The guy with the dual blades was still staring at Darius like he'd just caught a thief.
"Why so quiet?" he said, stepping closer. "You're from the main branch, right? You people act like you own everything."
Darius didn't respond. He didn't know this guy. Didn't want to. And frankly, he wasn't interested in proving anything to a random cousin over one damn stone.
The forest around them stayed still. Darius could hear faint shouts in the distance — other fights already going down. But here, it was quiet. Too quiet.
"Look," Darius finally said, "I'm not here to fight. You want a stone, go get one. I haven't found any yet."
"You expect me to believe that?" the guy scoffed.
He pulled one blade halfway out of its sheath. Ki sparked faintly along the edge. Not Tier C-level control, but not trash either.
Darius sighed. "Bro, seriously. Do you think I care enough to fight for a rock?"
But the guy wasn't listening. Paranoia had already kicked in. Maybe he thought Darius was trying to sneak up and steal his kill or something. It didn't matter.
A second later, the guy lunged.
Fast, but not sharp. Wild movement, too much wasted energy.
Darius slid sideways, foot barely scuffing the dirt. The blade missed him by a hand's width.
He didn't attack back.
Instead, he grabbed a handful of dust and flung it into the guy's eyes. Cheap move? Maybe. Effective? Definitely.
The guy staggered, swearing, wiping his eyes. Before he could fully recover, Darius vanished into the brush.
Let the idiot chase someone else.
Ten minutes passed. Maybe more.
Darius moved deeper into the forest, where the terrain dipped into a weird slope. The ki here felt off — heavier, like breathing through wet cloth. He kept low, slow steps, eyes scanning the ground.
The Boundless Nexus pulsed softly.
[Camouflage Field Active – Host Untracked]
[Passive Ki Drain: 0.4/hr – Stable]
[Remaining Stones: 3/5]
[Host Ki Tier: D (82%)]
[Root Condition: Stable Growth – No mutation detected]
"Mutation, huh," Darius muttered under his breath. "I don't even know what that's supposed to mean."
He pushed a branch aside and stepped into a hollow clearing. Right in the middle, half-buried under a cluster of glowing stones, was a faint red orb.
He blinked.
This wasn't like the other stones the clan described. This one was… darker. Warmer. Pulsating faintly, like a weak heartbeat.
For a moment, he hesitated.
Then he heard footsteps again. Not loud. Careful.
He immediately dropped low, behind a rock.
From the shadows came another cousin — a girl this time. Slim, fast, hair tied back tight. Iris.
Darius groaned internally.
Iris wasn't loud like Revan or aggressive like Theo. She was worse — observant, calculating. If she saw him here, she'd remember it forever.
She walked into the clearing and stopped dead when she saw the orb.
Even from where he hid, Darius could see the change in her posture.
She didn't grab it. She just stared.
After a few seconds, she muttered, "What the hell is this?"
Darius narrowed his eyes. So, she didn't know either. That was… interesting.
Eventually, she took a step closer. But as she did, the orb pulsed — stronger this time. Like it recognized her presence.
Suddenly, the ground beneath it cracked.
A small explosion of red light burst upward.
Darius ducked. Iris stumbled back, shielding her face.
When the light faded, the orb was gone.
In its place, there was a mark scorched into the ground. Strange circular lines — almost like a formation seal.
"What kind of joke is this?" Iris muttered, backing away now.
Darius didn't move. He wasn't sure if what he just saw was dangerous, or a reward, or something in between. But his gut told him one thing:
That thing wasn't supposed to be there.
Not in a clan trial. Not in a contained forest zone.
Something else had been placed here.
Or worse — something was waking up.
Later, Darius circled back toward the inner zone. He finally spotted one of the proper glowing ki-stones — the kind they were supposed to retrieve.
Two cousins had already knocked each other out nearby. Perfect.
He walked over, checked for traps, then picked it up.
[Quest Item Obtained – Return to Base]
Time Remaining: 1 hour 43 minutes
He didn't celebrate. Didn't pump his fist. Just slipped the stone into his robe and turned back.
The return path was slower. More chaotic. At least three more fights broke out along the way. Darius avoided all of them. Let the others tire themselves out. If anyone saw him walking with the stone, they didn't stop him.
By the time he stepped out through the forest gate, the sky was already dark.
Elder Mira was waiting, arms folded, with two guards beside her.
Darius handed her the stone.
She raised an eyebrow. "You didn't break anything, did you?"
"Just expectations," he replied, dead serious.
Mira snorted. "Hmph. Go rest. We'll announce the final five tomorrow."
He nodded and left without another word.
Back in his room, Darius sat on the floor, staring at the wall. The Boundless Nexus popped up again.
[Ki Tier Progress: D – 85%]
[Notable Observation: External Object Interference Detected]
[Mark Source Unknown – Caution Recommended]
[Root Stability: Holding]
Darius exhaled.
"That orb... whatever it was… someone's going to ask about it."
But he knew something no one else did.
He wasn't going to talk.
Not yet.
Not until he understood what kind of mess he'd just stepped into.