The flames of the campfire crackled softly.

  The smell of smoke and dried meat still lingered in the air.

  Reiboku stared into the glowing embers.

  His entire body ached.

  But he was alive.

  Reiboku had just reached Level VI, but he had not yet recovered his skill. Yūshin, meanwhile, had crossed an important threshold: Level X. Yet he had not activated his skill either. Both of them still had five skill points to distribute.

  “Reiboku… what kind of skill are you going to choose?” Yūshin asked.

  Reiboku shrugged.

  “I don’t know. Close combat is my thing. But at long range, I’m useless.”

  His gaze drifted toward the stump of his arm.

  “A bow is out of the question. You need two hands.”

  Yūshin thought for a moment.

  “Magic, then?”

  “Maybe. But I don’t even know how it works. A catalyst? A staff? Or does it just come straight out of your hands? I’ll wait a bit. Unless you’ve got some information about it.”

  Yūshin sat cross-legged, his gaze lost in the flames.

  “Honestly, no. I haven’t met anyone else except you. And I never had the time to read the descriptions carefully. But… I have a feeling I’ll end up specializing in that.”

  Reiboku slightly turned his head toward him.

  “I thought you were going to focus on summons.”

  Yūshin glanced at RAW.

  “That’s true. But if I rely entirely on that, the moment it runs out, I become vulnerable. I need variety.”

  “Yeah… same here,” Reiboku replied, nodding. “We’ll see.”

  RAW, curled up beside the fire, let out a low growl… almost like a rough purr.

  They exchanged a glance. A faint smile appeared on their lips.

  “Alright. Let’s sleep. We need to recover our strength… and our skills.”

  Reiboku took the first watch for eight hours. Then Yūshin took over.

  Dawn slowly rose.

  Birdsong echoed through the forest. The wind gently brushed through the dense foliage. Distant animal noises resonated in the misty woods. And the faint sound of a nearby stream reached their ears.

  Thirst gnawed at them. The three of them got up, still groggy from sleep, and walked down to the stream to drink.

  RAW limped slightly. But he was still standing.

  “He’ll manage,” Yūshin said. “But we shouldn’t stay here too long. If we camp another night, something worse than that Razorback might show up.”

  Reiboku nodded. RAW kept drinking.

  “We’ll follow the stream,” Reiboku suggested. “Where there’s water… there’s life.”

  Yūshin agreed. RAW slowly lifted his head.

  “Let’s go.”

  They walked for several hours along the stream in silence. The murmur of the water and the soft rustling of leaves set the rhythm of their steps.

  But what they didn’t realize yet… was that this water source also attracted other forms of life.

  Some far more hostile.

  They continued forward, following the stream.

  Then something changed.

  The birds had gone silent.

  The wind felt heavier.

  Reiboku frowned.

  Do you feel that?

  Suddenly—

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  A sharp noise. A rapid rustle. The ground trembled.

  A group of three creatures burst out of the bushes, blocking their path.

  Their appearance froze Yūshin and Reiboku in place.

  They looked like birds… but twisted. Their eyes were enormous, pale like twin moons. Long, thin teeth lined an unnaturally wide jaw. A hooked beak curved downward, sharp like a blade. Their long, powerful legs ended in razor-like claws. Their black feathers seemed to swallow the light.

  “We don’t retreat. We fight them,” Yūshin said firmly.

  He stepped slightly back toward RAW.

  “There’s no way they’re touching him. We protect him at all costs.”

  He had already understood.

  They hunted in packs.

  “Reiboku… these things don’t hunt like normal monsters. They’re organized. Get ready. And watch your back.”

  Yūshin drew his bow.

  He fired an arrow.

  Fast. Precise.

  A test.

  The creature contracted its legs.

  Then it launched forward.

  Like an arrow released from a bowstring.

  Dust exploded beneath its claws. Its body sliced through the air with terrifying speed.

  “Damn… they’re fast,” he growled.

  They attacked almost instantly.

  Three in formation. Coordinated.

  The first struck with a violent beak aimed at his throat.

  The second swept its razor claws in the same instant.

  The third had silently slipped behind him.

  He was surrounded in a heartbeat.

  Yūshin jumped back, barely dodging the two frontal attacks.

  But he didn’t see the one behind him.

  “BEHIND YOU, YūSHIN!” Reiboku shouted.

  Too late.

  CHLAK!

  The creature leapt onto his back.

  A powerful kick from its hind leg.

  Yūshin was sent flying like a rag doll.

  CRASH!

  His body slammed into a tree.

  Reiboku’s heart tightened.

  Yūshin!

  Bark exploded from the trunk. A red stain marked the impact.

  He fell heavily to the ground, stunned. A thin stream of blood ran from his mouth.

