Faust went to a spot near the creature's hunting grounds, but far enough from its cave. Since the monster lived there, it might have an advantage in that terrain. He didn't want a repeat of the bear incident, where the cramped space prevented him from dodging and forced him to heal, wasting half his mana in the process.
Eventually, he reached an open area and decided to set up his camp there. He planned to engrave detonation runes into stones and into the dirt, using them during the fight with the creature. However, he wouldn't make too many—he was wary of someone discovering the setup.
From the moment he'd been called a "rune demon" by the soldiers of the Light Order, Faust understood something clearly: most people seemed unaware of how runes worked, but those who did know didn't view them kindly.
Still, even while trying to keep them hidden, he had tested the obedience rune on various beasts in the forest. He planned to leave them concealed in the forest and use them in emergencies, but no creature seemed to be affected by it. He gave up eventually, as he realized he was only wasting time.
He spent a few days preparing the area, including a few spots with hidden runes and a small storage spot where he could stash items taken from other participants if he came across them. He was a looter. Every opponent he killed, he would thoroughly search, trying to find something worth taking.
******
In another part of the dense forest, under the crimson glow of the moon, Arien was sprinting through the underbrush, pursued by two beetle-like creatures. Their shiny black carapaces reflected the red moonlight, and large pincers jutted from their mouths. Each stood a little over two meters tall, with bloated bodies that made them appear even larger.
Armorers.
As she ran, her black hair streamed behind her, and her narrowed eyes scanned for every opportunity to escape. The creatures were fast—but she was faster. After a few minutes of weaving through the forest, she finally lost them.
She climbed a tree and exhaled deeply.
"Are… these things… a strong creature?" she muttered, resting her hands on her lap.
Arien had been alone since arriving. She hadn't found anyone else yet, and the forest seemed to stretch endlessly. She had walked for hours, but it never seemed to end.
She was certain others were here. In particular, she hoped to find Faust and Snake, who had helped her during the third trial. She believed she could team up with them. Cloud, on the other hand, she didn't care much for—he seemed cold, even more distant than Faust.
She had spent hours searching, and all she found were the Armorers, feeding on plants. A small noise from her had instantly caught their attention, and they gave chase. They were incredibly sensitive to sound.
That was how she ended up in this situation.
Using the moment of safety, she took out her dagger, and it was different. The blade was roughly the same size as before, but now it was black and opaque. That was her reward for the fourth trial, in which she appeared inside a forge and had to sacrifice a weapon to obtain something new. Her trial had been surprisingly easy—there was no real challenge at all.
She looked at the blade as if it were a precious possession.
Arien climbed down the tree and, after making sure the Armorers were far away, began roaming again, searching for her previous allies. Unfortunately for her, she was the only one who felt this way.
She spent hours walking through the forest, avoiding beasts and carefully mapping the area in her head.
Hunger, thirst, and sleepiness weren't a problem, so she didn't concern herself with them. However, she could still run out of breath from exhaustion.
One month passed just like that—the unsettling moon always looming above, casting its red light across the land.
She was scouting when suddenly she heard a loud sound:
BOOM!
It came from far away, but not too far. Nothing of the sort had happened until now—this was her chance to find something.
She rushed toward the sound, when suddenly more came:
BOOM!
BOOM!
Explosions rang out constantly. She didn't stop but grew more cautious.
With each step, the sound grew louder—until she finally reached a glade where a scene was unfolding before her eyes.
In the open clearing, trees had fallen, and the grassy ground was riddled with craters.
A man in his forties stood badly injured—one of his arms blown off, his body covered in wounds.
Close to him stood another human, much younger—Faust. His long black hair was singed at the ends, and blood from his brow merged with the red in his eyes.
A short distance from both of them, in a crater, lay the heavily injured body of a Slasher, presumably dead.
The older man wielded a flamberge with one hand, while Faust gripped his sword with both hands. They were fighting each other.
Both were severely wounded. Faust's armor was worn but almost intact… yet he vomited blood every few seconds. The internal damage was clearly immense.
"You won't leave this place alive, you damn goblin. I'll make sure to kill and let the wolves devour your body!"
Faust roared at the man, his eyes bloodshot with fury.
Arien didn't intervene—she remained hidden behind a tree, observing from afar.
I've never seen him like that… well, I haven't seen him much at all.
Faust's blade was lined with detonation papers. The older man's expression was grim.
Why are they fighting? Arien wondered.
Faust charged. The man defended with his flamberge and tried to counter.
Faust retreated and leapt into the air, while midair, threw a paper at the man—then detonated it.
The man staggered, losing his balance. Faust descended and met him with a flurry of blows. The man kicked Faust in the chest and swung his blade—grazing Faust's neck.
But Faust twisted and spun, striking the man's weapon with his own.
The detonation runes activated, releasing a shockwave that struck both of them—but Faust bore the brunt. The man's sword was flung away, while Faust coughed more blood from the recoil.
The older man punched Faust, sending him flying back into the dirt. He rushed in for a finishing kick—but Faust rolled and doged, then pulled a stone dagger from his waist, and stabbed it into the man's leg.
The man screamed in pain.
"Detonate."
The leg exploded, hanging on by a thin thread of meat and tendons. The man collapsed, blood pouring from his body.
He tried to push himself up with his remaining hand—but Faust kicked him in the head, slamming him into the ground.
As the man opened his mouth to scream, Faust fired three mana spikes—his precision had improved quite a bit.
The spikes perforated the man's neck, and he gurgled on his own blood until he died.
Faust collapsed to the ground, cursing between ragged breaths.
"This maggot-eating piece of shit… how dare he steal my kill… damn it. I'll have to redo the whole camp now… I didn't expect someone to find me right when I was about to kill it…"
He staggered for a moment before frowning in thought.
Why wasn't that man enshrouded by fog, though? Did he not complete his trial? Or… maybe I damaged the slasher too much and there's some sort of damage threshold? Hm… I'll hunt another one. I need to test.
From the woods, Arien watched silently. Faust hadn't noticed her—her hiding skills were exceptional. She stood still, her expression unreadable as she thought to herself:
Hehe… his mana improved from the first trial, but he doesn't look like a mage, more like a warrior. How interesting. But… those papers he uses are a little strange.