The small box containing the golden curse coin lay visible, though covered with dust.
As Cetana spotted the box, her instincts, sharper than steel, kicked in before the others could react. In a blur of motion, she swept the box from the ground, cradling it against her chest. Her expression shifted from composed curiosity to urgent resolve.
She turned sharply, moving toward the elven captain, who was with his two companions.
"Take this," she said, her voice low but fierce. "Take the coin and leave this place—now. And don't worry about the coin's curse; I've heard that if you have the box, the coin demon won't harm you."
The captain glanced at her, his jaw tight with defiance. "Leave? I will not flee from this bastard shadow-elf." His eyes narrowed at Ankur, his grip tightening on the handle of his sword blade. "Let me show him the strength of a true Forest Elf."
"No!" Cetana hissed, stepping closer, her eyes blazing. "Don't do anything foolish. You don't understand the situation we're in right now. We have a wonderful chance to earn trust. If we lose this coin, we can't imagine what Deva will do to us!"
The captain's face twisted in frustration. "Then give me time i will finish this fight in few minutes," he growled.
But Cetana reached out, grabbing his arm. "This isn't your fight—not now. Protect the coin and box. That is your duty."
Captain Elven stared at Ankur.
Finally, with a reluctant nod, the captain pulled back. "Fine," he muttered through clenched teeth. He turned to his masked companions—silent—and gestured, "We need to move."
As they flanked him, Cetana pressed the box into his hands, whispering something in an ancient tongue. A command? Only she knew.
In the swirling chaos of the shattered hall, Ankur's gaze swept over the crumbling stone and fleeing figures—until it landed on one elf speaking urgently with Cetana.
The moment froze.
That face.
The cold, arrogant tilt of the brow.
The crimson memory now faded but unmistakable.
The memories surged like a tidal wave.
Flames devouring the trees. Screams in the night. The scent of burning flesh.
And above it all—that elf, standing tall, drenched in blood, his sword stained with the lives of the Black Shadow Elf villagers.
Elven captain of the Forest Elves.
The butcher and murderer of the Black Shadow Tribe.
Ankur's breath caught, his expression darkening into a storm of silence. His fingers clenched as the past screamed through his veins.
The captain turned, unaware, and vanished through the dust with Cetana's warning still echoing in his ears.
Cetana snapped at Ankur, her voice sharp and commanding, "What are you looking at?!" But Ankur didn't answer. His eyes were fire and frost—fixed on vengeance.
Then, Sunil moved.
With a confident smirk, he activated his storage space skill, a shimmering glyph swirling in the air. In rapid motion, several metallic orbs clattered into his hands, alongside a dagger, a sword blade, and an X-bow.
"Time to turn up the heat," he muttered with a smile.
He passed the X-bow to Ravin, who cocked it with a nod. Zahir tried to ignore the horrifying voice in his mind and drew his sword with a flourish. "Let's finish this with style."
Sunil hurled one of the small bombs toward Ankur—but it never reached him.
Thwip!
An arrow, fast as lightning, split the bomb mid-air in a flash of sparks and smoke. The explosion died in harmless flame.
From the fractured wall behind Ankur, a great form emerged with confidence—Beni the Centaur, his bow still smoking. "Oh, that useless forest elve weapon is working well for me now," the Centaur remarked.
And behind him, Ketaki, Meera, and Mohit rushed in, their eyes locked on their friend, Madhav.
Ankur didn't flinch. "Good," he said, his voice low but resolute. "You're here."
He turned his gaze to the trio of Ravin, Sunil, and Zahir.
"You four... stay here."
He looked to his companions—his eyes locking with Ketaki's, then Beni Centaur's.
"I have a different battle to finish."
Then, without another word, Ankur gave a sharp whistle. The Crocotta snarled beside him, ears flicking forward as it crouched low, muscles tensing like drawn cords.
"Follow," Ankur commanded, and they surged forward, pursuing the path the elven captain had taken.
In the silence that followed, only the distant echo of hooves and paws faded into the dark corridor ahead.
As "Sunil!"
He stepped forward with confidence, his blade drawn, his grin wide. Just before he could lunge after Ankur, Beni the Centaur thundered into his path.
Beni lowered his bow, his voice deep and resolute. "I think you forgot something, Sunil."
Sunil smirked. "Oh yeah," he said, cracking his knuckles. "We never finished what we started."
Behind them, Mohit ran toward Madhav, his eyes filled with urgency—but Zahir was faster.
"Don't move!" Zahir snarled, his sword pressing against Madhav's side. "You try anything, and I'll carve him like a fruit—piece by piece!"
