[KATXU'S POV]
We managed to enter the forest we spotted earlier from the ridge.
At first glance, it looked like any other forest—tall trees, uneven roots, patches of moss clinging to stones like little green blankets. The light barely reached the forest floor, filtered through a canopy that was too dense, too perfect. But something felt… wrong.
The air was too still.
The kind of still that comes after something moves.
The trees didn't sway with the wind. Their branches creaked on their own, like they were adjusting, watching. Even the sounds of the forest—birds, bugs, wind—were missing. Like the whole place was pretending to be a forest, and not doing a great job.
It didn't help that the deeper we went, the more the shadows seemed to follow us, curling slightly at our heels like smoke that didn't want to be seen.
"You know…" I said, voice quiet under the pressing silence, "I really want us to survive this exam."
Danryu raised an eyebrow. "You mean the team?"
"Yeah."
A pause.
"…Even Dairon?"
I looked down, then scratched my cheek, my voice dipping awkwardly.
"I mean… he did save my life. And he's not always creepy."
Danryu's smirk widened. "Wow. That's practically a love confession."
"What? No! I'm just saying—he's not as bad as he acts."
"Uh-huh."
"I said shut up."
"You're blushing."
"I am not—! It's the forest humidity!"
Danryu chuckled, actually chuckled. "Must be real humid near your ears then."
I groaned, dragging a hand down my face. "Why do I talk to you."
"Because you're hopeless."
We walked a little more, ducking under low-hanging branches. The deeper we went, the darker it got—not because of the light, but because the shadows just didn't want to leave. They clung to the trees, thick and long, stretching the wrong direction from where the sun should've been.
I stayed quiet for a bit, then said, "…That's why I want us to survive."
Danryu gave me a sideways glance.
I kept walking, eyes forward.
"This team. You. Poco. Kelly. Even Ren and… yeah, Dairon. I've never had anything like this."
He didn't say anything, so I kept going.
"I was the only kid in the temple. Just the monks, the Grandmaster, and me. No other students. No kids to play with. No one to sneak food with or pull dumb pranks on. It was always quiet. Too quiet."
I exhaled through my nose. "So… yeah. I'm really thankful I met you guys."
"…Even me?" Danryu said, exaggeratedly skeptical.
I gave him a look. "Well. Mostly you."
He held his heart dramatically. "Tch. I'll pretend that's enough."
"I mean it," I said more seriously. "You're insufferable. And a back princess. And possibly the most sarcastic human being I've ever met. But you stayed."
Danryu didn't respond right away.
Then, quieter: "Yeah. I did."
We walked a little more in silence.
Then he added, "You're not so bad either, idiot."
I grinned. "That's the nicest thing you've ever said to me."
"Enjoy it. You won't get another one."
I bumped my shoulder into his. "I'll frame it."
We were still joking a little when the forest changed.
It wasn't gradual.
It was like something blinked.
A deep whoosh echoed around us—and the light vanished.
Mist spilled out from between the trees like smoke bleeding from old wounds. The air turned heavy, thick like syrup. I could barely see past ten steps.
I stopped. "Danryu…?"
Nothing.
"Danryu?"
Still nothing.
Then I heard it—a squelch, followed by a low grunt.
I spun around and sprinted toward the sound.
That's when I saw him.
Danryu was waist-deep in the ground, struggling to move. A pit of slick, mud-black quicksand had swallowed him up in seconds, branches curled around his arms like they were holding him still.
"Stay there," he growled. "Don't move."
"That's not happening."
I darted forward.
Something snapped behind me.
I turned just in time to see a tree root move.
It didn't just twitch. It lunged.
I threw up a talisman—"Stone Wall!"—
The root smashed through it like paper.
"Shit!"
I jumped back, grabbing another talisman from my belt—Wind—and slammed it to the ground.
"Gale Force!"
The blast shoved me backward just before another vine struck the spot I'd been standing on.
The forest wasn't waiting.
Branches twisted. Vines hissed. The trees weren't just moving—they were hunting.
And they wanted me to stay lost.
I dodged left, "Phantom Step!"—twisting midair as a vine nearly impaled me.
One of the roots caught my leg, yanked me back into the air, and slammed me into a trunk. I coughed blood, vision spinning.
"Katxu!" I heard Danryu yell—but his voice was farther now. He was sinking.
No time to waste.
I pulled two talismans from my belt, one in each hand. Fire. Wind.
"Fire Dragon!"
The serpent of flame erupted, hissing through the air and lighting up the mist with a burst of orange heat. It burned through two tree limbs coming at me from the left, but three more were already closing in from the right.