  Blurred vision.

  Ringing ears.

  Time seemed to freeze.

  RAW growled. Reiboku clenched his fist.

  “You okay? Nothing broken?”

  Yūshin grimaced as he forced himself upright.

  “No… just a few scratches.”

  He looked up at the three creatures.

  “I need you. Can you act as bait? If you keep them busy for a few seconds, I can line up two of them with [Double Arrow].”

  Reiboku slowly nodded.

  “Risky. But doable.”

  “Don’t miss.”

  “I’m counting on you.”

  Reiboku charged.

  A sharp, explosive sprint without the slightest hesitation.

  Three monsters.

  One target: impact.

  [Demon Fist]

  His right arm became wrapped in a vibrating red glow.

  VZZZT.

  The aura pulsed like an unstable charge.

  The air trembled. The ground cracked beneath his steps.

  He feinted a brutal side kick aimed at the creature’s throat. The monster leapt back, narrowly avoiding it.

  But the second creature was already charging, beak forward.

  Reiboku bent his knees, slid beneath the attack, then leapt to the side, cutting across their trajectory and pulling all three monsters away from Yūshin.

  “SHOOT!”

  Yūshin straightened halfway, his gaze cold.

  His bow glowed with a vibrating green light, as if it possessed a will of its own. An emerald aura pulsed along his arms.

  He pulled the string to full tension.

  The air trembled slightly.

  [Double Arrow]

  CLACK!

  Two arrows shot forward.

  The first pierced the creature’s eye.

  SPLASH!

  It collapsed instantly.

  The second struck the beak of the other bird.

  CRACK!

  The beak shattered—but the creature remained standing.

  Taking advantage of the momentum, Reiboku charged.

  His fist ignited—red and black.

  [Demon Fist]

  BOOM!

  The air warped from the force.

  Its stomach exploded.

  A gaping hole opened in its abdomen.

  The monster’s body was hurled backward.

  “BEHIND YOU!” Yūshin shouted.

  CHRRRKK!

  A claw tore across Reiboku’s back with a ripping sound.

  He was thrown forward.

  The impact rattled his skull. The taste of iron filled his mouth.

  His back burned as if fire had been poured onto it.

  Blood splattered across the leaves.

  Blurred vision.

  Broken breathing.

  His body slammed violently into one of the trees beside the stream.

  The air was forced out of his lungs.

  His eyes widened.

  Fresh blood ran down his wound and dripped onto the grass.

  He collapsed.

  Motionless.

  Yūshin moved faster.

  His heart pounded.

  He drew his bow.

  ZIIIP! ZIIIP! ZIIIP! ZIIIP! ZIIIP!

  Five arrows whistled through the air.

  All of them dodged.

  “No… you won’t touch him!”

  His green aura flared.

  His bow pulsed.

  [Double Arrow]

  Twin green streaks.

  Missed again.

  “How fast are they…? This isn’t normal…”

  Yūshin drew the bow one last time.

  His confidence wavered.

  I need to empty my mind.

  A drop of sweat ran down his temple.

  The world slowed.

  The wind.

  The leaves.

  Even the beating of his heart.

  Yūshin inhaled slowly.

  Only one arrow remained.

  Just one.

  His fingers trembled, as if brushed by an invisible breeze.

  A green mist rose around him.

  His chest vibrated.

  His eyes locked onto the target.

  This is my last chance…

  If I miss, Reiboku dies.

  The monster leapt.

  Too fast.

  Claws forward.

  Straight toward Reiboku.

  [Double Arrow]

  FWIIISSH!

  Two arrows fused into one.

  A single green beam tore through the air.

  IMPACT!

  SPLASH!

  A geyser of blood erupted.

  The creature froze.

  A strangled gurgle escaped its throat.

  Then it collapsed.

  Dead.

  Yūshin didn’t move.

  Bow still drawn.

  Breathing short.

  Hit…

  He ran to Reiboku.

  He knelt down and pressed his hand against the wound.

  Blood kept flowing.

  Far too much.

  “You’re tougher than this… I know you are.”

  Yūshin was panting.

  He was wounded too. A cut bled along his side.

  But he remained standing.

  Still conscious.

  “I have no active skills left… I’m empty.”

  He glanced toward the trees.

  The shadows.

  The silence.

  “…I hope that was the last one.”

  RAW growled.

  Low.

  Deep.

  Then he stepped back.

  Something he had never done before.

  His fangs appeared.

  His fur bristled.

  He was staring at something behind Yūshin.

  Silence fell.

  Heavy.

  Oppressive.

  Then—

  An enormous shadow emerged behind him.

  A cold shiver ran down his spine.

  Like an icy blade driven into his back.

  It wasn’t over.