Mohit immediately took a fighting stance, declaring, "If you do that, I'll fight you! Don't think I'm weak in a fight."
But the next moment, a voice rang out from behind Zahir.
"Hello, my friend Mohit," Madhav said calmly. "Did I miss something important?"
Zahir spun around in shock.
Madhav stood tall, the frayed remnants of rope dangling from his wrists.
"You—how?!" Zahir stammered. "You were tied—!"
"Oh," Madhav shrugged casually. "Your rope wasn't strong enough to hold my power."
Before Zahir could react, Madhav launched forward with a precise Sonic kick, knocking the sword aside. The two clashed in a blur of dust—Zahir's wild punch swings towards Madhav's use his skill Master Arts and Basic Fighting Style which result zahir punch attack not worked on madhav. Zahir's strikes were forceful, but unrefined—while Madhav countered every blow with calm precision.
Madhav punch rang on Zahir body result he can't able to dodge madhav attack. It's like Sparks danced in the air.
And Zahir began to realize —he was outmatched.
Meanwhile, Ravin, seen Zahir condition in fight, watching the tides of battle shift against them, turned to Cetana, desperation in his voice.
"Miss Cetana! We need to leave. Now."
Her eyes narrowed. Without a word, she turned to a glass showcase and lifted a glimmering crystal stone—engraved with runes humming with magical power. In that time ravin spotted a magical stone, and his interest immediately heightened. He thought to himself that his teacher had once spoken of this stone .He said that if any weapon or item were made from this magical stone-metal, its level would become extraordinary, or even higher, though at the time, he had only seen a photograph of it. He touched the magical stone-metal, but he realized it wasn't a good time to take it with him. After all, he had to help Cetana as well.
Cetana said loudly if my servent listening my please gather all magical items , books , scroll and weapon as much as possible and keep at safe place, than she hurled magical crystal stone, it to the ground.
CRACK!
The stone shattered in a flash of white light—and from the light emerged a massive stone golem, its shoulders broad as tree trunks, its body crackling with blue magical veins. It turned its hollow eyes toward the chaos, waiting.
Cetana raised her hand. "Protect us. Eliminate all threats."
The golem roared to life, slamming a stone fist into the floor. Dust exploded into the air. Without a glance backward, Cetana and Ravin left and vanished from the shop.
Mohit decid to move forward and follow the Ravin where he is going.
As the golem moved forward like a living mountain, Ketaki stepped forward, her hand outstretched. Meera turned to her in alarm.
"Ketaki, wait!"
"Don't worry, I'll handle this," Ketaki said calmly. Her eyes shimmered with light.
Elve magic lines tatoo Mark flared across her arms as she began to chant. The wind stirred.
Magic Manipulation, She summoned threads of raw energy from the air, weaving them through her fingers like silk. The vines on the walls writhed and lashed out at her call.
Nature Magic, Roots surged from beneath the cracked tiles, wrapping around the golem's feet to slow its advance.
The golem smashed a fist downward—but Ketaki whispered another incantation.
Illusion Magic, Her form blurred, splitting into three mirages. The golem's blow struck only air.
She stepped back, hands swirling with green and golden light. "Let's see what stone thinks of the forest," she whispered, her eyes glowing.
As Meera listened to Ravin's thoughts using her skill, she moved towards the magical metal stone to check it, ignoring Ketaki and the Golem's battle, thinking that Ketaki had said she could handle it.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the shattered hall, avicious duel raged in blood and fury.
Sunil, eyes sharp and breath ragged. In his hands, twin daggers gleamed like fangs in the firelight—his movements quick, unpredictable, laced with cruel precision. He lunged and spun, each strike aimed to slice tendons, pierce flesh, or cripple with speed.
Facing him was Centaur Beni, towering and immovable like a sentinel of ancient times warrior.
Sunil hissed as he struck, his blade slashing, his footwork flawless—yet Beni was faster. The centaur twisted and dodged with uncanny speed, his hooves skimming over the cracked marble. His massive bow sang with every draw, arrows thudding toward their target in rhythmic succession. Here Sunil try to dodge and wanted to throw same rope toward Centaur, but this time it's not work on Centaur beni.
"You're repeating yourself," Centaur Beni growled, his deep voice calm like thunder before a storm. "Same tricks. Same rope trying to capture me again.But you'll have to do better."
Here Beni the Centaur loaded an arrow onto his bow, channeling lightning and thunder magic, and aimed it towards Sunil. Sunil tried to dodge, but his arm was wounded by the arrow. The arrow then collided with the ground, spreading thunder and blue lightning that radiated energy throughout the surroundings.
