After leaving Kai and Mira, Ashen followed the traces of the Elderwood Beast. The trees cast patchy shadows, the ground was soaked in mist, yet the giant footprints of the monster were still clearly imprinted in the earth.
But then… he abruptly stopped.
A thought flashed through his mind:
Why am I even looking for it…? It'll come find me.
The moment that thought ended, a massive shadow lunged out from the left.
The Elderwood Beast's deformed right arm swung down like an axe, tearing through the air. Ashen barely had time to turn his head — his reflexes couldn't match the creature's terrifying speed.
Bang!
A dry explosion echoed. But right then, Ashen's left eye lit up with a violet glow.
In an instant, his body vanished from the spot.
The strike smashed into the ground, creating a massive crater as shards of rock flew into the air. The Elderwood Beast let out a screech, lifting its head in confusion.
Behind it, a cold voice rang out:
— "I thought raw strength alone would be enough to dodge your attacks… or fight back."
Ashen stepped out of the smoke, half his face smeared with blood, a deep cut slashed across his cheek.
— "But I was wrong. You're strong."
He clenched his fist. His left eye continued to shimmer with purple light.
— "Then I'll go all in."
At that moment, the Elderwood Beast roared again. This time, it charged on all fours — its speed doubled. It rushed forward like a storm born of the green forest.
Ashen stood still, watching.
Still charging… same path, same rhythm.
Left arm…
He leaned sideways, then suddenly dashed toward the creature's left side — as if provoking it. Just as he expected, the Elderwood Beast raised its right arm and slammed it down with deadly force.
Right then, Ashen dropped low, sliding along the ground, dodging the strike by a hair's breadth. His left eye flared again — and in the blink of an eye, he teleported onto the monster's back.
But the beast was far from finished. It let out a furious howl and began thrashing violently, trying to hurl the intruder off its back.
Ashen nearly slipped off, but managed to grip one of the large sunflowers growing from its back. Strangely — the flowers wrapped around his arm. Not to restrain him, but as if helping him stay on.
No time to wonder why.
While the beast flailed, Ashen held tight to the flower, then raised his other hand to the creature's chest.
— "Burn!"
A surge of flame erupted from his palm, blasting straight into the monster's chest. It screamed in pain, rearing backward.
Ashen seized the moment, released his grip, and leapt from its back — his gaze unwavering, his breath heavy, watching it burn.
He landed, rolled to absorb the impact, then stood up. His eyes locked on the Elderwood Beast, which was still howling behind him.
The flames continued to blaze from its chest. Scorched skin crackled, and twisted flesh shriveled as it melted under the heat.
Ashen spoke in a steady, low voice:
— "This time… the fire won't go out so easily."
But then his eyes narrowed.
From the very spot on the monster's back where Ashen had leapt down — black vines began to sprout. They slithered like snakes, twisting and wrapping around the burning wound.
Ffftt…
The fire went out.
Ashen took a step back.
— "Damn it…"
But it didn't stop there. The vines spread further, coiling around the Elderwood Beast's entire body. From a skeletal figure wrapped in skin, the creature began to reshape — sinewy vines tightened around its bones, building up and reinforcing its frame. Its entire form started to change.
It was no longer a frail, starved creature.
It had become a towering monster clad in living armor, as if a nightmare warrior had stepped out of some cursed dream.
Ashen swallowed hard.
The being before him was no longer the skin-and-bone creature he'd fought before. Vines had covered its body, forming bark-like armor as ancient as the deepest forest. Its frame was massive, muscular, as if carved from the forest itself — a true giant. A predator born from nature's darkest shadows.
Ashen hadn't even had time to brace himself before the beast's eyes locked onto him.
A crushing pressure swept over him like a tsunami, smashing into his chest. He couldn't move. The weight of it made it hard to breathe. The air around him seemed to solidify — his knees trembled under the pressure.
— "What the hell… kind of pressure is this…?"
And then — the Elderwood Beast vanished.
No sound. No warning.
Ashen flinched. The forest around him was unchanged — but the beast was no longer there.
— "Where did it go…?"
A gust of wind, sharp like a blade, hissed behind him.
Ashen sensed something.
BOOM!
A strike like a meteor smashed into him.
All sound inside his head went silent. His spine cracked like splintered wood. His left arm went completely numb. His right leg bent at an unnatural angle.
Ashen flew backward like a dry leaf caught in a forest storm. His body scraped across the ground, carving a long, bloody trench.
At that very moment, in another part of the forest…
Mira and Kai had arrived at the place they called the Sinkhole.
Kai gently set me down at the edge. The whole area glowed with the flickering light of bizarre bioluminescent trees — translucent trunks, leaves swaying like beckoning hands. Some glowed blue, others gave off a strange, alluring purple hue.
At the center was a massive hole — deep and pitch black, as if something had clawed it out of the earth with monstrous talons.
Kai pointed at it:
— "This is where we'll ambush it."
I turned to him and asked:
— "What's the deal with this hole?"
Kai answered, his voice guarded:
— "Ashen and I found it when we first set up base here. At first, we thought it was just weird terrain, but the more we investigated… the more it felt off."
— "Something used to live inside."
I stiffened slightly, eyes fixed on the gaping dark pit before me:
— "You mean… another monster? One that lived here — inside the territory of the Elderwood Beast? That means… it must've been strong…"
Kai nodded:
— "Yeah. But don't worry. It's moved elsewhere."
I let out a soft breath, feeling a bit relieved.
Kai continued:
— "Still, I don't know exactly what it was. Strange things like this… Ashen usually handles the digging."
I fell silent.
The forest wind slipped through the leaves, whispering faintly past my ear.
— "Ashen…"
I whispered his name.
No one knew — that at this very moment — Ashen lay alone in the underbrush, hovering on the edge of life and death.