The road from Marquis Hector’s fortress to the Forest of Beginning stretched endlessly, an unforgiving path riddled with hardship.


    Asael and his companions pressed forward, but the land seemed determined to break them.


    Monsters lurked in the undergrowth, watching, waiting.


    When night fell, glowing eyes pierced through the darkness—wolves with matted fur and hunger-driven madness, goblins dragging rusted blades across the dirt, insects the size of hounds, their mandibles glistening with venom.


    They came in waves, relentless.


    Blades slashed through flesh, lightning crackled, golden light seared through the swarm.


    Blood sprayed across the earth, thick and black, filling the air with the stench of burning bodies.


    The sounds of dying beasts mixed with their own ragged breaths, their bodies trembling from exhaustion.


    And then, there was hunger.


    The last of their supplies had run out days ago.


    Their stomachs twisted in agony, muscles sluggish, minds clouded.


    Asael, sustained by the divine energy coursing through his veins, pushed forward without faltering.


    But the others—


    Steven and Giren forced themselves to eat the meat of slain creatures.


    It was bitter, tough, and carried a sickening aftertaste of rot.


    They gagged with every bite but swallowed it down. Survival demanded sacrifices.


    Anne and Lily refused. Monster flesh was unnatural, tainted.


    Instead, they scoured the land for anything edible—roots, wild fruits, leaves that wouldn’t poison them.


    But the land was cruel, offering little.


    Some nights, all they had was water from the rivers they crossed, cold and thin, barely enough to keep them moving.


    Despite their suffering, they did not ignore those in need.


    Scattered across the path, they found refugees—families with hollow eyes, children clinging to their mother’s skirts, soldiers too wounded to wield a blade.


    They sent them to Sam’s fortress, the only sanctuary left in a world that was crumbling.


    But there was no sanctuary for them.


    Their journey had only one destination.


    And so, they pressed on.


    The moment they reached the forest’s edge, an unnatural chill crept over them.


    The trees loomed like ancient titans, their blackened bark twisted, their gnarled branches clawing toward the heavens.


    A thick mist clung to the ground, curling around their legs like spectral hands, moving with a will of its own.


    And the sounds—


    A distant howl.


    The chittering of unseen creatures.


    Somewhere, deep within, a scream—long, drawn-out, ending in a sickening gurgle.


    Kenta clutched the straps of his bag, his fingers white. “It feels like… the whole forest is watching us.”


    It did.


    The very air was thick, heavy with unseen malice, pressing against their chests.


    There was no turning back.


    Steeling themselves, they stepped into the abyss.


    At first, it was only an uneasy feeling, the sensation of unseen eyes tracking their every movement.


    The trees seemed to shift when they weren’t looking, twisting ever so slightly, warping the path.


    Then, the first attack.


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    A pack of goblins lunged from the undergrowth, their ragged clothes barely clinging to their skeletal frames.


    Daggers flashed in the dim light, their shrill cries ringing through the air.


    Asael met them head-on, his golden eyes burning like twin stars.


    His blade sang through the darkness, severing limbs, cutting through flesh with practiced ease.


    Steven followed, his sword crackling with lightning, reducing the creatures to smoldering corpses.


    Then came the wolves.


    Not ordinary beasts.


    These were massive, their fur bristling with shadowy tendrils, their eyes empty pits of darkness.


    One lunged at Lily, its jaws snapping just inches from her throat—only for Giren’s axe to cleave through its body in a single, brutal swing.


    Blood splattered across the ground, black and steaming.


    And still, the monsters came.


    Spiders the size of men scuttled from the canopy, their segmented legs clicking against the bark, venomous fangs dripping with hunger.


    Anne raised her hands, a burst of divine light exploding from her palms.


    The creatures shrieked as their exoskeletons cracked, light burning through their bodies like fire through dry leaves.


    The battle raged on, stretching into hours, their bodies aching, lungs burning.


    The deeper they ventured, the darker the world became.


    The thick canopy above smothered the last traces of sunlight, plunging them into an endless twilight.


    Their torches flickered weakly, swallowed by the oppressive gloom.


    And then—


    A tremor.


    The ground shuddered beneath them, a deep, unnatural vibration.


    In the distance, trees groaned, their trunks snapping like brittle twigs, crashing to the earth in an avalanche of splintered wood.


    Silence fell.


    Steven tightened his grip on his blade. “Something’s coming.”


    Then, something impossible happened.


    The monsters stopped attacking.


    They turned—


    And ran.


    A tide of creatures rushed past them, claws scraping against the earth, wings flapping desperately.


    Their howls, their screeches—they carried not rage, but terror.


    And then—


    BOOM.


    A tree exploded into splinters, its remains crashing into the ground just ahead of them.


    Through the dust and debris, a shadow loomed.


    A monstrous figure stepped forward, the earth trembling beneath its colossal weight.


    Thick yellow skin stretched over bulging muscles, each sinew pulsing with unnatural strength.


    It was a giant.


    No—something worse.


    A towering three-headed ogre, each grotesque face twisted into a different expression—rage, hunger, madness.


    Its six eyes gleamed, reflecting the dim torchlight, unblinking and devoid of mercy.


    In its massive hand, it gripped a club the size of a small tree, its surface lined with jagged metal spikes, dripping with fresh blood.


    The monster inhaled deeply, sniffing the air.


    A deep, guttural laugh rumbled from all three throats, vibrating through the forest like distant thunder.


    Asael barely had time to react.


    “Hide,” he whispered, his voice barely audible.


    The others obeyed without hesitation.


    Heartbeats pounding in their ears, they pressed themselves against the nearest trees, the rough bark digging into their backs.


    The ogre took another step forward.


    The earth trembled.


    ---


    Asael and his group held their breath, pressing themselves against the rough bark of the trees, their hearts pounding in their chests.


