At the center of the sky, a boy stood with an ICY GLARE sharp enough to send shivers crawling down the spine of even the fiercest beast.
Beneath his feet floated not stone, not branch, not a platform of mortal kind—
but a slab of condensed air, smoky and black, as if the sky itself had solidified under his will.
Narrator(popping into frame, adjusting glasses):
"Ah, yes, before you all break your necks gawking, that, my dear readers, is the CLOUD BLOCK. Fancy name, fancier trick. And in case you're wondering—no, you can't just step on the sky and expect it to hold. You'd plummet faster than the writer's GPA."
The Narrator leans closer, conspiratorial:
"The Cloud Block is one of the marvels of the Negative Wind Attribute. And if you're scratching your head going 'Negative what now?'… don't worry, lore time starts now."
A diagram of swirling winds unrolls in midair like a chalkboard. Scribbles appear.
Narrator(tapping the board with a pointer):
"See, the Wind Attribute is usually all about push. Gusts, currents, soaring through the skies, yada yada. But Negative Wind? It's the mirror opposite. Instead of pushing… it pulls. The winds drag, snatch, and reel in their targets like invisible chains."
The chalk doodle twists—white wind spirals turn dull black, smoky and hungry.
"While regular Wind glimmers in tones of transparent whites and faint blues or greens, the Negative variant takes on a smoky, heavy black. Looks cooler, hits meaner. Drawback? The range is minimal. But if you're caught in it—congratulations, you're basically being sucked straight into your doom."
The narrator slaps the chalkboard, which suddenly collapses into black smoke.
"And that's not all. See, because the winds pull so intensely, they can compress air itself into a block strong enough to stand on. Voilà: the Cloud Block. Portable sky real estate. No mortgage required."
The camera swings back up to the boy—perched high above, standing firm on his slab of condensed night-air, blade in hand, eyes locked on the predator above.
The forest below seemed to shudder. Even the Lightning Sparrow, with its wings of death, hesitated.
Koga's eyes suddenly lit up like fireworks. His whole body shivered, tension flooding out of his muscles as he clutched his ribs and shouted to the heavens:
Koga:
"I FINALLY LANDED A HIT—YAAAAHOOOOOOO!!!"
…The forest went silent.
His teammates, the Sparrow, even the gods watching from their couches—everyone tilted their heads at once, collectively questioning the moral compass of this strange, bleeding boy.
Narrator(deadpan):
"Yeah… teenage hormonal imbalance is a bitch."
The air thickened.
Black feathers once more spun around Koga like a storm of blades, arranging themselves into that same deadly line in the sky—each feather a rung on a noose pulling predator and prey into collision.
But this time… neither side wanted to dodge.
Both had tasted blood. Both saw the other as prey. Both hungered to be predator.
The boy drew his katana. The sparrow, crackling with voltage, spread its wings wide and screamed.
This was it—the final clash.
Yelena(hands to her mouth, horrified):
"It's INEVITABLE! Before he can strike, the Sparrow will tear straight through him!"
The feathers snapped closer.
Five feathers in between.
Koga raised his blade, Negative Wind curling around it like smoke.
Four feathers.
The katana climbed higher, black air gnawing at its edge.
Three… Two… One—
Reader(panicked):
"Wait—can Koga really pull off the Shadow Slice before meeting his inevitable end?!"
Narrator(interrupting smugly):
"Excuse me? WHEN did he ever say he was doing a Shadow Slice?"
The world held its breath.
Koga's katana froze mid-arc.
The Sparrow surged forward, realizing too late something was off. Desperation flickered in its eyes as it tried to pull back, change its angle—
but the Shadow Zipline had already sealed its fate, dragging it faster and faster into Koga's waiting trap.
At the last heartbeat, Koga tilted the blade upwards, a subtle adjustment, patience made lethal.
The black winds surged. The katana sang.
The Sparrow's tilt aligned perfectly with Koga's follow-through.
CRAAAAASH—!
The eruption of Negative Wind tore through the sky like a storm collapsing. Black air cracked, reality shuddered, and the Sparrow screamed as its own momentum was unraveled.
The dust of feathers rained down.
Koga stood panting, blade at his side, grinning like a madman through bloodied lips.
Narrator(clapping slowly, impressed against their will):
"Koga just won… a game of pace with patience. Ladies and gentlemen, I think we've found a lunatic worth betting on."
Koga staggered back onto the Cloud Block, katana still humming faintly with the remnants of Negative Wind.
His chest heaved, his grin was wide, and blood still traced his lips—but nothing could stop the arrogance that poured out of him now.
Koga(throwing his head back, laughing like a lunatic):
"GODDAMN, I AM AWESOME! Did you SEE that? Defeating a mini-boss with a defensive move—the Ghost Parry! Ha! Ha! Ha! MT. EVEREST AIN'T GOT SHIT ON ME!!"
