—Tony Baha—

  The cave reeked of smoke and scorched flesh.

  Burned-out orc corpses lay strewn across the stone floor, blackened shapes frozen mid-collapse. A rough line of them led straight through the mouth of the cave and ended at the back wall, as if something—or someone—had carved a path inward and simply kept going.

  Around the carnage, men and women moved with practiced efficiency. Some knelt beside the bodies, hands glowing faintly as they examined wounds and residue. Others paced the perimeter, scanning for lingering threats. Near the clearing outside, a woman bonded to a wolf spirit crouched low, sniffing the air and ground with unnerving intensity.

  At the entrance, the shattered remains of a crude palisade lay scattered—tree trunks split, charred, and thrown aside like kindling.

  Tony Baha stood amid it all, hands clasped behind his back. Scanning it all under his lucky Panama hat.

  A low chuckle escaped him.

  “He always did like forts.”

  A voice answered him, soft, amused, and far too close.

  “Who did, Sir Baha?”

  Tony turned and nearly collided with her.

  Amelia Rax Cleef stood inches away.

  Her long silver hair was braided neatly down her back, white-steel feathers woven delicately through the strands. She wore simple leather armor, yet somehow it made her presence all the more striking. She smelled faintly of frost and wildflowers, a combination that made Tony’s thoughts stumble. His body yearned to breathe her in, but his mind reined it back.

  He flushed.

  “I—ah—was referring to my protégé,” he said quickly.

  Her lips curved. “Oh?” she asked. “Is he handsome?”

  Tony let out a small, helpless laugh. “Ah…sure.”

  She giggled, light and melodic, and Tony felt the sound settle somewhere dangerous in his chest.

  “Well,” she said with a playful tilt of her head, “I hope I get to meet him someday. If nothing else, I could teach him a thing or two about combat.” She gestured toward the bodies. “These cuts are… enthusiastic. Sloppy.”

  “I’m sure you could teach him more than that,” Tony said, grinning before his better judgment caught up.

  The air changed.

  A sudden, crushing cold slammed into him like a physical blow. Tony’s breath hitched as gooseflesh erupted across his skin. His vision swam. Sweat beaded instantly at his temples despite the chill.

  He shivered.

  “Amelia.”

  The voice was smooth, controlled, and deadly.

  “Step away from that filthy Fifth Worlder.”

  Tony didn’t need to turn to know who it was.

  Elric Rax Valeron stood behind her—tall, broad-shouldered, impossibly composed. His silver hair was braided in the same style as Amelia’s, the same feathers tucked with ceremonial precision. Unlike her simple armor, his was intricate silver plate, polished to a mirror sheen, twin doves emblazoned across the chest.

  The face of a noble, but the eyes of a predator.

  Tony had met many nobles in his time. Most were nothing more than posturing peacocks bloated with rank and little else.

  Elric was not one of them.

  Elric was a monster.

  Amelia hesitated only a moment before stepping back. Anyone else might have been ignored. Elric was not anyone else.

  “He was just telling me about his companion,” she said lightly. “The one responsible for…this?”

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  Elric didn’t look at the carnage. To him, it was about as interesting as a child’s scribbles.

  “His companion is dead,” he said flatly.

  Tony’s heart seized. “You—you found his body?”

  A sharp cry cut through the cave.

  A white falcon swept down from above and settled neatly on Elric’s shoulder. Its eyes gleamed with intelligence disturbingly close to human.

  “The orcs chased him into the central forest,” Elric continued. “If he isn’t dead already, he will be soon.”

  He turned away, already dismissing the conversation, and gave a short whistle. His men began packing up immediately.

  “The…central forest…” Tony whispered, horror dawning.

  Amelia glanced back at him, sympathy flickering briefly across her face. “I’m sorry about your friend.”

  Then she followed Elric.

  Tony blinked, then surged forward, grabbing Elric’s arm.

  “Wait—please,” Tony said, voice cracking. “We can send scouts. Just a few. Give me a handful of men and some time. We can—”

  The impact came without warning.

  Elric backhanded him with casual force.

  Tony flew sideways, slammed into a tree, and crumpled to the ground. His ears rang. Stars burst behind his eyes.

  Elric loomed over him, gaze cold and unreadable.

  “Consider yourself fortunate to still be breathing,” he said calmly. “If Gabul hadn’t already gutted most of our inner ring, you wouldn’t be.”

  Tony swallowed hard, the taste of blood thick in his mouth.

  He had been a fool to ask.

