The sun had nearly disappeared behind the trees, leaving the forest swallowed in shadow. The chill of night was already creeping in, biting at their skin and sinking into their bones.
The group stood in a small clearing surrounded by thick trees. Though there was space to see a short distance around them, the darkness beyond felt a little suffocating.
"We shouldn't build a fire," Sofise said. Her voice was quiet. "It'll draw too much attention."
Tarese crossed her arms. "And without it, we might get attacked by something we can't see. I'd rather deal with that than sit in the dark waiting to die."
Sofise frowned and narrowed her eyes. She looked ready to argue but stopped herself. There wasn't anything wrong with the logic. Arah agreed with parts of it too. Seeing what was coming was better than being caught off guard. But if beasts kept showing up through the night, they'd be worn down before morning. That would cost them more in the long run.
Up in a tree, Iane lay stretched out across a thick branch. He held a grape between his fingers, dangling it above his mouth.
"If that's the plan, fine," he said lazily, not bothering to look down. "I respect your decision."
He didn't really agree or disagree. He was leaving it up to them.
"One of us should keep watch," Arah said. "Four-hour shifts each."
Everyone nodded.
The last trace of sunlight vanished, and the forest slipped into full darkness. Shadows settled deep between the trees, and every soft sound around them felt sharper.
Arah volunteered for the first watch. The others didn't waste time and began settling in. Every second of rest mattered since they didn't know how much they were going to get.
Strangely, Terent didn't sleep. He sat cross-legged on the dirt, a small journal in his lap, scribbling in it while glancing around from time to time.
"You're not going to sleep?" Arah asked after a few minutes had passed.
Terent flinched as though caught doing something wrong.
"U-uh… I'm not that tired," he mumbled. "As a Rank 1 weapon master… I don't need much sleep anyway…"
Arah raised an eyebrow.
'Then why does Kren sleep so much?'
Iane leaned forward from his branch, chewing another grape. His eyes caught Arah's through the dark.
"Hey, Arah… is this really your first time hunting?"
Arah gave a short nod.
Iane grinned. "Huh. Could've fooled me... You move like you have been doing this for years. You were calm, precise, and there was no wasted motion when you used your spear. You're almost at the level I was at when I started."
Arah didn't respond. He looked up and studied a nearby tree, then climbed it quietly, scanning its branches. He didn't want a repeat of what happened last time.
He looked at the forest. Nothing moved. Just the sound of bugs, a few rustling leaves, and the occasional nightbird. It would've felt peaceful if they weren't in a place that wanted them dead.
Arah kept watch, but his mind wasn't fully on the forest.
'If I can sense soul energy… maybe I can sense movement with it too. If I focus, maybe I can feel changes before anything shows up.'
He closed his eyes.
Almost immediately, he could feel the forest around him. The energy in the air was thicker than it had been in town. It pulsed faintly, like a quiet heartbeat.
But nothing unusual.
Until something spiked.
A massive burst of soul energy suddenly surged nearby. It wasn't wild, pure, or hostile like a beast, but it was close.
'Is that Iane?'
He opened his eyes and turned toward the source.
It wasn't Iane.
It was Terent.
The quiet boy still sitting in the dirt had energy flowing through him like a storm kept barely under control.
Arah frowned.
'Is that normal for a Rank 1?'
He didn't know. He didn't have anything to compare it to.
He closed his eyes and turned his senses toward Iane's tree, but… nothing. No trace. It was like Iane wasn't even there.
Arah opened his eyes.
Iane was staring right at him.
They locked eyes.
Iane smiled slowly, amused. Like he knew exactly what Arah had just tried.
'He felt me sensing…'
Iane didn't seem angry, though. Just entertained.
Arah let out a quiet sigh and shut his eyes again. He hadn't been trying to pry, just testing what he could do. But if Iane noticed it, then beasts probably could too. That made things more complicated.
He stopped actively searching and just focused on his surroundings.
Time passed. The forest stayed quiet.
He was quite happy that nothing had attacked them and hoped that nothing would for the rest of the night, when he noticed something strange.
Thin trails of soul energy, faint but real, stretched around them. Not concentrated, but they felt pure... They were spread out like strands surrounding the camp.
Arah's eyes snapped open.
'Guess it's not going to be a quiet night.'
He dropped from the tree and landed on the ground.
"Wake up," he said, firm. "We're under attack."
The others shot up immediately.
Sofise reached for her bow, fumbling to grab her quiver. Tarese summoned her soul beast without hesitation.
Arah didn't wait. He moved into formation.
"Stay alert. I don't know what it is yet."
Sofise looked at him sharply. "What? You mean you lied?"
"No," Arah said. "Something's out there. I just don't know where."
She looked ready to snap back, but Terent stepped forward.
"Yes," he whispered. "We are being attacked."
Sofise turned around and was about to get into formation when jaws burst from the dark, aimed straight at her head.