I dropped to the ground, rolled under a low vine, and dashed toward Danryu.
Roots lashed at my arms, my back—one caught my side, ripping through cloth and skin. I staggered, blood soaking my shoulder.
My fingers were numb.
Stamina dropping fast.
Mana bleeding out with every hit.
Even my talismans were crumbling before I could finish the words.
Still—I kept moving.
I reached the edge of the pit.
Danryu was almost chest-deep now, gritting his teeth, trying to channel a spell.
But the vines were clamped tight around his wrists.
They were absorbing him.
Like they were feeding off his mana.
"Verdant—Tch—Verdant Needl—dammit!" he cursed.
"Hold on!" I gasped, stumbling toward him. I pulled out the last talisman I had—Earth—and slammed it down to form a stone platform under my feet.
It wobbled under the shifting ground, but it held.
Barely.
I lunged forward and grabbed Danryu's arm, yanking hard. "Come on, princess. You're not dying in mud."
He looked at me, breath ragged.
"Katxu—run."
"No."
"You're gonna die if you stay."
"Then I guess I'll make a stupid statue out of both of us."
Vines slashed across my back. I hissed. My arm shook, blood slipping down to my elbow. My fingers were going cold.
"Let go!" Danryu shouted.
I growled through my teeth. "Shut up and pull."
"You idiot—!"
"You're the one stuck in dirt soup!"
A massive root cracked the ground behind me.
I felt it coming—
But I didn't move.
My grip was slipping.
One hand clenched around Danryu's arm, the other yanked backward by a thick tree vine wrapped around my wrist. The bark felt like teeth, grinding down, draining me. Behind me, more vines whipped across my back—over and over—sharp, fast, like they were punishing me for staying.
Danryu was almost under.
I was being torn in two.
"Damn it…!" I hissed.
Then I heard him.
"Oh god—I've really been avoiding using this technique, especially in a situation like this," Danryu muttered, teeth clenched.
"What technique?!"
"Lifebite Seed."
I looked at him.
His eyes began to glow faint green—soft at first, then brighter. He chewed down on something in his mouth, and suddenly, a small seed pushed out from behind his lips, glowing with faint veins of emerald light.
He held it gently between his teeth.
"Eat this. Quick," he said, voice tight but firm.
"How? I'm holding you!" I shouted, still gripping his arm with one hand, the other pinned by the vine.
Danryu narrowed his eyes. "Then just—eat it however you can!"
Another vine coiled around my leg.
No time.
No room to hesitate.
So I leaned in.
Our faces were barely a breath apart. I bent forward, close enough to see the panic hiding behind his eyes, and reached for the seed with my lips.
They touched—just for a second.
Warm. Quick. A little clumsy.
But enough.
I bit the seed away and pulled back, lips tingling.
Danryu immediately looked away, ears flushing deep red. "Swallow it, idiot," he mumbled, voice pitched lower than usual. "It'll boost your stamina and start healing your wounds. It's temporary—so move fast."
I couldn't help it.
Even in all the chaos, I smiled.
Just a little.
I swallowed the seed.
Warmth spread through my chest instantly, trailing down my limbs like fire laced with honey. The pain in my side eased. My vision sharpened. My muscles stopped screaming.
"…Better," I said.
The vine holding my arm tugged again, but I gritted my teeth and grabbed it with my newly healed fingers.
I squeezed.
Hard.
It snapped.
A pulse echoed through the trees like a startled breath.
The roots shook.
And for the first time, the forest pulled back.
I turned and grabbed Danryu's arm again with both hands.
"Don't you dare sink now."
He blinked up at me, still slightly stunned.
"I'm heavier than I look," he muttered.
"You're full of hot air. It balances out."
And with a deep breath, I pulled.
Hard.
The quicksand gave way with a wet gasp, and Danryu's body lurched upward. He tumbled onto the stone platform beside me, gasping, coughing mud.
I dropped beside him, panting, blood still dripping from my side—but smiling.
"You good?" I asked.
He didn't answer.
Just stared at me.
Then looked away, cheeks still pink.
Danryu lay beside me, panting, covered in mud and scratches. His arm trembled slightly, still tense from the pull.
"Next time," he muttered, breath low, "you let me drown."
I didn't laugh this time.
But I gave a quiet smile. "Not happening."
His eyes flicked toward me. We held the stare for just a second too long.
Then the branches rustled again.
Danryu sat up fast. "Tch. Not over."
He slammed his palm to the ground. "Vines Army!"
