The first rays of sunlight spread across the northern mountains as Kael and Gohim prepared to leave.
The giant wolf stood quietly at the cave entrance.
"My part ends here," the wolf said. "Everything beyond this point belongs to you."
Gohim bowed respectfully.
"Thank you... for believing in me."
The wolf nodded once.
"You still have a long journey ahead."
Kael also bowed.
"We will return after this is over."
The wolf watched them disappear down the mountain path before turning back toward his cave.
"May your spirits remain unbroken..."
---
As they walked toward the Watcher's cave, Kael suddenly reached into the pouch hanging from his belt.
"There is something I didn't tell you."
Gohim looked over.
"What is it?"
Kael held out one of the silver pills he had found inside the Guardian Manual.
"This is a Guardian Revival Pill."
Gohim examined it carefully.
"What does it do?"
"It temporarily releases your spiritual energy far beyond its normal limit."
"For a few minutes, your strength can increase dramatically."
Gohim's eyes widened.
"Then why don't we use it immediately?"
Kael smiled faintly and placed it back into the pouch.
"Because every shortcut has a price."
"The effect only lasts for a short time."
"When it ends, the user's body becomes extremely weak."
"If used carelessly..."
"...it could cost your life."
He looked directly at Gohim.
"So remember this."
"We use it only in desperate times..."
"...for desperate measures."
Gohim nodded seriously.
"I understand."
---
The two warriors entered the cave once more.
The deeper they walked, the heavier the spiritual pressure became.
Then...
The ground shook violently.
Stone monsters emerged from the walls.
Sand monsters rose from the earth.
Just as the wolf had warned.
Within seconds, dozens surrounded them.
Kael drew his sword.
"Stay close."
The battle began.
Kael's Crescent Spirit Blast shattered several stone monsters instantly.
Gohim slipped between the enemies with the speed he had gained during training.
For a while, they fought well.
Then something strange happened.
The broken monsters slowly rebuilt themselves.
Stone gathered together.
Cracks sealed shut.
Within moments...
They stood again.
Only now...
They looked stronger.
"What?!" Gohim shouted.
Kael frowned.
"They're regenerating."
Another Spirit Blast struck one of them.
Instead of destroying it completely...
The monster's chest glowed bright blue.
Its spiritual pressure increased.
"It absorbed my attack..."
Kael whispered.
The battle became harder.
Every powerful slash seemed to make them stronger.
Gohim narrowly dodged a massive stone fist.
"This isn't working!"
Kael looked around quickly.
"Hold them off!"
"What?"
"I need time!"
Gohim gritted his teeth.
"I'll try!"
He rushed forward, using his improved speed and reflexes to keep the monsters focused on him.
He couldn't defeat them...
Only delay them.
Meanwhile, Kael carefully watched every movement.
Every attack.
Every reaction.
A stone monster charged.
Kael dodged and instinctively slashed across its chest.
The blade barely cut through the rocky armor.
For a brief moment...
A glowing heart inside the creature was exposed.
It flashed red.
The monster staggered.
Then it recovered.
Kael's eyes widened.
"So that's it..."
He continued observing.
Another monster absorbed one of his energy slashes.
Its heart glowed blue.
Its strength increased.
But when its heart was exposed and damaged...
The blue color disappeared.
It turned crimson red.
Its movements slowed.
Its body began cracking.
Kael smiled.
"I've found it."
Gohim blocked another attack.
"What?"
"The heart!"
"Their hearts are absorbing our spiritual attacks!"
"When they absorb energy, they glow blue and become stronger."
"But when the heart itself is damaged..."
"...it turns red."
"And that's when they're weakest!"
Gohim immediately understood.
"So we don't attack the body..."
"We attack the heart!"
Kael nodded.
"Exactly."
He raised his sword.
"This time..."
"We end them properly."
The stone monsters roared together as they charged once again.
Gohim and Kael stood side by side.
Now they finally knew their enemy's weakness.
The battle grew fiercer with every passing minute.
Stone monsters continued pouring out from every direction.
No matter how many they defeated, more appeared from the darkness.
Kael released another Crescent Spirit Blast.
The blue wave tore through several monsters.
But instead of destroying them, the energy was absorbed into their glowing hearts.
Their hearts flashed bright blue.
The monsters roared as their spiritual pressure increased.
"Tch..."
Kael immediately realized his mistake.
"They're feeding on my attacks..."
Before he could retreat, three stone monsters attacked together.
BOOM!
A massive stone fist struck Kael across his side.
Another slammed into his shoulder.
He was thrown violently against the cave wall.
The impact cracked the stone behind him.
"Captain!" Gohim shouted.
Kael slowly pushed himself up.
Blood ran down the corner of his mouth.
His breathing became heavier.
"I'm... alright..."
But Gohim could tell he wasn't.
Kael's spiritual energy had dropped considerably.
The monsters slowly surrounded him.
Gohim rushed toward him, barely avoiding another stone fist.
He helped Kael to his feet.
"You've lost too much energy."
Kael shook his head.
"Not enough... to stop fighting."
Gohim suddenly remembered something.
"The book!"
He quickly reached into Kael's pouch and removed one of the two silver pills they had found inside the Guardian Manual.
The Guardian Revival Pill.
Without hesitation, he placed it into Kael's hand.
"Take it."
Kael looked at the pill.
"You understand what this means?"
Gohim nodded.
"There are innocent people depending on us."
"We can find another way to recover later."
"But we can't replace lives."
Kael looked at him for a moment before swallowing the pill.
Almost immediately—
A surge of spiritual energy spread throughout his body.
His breathing steadied.
The exhaustion in his muscles faded.
The wounds remained, but his strength returned.
Kael slowly stood.
"I'd forgotten how powerful these pills are..."
Gohim smiled.
"Good."
"Because I have a plan."
Kael looked at him.
"I'm listening."
Gohim looked toward the battlefield.
The monsters continued absorbing every energy slash.
Their hearts glowed blue whenever they did.
Then he remembered something.
Every time Kael's sword accidentally grazed the heart—
It turned red.
It weakened.
His eyes widened.
"That's it..."
Kael noticed the change in Gohim's expression.
"You've figured something out."
Gohim nodded.
"We've been fighting them the wrong way."
"They're not defeating us because they're stronger..."
"They're defeating us because we're making them stronger."
Kael remained silent.
Gohim pointed toward the center of the battlefield.
"We don't need stronger attacks."
"We need an opening."
Kael folded his arms.
"Go on."
"If we combine just a small amount of our spiritual energy..."
"...compress it..."
"...and release it beneath them instead of at them..."
"...the explosion should create a powerful gravitational shockwave."
"It won't feed their hearts because it isn't a direct energy slash."
"It'll throw them apart."
"And once their chests are exposed..."
Gohim tightened his grip on his sword.
"...we drive our swords straight through their hearts with everything we've got."
Kael stared at him for a moment.
Then a smile slowly appeared on his face.
"You've finally stopped thinking like a student..."
"...and started thinking like a Guardian."
He drew his sword once more.
"It's risky."
Gohim nodded.
"I know."
"If we fail..."
"We die."
Kael raised his blade.
"Then let's make sure we don't fail."
Side by side, captain and student faced the advancing army of stone monsters.
Together...
They prepared to execute Gohim's plan.