Arian froze for a moment — the snap of a branch hadn't come from him, but from another hidden presence.The cloaked hunters with tiger masks turned, their eyes scanning the darkness, sharp and unrelenting.
Seconds stretched like an eternity before the leader's head shifted in heightened alert.Arian knew: these weren't ordinary hunters — they were tamers, men who could command the forest itself with incantations that made the trees aware. Now, he was trapped between the temptation of raw power and the cunning of survival.
From the darkness, a silver light emerged — not a torch or lantern, but a floating orb of soft, shimmering glow.It darted swiftly through the shadows between the trees. As it drew closer, Arian felt a mystical pulse — a fragment of the White Tiger Bond within him resonating.
The light stopped, hovering at the feet of the lead hunter, then slowly rose toward the masked face.Something — or someone — had mocked them, before turning its attention toward Arian.
"Heir," the voice echoed, soft yet commanding.It felt as though thousands of leaves had spoken at once, yet carried a calm and deliberate tone.
Arian sensed the hunters flinch, then step back, as if pushed by an unseen will.The tamers looked around, suddenly unsure, their confidence shaken.
Again, the voice came, this time closer: "Use it… but do not surrender to its full power."
Without hesitation, Arian extended his hand.The floating light responded, flowing into his nerves and veins — tempering rage into focus.He allowed the White Tiger's energy to surface, but not to consume him entirely — sharpening his senses and reflexes without succumbing to the beast. His fingernails extended into sharp claws, but not the blood-soaked talons of a full transformation.
One of the hunters staggered back — startled, as if seeing another version of Arian — half man, half white predator.
"Heir," the voice whispered one last time, fading like mist in the dawn.
In the chaos of the jungle, Arian moved — swift as a shadow.He vaulted into the trees, branches whipping past, then leapt back to the ground, melting into the darkness, leaving the stunned hunters behind.
He knew this wasn't the end — their presence was growing stronger, their reach stretching all the way to the edge of the forest.But tonight, he had won a single round, thanks to the intervention of a spiritual force… and a master still unknown to him.
The forest seemed to breathe with him.Every step Arian took was matched by the rustle of leaves, as if the jungle itself was guiding his escape. But behind him, the hunters were regrouping — their chants weaving through the night like thin threads of poison.
One wrong move, and those chants could wrap around his mind like vines, pulling him into a trance.He had seen it before — men caught mid-run, eyes glazed, bodies still, before the hunters closed in.
The silver light within him pulsed again, almost warning him.Not yet. Keep moving.
He leapt over a fallen log, landing in a small clearing where the moonlight broke through the canopy. For a moment, it felt safe. Too safe.
The ground beneath his feet shifted.Roots — thick, gnarled — began to twist upward, curling around his ankles like living chains. The hunters' magic had reached him.
Arian's claws scraped at the roots, but they only tightened, biting into his skin.From the treeline, the lead hunter emerged — slow, deliberate — his mask glowing faintly under the moon.
"You carry the blood," the hunter's voice was deep, almost reverent. "But you are not yet worthy to keep it."
The silver light inside Arian flared in defiance, spilling into his veins.A primal growl rumbled from his chest, low and dangerous. His eyes burned gold.
"I didn't ask for this blood," he said, voice half-human, half-beast. "But if you want it—"
The roots around him snapped apart with a violent crack, the shards flying like spears into the trees.The hunter didn't flinch… but the rest of his masked followers did.
"—you'll have to kill me first."
The jungle fell silent. Even the wind seemed to stop.
Somewhere deep within the darkness, a different roar answered — not his, but something older, stronger… and coming closer.
The sound tore through the night — deep, thunderous, and primal.It wasn't the roar of an ordinary tiger.This was older, heavier… carrying a weight that made even the masked hunters shift uneasily.
The leader tilted his head slightly, as if listening."You hear it too, don't you, Heir?" he said, his voice low, almost curious. "That is the call of your predecessor."
Arian's muscles tensed. The silver light within him pulsed faster, matching the beat of the roar that now echoed a second time, closer.His heart was no longer his own; it was beating in sync with the jungle's predator.
From the shadows between two massive trees, a pair of golden eyes appeared. They were larger than any tiger's he had ever seen, glowing with an intelligence that made them almost human.When the beast stepped forward, moonlight revealed thick white fur streaked with faint silver patterns — the mark of the true White Tiger.
The hunters didn't advance. They didn't dare.Even the leader stayed still, though his grip on his spear tightened.
The tiger's gaze locked onto Arian, unblinking.And then, without moving its mouth, a voice resonated directly in his mind:
"Blood of my blood… you run from your shadow. Stop running."
Arian's breath caught in his throat.He felt the jungle close in — not as an enemy, but as if every tree, every root, every breath of wind now waited for his choice.
The White Tiger's presence was overwhelming, yet not hostile. It radiated something older than fear, something closer to… recognition.
The hunters began to circle again, their chants returning — faster this time, urgent. They knew the moment was slipping from their control.
The tiger took one step forward, the earth trembling under its weight."Choose now, Heir. Stand with me… or be taken by them."
Arian's claws dug into the soil.This was it. His decision here would change everything.