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Dust hung thick over the clearing in the afternoon light. Somewhere to Landen's left, Veya's rifles cracked in a steady rhythm. Behind him, something massive slammed into the ground, sending another cloud of dirt into the air.
He kept his eyes on Orio.
"You knew we were coming."
"We've been tracking you since the beginning." Orio tapped the side of his head with a smug grin.
Landen glanced towards the trees as another roar echoed."So what's this about? You lured a beast wave here just to jump me?"
"Jump you? Please. I'm a duelist, not a thug." Orio drew one of his twin swords and pointed its tip at him. The dappled forest light reflected off the white blade. "Besides, a proper one-on-one in the middle of a beast wave would just get interrupted."
Landen barely heard the explanation. He was too busy staring at the sword.
Two of them. He's got two, and I've got zero. Surely he can spare one.
Orio lowered his blade slightly.
"Instead, we'll settle this another way." He spread his arms as if addressing an invisible audience. "Team Varro versus Team Halvek. Rules are simple. Both teams fight the wave. Whoever gets the most kills wins."
Landen's eyes perked up. "Sounds fun."
"And if I win..." Orio pointed his sword at Landen. "I take your title."
Landen blinked. "What title?"
"Top Freshman Captain. Number one on the Underground Leaderboard." Orio sighed. "Don't play dumb. It wastes my time."
Landen stared at him for a dead second. Who's even coming up with these titles? Didn't matter either way.
He shrugged. "Fine."
For the first time, Orio looked caught off guard. He had clearly expected an argument. "And if you win?"
Landen was about to say he didn't care. Then his eyes drifted back to the twin swords. An idea clicked.
"If I win—" he pointed at Orio's hilt, "—I get your sword." A slow grin pulled at the corner of his mouth as he held out his hand.
Orio's eyes widened. He looked from Landen's outstretched hand to his swords, then back again. After a long pause, he took it. "Deal."
Landen grinned wider than he had all day. "Let's see what you've got, 'Captain.'"
[ System ]
Varro 0 || Halvek 0
— — —
The dust began to settle, and the clearing opened up in pieces.
Veya was first. A bristleback came rushing toward her, its life bar already low.
Rather than meet it head-on, she backpedaled and vaulted onto a nearby boulder, taking the high ground, and waited for it to close the distance.
Energy weapons had their advantages over conventional firearms. They never needed magazines or ammunition, drawing directly from the wielder's core energy instead. As long as the user's core held energy, they could keep firing. The tradeoff was range. Once an energy round left the barrel, its power steadily decayed until it dispersed.
Veya knew exactly where that limit was.
Twenty meters.
The moment the bristleback crossed that line, she opened fire. Six shots, all to the side. None of them clean.
Then her essence synthesizer lit up and whistled, the launchers on her wrists flaring in answer.
Text appeared on Landen's display.
[ System ]
New Ability Detected
Escalation: (Passive) Each consecutive basic hit on the same target (within 3 seconds of the last) grants +5% attack speed, stacking up to 6 times (+25% max). Full stacks also increase basic attack damage by 25%. A missed attack or a 3-second gap resets all stacks.
Caster: Veya Rune (Team Halvek).
"Finally," Veya said with a grin, ready to unload. "Now we're talking."
Before Veya could fire, Zirk stepped in front of her and let loose an arrow. It struck the bristleback's footing, sending the beast tumbling down the hillside.
"Hey!" Veya threw up her hands as the bristleback rolled beyond her twenty-meter range.
"Don't worry!" Zirk called over his shoulder. "I'll help you!"
"You're not helping—you just knocked it out of my range!"
He ignored her and drew another arrow — not from any quiver, but conjured in his grip, the shaft humming with condensed energy.
Unlike Veya's wrist launchers, he wielded an energy bow powered by his own essence synthesizer. Thin conduits ran from the device across his chest to both hands—one feeding energy into the bow, the other forming a glowing arrow as he drew the string. The dual-channel design made bows more efficient at compressing and stabilizing energy, allowing their projectiles to travel significantly farther than standard energy bullets.
Veya sidestepped, trying to find a clear angle around Zirk, but he shifted with the bristleback, blocking her view. The glow surrounding her Essence Synthesizer faded with a soft hiss as her passive ability expired.
Her shoulders slumped, and she pouted. "No — my power."
Meanwhile, Zirk's arrows continued to strike the bristleback in steady succession. With each hit, new text scrolled across Landen's display.
[ System ]
New Ability Detected
Hunter's Focus (Passive)
Attack Speed bonuses have no effect.
Landing consecutive attacks on the same target applies Hunter Marks (maximum 5). Changing targets removes all Hunter Marks. Taking damage removes all Hunter Marks. Marks expire after 10 seconds without dealing damage to the marked target.
Mark 1: +10% Attack RangeMark 2: +15% DamageMark 3: +10% Armor PenetrationMark 4: Slows the target by 10% for 1 second, refreshing with each attack.Mark 5: Attack Range increases to +20%, Damage increases to +30%, Armor Penetration increases to +20%, and the slow is increased to 20%.
