The fog hung thick over the mountain ridge, curling like smoke from a dying fire. Raizen's boots pressed against slick stone, the edge of the cliff just a step away. Every breath was visible, hanging in the chill air, and every faint noise—a falling leaf, a snapping twig—set Raizen's nerves on edge.
"Too quiet," Kaito muttered behind him, spinning his sword idly. "I hate quiet."
Haruka's eyes swept the fog like a predator scanning the underbrush. "Quiet is worse than chaos. It hides death."
Senji, crouched low on a boulder ahead, froze. A single finger rose, pointing toward the ridge. "Tracks. Small, deliberate. Not human alone. And webs—traps are set up ahead."
Raizen tightened his grip on his sword. "Good. We expected them. Stay alert. Move slowly."
They advanced cautiously. The narrow path twisted between sheer cliffs and dense brush. A misstep here would send someone plummeting into the valley below. Every shadow seemed alive. Every rustle whispered danger.
Then, it came.
A hiss, low and wet, slithered through the fog. Raizen barely had time to raise his sword as a figure lunged from the mist. The blade struck his shoulder, tearing cloth and flesh. Pain flared bright, hot, and immediate. Blood seeped down his arm, streaking his tunic in dark crimson.
He countered with a swift slash, cutting into the attacker's chest. The man screamed—a raw, ragged sound—before collapsing onto the rocks, blood pooling around him. Raizen barely had time to catch his breath as two more figures burst from either side, blades glinting.
Kaito sprang into action, shouting with reckless glee. He swung wildly, catching one attacker in the side. The man's ribs cracked with a sickening crunch, and blood spattered Kaito's face. He wiped it off with a grin. "Nothing like a morning warm-up!"
Haruka spun beside Raizen, her polearm slicing through another attacker's arm. The sound of snapping bone echoed through the fog. Blood sprayed across the rocks, dripping onto the narrow path below. She pulled the man into a shallow ravine, leaving him writhing in agony.
Raizen's next opponent was faster than the last, lunging with a fluid, inhuman grace. Their swords clashed violently, sparks flying as metal struck metal. Raizen felt the sting of a cut along his forearm, blood running down to the hilt. He countered with a feint, striking the man's thigh. A sickening crack—the femur shattered under the force. The attacker screamed, collapsing in the fog.
Senji appeared silently from the mist, cutting a rope trap set across the path. One of the attackers' legs was caught, snapping as he fell. "They're organized," Senji hissed. "This is more than random scouts. The main force is waiting further up."
Raizen took a ragged breath. His eyes scanned the fog. There was a rhythm to the attackers' movements, a calculated method. These weren't mindless ambushers—they were predators who learned, adapted, and tested their prey.
"Haruka," Raizen said, voice low. "Cover the left flank. Don't let anyone sneak behind us."
She nodded, spinning with deadly grace. Her polearm moved like an extension of her body, slamming into an attacker who tried to circle around Raizen. Blood sprayed in a fine mist, painting her armor. She glanced at him briefly, and their eyes met for a fraction of a heartbeat—a spark of connection amid the carnage. Raizen felt warmth rise in his chest, but he shoved it aside. Survival first.
Kaito, meanwhile, was dancing along the ridge recklessly, cutting and swinging with abandon. One attacker leaped at him from behind. Kaito barely dodged, losing his balance and sliding perilously close to the cliff edge. Raizen lunged, catching Kaito's arm and pulling him to safety.
"You need to stop showing off!" Raizen barked, his voice tight with concern.
Kaito grinned sheepishly, wiping blood from his forehead. "Where's the fun in that?"
Another wave of attackers emerged from the fog. These were bigger, stronger, moving with unnatural agility. Raizen and Haruka fought back-to-back, their movements synchronized without words. Every strike was lethal, every motion precise. Limbs were slashed, faces streaked with blood, and the fog seemed thick with the metallic scent of iron and fear.
Raizen felt a sharp pain in his side—one of the attackers had slashed him with a poisoned blade. He grit his teeth, ignoring the burning sting, and countered, cleaving through the man's neck. The scream ended in a wet, choking gurgle as the head hit the stones.
Haruka's arm was nicked, blood running down her forearm, but she didn't falter. She thrust her polearm into the chest of a man attempting to flank them, driving him backward into a tangle of branches. He gasped, coughing up blood, and collapsed, leaving a crimson trail across the rocks.
Senji darted along the foggy edges, silently cutting ropes, signaling hidden traps, and taking down foes with precise strikes. His movements were ghostlike, leaving the enemies no room to breathe.
The fight raged for what felt like an eternity. Raizen's vision blurred with sweat and blood, muscles screaming with exhaustion. One last attacker lunged from the mist—a hulking figure, larger than the others, teeth bared, eyes gleaming with malice. Raizen blocked the first strike, but the force knocked him off balance. Pain exploded across his ribs as he was slammed into a boulder.
Haruka reacted instantly, spinning her polearm and slamming it into the attacker's shoulder. A scream ripped from the man as the weapon sank deep, bone breaking with a sickening snap. Raizen recovered, striking at the creature's side. Blood sprayed across the rocks, the metallic smell thick in the fog. With one final thrust, the attacker fell, twitching violently before going still.
The fog settled. Silence returned, broken only by ragged breaths and the occasional groan of the wounded. The Tsuchigumo scouts had been defeated—for now. Blood coated rocks, armor, and weapons. Limbs were broken, wounds fresh, and exhaustion weighed on the group like a physical force.
Raizen knelt, pressing a hand to his side to staunch the poisoned cut. Haruka crouched beside him, cleaning her blade. Their hands brushed briefly while sharing a bandage, and this time neither looked away. The moment was fleeting but charged, the tension between them palpable.
Kaito wiped blood from his sword on the rocks, grinning despite his minor injuries. "Well, that was fun. Who's up for round two?"
Raizen scowled. "You almost got yourself killed. Focus."
Senji remained silent, eyes scanning the fog for any sign of remaining enemies. He crouched beside a tree marked with web-like carvings. "They left us a message. They know we're coming. And the main force… is waiting. Somewhere up ahead."
Raizen rose, gripping his bloodied sword. The ridge stretched before them, shrouded in fog and shadow. The Tsuchigumo had been patient hunters, testing them, learning from them. And now, the real danger awaited.
Haruka stood close, her presence grounding him, her eyes meeting his again. "We're not done yet," she said softly.
"No," Raizen replied, voice steady, though his chest still throbbed from pain and adrenaline. "Not by far."
The mountains closed in around them. Shadows shifted in the fog, and somewhere in the distance, the Tsuchigumo watched, waiting for the next move.
Raizen tightened his grip on his sword. This was only the beginning. And if they survived the next encounter, it would be because they fought smarter, harder, and bloodier than ever before.