  The central forest was a death sentence, especially now, when most of their strongest forces had already been annihilated.

  Tony lay there in the dirt, staring up at the canopy, one thought echoing in his mind over and over again:

  Barrett…you damn fool. What did you get yourself into?

  —

  Barrett walked beneath the canopy with slow, deliberate steps, counting his breaths the way Sensei Baha had taught him. In through the nose. Hold. Out through the mouth. The forest pressed in from all sides, not just with shadow and twisted roots, but with something heavier. A presence. It sat on his chest like a stone, a psychological weight that made him feel smaller and smaller.

  He glanced back at the others.

  Granny and Rei moved with their shoulders tight and their eyes sharp, both alert in different ways. Pippy looked the worst for wear. Her clothes were rumpled, her hair tangled, dark circles bruising the skin beneath her eyes. She cradled Grimm against her chest as she walked, fingers absently stroking his feathers. The little raven had become an anchor for her over the last few days. It was something warm and alive in a place that felt determined to swallow them whole.

  Only Maku seemed unbothered.

  For once, there were no orbiting mana spheres, no crackling displays of power. He walked with his hands behind his head, gaze drifting from fungus-covered trunks to curling vines, curiosity lighting his face like a kid wandering through a strange museum.

  Barrett cleared his throat. “You got any new mindset quotes for us, Pip?”

  She didn’t look up. “You don’t stay positive by pretending the dark isn’t there,” she said softly, still petting Grimm. “You stay positive by walking through it.”

  Barrett smiled despite himself. “What’s that from?”

  She hesitated. “I…made it up.”

  “Well,” he said, forcing cheer into his voice, “I like it.”

  The forest deepened around them as they walked—shadows knitting together, webs appearing between trees like careless traps. Barrett couldn’t decide what bothered him more: the enormous spiderwebs strung across their path…or the certainty that something was watching them the entire time.

  “You ever get scared, Mister Donovan?” Pippy asked quietly.

  “Every time I pass a mirror,” he said, barking a laugh at his own joke.

  A few groans answered him.

  Pippy smiled weakly, but the tension didn’t leave her eyes. The forest pressed harder on her than the rest. He slowed until he was walking beside her.

  “All the time,” he added, quieter now.

  She looked up.

  “But you don’t wait for the fear to leave,” Barrett said. “You get strong enough to face it.”

  She nodded, absorbing the words as they stepped into a small clearing.

  That was when the sound hit them.

  A low hum. A crawling, skittering whisper. Millions of tiny legs moving at once.

  Barrett froze. “What the hell is that?”

  Maku pointed upward.

  Red dots glowed in the canopy.

  Dozens of them.

  [Red Dot Spider — Level 13]

  [Red Dot Spider — Level 13]

  [Red Dot Spider — Level 13]

  [Red Dot Spider — Level 13]

  …

  Barrett sucked in a breath. “MOTHER OF FREEDOM AND LIBERTY!”

  Everyone stared at him.

  Maku laughed. “Sounds like someone’s scared.”

  The spiders dropped.

  Chirp—CHIRP! CHIRP!

  Grimm shrieked, feathers bristling.

  “I hate ’em too, buddy,” Barrett muttered, drawing his machete.

  “Team Donovan!” he shouted, voice cracking with adrenaline. “You have my permission to go ALL OUT!”

  The first spider hit the ground, and Barrett was already moving. [Blood Rush] ignited, gold fire racing through his veins as he cleaved it in half mid-lunge.

  [You have slain Red Dot Spider — Level 13]

  “NEXT—!”

  His warning died as [Iron Reflex] screamed. Another spider launched at his face. He barely brought the machete up in time, steel shrieking as fang met blade, then kicked the creature away.

  Fire roared to his left with Rei burning webs into ash, though the spiders’ thick hides resisted the worst of it. Maku’s spear flashed again and again, mana-wreathed throws punching clean through bodies.

  Pippy and Granny stayed tight in the center.

  “What should I do?” Pippy shouted.

  Barrett hacked down another spider, burning more of his [Blood Rush] than he wanted. Too many. Far too many.

  [Iron Reflex] screamed again—then again.

  He dodged, twisted, rolled, until one spider slipped through and sank a fang into his arm.

  “AAAAH!”

  Pain flared white-hot.

  That decided it.

  Barrett ripped the blade free, blood splattering the leaves, and roared—

  “TEAM DONOVAN! TACTICAL RETREAT—NOW!”

  The forest answered with skittering fury.

  And the fight was far from over.