As the village gates shut behind them, Krev led Riven down the worn path.
They walked in silence, heading toward the location of their quest. Neither of them said a word. Not for the first few minutes. Not even after the sound of Gravemire disappeared behind them.
Krev, walking just ahead, finally broke the silence.
"Brother, you're not much of a talker, are you? We've walked all this way and you haven't even started a conversation." He turned his head toward Riven and ran his hand through his messy hair. "I was hoping you'd talk a bit, but it looks like I'll be doing the talking for this whole trip."
Still, Riven didn't respond.
Krev groaned and stretched his arms behind his head.
"I thought maybe we'd have some decent road chit-chat. You know... share a tragic childhood memory, comfort food, your dreams, or maybe talk about girls." He grinned. "But I guess I'll be doing the talking all the way."
They kept walking.
As they went, Krev kicked a loose pebble down the road. It skipped twice and rolled into the weeds.
"You know, you remind me of one of my old partners," Krev continued. "Quiet. Always staring at the ground. Always thinking. Guy was good with a blade too."
He glanced sideways at Riven.
"But he didn't survive ten minutes."
Riven's eyes shifted toward him, cold and flat. "You talk a lot."
Krev let out a loud laugh.
"Haa! There it is. One full, complete sentence. I was starting to think you were mute."
Silence returned, but this time it settled heavier between them. A shift in the wind, the scent of rot, the sound of silence that went on just a little too long.
Up ahead, the treetops twisted into view — dark and looming.
Krev's tone dropped.
"Bloodwood's just ahead, brother. Keep your weapon ready. The trees out there... they don't sleep like normal trees."
As they stepped into the edge of the forest, the sky darkened.
Crows cried above, clawing at the air like they were trying to tear the sky open. The trees were burned in places. Some looked like they'd been bitten, their bark torn off in jagged chunks.
"Be careful over here, brother," Krev muttered, lowering his voice. "Once upon a time, there was a peaceful village right inside this forest."
He paused.
"But the demons wiped it out. Burned everything. And even after the Demon King was killed, this place never changed. There's still a... stillness. A feeling like something's waiting."
Riven said nothing. He reached into his coat and brushed his fingers over the handle of his knife.
Krev rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck with a grin.
"Demons don't usually nest this close. Which means something pushed them out... made them desperate."
"Or something worse," Riven said, voice low.
Krev's eyes glinted. "Now you're talking."
As Riven and Krev ventured deeper into the cursed forest, the air grew heavier, thick with the scent of rot and old blood. Shadows clung to the trees like cobwebs, and the underbrush rustled unnaturally.
Suddenly, the bushes ahead began to shake.
Krev's eyes lit up. "Finally."
With a violent rustle, four small demons burst forth from the undergrowth — twisted, feral things with bark-like skin, razor-sharp teeth that jutted out like splintered trees, and claws that shimmered like black glass.
Krev grinned wide, unsheathing his sword in a fluid motion. The blade caught what little sunlight filtered through the trees, gleaming like a predator's grin.
He didn't wait.
One demon leapt through the air — and Krev met it head-on, slicing clean through it mid-flight. The creature split apart like wet paper, blood spraying as both halves hit the forest floor with a sickening thud.
Krev landed hard, rolled once, then shot forward again.
He grabbed the second demon by the neck mid-sprint, hoisting it off the ground with one arm.
"Don't worry," he whispered with a wild smile. "We're gonna have fun."
Meanwhile, Riven stood still.
The remaining two demons had circled him, teeth bared, snarling low. They moved cautiously, sensing something wrong.
One lunged.
Riven stepped aside.
No wasted movement. No sound.
The demon landed, skidding on the forest floor — then paused.
Its eyes widened. Blood poured from its neck, a clean slice blooming red.
It collapsed silently.
The last one turned to flee.
Riven's hand moved.
Thwip.
A knife whirled through the air, spinning with deadly grace — and buried itself deep into the demon's skull. The force carried it into a tree, pinning the creature like a grotesque trophy.
Riven walked calmly toward it, eyes cold, steps measured.
As he passed the twitching corpse, his hand brushed the hilt of the embedded blade — retrieving it without pause.
Then, rustling.
Two more demons leapt from the trees.
They lunged for Riven — but the moment they closed in, he vanished.
They landed, confused, sniffing the air.
A shadow flickered between them.
Riven appeared like a ghost, grabbing both by the skulls. Before they could react — crack! — he slammed their heads together with brutal force.
They staggered, bleeding, dazed but alive.
Riven didn't stop.
Crack!
Again.
Crack!
Again.
Blood sprayed. Bone shattered.
He kept going until both creatures stopped twitching — their skulls caved in, lifeless and broken in his hands.
He let them drop, exhaling slowly.
No words. No mercy.
Only silence.
He turned, wiping his knife on the bark of a nearby tree as he walked back toward Krev.
Up ahead, Krev stood beneath a crooked oak, both hands gripping the neck of the last demon.
The creature kicked and thrashed wildly, claws flailing at the air, its legs scrambling for ground that wasn't there.
Krev's face had changed.
His grin was wider now, wild and too sharp. His eyes blazed with something savage — a fire just barely held in check. His breathing came faster, louder, and his face had flushed red.
He didn't speak.
The demon's struggling slowed. Its movements grew sluggish, panicked. Then... nothing.
Its body went slack, head lolling.
Eyes closed — like it had fallen asleep.
Krev finally let go.
The corpse dropped with a dull thud at his feet.
Riven approached, eyes calm, knife back in its sheath.
"Had your fun?" he asked, voice cold and even.
Krev glanced over his shoulder, the grin still lingering on his lips.
"For now," he said, licking blood off his thumb. "But I think we're just getting started."
A gust of wind blew towards them.
The trees in front of them kept falling and a big figure emerged.
From between the trees, a shape emerged.
Tall. Misshapen.
Its skin was dark and armored, pulsing with black crystal growths that shimmered with a sickly purple glow. Jagged spines jutted from its back like malformed wings, and where its eyes should've been… there was nothing. Only void.
Its chest rose with slow, deep breaths. Each exhale sounded like gravel being crushed underfoot.
Krev stepped back once. Just once.
"That's... not your average Demon," he muttered, voice low.
he creature stepped forward. The ground trembled.
Its arm was fused with bone and crystal, twisted into a blade-like limb still dripping with old blood.
Then it opened its mouth.
Not to speak. Not to scream.
Just to breathe.
And even that sound was enough to shake the leaves loose from the trees above.
Both Krev and Riven seeing this put their weapons forward.