Will stands like a statue, looking into Moster's eyes, then slowly With trembling hands, Will drew the slender sword hanging from the dead guard's belt. The moment the blade left its sheath, a faint metallic whisper echoed in the air. Surprisingly, despite its ornate design and strange origin, the sword felt unnaturally light--lighter than it looked--and perfectly balanced, as if it had been forged to match the grip of its wielder precisely.
Etched along the flat of the blade was the same eerie sigil Will had seen embroidered on the ceremonial robes of the dead: two curved hooks facing inward, sharp and organic, almost fanged in nature. It reminded him of something alive--something sacred and cursed in equal measure.
The very moment Will lifted the sword, as if his movement had triggered a chain reaction, the creature lunged.
From the darkness ahead, a grotesque monstrosity hurled itself toward him. Its jaw split unnaturally wide, sharp fangs protruding from torn flesh like tusks. Its eyes burned with hunger--not just for flesh, but for something deeper, darker. Will's breath hitched.
Adrenaline surged.
And just before the beast could reach him, Will swung.
With every ounce of strength he could muster, he brought the sword across in a desperate horizontal arc.
The blade sang through the air--a shrill metallic sound followed by a loud clang as it struck.
The creature was hurled backward from the impact--sent flying nearly two meters across the stone floor.
But the victory was incomplete.
Will stumbled backward, losing his balance from the momentum of the swing, and fell hard onto the cold stone beneath him. His hands shook. His chest heaved. And despite the blood now pouring from the beast's body, he could see that the wound was shallow--far from fatal.
The creature snarled, writhing in pain... but it wasn't dead.
Not yet.
Will forced himself to his feet, his body still trembling from both exhaustion and fear. His breath came in rapid bursts. His knuckles turned white around the sword's hilt. He knew--deep in his bones--that one more mistake would mean the end of him.
No more second chances.
He planted his feet firmly on the ground, bracing himself.
And the monster--like a rabid hound with nothing left to lose--charged again, ignoring its bleeding side, launching itself toward Will with reckless fury.
But this time, Will didn't let his fear win.
He waited.
Watched.
And just when the creature leapt into the air--its grotesque mouth wide open, flying straight toward him--Will lunged forward and *thrust*.
The sword drove cleanly into the monster's mouth and up through its throat.
A spray of black, acidic blood erupted from the creature's face, splattering the floor, the walls, and Will's already stained clothes. The beast let out a final, guttural screech before collapsing like a dropped marionette.
Dead.
Will stood frozen for a moment, the tremors in his limbs spreading to his knees. And then, the adrenaline began to fade--replaced by a wave of overwhelming fatigue. The pain, the fear, the shock… it all crashed down at once.
He fell to his knees, breath ragged, heart thundering in his chest.
Shaking, he yanked the sword from the creature's corpse, and as he did, a strange **golden light** shimmered at the edge of his vision. A glowing something, hovering in the air just above his eye level. But before he could even focus on it--
His gaze drifted toward the lake.
And his eyes widened.
A cold horror gripped his chest.
From the still waters of that blackened lake, more monsters were rising. Not dozens.
Hundreds.
One by one, then in clusters, they emerged--each one horrifyingly similar to the beast he had just slain. Their pale skin, twisted limbs, and gaping maws reflected the faint moonlight like death incarnate. The lake had become a birthplace of nightmares.
Panic surged through Will's veins like fire.
He turned and bolted toward the side wooden doors at the corner of massive gate, sword in one hand, blood dripping from his body, which he even doesn't know how it came.
He reached the threshold and slammed the doors shut behind him, trying to bolt them.
But he wasn't fast enough.
A violent impact struck the door from the other side--so powerful it launched Will several feet backward, sending him crashing into a column with a gasp of pain.
The doors creaked.
Then shuddered.
Then slowly, inevitably, began to open.
And through the widening crack, the monsters began pouring in.
A tide of death.
Without wasting another second, Will scrambled to his feet and ran--ran deeper into the castle, down the twisting hallways, through broken archways and crumbling corridors. His breath was ragged. His chest burned.
But the monsters were faster.
They didn't pause to feast on the corpses strewn across the ritual hall.
They only wanted him.
As if Will's scent--his flesh, his soul--was the only thing they craved. An irreplaceable delicacy.
No matter how fast he ran, they gained ground.
And then--
Pain.
A burning, searing agony tore through his leg. He screamed.
One of the creatures had struck, its claws raking through flesh, tearing a chunk of meat from his calf.
Will stumbled, nearly collapsing.
But the creature didn't follow up the attack.
Instead, it crouched low, gnashing its jaws and devouring the piece of torn flesh like a feral animal. Blood smeared its jaws, and the others--attracted by the scent--began fighting over the meat.
Their hunger distracted them… momentarily.
Will limped forward, dragging his wounded leg, barely keeping ahead of the swarm. His shoulder erupted in pain as another beast grazed him with its claws. Blood flowed freely, soaking his sleeve. But Will didn't stop.
He couldn't.
He had to survive.
His will to live burned brighter than the agony in his body.
He screamed as he ran, every step a defiance of death.
Until finally--
He reached the altar.
Staggering, broken, half-conscious, he collapsed onto it. His legs gave out. His arms dropped limp at his sides.
And around him, the monsters gathered.
Dozens.
Hundreds.
Circling.
Watching.
Waiting.
Will lay there, surrounded by the grotesque horde, his blood pooling beneath him. His vision swam. The edges of his world turned gray, then black. His heartbeat slowed.
And just before his eyes closed, through the veil of exhaustion and near-death--
He saw it.
The golden shining from earlier now turned into a screen, that floated beside him, glowing brighter than ever, pulsing with unseen power.
[HOST IS ELIGIBLE TO ENTER FIRST TRIAL]
Do you wish to proceed?
*Yes / No*
Will didn't need to read the message twice.
He already understood.
Somehow--somehow--he knew exactly what those words meant.
And in that moment, he also understood something else:
What had happened to him.
Where he was.
And what was coming next.