the body could splash into the water, Elsa stepped forward. With a graceful sweep of her arm, she summoned a gust of wind, curving the corpse midair until it landed gently at Erik's feet.
"I'm decent with wind magic," Elsa said, brushing her damp sleeves. "Only basic spells, though."
Erik raised a brow.
Basic for a noble, maybe.
Elsa stepped closer. "So… what's our next move?"
Erik didn't answer right away. He scanned the lake, the trees, the fog rolling in like silent waves. Every instinct told him the Karken wasn't far. And the longer they waited, the more dangerous it would become.
His gaze returned to the two girls—one proud, one composed.
"Let's come up with a plan," he said. "And let's kill that thing today."