The forest was quiet that morning, though not in the way that brought peace. It was the kind of calm that settles before a storm.
Kiyoshi followed in silence, boots crunching against damp earth. Ceng-tae moved ahead of him, his broad shoulders brushing aside branches that seemed eager to part for him.
"Where are we going?" Kiyoshi asked, though he kept his voice low.
Ceng-tae did not turn. "You'll see soon enough. Just keep your eyes sharp."
That was all he said, and for the next stretch of the walk, the only sound was the soft thud of their footsteps and the murmur of distant streams.
Eventually, the trees parted to reveal a clearing. Dew clung to the grass like scattered jewels, and a small fire pit sat in the center, ringed by stones. It looked too deliberate to be natural.
Ceng-tae stopped at the edge and finally turned to face him. His expression was calm, unreadable.
"This is where your test begins."
Kiyoshi blinked. "Test?"
"Now, I know what I said before, and you have earned the right to go to the village. But think of this as the rites of passage. After all, you came to us with no memory of who you are, no proof of what you claim."
Ceng-tae gestured toward the clearing. "So we'll let the forest decide. Survive here until dawn. No more, no less."
Kiyoshi frowned. "Survive? That's it?"
A faint smile touched Ceng-tae's lips. "You sound disappointed."
"I just… it doesn't sound hard."
"Then you misunderstand this place." Ceng-tae's smile faded.
Kiyoshi opened his mouth to argue, then shut it. Something in Ceng-tae's tone — that quiet certainty — left little room for debate.
The older man stepped closer, placing a heavy hand on Kiyoshi's shoulder.
"Listen carefully. Use what strength you must, but remember this: strength uncontrolled is just destruction. Do you understand?"
Kiyoshi hesitated, then nodded.
"Good." Ceng-tae released him and stepped back into the shadows of the trees.
"Survive, and I'll call you a man of this village. Fail, and... well, we'll see when we get there."
And with that, he was gone.
At first, it was simple. Kiyoshi built a fire from dry twigs, though it took him far too long to spark a flame. He gathered berries he hoped weren't poisonous, and even sharpened a spear from a branch off a tree. But after a while, the forest seemed to have shifted.
It was subtle at first — a wind through the branches. But then Kiyoshi realized the sound of insects and birds had gone silent. Even the fire popped quieter, as if the flames were wary of something.
Kiyoshi's hand tightened on the rough spear he'd fashioned. His eyes swept the tree line, instincts prickling like a warning bell.
A branch cracked. Not the snap of a squirrel or deer — heavier. He felt it in his chest... the weight behind it.
The shadows moved.
It burst from the undergrowth in a blur, with claws — too fast, too real to react to. Its eyes glowed with sickly blue light, and veins pulsed across its body like molten cracks in stone.
Kiyoshi raised his spear just as it lunged. The wood shuddered on impact, nearly torn from his grip. The beast snarled, a wet, guttural sound, and with a twist of its neck, the crude weapon splintered like kindling.
Too strong. Too quick.
Kiyoshi backpedaled, heart pounding. He fought back the feeling of fear as a shimmering blade of light-solid steel snapped into existence in his hands. He swung.
The sword met the beast's claw with a screech. Sparks showered. For a heartbeat, he held his ground — then the blade fractured, shattering into shards that fizzled into the night air.
The recoil jarred up his arms, leaving his palms stinging and raw. The beast's eyes narrowed, and with that simple look, Kiyoshi understood: it had recognized him as prey.
His pulse began to roar louder, but his thoughts cut clean through the fear.
Direct force won't work. I need to think. Adapt. Use what I know.
He rolled aside as the beast slashed again, thoughts already weaving mana into form. A round shield materialized on his arm, rim etched with crude patterns he barely remembered from watching Ceng-tae's tools.
The creature's strike smashed into it, hurling him back into the dirt. The shield cracked, buckling inward. Kiyoshi coughed, tasting blood.
He struggled to his feet, grip tightening. Calm, controlled — but inside, he knew he was at a disadvantage.
The beast circled, breath steaming in the cool night. Kiyoshi steadied his breathing, forcing his hands to stop trembling. Another sword would break. Another shield would crack. He needed time — time to think.
The beast lunged again, claws raking.
Kiyoshi thrust out his palm as a bow snapped into existence. He pulled back, forming an arrow mid-draw, and loosed it in one motion. The shot struck the creature's shoulder, a flare of mana bursting on impact.
It staggered, snarling, but the arrow had barely slowed it down.
Too shallow. Not enough force.
It barreled through the smoke, closing the distance.
Kiyoshi cursed under his breath and backstepped, nearly tripping on a root. He dropped the bow, called forth another spear—longer, heavier—and jabbed it forward.
The point bit into the beast's hide, but instead of piercing, the shaft splintered again under the sheer weight of the charge.
Kiyoshi flew back, tumbling through dirt and leaves. His breath hitched. His arms ached.
From the treeline, Ceng-tae didn't move. His face unreadable, he watched.
Kiyoshi wiped the blood from his lip, forcing himself up again. Brute force was a dead end. His constructs were hollow imitations, lacking the true density and refinement of real steel. They were sandcastles against a tide of stone and fury.
And still, the monster didn't relent. It lowered itself, coiled like a spring.
Kiyoshi's mind raced.
If weapons won't hold, then the environment will. Think, Kiyoshi. Rope. Trees. Terrain. Use what you know.
He steadied his stance, his eyes flicking around the clearing to memorize distances, shapes, and angles.
The beast snarled, but he didn't look at it. For the first time since the fight began, his focus was elsewhere.
The corner of his mouth lifted.
In a sudden burst, the beast lunged. But instead of summoning another sword, Kiyoshi's fingers flashed, and a rope appeared in his hands as he sidestepped the charge. The cord stretched taut in his grip.
He'd ducked under a low branch and lashed the rope around it in one swift motion. As the monster whirled toward him, Kiyoshi yanked the rope tight.
The branch snapped down, whipping across the beast's face with a crack like thunder.
It staggered, not badly wounded, but slowed.
Kiyoshi exhaled, calm despite the blood trickling from his brow. His mind ticked like clockwork:
It reacts fast, but it doesn't think. Force against force won't work. I need misdirection.
He pulled another construct from memory: a handful of small shards, simple triangles of steel, and scattered them across the dirt in front of him. Crude caltrops.
The beast roared and lunged again, but its weight betrayed it. It crashed onto the shards, paws slicing open. The smell burned his nostrils.
Corrupted mana…
Kiyoshi didn't linger. He darted sideways, forming another rope, this time flinging it wide to snag the beast's leg as it stumbled.
He pulled with everything he had, muscles screaming, and the creature's weight toppled it sideways into a tree trunk. The bark exploded under the impact.
For a heartbeat, it stayed down, thrashing against the rope. Kiyoshi planted his feet, bracing himself. His arms quivered. His lungs burned.
But the rope snapped, unraveling into sparks of mana.
The beast rose again, enraged, glowing veins pulsing faster now as if feeding off its own fury. Its eyes locked on him with a murderous glow.
Kiyoshi swallowed hard, forcing a grin anyway.
"You're a tough bastard, huh…"
His chest throbbed. His makeshift tactics had slowed it, but not stopped it. He could feel his margin of error shrinking with every breath.
His gaze swept the trees again, mind sharpening. He still had options.
If I can't overpower it…
Then I'll trap it.
To be continued...
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