Caster: Zirk Holloway (Team Varro)
As the shots connected, glowing hunter marks appeared one by one along the bristleback's neck.
The beast lunged forward for one last desperate charge, but its movements became noticeably sluggish, and at the same time, Zirk's attacks were getting stronger. Before it could reach him, another shot pierced through its skull.
The bristleback collapsed at his feet.
"There you go," Zirk said, lowering his launcher with a sly smile. "You're welcome."
Veya stared at the dead beast, then at the fading glow of her own launchers. She smiled and sighed at the same time, unable to decide whether to thank him or yell at him for ruining her momentum.
"...Um, thanks?" she said. "I guess."
[ System ]
Varro 1 || Halvek 0
— — —
Not far from Veya, Jareth and Gragic had been battling two large bristlebacks, both beasts already reduced to low health. But once the bristlebacks were under control, Gragic suddenly turned on Jareth. Instead of finishing off the beasts, the two were now fighting each other.
"What's with you?" Jareth asked.
Gragic didn't answer. He simply held out his hands, crouched as if ready to pounce. Strapped to his back were a shield and a long hunter's spear with hooks near the blade and a rope tied to the end, a weapon designed to control beasts rather than kill them. He looked more than prepared for this battle.
"Fine. You want to fight? Let's fight."
Jareth widened his stance and activated Triad Breaker, his gauntlet flaring blue. He threw the first punch clean — and hit air. Gragic didn't try to block it. He knew the weakness of the skill. Once Triad Breaker began, Jareth couldn't stop or change the direction of his attack until the entire combo finished.
Gragic simply rolled inside the punch, slipping into Jareth's blind spot. With Jareth locked into the attack, he had no way to defend himself. Gragic seized him by the ribs and drove him to the ground before the final strike could finish.
"You're trying to kill me," Jareth said as he crawled on the ground.
A sound came out of Gragic's throat, low and wrong. "No. Hurt. Beast." The words came slow, spaced out, like a child sounding out something memorized.
"What are you? A beast?"
"You. Stay. Here."
"No. I. Won't."
Jareth attempted a roll to his feet, but Gragic quickly maneuvered and wrestled him back to the ground. Before Jareth could recover, Gragic had already pulled out a length of rope. In seconds, Jareth's wrists and ankles were bound tightly behind his back like a captured animal.
Jareth thrashed against the restraints, the rope digging into his skin.
"You're playing with me, right?" he shouted. "Tell me you're playing."
He twisted his neck, searching for Gragic.
But Gragic was already gone.
That was when Jareth heard footsteps.
Not human ones.
The two large bristlebacks—the biggest of the eleven beasts in the wave—had recovered, though their life bars were still deep in the red. They burst through the brush with their quills raised, their eyes locked on the helpless figure tied up in the dirt.
Jareth's eyes went wide. "Oh, shit. Oh, shit! This isn't good!"
He twisted violently, straining against the ropes. The bindings dug deeper into his wrists and ankles with every desperate movement.
"Come on! Come on!" he shouted, trying to free even a single hand. Nothing budged.
The ground trembled as the two bristlebacks thundered closer. Their heavy footsteps pounded like war drums, each one louder than the last.
Jareth squeezed his eyes shut and braced for the impact.
A deafening crash exploded above him.
His eyes flew open.
Gragic had dropped between him and the charging beasts, slamming his shield into both bristlebacks with enough force to stop their charge. Dust and broken earth burst into the air as the massive creatures staggered backward.
Gragic planted his feet and spread his stance, as if standing protectively over Jareth.
Then he threw back his head and unleashed a deep, guttural growl that sounded less human than beast.
[ System ]
New Ability Detected
Beast Call - Alpha Roar - Intimidation
Mimics an alpha predator. Frightens weakened beasts to increase the chance of taming.
Increase own attack power by 20%. Decreases nearby beast defense by 20%.
Caster: Gragic Foreman.(Team Varro)
Jareth stared up at the bristlebacks, visibly shaking in fear.
Then Gragic's hands lit white, energy pooling and thickening around his fingers like something being poured rather than summoned. He drove them down onto both beasts' skulls at once.
[ System ]
New Ability Detected
Beast Tamer: 20% chance to tame a beast of equal or lower power than self. Increased to 50% if the beast's life is critically low. Increased to 80% if the beast is affected by Alpha Roar.
Caster: Gragic Foreman (Team Varro)
The glow under his palms climbed brighter, brighter, then cut out all at once.
Where the two largest bristlebacks in the wave had been snarling seconds ago, there were now two bristlebacks sitting. Calm. Waiting. Looking at Gragic the way a dog looks at the hand that feeds it.
Jareth, still hog-tied in the dirt six feet away, stared at his tamed captors.
"...Are you going to untie me now?"
Gragic looked at him. Said nothing. Turned, and walked off into the trees with two bristlebacks in tow, leaving Jareth exactly as he'd found him.
[ System ]
Varro 3 || Halvek 0
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