The carriage rattled gently as it rolled over uneven earth, the thick canopy of the forest casting dappled shadows across the group. Inside, Arah sat with his back straight, and a thick, small book open in his lap, the same one Iane had insisted they study.
Pages rustled as he turned to the next section, his eyes scanning detailed sketches and notes on soul beasts found in the upper zones. He had already committed the creatures of the black and red zones to memory.
"You're quite the dedicated learner, aren't you? Already digging into the upper zones...quite paranoid, aren't you?" Iane said, glancing sideways with a small smile.
Arah didn't look up. "Just trying to be ready, that's all."
It wasn't paranoia, it was just basic preparation. The Association's rules had mentioned it, in its rules sometimes, that beasts from higher zones migrated into lower ones. That meant danger didn't always follow the map. If something went wrong, he wanted to be able to act, not freeze.
Iane leaned back and crossed his arms.
"By the way," he added casually.
Arah marked his place with a finger and glanced at him.
"What's your relationship with the old man Kren?"
It was an expected question. Kren had dropped him off at the Association gates earlier that morning, and it was no secret he'd once led Iane's team.
"...He's my guardian," Arah said.
Honestly, he had no Idea what Kren was to him. So being a guardian was not completely off the mark.
Iane raised a brow. "Why the hesitation?"
Before Arah could answer, Iane's eyes widened in horror.
"Wait, don't tell me he asked you to say that because he's secretly your father...?"
Arah's eyebrow twitched. Slowly, he turned to look Iane dead in the eyes.
"Do I look like Kren to you?"
Iane tilted his head, humming thoughtfully as he studied him.
Arah was slightly tall for his age, almost as tall as Terent and himself. That alone was impressive. But the kid's golden eyes were what stood out the most. They were piercing, sharp, and unsettling at times...like now, for example. They didn't belong with his expression, though. Arah had a deadpan look most of the time, so their beauty was wasted on him.
His hair was getting longer now; he was not sure why he was bald in the first place, but he could see a reddish tint coming in. His face was sharp-edged, clean, handsome, even though Arah seemed completely unaware or uninterested in that fact.
His skin held a faint tan, the kind you'd get from outdoor training, but there was still a paleness beneath it, as if the sun hadn't fully taken hold of his complexion.
In short, he looked nothing like Kren.
"Hmmm... I suppose you're right," Iane admitted, "but then again, you could've inherited more from your mother than your father. Who's to say?"
Arah sighed, rubbing his temple. He muttered under his breath, "Just what has Kren done for everyone to think I'm his son?"
Iane burst into laughter. "Well, my ma once told me Kren supposedly had a kid with some noble lady. Said the only reason he wasn't executed was 'cause she ended up marrying him.'"
He grinned. "And, well, the guy's best friend is the town's biggest pervert... Rumors kinda build themselves after that. People don't change that easily, you know?"
Arah blinked and returned his attention to his book.
People could change. They just needed something to motivate the change, and fear was a powerful motivator. And from what he'd seen, Kren feared his wife more than death, it seemed.
His gaze drifted across the carriage, landing on Sofise, who sat in the far corner, arms crossed and head turned away. She had been silent the entire ride, carefully avoiding Iane's attention.
Arah's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Fear... can be a big motivator for change, don't you think?" he said quietly.
Iane followed Arah's gaze toward Sofise and chuckled slightly."I just had a feeling she'd cause trouble with teamwork, given her attitude. I only told her to be more mindful, that's all."
A few moments later, the carriage came to a stop. Iane smiled and hopped off, and the rest of the team followed behind him.
The carriage driver glanced at them."You're at the eastern edge of the Black Zone outskirts. I'll be back in two days, same time, same place. Good hunt."
With that, he turned the carriage around and rode off, disappearing into the horizon.
As soon as he was out of sight, Iane clapped his hands."Alright. Our goal is to reach the inner part of the Black Zone and secure a safe spot before nightfall. We might run into a few beasts along the way, and I won't be helping unless it's something you absolutely can't handle."
His tone sharpened."I'm only here to observe and teach the newbie a few tricks. The rest is on you. Form whatever kind of formation you want, fight however you want, and figure out how you'll split the beast disks. Understood?"
