A profound silence settled over the viewing area as Obi stepped into the jungle clearing. The youngest of the participants moved with nervous energy that contrasted sharply with the calculated approaches his predecessors had displayed. His smaller stature made him appear almost fragile against the backdrop of the massive jungle environment.
Unlike the others, Obi carried multiple weapons - a short sword at his hip, throwing knives strapped to his thighs, and what appeared to be some kind of collapsible staff secured across his back. His approach seemed to be versatility over specialization, as if he hoped unpredictability might overcome the raw power disadvantage he faced.
"He looks terrified," someone whispered from the viewing area, though their tone carried sympathy rather than mockery.
"Can you blame him?" Jully replied quietly. "After watching what happened to Dante and Kate..."
"At least he's here," Abel observed with something approaching respect. "It takes courage to step into that clearing knowing what you're facing."
Obi's aura manifested as pale yellow energy that flickered around him like nervous flame. At Intermediate rank, his power was respectable for his age, but everyone watching understood that rank alone wouldn't be sufficient against an opponent that had already demonstrated its superiority over more experienced fighters.
The Brelgorn studied this new opponent with what might have been curiosity. The creature's golden eyes tracked Obi's multiple weapons and nervous movements, clearly assessing how this challenger might differ from those who had preceded him.
"It's taking its time," someone noted. "Maybe it's trying to understand his strategy."
"What strategy?" another participant muttered. "He looks like he's about to bolt."
But Obi surprised them all by making the first move.
Instead of waiting for the creature to attack or trying to establish some kind of tactical advantage, he simply drew his short sword and charged directly at the massive guardian. His battle cry echoed through the jungle - equal parts terror and determination - as he closed the distance with desperate speed.
"What is he doing?" Abel gasped. "That's suicide!"
The Brelgorn seemed equally surprised by the straightforward assault. It had adapted to technical precision and calculated aggression, but raw courage backed by desperate determination presented a different kind of challenge.
Obi's first strike was technically sound but lacked the power or precision to threaten a creature of the Brelgorn's caliber. His blade met the guardian's forearm with a ringing clash that sent vibrations up both his arms, but the creature's natural armor easily absorbed the impact.
However, Obi didn't stop with a single attack. Instead, he launched into a frenzied combination that demonstrated years of training even if it lacked the sophistication of his predecessors.
His short sword carved patterns through the air while his free hand drew throwing knives that flew toward the creature's eyes and throat with surprising accuracy. When the Brelgorn moved to counter his blade work, he released his primary weapon and activated some kind of mechanism that transformed his collapsible staff into a longer polearm.
"He's actually landing hits," Jully observed with amazement. "They're not doing much damage, but he's making contact."
"The creature's confused," Abel added. "It expected tactical complexity, not desperate aggression."
For several minutes, Obi managed to avoid the fate that had befallen his predecessors through sheer unpredictability. His fighting style was chaotic, technically flawed, and completely unconventional - which made it surprisingly difficult for the Brelgorn to counter effectively.
But experience and overwhelming physical advantage eventually told.
The creature adapted to Obi's frantic pace, its golden eyes tracking the patterns hidden within the chaos. When it finally moved decisively, the end came with familiar suddenness.
A massive backhand swipe caught Obi mid-attack, sending him flying across the jungle clearing like a broken doll. He hit the ground hard and rolled several times before coming to rest against what appeared to be a fallen log but was actually part of the chamber's disguised barrier.
Unlike the previous challengers, who had suffered single devastating impacts, Obi tried to get back up. Blood streamed down his face from multiple cuts, his left arm hung at an unnatural angle, and his aura flickered weakly around his damaged form.
But he still reached for one of his fallen weapons with his good hand.
"Stay down," Khan's voice boomed across the chamber. "The trial is over."
Obi looked up at his family patriarch with eyes that burned with frustrated tears. "I can still fight," he protested, though his voice was barely above a whisper.
"No," Khan replied, though his tone carried more respect than it had for the previous challengers. "You cannot. But you have demonstrated something valuable - the willingness to continue fighting even when victory becomes impossible."
Medical technicians moved quickly to extract Obi from the combat zone, but unlike the unconscious or completely defeated participants who had preceded him, he remained alert and defiant even as they loaded him onto a stretcher.
"Courage without sufficient skill," Khan announced to the remaining participants. "Admirable, but insufficient for the challenges we face. However, Obi has shown the kind of spirit that can be developed through proper training and experience."
As the youngest participant was carried away, the observers understood that while he had failed the immediate trial, he had earned something perhaps more valuable - recognition that his determination might make him worthy of future investment.
"Three down," Abel said quietly as the jungle environment reset itself for the next trial.
"And that creature hasn't even been seriously tested yet," Jully added grimly.
The Brelgorn returned to the center of the clearing, golden eyes scanning the remaining participants with what might have been growing anticipation. Each trial had taught it something new about human combat capabilities - power, precision, and unpredictable courage - and it seemed eager to continue its education.
The most dangerous trials were yet to come.
---
The tension in the viewing area was palpable as Ray stepped into the jungle clearing. Unlike the previous participants, who had each approached with their own distinct styles, Ray moved with the careful precision of someone who had spent the past three trials studying his opponent's capabilities and weaknesses.