The roots beneath us pulsed green—and then erupted. Dozens of vine strands burst from the soil, thicker and faster than before, coiling through the air in synchronized spirals. They weren't just random lashes—each one twisted with intention. Defensive. Offensive. A living net that danced around us like a coordinated battalion.
It was the same move I saw him use in the cave—but stronger. Controlled now.
The vines weaved together mid-air to deflect a dozen incoming roots, then stabbed downward to pierce a charging tree stalk through the center. Another one spiraled around my waist—gently—and pulled me back just as a spike burst through the ground where I'd been standing.
"Not bad," I muttered.
Danryu smirked. "Don't slow me down."
I grinned. "You love it."
We moved in sync—him weaving his vines through openings, me slapping talismans across trees like paintbrushes dipped in chaos.
"Stone Wall!"
"Wind Boost!"
"Fire Fang!"
Each move flowed into the next. I ducked under a lunging root, then rolled forward as Danryu's vines snared its base and snapped it back with a violent crunch. Flames spun around us, lighting up the thick branches like twisted torches. The forest screamed.
With my boosted strength and clearer vision, I spotted something the chaos had hidden before—out beyond the nearest line of trees, everything was still. Unmoving. Perfectly still.
No trees attacking. No shadows creeping.
Just fog.
"Danryu!" I shouted. "I think it's the mist! That's what's making the trees move!"
Danryu glanced at me. "You sure?"
"Only one way to find out."
I yanked a wind talisman from my pouch. My fingers trembled—blood loss, maybe—but I forced my grip steady and slammed it to the ground.
"WIND TORNADO!"
The force tore upward, violent and fast. Wind spun around us in a rising spiral, sucking in mist and throwing it outward like a storm burst. The trees near us shuddered violently—some cracked, others split—and what remained fell away into the now-clear air.
Silence followed.
Then stillness.
No more vines attacking.
No more shadows moving.
We stood in the middle of a clearing—dead center of the spiral left behind by the wind. A perfect circle of peace carved from chaos.
Danryu wiped his mouth with the back of his sleeve. His cloth was half-torn, his face scratched and flushed.
He gave me a look.
"Next time you tell me what you're about to do before you try to launch me into the stratosphere."
I blinked. "…You were in the blast zone?"
"I nearly got a tree in the face."
"My bad."
He let out a long breath. "Gods… this forest is cursed."
"No kidding. But at least now we know what's messing with it."
Danryu turned slowly, scanning the now-still trees. "Something's channeling through the mist. Controlling this whole section like a puppet."
I looked around. "Yeah… and it was trying to keep us in."
Danryu crouched by a still-smoking vine. "That tornado disrupted whatever was feeding it."
We fell quiet again. The danger had passed—for now.
But of course, Danryu couldn't help himself.
"…You literally kissed me."
I froze.
Slowly turned.
"No, I bit a seed from your mouth. That's survival."
"That was lips on lips, Katxu."
"There was urgency. You were dying."
"You could've just used your teeth."
"I did!"
"Did not."
"Oh my gods, you're still red."
"I'M FLUSHED FROM FIGHTING!"
I smirked, walking past him with a bloody arm and a smug face. "Yeah, yeah. Next time, you hold the seed."
He muttered something under his breath and followed, still glaring at the ground.
But he didn't argue anymore.
"Shhh!" I whispered, one hand raised.
Danryu stopped beside me, eyes narrowing.
"What?" he asked.
"I think someone's watching us."
I scanned the treeline—nothing moved, but I felt it. Not like the earlier mist. This was… sharper. Like a thread pulled tight and ready to snap.
Danryu didn't question it.
He knelt down and placed both palms against the dirt. "Verdant Pulse."
A soft green glow spread from his arms into the forest floor. It ran through the roots, vines, even the grass, humming like a heartbeat. I could feel it beneath my boots, rippling outward.
His eyes flicked open. "There."
He pointed behind us.
I turned—and saw them.
Four small glowing marbles floated inside the nearest bush, bobbing gently. Round, soft yellow light. They blinked in a slow rhythm.
"…What is that?" I asked, stepping cautiously forward.
Before I could reach them, Danryu threw his arm in front of me. "Don't."
I froze just in time.
From the bushes, two small creatures emerged. Furry. Fluffy. Ears perked up like tiny horns. They looked like dogs—but not quite. Their fur shimmered faintly, and their tails glowed where the light orbs had been.
"Ohhhh look at these two cuties," I said, my guard lowering just a bit. "They look like marshmallow puppies—hey there, little guy—"
As I reached toward one of them, it tilted its head—
—then suddenly, both of them spun in place, launching themselves like wheels.