    The forest was eerily silent, save for the distant rustling of leaves and the low, guttural breathing of the beast that hunted them.


    The massive ogre stood in the moonlight, its grotesque form illuminated in a pale, ghostly glow.


    Each of its three monstrous heads twisted and turned, sniffing the air with flaring nostrils, its jagged yellow teeth gleaming as it exhaled in frustration.


    Its six eyes, milky and unfocused, scanned its surroundings, searching for the faintest movement.


    For a fleeting moment, it seemed to turn away, its hulking form shifting toward the deeper woods.


    Then, it stopped.


    The ground trembled beneath its massive footfalls as it pivoted, drawn by some unseen instinct.


    It lumbered forward, its heavy club dragging against the earth, carving a deep groove into the soil.


    Kenta stood behind that tree.


    He clamped a tiny hand over his mouth, squeezing his eyes shut, his whole body trembling.


    He could feel the heat of the monster’s breath, smell the rancid stench of rotting meat clinging to its skin.


    His legs refused to move.


    The ogre inhaled deeply, its nostrils flaring, and with a grunt of frustration, it raised its club high above its head.


    A moment later, the tree exploded.


    A deafening crack shattered the silence as wood splintered in all directions, shards flying through the air like deadly daggers.


    The entire trunk collapsed, crashing down with a force that shook the earth.


    Kenta, by some miracle, had instinctively dropped to his knees just in time, the monstrous weapon missing him by a hair’s breadth.


    He lay in the dirt, eyes wide, chest rising and falling in shallow, panicked breaths.


    But now, he was exposed.


    The ogre hesitated, its weak eyesight struggling to detect the small, trembling figure just beneath it.


    It grunted, its three heads turning in different directions, sniffing, confused.


    Kenta exhaled softly, his body loosening, the tension beginning to fade.


    Then—snap.


    His foot pressed against a brittle twig.


    The sharp crack echoed through the stillness like a death knell.


    The ogre froze.


    Its grotesque ears twitched, its six eyes narrowing.


    For a single, agonizing moment, time seemed to slow.


    Kenta’s breath hitched in his throat.


    His heart slammed against his ribs, his entire body frozen in sheer terror.


    Then, the club swung.


    The air around him howled as the sheer force of the swing carved through it, a monstrous force so powerful it felt as if the world itself was about to collapse upon him.


    His legs wouldn’t move.


    But in that instant—


    A flash of blue.


    Steven erupted into motion, his body a blur of lightning and speed.


    Sparks crackled around him as he lunged forward, his arms locking around Kenta’s small frame, yanking him away just as the club came crashing down.


    The earth exploded upon impact.


    A shockwave burst outward, sending dirt, rock, and shattered wood flying in all directions.


    The force alone knocked leaves from the trees, sending a ripple through the very forest itself.


    A massive crater remained where Kenta had stood just seconds ago.


    The ogre roared, frustration rippling through its three voices, a sound so powerful it rattled their bones.


    Its rage burned in its six glowing eyes as it stomped forward, each step reducing the undergrowth to pulp, shattering trees as if they were mere twigs.


    Lily’s hands trembled as she raised her bow, her fingers tightening around the string.


    The moonlight glinted off the arrow’s polished tip as she pulled it back, steadying her breath.


    She fired.


    The arrow streaked through the air, finding its mark—only to barely sink into the ogre’s thick, calloused hide.


    It was like trying to pierce stone.


    She gritted her teeth and fired again.


    And again.


    The ogre barely flinched.


    Desperation surged through her veins.


    Muttering an incantation under her breath, she thrust her hand forward.


    The earth responded.


    Vines erupted from the ground, thick as serpents, twisting and coiling around the ogre’s massive legs, constricting with unnatural strength.


    For a brief moment, the monster slowed.


    Then, with a brutal jerk of its muscles, it tore through them as if they were mere threads.


    The shattered vines whipped through the air, snapping apart with sickening cracks.


    “Damn it!” Lily spat, reaching for another arrow.


    Giren roared.


    The massive orc charged, his muscles rippling with raw power as he latched onto the ogre’s leg, digging his feet into the ground, trying to hold it in place.


    His grip was like iron, veins bulging from his arms.


    The ogre glanced down.


    And then, almost amused, it simply lifted its foot and kicked.


    Giren was sent hurtling through the air like a ragdoll, smashing through trees, his body carving a path of destruction through the forest.


    He landed hard, blood splattering from his lips as he gasped for breath.


    The ogre didn’t hesitate. Its club swung next, descending toward Giren like an executioner’s blade.


    But Asael was already there.


    Steel met wood in a blinding flash.


    The impact sent a shockwave through Asael’s arms, rattling his bones, sending sparks flying into the darkness.


    His boots scraped against the dirt, his knees bending under the monstrous force.


    His muscles screamed in agony, but he refused to yield.


    Then, the ogre’s fist came next.


    A massive, calloused hand slammed into his ribs with bone-crushing force.


    A sickening crack echoed through the air.


    Asael’s vision blurred as pain exploded through his body.


    He was sent flying, his body tumbling through the undergrowth before slamming into the dirt with a heavy thud.


    Blood dripped from his lips.


    Steven placed Kenta down gently, his gaze hardening as he turned to face the monster.


    Electricity crackled around his blade.


    Anne clasped her hands together, golden light enveloping her form, magic pulsing at her fingertips.


    Giren groaned, wiping blood from his mouth, his grip on his axe tightening.


    Lily steadied her aim, eyes burning with determination.


    Asael forced himself up, spitting blood onto the ground.


    His body trembled, but his golden eyes blazed with unyielding resolve.


    The three-headed ogre bellowed, its roar splitting the night.


    And the battle truly began.