Kolasis's shriek tore through the forest like a banshee's wail, making even the trees tremble. We had run countless drills for this moment—but this was real. Our lives were on the line.
And Ryu hesitated.
It would've been so easy to run. To turn around and vanish into the safety of the woods. But then, the commander's voice cut through his thoughts like a blade.
"What are you doing, boy? We've got a monster to slay!"
Snapping back to reality, Ryu forced himself up. The brutal training with the commander weighed on him, but he gritted his teeth.
"Right behind you!" he called out.
They ran together, boots pounding the forest floor, until the moment came when Ryu had to break away. He needed to get to the clearing—the trap site—where there were no distractions, no glowing flora, just the open space and the plan they'd built this strategy around.
Ryu slowed, glancing at the commander's back one last time.
"See you on the other side, Commander," he said softly.
He couldn't be sure, but he felt the commander smile.
Once the paths diverged, Ryu's mind surged with panic. There are a hundred ways this could go wrong, he thought. But only one way to win. And freezing up won't bring it.
The glowing plants and bioluminescent algae began to disappear as he ran, signaling that he had arrived at the clearing. A perfect stage. Now all he could do was wait.
Hidden high in a tree, Ryu scanned the surroundings. Minutes crawled by. Doubt crept in. What if Kolasis had killed them already? What if my illusions don't even work on that thing?
Then, the ground shook. Thump. Thump.
Kolasis.
He didn't have time to make a new plan.
Two knights burst into the clearing. Relief flooded Ryu's chest—they were alive. He'd grown fond of them over the weeks. He didn't want to see them die.
Then Kolasis appeared.
A monstrous figure, massive and terrifying. Its previous wounds had already healed, and thick saliva dripped from its gaping maw. Ryu's blood ran cold. But he had a mission, and he wasn't going to die here—not today.
He activated the skill. A translucent screen appeared.
> [You have activated the skill: Avalin's Deception.]
[The strength of the skill has been increased by threefo—]
Ryu swiped the screen away. No time for reading popups.
As his illusion wrapped itself around Kolasis, Ryu's perception twisted. He wasn't in his own body anymore—he was inside the beast's mind. The monster's senses were horrifyingly sharp. He could hear the faintest rustle of leaves, the quickened breaths of the knights, the subtle sway of branches above. He could smell every scent in the forest with terrifying precision.
But the strangest part was the creature's vision.
It wasn't normal—it was infrared. Kolasis didn't see shapes, it saw heat. Blurred orange silhouettes moved across its vision: the knights, and...himself. Ryu.
This thing has thermal vision. Of course it does.
A knight tripped and fell, and Ryu could see it happen through the monster's eyes.
Now there was no more time to doubt.
He focused hard, pouring his mind into the illusion. He imagined the glowing figures vanishing from Kolasis's view. He envisioned the forest consumed by flame—heat licking at the creature's skin, smoke clogging its lungs, the roar of fire deafening its ears. He imagined the heat, the crackle, the smoke, the scent of burning wood.
The pain was instantaneous. His head throbbed, his vision blurred, but he pushed through.
The illusion took hold.
To Kolasis, the forest was ablaze, a hellish inferno alive and raging. A primal fear gripped the monster. It turned and fled toward the one patch of "untouched" forest—just as planned.
There, hidden beneath illusion, was the real trap.
Kolasis plunged into the pit.
A heartbeat later, the alcohol bomb detonated with a thunderous roar. The earth cracked. Smoke and fire surged into the sky.
> [The skill Avalin's Deception has been deactivated.]
Ryu collapsed to his knees, panting, drenched in sweat. He had felt everything—every burning nerve, every flicker of the monster's pain. But he smiled.
We did it, he thought. It's over.
He crept to the edge of the hole. Smoke billowed from within, but there was no movement. No sound.
Ryu exhaled, relieved.
Then a blade of horror erupted from the smoke.
Kolasis's axe swept up like a thunderclap, and in one blinding motion—it severed Ryu's arm.
The pain was instantaneous. Ryu screamed—a raw, primal sound that echoed through the forest.
From the shadows, the knights came rushing. The first to reach him was the commander.
Without hesitation, the commander dragged Ryu away from the pit and set him beside a tree. Ryu clutched his shoulder, blood streaming from where his arm had been.
"You did well, warrior," the commander said, voice low and resolute. "Now rest. I'll make sure you get that arm back—at the very least."
He turned and joined the others, charging toward the monster.
Ryu slumped against the tree, the pain threatening to consume him. He forced his eyes open, refusing to pass out. He had to see it through.
Kolasis was dragging itself out of the crater—bloodied, burned, but alive. Half its body had been blown open, exposing bone and pulsating organs. But it was healing.
Rapidly.
Ryu's breath caught.
This wasn't over.
Not yet.