"What the—!?"
They rolled toward us at lightning speed, collided in the air—and burst.
FWOOOSH—!!
Thick smoke exploded around us in all directions, swallowing the clearing in a flash of gray.
"This idio—!" Danryu shouted, his voice cut off mid-word.
"Danryu!" I called, coughing. "Danryu?!"
The air chilled instantly.
Then I saw it—the mist.
Not just smoke anymore.
That same black mist from before… but this time, denser. Heavier. Colder.
It seeped in like it knew me.
"Danryu!!" I shouted again.
But he was gone.
I ran.
The mist pulsed around me like a living thing, curling against my skin, seeping into my lungs. My voice echoed back at me, quieter than it should've been.
"Danryu!!"
Still no answer.
Nothing moved. The forest was death-still again.
Except—
Footprints.
I stopped.
Clear, glowing green prints shimmered ahead on the forest floor—one after the other, trailing off behind a crooked tree.
My breath caught. I recognized the boot shape. The stride. Even the scuff on the right heel.
Danryu's.
He was close.
I sprinted forward. "Hold on, I'm com—"
Snap.
A branch to my left twitched.
I froze.
Wait.
Those weren't… new footprints.
They were repeating.
Looping.
My eyes narrowed. The same set of tracks circled the tree once, then again. The exact same print. Exact same scuff.
Too perfect.
My heart sank.
"Oh no."
I stepped back—
And the forest exploded.
FWUMP—!!
A shape lunged from the dark.
It moved like a blur, landing hard in front of me, cracking the dirt. Muscles coiled like a predator mid-strike.
It looked like a wolf—but it wasn't.
It was larger than any real one. Easily shoulder-high. Its entire body was covered in overlapping silver-blue scales, glistening like wet stone under the mist. Each scale shimmered slightly, pulsing like it was breathing. The way it shifted, I could hear them—like tiny lungs expanding and closing.
Its eyes glowed dull orange. No pupils. Just hunger.
It opened its mouth—and out poured a low growl, mixed with a gurgling breath like water rushing through pipes.
This wasn't a wolf.
It was a creature built from flesh, but shaped like something unnatural.
The glowing footprints behind it faded.
It had lured me here.
With Danryu's steps.
"...Clever freak," I muttered.
The Scaled Wolf moved instantly.
I barely dodged its first pounce—using Phantom Step to twist away mid-air—but its claws still scraped my shoulder, tearing cloth and skin.
I skidded back, slamming a Fire Talisman into the dirt.
"Fire Dragon!"
The flame serpent erupted, twisting through the air toward the wolf—
But the beast sidestepped it. Clean. Smooth. Too smooth.
It had studied me.
It knew the delay between talisman and cast.
It lunged again.
I jumped, barely flipping over its back, landing rough.
I reached for a Wind Boost, slapped it down—launched myself sideways into the brush.
The wolf missed—but not by much.
It turned fast, letting out another breathy growl that rippled the ground around it.
This wasn't working.
Its scales were like armor. My fire barely singed them.
I had to think.
I crouched, panting behind a tree. The glow of the mist dimmed for just a second.
Then I saw it.
Its scales… they moved.
Like they were rotating.
I squinted—there. A brief shimmer on its side. One patch didn't shift in rhythm. A tiny flicker of flesh between the scales.
A weak point?
It darted again.
I grabbed a Stone Talisman and tossed it behind me—"Stone Wall!"
The wall rose, blocking the wolf's lunge.
But this time, I was already moving.
"Gale Force!" I shouted, launching myself at the beast, sliding under its neck, and drawing a blade from my boot.
I slashed upward, straight at the flickering patch—
And struck flesh.
The beast howled, stumbled, and thrashed violently. Mist burst outward like blood.
But it didn't fall.
It turned to me—raging now—and opened its mouth.
Another glow built in its throat.
No.
I couldn't give it time.
I pulled my last two talismans—Fire and Wind—and slapped them together.
"Let's end this."
Fire Dragon—boosted by Gale.
The combined force erupted into a spinning, screaming vortex of heat.
The dragon wasn't a serpent this time.
It was a spear.
And it hit the wolf dead in the open wound.
BOOM—!!
Fire swallowed the clearing.
I hit the ground, rolled, coughed once—then twice.
The mist was gone.
And where the wolf stood…
Was only smoke.
And ash.
And a small, square object glowing faintly in the dirt.
I limped over, bloodied and half-burning.
A card.
Trail Spark – Reveals recent footprints nearby.
I picked it up, chest still heaving.
"Well…" I whispered. "That was not Danryu."