The Sovereign descended the narrow path toward the Tombs. The forest ahead was a jagged smear of mist and shadows, as if the world itself were holding its breath.
Percy kept his head low, boots crunching against wet soil. He believed he understood the nightmare realms now the patterns, the monsters, the way they tested you. Belief didn't make it true, but it helped him breathe.
"We'll be there shortly, guys. Stay on guard," Ruko said.
The others went quiet. The joking, easy-going tone they'd had an hour ago vanished. Faces hardened. Movements slowed. Every pair of eyes scanned the fog ahead.
The sudden shift still unsettled Percy. These people could go from laughter to grim silence in a heartbeat but maybe that was the only way to survive here. The nightmare didn't forgive softness.
He lifted his gaze from the ground to the Tombs in the distance. The soil had turned dark, almost black. The mist hung thick enough to muffle sound, and the trees ahead looked less like wood and more like the bones of some vast, ancient creature.
Something in his gut twisted.
He swallowed hard and stepped into the fog.
The group moved as one, close enough to hear each other breathe, careful not to drift too far. The silence was suffocating the kind that made your heartbeat sound too loud.
Then, movement.
A rustle behind him.
Percy started to turn, but it was already too late a serpent, its scales glistening with poison, lunged from the shadows, fangs bared for his throat.
Steel flashed.
Rain's blade cut through the air, clean and precise. The snake's head dropped to the ground, twitching, blood spraying across Percy's cheek.
He froze, heartbeat thundering.
Lane shot him a sharp glare. "Stay on guard, Perc." Then she turned and pressed forward, the group following without missing a beat.
Percy wiped the blood from his face and forced himself to keep moving.
"There they are!" Ruko shouted suddenly.
He thrust his hands forward, droplets of water gathering around his fingers before shooting out in rapid bursts.
From behind the trees, shapes lunged into view Astral Beasts. Wolves, but wrong. Their movements were too deliberate, their bodies humanoid under jagged armor. They carried rusted weapons, some still stained with blood.
They roared as they charged.
Percy barely had time to react before Lane's eyes gleamed.
A moment later, a hurricane exploded outward.
Wind howled through the clearing, sending trees crashing and Beasts scattering in all directions. The group stood back-to-back, surrounded by debris and whirling dust.
When the gale subsided, they moved without hesitation each member darting in a different direction, toward a different Astral entity.
Percy didn't think. He followed.
If he wanted strength, he'd have to earn it.
A dark shield shimmered into existence around his arm as he drew his blade from his back. An Astral Beast swung down at him with a jagged sword, the impact rattling through his bones. He gritted his teeth, absorbing the blow through the shadow barrier, then countered a horizontal slash aimed at the neck.
Silent Cut.
The skill tore through the air, carving a shallow line across the creature's throat. Not deep enough.
The Beast snarled and drove its fist toward his head. The shadow shield caught the strike, cracking under the pressure.
Percy stepped back, eyes narrowing. The shield rippled, reforming shifting shape. Darkness coalesced into a bow, string humming with energy.
He drew and released in one breath.
Arrows of shadow shot through the mist, one slamming into the Beast's leg, another into its neck. The third found its eye.
It screamed, blind and staggering. Percy dashed in, his blade arcing once more and this time, the neck gave way.
The creature fell.
[ You have slain an Astral Beast Entity ]
[ Your mastery over the falchion has risen +1 mastery ]
[ Your darkness is growing stronger +1 mastery]
Percy exhaled slowly, a faint smirk tugging at his lips. So that was how it worked. The stronger the enemy, the greater the growth.
A dangerous realization.
He wiped his blade and turned as Lane approached, the others already regrouping.
"Good job, Percy," he said.
Zero glanced deeper into the forest, her expression unreadable. "Though the trial isn't over."
Percy followed her gaze.
Something massive was moving between the trees each step crushing the ground, sending vibrations through the earth. Around it, a horde followed like shadows clinging to a giant.
'What? I could barely kill one, and now there's a horde of these bastards?' Percy thought eyes locked on the incoming horde.
"Luna! Kiyo! Now!" Lane barked.
The two mages dashed forward, lightning crackling around their hands. Bolts ripped through the darkness, tearing into the horde. The stench of burnt fur and scorched earth filled the air. Some Beasts dodged, but most screamed as they burned.
Then the leader appeared leaping from the treetops, landing with enough force to splinter the ground.
It wasn't just a Beast.
It was a titan.
Its body was covered in plates of black armor, muscles coiled beneath like iron cables. Its eyes glowed pale blue.
Lane met its charge head-on, blades clashing with a metallic shriek. The impact drove both back, snow and dirt exploding outward.
The titan kicked, sending Lane flying.
Rain raised her hands, summoning something from deep below. The ground cracked.
A creature of molten stone erupted upward, magma dripping from its shoulders a Lava Beast, its body pulsing with heat.
Percy stumbled back as a glob of molten rock splashed near his feet, burning a hole through the soil.
"What the hell is that!?" he shouted.
Lane didn't answer. He was already moving — a blur of steel. His blade met the titan's arm and carved through, slicing it clean off.
Zero stepped in next, frost gathering around her feet. The air turned sharp, biting. The titan's legs froze mid-motion. One strike later, its other arm fell away.
Percy steadied himself, forcing down the useless feeling building in his chest. He raised his bow again, shadows swirling.
Dark arrows rained across the titan's chest, exploding into black flame on impact.
Lane's figure flickered once, then appeared before the beast. One clean slash and the titan's head separated from its body.
It fell, the impact shaking the ground.
[ You have assisted in the slaying of the Astral Titan. Your skills grow stronger. +5 Mastery ]
Percy let out a slow breath, lowering his weapon. Around him, the mist stirred again.
The nightmare wasn't done yet. But for the first time…
he didn't feel afraid.