With that, he turned toward the forest, and the group followed behind.
A few steps in, a calm and slightly mechanical voice broke the silence."Well... what kind of formation should we use?"
Tares had tapped the small book strapped to her waist. She also carried a set of gleaming daggers. No one responded; either they were unsure or simply unwilling to say anything. Arah sighed.
'This is going to be troublesome...'
He finally spoke up. "We can form a basic formation. Soul Weapon users take the front. Tares, you're a Beast Master, and your senses are the sharpest. Stay in the middle and be on the lookout. I'll cover the northeast side, Terent can take the northwest. Sofise, since you're our ranged weapon specialist, stay in the rear and support from a distance."
The others seemed to agree, shifting into the suggested positions. Iane, now several meters behind them, lazily tossed his gourd up and down as he walked. He had a small smile on his face, clearly enjoying the show.
One by one, the team summoned their Soul Paths. The only one Arah hadn't seen before was Tares's.
It was a massive bird, nearly half the size of a man. It looked like an owl, and its feathers burned with fire, and it had a long, flaming tail trailing behind it. The creature hovered above them, silent and watchful, already scouting the path ahead.
It reminded him of the mythical beast, the phoenix. The only difference was that it was way larger and was close to the size of a mountain, and that it looked more like a peacock
As they continued through the forest, Tares stopped and tapped her book."I see Dark Wolves ahead. I count six of them. They've noticed us and are heading this way."
Everyone immediately tensed, preparing for battle. Iane grinned."Good job... and good luck."
The moment he said that, he vanished.
'He's fast too,' Arah thought, tightening his grip on the spear and shifting into a ready stance.
A deep silence settled over the group as they waited for the wolves to appear. The only sound was their breathing.
Tares broke the silence.
"They're here."
No sooner had she spoken than the wolves burst out from the underbrush, sleek, black-furred beasts with glowing red eyes. They didn't hesitate as they sprinted straight for the group.
'They're close…' Arah glanced behind him and saw Sofise standing frozen, her eyes wide.
He frowned slightly. "Sofise. Shoot."
The command snapped her out of it. In one swift motion, she drew her bow, aimed, and loosed an arrow. It pierced the eye of the lead wolf, dropping it instantly.
The others skidded to a stop, then fanned out in a semicircle.
Sofise notched another arrow and took her shot, but this time, the wolf dove into its own shadow and dodged the shot. It vanished only to reappear a moment later with a snarl.
"This little.." Sofise seemed annoyed and shot another arrow, only to end up. With the same result.
"Sofise, focus on supporting the fighters and shooting through the gaps," Arah said.
Sofise gritted her teeth, ready to snap back, but her eyes flicked toward where Iane had been. She knew he was watching, and she didn't want to mess up in front of him.
Terent had already engaged two of them, blocking one with his dagger while slamming a punch into the ribs of another. Tares called her beast down from the sky, its flaming feathers lighting up the forest canopy, then drew her daggers and rushed to intercept another wolf alongside it.
Sofise stepped back, putting distance between herself and the front line as she fired another arrow that hit a wolf that had snuck behind Terent.
Three wolves had broken off and circled toward Arah.
Oddly, they didn't rush him immediately. Their growls were low and uncertain. Cautious.
'Strange… I'm not leaking killing intent. So why do they look hesitant to attack me?'
Their hesitation, though, was short-lived as the wolves dove into the shadows beneath them. They merged into dark blobs that streaked toward him at high speed.
Arah tensed and gripped his spear, eyes tracking the shifting black masses. A moment later and one of them surfaced, and it instantly attacked him.
With a slash of his spear. Blood sprayed across the floor as it dropped on the ground.
'One down.'
Another lunged from his blind spot.
But Arah had already pivoted, twisting his body mid-spin and thrusting his spear backward. The blade sank into the wolf's skull.
'two.'
A third followed just behind, as it jumped at him, jaws wide. But Arah met it with a forward thrust. It let out a gurgled yelp and collapsed.
As the wolves fell, their bodies began to dissolve into dark mist, soul energy gathering faintly from their corpses.
Then, Tares's mechanical voice rang out again:
"More incoming!"
Arah exhaled slowly and dropped back into position.