From the elevated observation deck, voices began to murmur among the gathered spectators - family members, servants, and distant relatives who had come to witness this unprecedented selection trial.
"Look at how he's moving," someone called out from the crowd. "Much more cautious than the others."
"Smart approach after what we just witnessed," another voice agreed.
Ray's weapon of choice reflected his analytical nature - a pair of curved daggers that gleamed with poison-enhanced edges and mana-conductive metals. His aura manifested as pale green energy that seemed to blend with the jungle environment, making his exact position difficult to determine even when standing in plain sight.
"Stealth specialist," Abel observed from among the participants. "If anyone can exploit the creature's blind spots, it's him."
"But will invisibility work against something that's been guarding a temple for centuries?" Jully wondered aloud.
From the spectator galleries, excited whispers rippled through the crowd as they watched Ray begin to fade from view.
"He's disappearing!"
"Is that even possible?"
"The Shadowmere art - I've heard stories but never seen it used."
The Brelgorn tilted its massive head as it studied this new opponent, golden eyes tracking subtle movements that suggested Ray posed a very different type of threat than the straightforward warriors who had preceded him. The creature's enhanced senses were clearly detecting something, but for the first time in the trials, it seemed uncertain about its opponent's exact location.
Ray didn't waste time with dramatic announcements or positioning displays. Instead, he simply vanished into the jungle foliage with such completeness that even the spectators with enhanced vision lost track of his movements.
"Where did he go?" a voice called from the viewing area.
"There - no, that's just shadow patterns," someone else replied.
For several minutes, an eerie stillness settled over the reconstructed jungle. The Brelgorn stood motionless in the center of the clearing, but its golden eyes constantly swept the surrounding vegetation while its ears twitched at sounds too subtle for most observers to detect.
"This is the real test," Ray's supporter among the crowd noted. "Can he find an opening against something with centuries of experience detecting hidden threats?"
When Ray's attack finally came, it demonstrated why the Shadowmere art had earned its reputation as an elite assassination art.
His first strike emerged from complete concealment, a poisoned blade seeking the creature's neck with surgical precision. The angle was perfect, the timing was flawless, and the execution showed years of training in advanced stealth combat techniques.
But the Brelgorn was ready.
The creature twisted away from the attack with fluid grace that belied its massive size, one hand sweeping through the space Ray had occupied milliseconds after the young warrior had committed to his strike. The counter-attack missed by mere inches, but the displaced air was enough to reveal Ray's position and disrupt his carefully planned follow-up sequence.
"Close!" several spectators shouted simultaneously from the observation deck.
"If that blade had connected..." someone began.
"It didn't," another voice finished grimly. "And now the creature knows his capabilities."
What followed was a deadly game of hunter and hunted played out across the reconstructed jungle. Ray would appear long enough to launch precise strikes at what appeared to be vulnerable targets, only to discover that the Brelgorn had been expecting each attack and had positioned itself to counter his assassination attempts.
The crowd watched in fascination as patches of vegetation would rustle without visible cause, followed by flashes of steel and the sound of blade meeting hardened flesh.
"He's landing more hits than the others managed," someone observed from the spectator gallery.
"But look at the wounds," a more experienced voice countered. "Shallow cuts that aren't significantly hampering the creature's movement."
The creature's tactical intelligence was even more apparent in this exchange than it had been against previous opponents. It didn't just defend against Ray's attacks - it began predicting them, positioning itself to turn the young assassin's own stealth capabilities against him.
"The beast is learning his movement patterns," an elderly family member noted with growing concern. "Each attack is becoming more predictable."
"Ray needs to change his approach," someone called out urgently. "This strategy isn't sustainable against an opponent that adaptive."
The end came when Ray attempted his most ambitious gambit - a three-part combination attack designed to create multiple simultaneous threats that the creature couldn't counter effectively. He struck from above, below, and directly ahead in rapid succession, his daggers seeking vital points with lethal precision.
Instead of being overwhelmed by the complex assault, the Brelgorn simply waited for the pattern to complete before demonstrating why experience trumped innovation.
Its massive fist swept through the jungle undergrowth with devastating force, catching Ray mid-transition between his second and third attacks. The impact sent him spinning through the air until he crashed into a massive tree trunk with bone-jarring force.
Unlike some previous challengers who had remained conscious despite their injuries, Ray crumpled to the forest floor and didn't move again.
"Medical team, immediately!" Khan commanded, though his tone suggested he had expected this outcome.
From the spectator galleries, worried murmurs rippled through the crowd as they watched the unconscious assassin being loaded onto a stretcher.
"He lasted longer than most," someone noted respectfully.
"And forced the creature to show capabilities it hadn't needed before," another added.
---
[A/N - First of all, I want to sincerely thank all of you for your continued support—it means the world to me and keeps me motivated to write. I'm excited to officially announce that Extra's Survival: Reincarnated with a Doomed Bloodline has now been contracted! 🎉
Because I cherish starting things early, I'd love to create a community space where we can all connect, share ideas, and grow together. I'll be setting up a Discord community soon, and I'd like to invite any interested readers who would like to help with the administration process to indicate below so we can get everything up and running as soon as possible.
Thank you once again for walking this journey with me. Here's to many more chapters together! 💫
— Lore_Whisperer]