Narrator(sputtering, genuinely offended):
"Wait—EXCUSE ME? Did this brat just disrespect Everest?! The Everest fella?! The only thing in the Dream World that stands tall at 83,000 kilometers?? I… I don't like this guy. Not one bit."
The team just stared.
Xitij facepalmed.
Rosé pinched the bridge of her nose.
Einar muttered something about never introducing this idiot to alcohol.
And Yelena… well, Yelena just stood frozen, trying to reconcile whether she had just witnessed bravery, insanity, or a rare mutation of both.
Meanwhile, the Sparrow's body plummeted downwards, lightning still fizzing off its feathers as it crashed into the forest floor with a thunderous BOOOOM.
Koga raised his middle finger—still his only functioning one—toward the falling bird and smirked.
"Stay down, you flying rat."
Narrator(grumbling):
"…Disrespecting Everest, disrespecting sparrows, dripping blood everywhere… ladies and gentlemen, I present to you: the protagonist we didn't order, but somehow got delivered anyway."
The Sparrow didn't simply fall. It disintegrated, unraveling into a black strand of energy that spiraled upward, sucked straight into the Trial Ring fastened to Koga's wrist.
The number 44 blinked across the ring's surface before being absorbed — followed immediately by a bright exclamation mark.
Suddenly, the skies themselves seemed to acknowledge the feat. Lightning crackled faintly, clouds parted, and a voice boomed across the Trial Lands:
Voice from Above:
"The earliest slay of any mini-boss achievement goes to: Koga, from Group 3,000,001!"
The proclamation faded as the skies returned to their normal dreamlike hue.
Rosé clapped her hands, bouncing in place, eyes sparkling:
"WOOOOAHHH! Did you SEE that?! That was insane!!"
And the Trial Ring wasn't finished yet. Another number appeared at the center — 300, glowing with a bonus mark. It was absorbed instantly, and bringing Koga's subtotal of 400 points it too flashed across Koga's wrist.
The dark region of the ring expanded to 40%, and a tiny sparrow symbol embossed itself faintly, as if bowing to its conqueror.
The team's reactions ranged from shocked disbelief to pure pride.
Einar's jaw practically hit the ground.
Xitij's fist clenched in admiration.
Yelena… well, Yelena's mouth was hanging open like she'd just seen the sun rise backward.
Narrator(leaning out of nowhere, thumbs up):
"Ladies and gentlemen, take note. In a trial lasting ninety days, on Day 2, Koga has already secured 40% of the required points. That's… well, that's just absurd."
Then, as adrenaline faded, Koga's legs gave way. His body collapsed backward, eyes fluttering, the strain finally catching up to him.
Yelena lunged instinctively, arms outstretched, ready to catch him. But fate — and a cruel twist of physics — intervened.
The edge of his Cloud Block scraped against his wrist, tilting it sharply. Koga slipped entirely, missing Yelena's grasp by mere inches.
Narrator(snickering):
"…And there goes our hero. Victory tastes sweet, but gravity? Bitter as ever."
Amidst the swirling aftermath, Rose blinked at Koga's Trial Ring and the tiny sparrow symbol.
Rose(wide-eyed):
"Wait… we're Group 3.000.001??"
Narrator(leaning in conspiratorially):
"Yes, folks, apparently some groups like to show up fashionably late… or never. Details are hazy, blame the Trial Bureau."
Einar(shrugging):
"Well, yes… we were the last to enter. Makes sense in a 'chaotic trial' kind of way."
Koga, half-dead and draped across Yelena's arms, let out a strangled groan:
Koga:
"Still… the 1st… to ugh…"
And promptly fell back into what could only be described as complete death.
Xitij, squinting at the ring and doing mental math, shook his head
:
"No, no… that means if there are five students per group, there must be around 15 million candidates. There aren't even enough points in the trial for anyone to hit 50%! Madness…"
From somewhere deep in the forest, a miraculous Koga resurrection occurred. He sat up slowly, coughing, wiping blood from his lips.
Koga(raspy, smug even in agony):
"Well… there you go. You guys… missed the instructions. Ugh…"
Rose groaned, flipping through her book helplessly:
"Well, when exactly will my book ever be of use, huh? NOW??"
Yelena, panic finally breaking through, shook Koga a little—not too gently.
Yelena(shouting):
"HEY! CAN WE GO BACK TO THE RESTING CENTRE?! KOGA MIGHT BE DEAD!!!"
Narrator(muttering from somewhere behind a tree, holding a coffee cup):
"…Somehow I feel like death isn't the main problem here. It's the sheer chaos. And also the teen hormones . (Takes a look back at Koga's body being carried like a ragdoll by Yelena); Yes, Definitely the hormones."