Sunil snarled in frustration; his life was saved, but his arm was badly injured and bleeding profusely. With an angry reaction, he spun low, rolled, and again flung his binding rope, hoping to catch the centaur's legs. But Beni reared up with a violent snort, the rope missing by inches as hooves came crashing down, shaking the ground beneath them.
An arrow flew—then another—striking true.
Sunil stumbled back, three shafts embedded in his side and thigh, blood streaming. His breath came in ragged gasps, pain flashing across his face. Still, he refused to fall. He think in his mind that his chances of winning were slim given the circumstances. Still, I can't loose this battle easily.
"You beast," he spat, fury igniting in his gaze. "Fine. Let's see how you like this."
In desperation, he reached into the shimmering depths of his storage space, his fingers moving with manic speed. Dozens of small metallic spheres clinked into his palm—twenty in all.
With a sharp whistle, he flung them like seeds of chaos across the hall.
Centaur Beni's eyes widened in a mix of worry and shock.
The centaur reacted instantly. With an explosive burst of muscle, he launched himself high, hooves tearing into the air as he leapt clear over the blast zone.
BOOM!
The explosion tore through the room. Its blast affected Ketaki and the Golem's battle, as well as Madhav and Zahir's. Dust and debris erupted in a fiery maelstrom. The remaining walls also cracked and fell to the ground. Outside the shop, elves and other mythical beings in town also witnessed the destruction of the luxurious building, which was the town's main trade shop. Shelves of enchanted wares shattered. Flames licked the air, and the scream of breaking stone filled the chamber. Few servent dead body also there in ground because of boom blast effect.
When the smoke cleared, Sunil stood hunched, bloodied and burned, his clothes scorched and his entire face injured, yet still alive—barely.
And from the far side, Beni the Centaur emerged from the dust cloud, a silhouette against the firelight, his bow lowered—but his eyes burning with wrath.
"You call that a fight?" Beni growled, stepping forward with a serious voice. "You'll need more than smoke and tricks to bring me down."
Centaur Beni's voice thundered through the haze, firm and unyielding like the strike of judgment itself. He stepped over smoldering fragments of enchanted scroll , books , items and fallen relics. The once-glorious shop now lay in ruins—ash and flickering firelight dancing over shattered glass and broken steel.
From the rubble, Beni's sharp eyes caught something on the ground—a sword, its blade humming faintly with dormant power. He bent, gripped the handle, and drew it from the debris with reverence and fury alike.
Across from him, Sunil staggered back, eyes wide with the unmistakable sheen of death-fear. Blood still poured from his wounds. His limbs trembled.
"W-what are you doing?" he stammered, voice cracking.
Centaur Beni's gaze turned cold as the steel in his hand. "Did you forget," he growled, "when you killed the two innocent shadow elf soldiers? because of you and your other friends shadow elf village problem suffered a lot"
Sunil's face twisted in desperation. "Please… don't. I—I was ordered to! I didn't choose it! I have gold—500 pieces! I can give it all! You want gold, don't you?"
But Beni's eyes did not blink, did not soften.
"I don't want your excuses," he said, low and calm as an executioner's breath. "And I don't want your money which is covered with innocent blood. Whenever I need coin, I have Kamal—my friend, my brother. But now?"
His hooves scraped the cracked floor. His muscles tensed.
"I want to deliver proper justice to them and to the other innocent lives lost because of you."
With a final, thunderous charge, Beni surged forward.
Sunil tried to run, tried to scream, but it was too late. The blade pierced his body—and then again—and again. The sword struck eight times with grim precision, each blow a memory, a vengeance, a name carved into blood.
Sunil's eyes widened. His mouth opened, but no words came; only blood streamed from it, and his eyes were full of pain. Only a wet gasp, and the final thought echoing in his crumbling mind:
"I should've never taken this task. If that happened than I will still be alive…"
His body collapsed to the ground, a pool of blood surrounding him. As his last breath escaped, he died.
The flames crackled.
From the ruin of the shattered wall, Madhav emerged, dust-covered but alive—his eyes narrowing as they swept over the battlefield. He had saved Zahir, who, though dazed, was now breathing and not able to stand.
Madhav's gaze turned to Sunil's fallen body. As he approached, suddenly, in the quiet of his mind, a voice echoed:
"New Skill Acquired: Storage Space."
A vault within the void. A space where you can store anything—weapons, items, as much as you want.