Roughly half an hour later, the two crossed paths once more.
They met in a clearing, their footsteps quiet on the moss-covered earth. The fading sunlight filtered through the high canopy above, casting shifting patterns of gold and green across the forest floor.
"Khione."
"Nero."
The names left their lips like distant echoes—acknowledgment, recognition, and challenge all in one.
Then silence.
No further words were exchanged.
None were needed.
Their eyes met—hers glacial and composed, his smoldering with quiet intensity.
Without a spoken agreement, they turned away—an unspoken truce for the night.
Their contest would resume with the next sunrise.
°°°
They found themselves now at the heart of the ancient forest.