Iane appeared in a blur, grabbing her by the collar and yanking her back with barely a sound.
"Careful," he said with a wink.
Arah's spear was already moving. He turned and struck at the creature's inner jaw.
The creature closed its mouth, stopping his attack, and stepped into the light.
It was humanoid, but barely. Its skin was pale purple, its face smooth and blank, no eyes, just long ears and a wide, vertical mouth filled with jagged teeth.
Tarese's breath caught.
"A Dark Hunter," she muttered.
The moment the words left her mouth, Arah saw its ears twitch. Then it shot toward her, lightning-quick, mouth wide open. The thing moved fast.
'You idiot! If you know what it is, why are you talking!?'
He intercepted it mid-charge, his spear smashing into its neck.
It hissed, twisted, and recoiled with unnatural flexibility.
Tarese, realising her mistake, backed off. She raised her hand to direct her soul beast to attack.
The Dark Hunter hissed and jumped back just as Tarese's fiery owl slammed into it with a burst of flame and feathers.
Sofise, who had almost been killed moments ago, was completely frozen. Her body trembled, and her wide eyes were wet with tears. She looked stunned, like she hadn't even processed what had just happened.
"Snap out of it~" Iane said casually, patting her on the back.
The contact jolted her. She blinked hard, eyes locking onto his. In an instant, her body straightened, and she scrambled back, putting distance between herself and the monster. Her movements were clumsy at first, but she reached for her bow. Her hands were still shaking. Even so, she drew an arrow, gritted her teeth, and fired.
The arrow whistled through the air.
The Dark Hunter twisted its body at the last second and avoided the shot completely. It prepared to lunge toward her again, but before it could even shift its weight, something slashed across its leg.
A muffled, beastly howl escaped its throat. It jumped back with alarming speed.
Terent was standing where it had just been, his dagger dripping with its blood. He didn't give the creature a second to breathe.
He pressed the attack immediately, striking from unpredictable angles, never in the same rhythm. His movements were erratic—almost unnatural.
Arah didn't stay idle either. He moved fast, keeping pace with the Dark Hunter. Every time it dodged Terent's blade, Arah was there, pressuring it from the other side. They didn't need words. Their rhythm was almost instinctual in a way.
The creature suddenly leapt into the air, contorting its body at an unnatural angle to avoid a blow from both sides. Its limbs bent the wrong way—joints twisting beyond what should have been possible.
Before it could fully reposition, the owl swooped down and slammed into it again, knocking it back to the ground.
Arah landed nearby, his spear already aimed.
He thrust forward, targeting the Dark Hunter's chest. The creature sensed the danger and twisted again mid-air to avoid the strike, but it was too late.
Arah saw it.
That last twist had been too much. Its movements weren't as fluid now. Some joints had stopped responding properly.
He smirked.
The moment it hit the ground, he spun his spear in a wide arc and slashed clean through its arm. The creature screamed a sharp, guttural howl and tried to retreat, but before it could even turn—
Terent appeared in front of it and, without hesitation, decapitated it in one clean motion.
The headless body let out a low, inhuman growl and collapsed to the forest floor with a dull thud. It twitched violently, then finally went still.
Silence returned.
But only for a moment.
Terent didn't stop. He turned back around, walked to the corpse, and stabbed it in the leg. Then again. Then again.
He dragged the blade across the wound, carving into it deeper, mumbling something under his breath—too quiet to make out.
Over and over, he stabbed it.
Tarese turned pale and suddenly threw up.
Sofise's expression twisted into disgust. She stared at Terent, her face a mix of confusion and horror.
And then—
Arah laughed.
He walked toward the corpse without saying a word and suddenly started stabbing it too. His spear pierced its chest, its neck, its stomach—again and again.
He was grinning.
Laughing.
Sofise's eyes widened. "Wha—what is happening? Why are they acting like that?"
She turned to Iane, who was frowning deeply, all signs of amusement gone from his face.
"It can't be," he muttered. "Not in the lower zones…"
He suddenly looked up.
"Don't go near the corpse," he said. "Don't smell the blood. Not even once."
His voice was calm, but there was a weight and coldness to it that made both girls freeze.
Without wasting a second, he moved up the tree in a blur, pulled a brown stick from his bag, and lit it with a small flame. He tossed it into the air.
It burst into light, then exploded with a thunderous crack that echoed through the forest.
"Alright, everyone~" he said, a fake smile stretched across his face. "Looks like our trip is going to be cut short."
The way he said it sounded cheerful, but his tone was anything but.
He dropped back down from the tree and slowly walked toward Arah and Terent.
Both boys turned toward him at the same time.
Their eyes were rolled back. Their mouths hung open, drooling.
They looked… wrong, like mindless beasts
They attacked without warning.
Iane sighed and raised one glowing hand, a faint blue light surrounding it.
"Why, oh why can I never have a normal outing these days?" he muttered.
And then the forest lit up with blue light.