Victory had a coppery taste, a mix of goblin blood and our own. After the last of the mana had been absorbed, a profound exhaustion settled over us. We were battered and bruised, but a fierce new energy burned within each of my teammates. Their confidence was higher, their will stronger. For the first time since arriving in this nightmare world, they knew we could do more than just survive. We could dominate.
We found a secluded alcove in the rock face to rest and tend to our wounds. Rina moved between us, her hands glowing with a soft, green light as she mended the worst of the cuts. The adrenaline had faded, leaving behind the grim reality of our situation, but now it was a reality we felt equipped to handle.
I leaned back against the cool stone, my mind racing, cataloging our advantages. We had the strength, and we had the knowledge. The answers the Goddess Liora had given us were the cornerstones of our entire strategy. I reviewed them one by one, a mental checklist for survival.
The Price: Only six people will make it out of this forest alive.
The Path: The forest is divided into zones of increasing danger (E to S), giving us a way to manage risk.
The Power: We grow stronger by killing enemies—monsters or humans—and absorbing their mana.
The Prize: Hidden artifacts are scattered throughout the forest, and we have a map leading to some of them.
The Final Trial: A colossal Bone Dragon guards the only exit.
The Treachery of the World: The forest itself is filled with natural dangers like sinkholes and cursed fog.
The Potential for Growth: Our skills can evolve through intense experiences and emotional trials.
The Warning from History: Betrayal is common. A past hero succeeded by wiping out all the others.
The Uncertain Future: The kingdoms we are heading to may seek to control or enslave us.
We had a blueprint for survival. Now, we just had to execute it.
As the last of our wounds were healed, a sound pierced the relative quiet of the woods. It was a scream. A human scream, raw with pain and terror, cut short in a sickening gurgle.
My team was on their feet in an instant, their rest forgotten.
"What was that?" Eric asked, his hand gripping his weapon.
"Trouble," I said. "Stay sharp. Let's move."
We advanced cautiously toward the source of the sound, slipping between the monolithic trees. The smell of fresh blood hit us long before we saw the scene. We peered through the thick undergrowth into a small clearing and found a massacre.
The bodies of at least five students were scattered across the ground. In the center of the carnage, one of our former classmates was still alive, though just barely. A longsword was pierced clean through his chest, pinning him to the forest floor. His eyes, wide with shock and pain, begged for help as he spat blood, his life fading with every ragged breath.
Standing over him was another group of students—a team of ten, all male, all splattered with the blood of their victims. There was no horror in their eyes, no shock. There was only rage, and the cold, smug satisfaction of predators.
I looked at my own team. Their faces were masks of disbelief and horror. This wasn't a fight against monsters. This was murder. This was the betrayal the Goddess had warned us about, happening right before our eyes.
The leader of the rival team, a tall, muscular student with a cruel smirk, placed his boot on the dying boy's shoulder. He gripped the hilt of his sword and, with a wet, tearing sound, wrenched it free. The boy gasped, a final, desperate plea for life. The leader simply laughed, raised the bloody sword high, and stabbed down again, plunging the blade deep into the student's heart, ending his life with a final, contemptuous thrust.
A strangled scream tore its way from Erica's throat.
It was a sound of pure, undiluted horror. It was a sound that shattered the silence of the clearing. It was a sound that made every head snap in our direction.
Ten pairs of bloodthirsty eyes, fresh from a massacre, fixed on us. The leader's smirk widened, his eyes glinting with a dangerous light. The human element had found us.