The deeper they moved into the forest, the heavier the air became.
Raze slowed his pace instinctively. The signs Elden had mentioned—carved markings on trees, broken branches, scorched ground—were everywhere now.
"We're close," Tamao whispered.
Rina nodded, eyes sharp. "Too close."
They advanced carefully.
Then—
They stopped.
At the center of a small clearing lay a massive corpse.
The Solbeast.
Its body was torn apart—not cleanly killed, but brutally shredded. Deep gashes covered its torso, bones exposed in places. One of its horns had been snapped clean off.
Silence fell over the group.
"…It's dead," Tamao said softly.
Rina crouched, examining the wounds. Her expression darkened.
"This wasn't done by a team," she said. "And not by a low-grade beast either."
Raze's eyes narrowed.
The ground around the corpse was cracked. Trees nearby had been clawed through, not broken—cut.
Then he felt it.
Pressure.
Heavy. Overwhelming.
"Hide," Raze said quietly.
No one questioned him.
They moved instantly, slipping behind thick trees and broken stone, suppressing their presence as much as possible.
That was when it appeared.
Something massive moved at the edge of the clearing.
Its silhouette alone dwarfed the Solbeast's corpse.
Black fur streaked with dark crimson lines. Eyes glowing a deep, predatory red. Its claws dug into the ground with each step, leaving gouges behind.
A Grade V Duskbeast.
Rina's breath caught.
"…That thing killed the Solbeast."
The beast lowered its head, sniffing the air.
Hunting.
Searching.
Raze held his breath.
Then—
His eyes shifted.
Something was wrong.
His grip tightened.
"…Mia?" Raze whispered.
No response.
His gaze flicked across their hiding spots.
Tamao was there. Rina was there.
But—
Mia Vareen was gone.
At the same moment—
The Grade V Duskbeast lifted its head.His grip tightened.
"…Mia?" Raze whispered.
No response.
His gaze flicked across their hiding spots.
Tamao was there. Rina was there.
But—
Mia Vareen was gone.
At the same moment—
The Grade V Duskbeast lifted its head.
At the same moment—
the Grade V Duskbeast lifted its head.
Its glowing eyes shifted.
Slowly.
Deliberately.
They fixed on the direction where Tamao and Rina were hidden.
The beast's body lowered, claws digging into the soil as it began to move. Each step was heavy, deliberate, crushing leaves and stone beneath its weight.
Rina's breathing slowed.
Behind them—
Raze observed.
No change in expression.
No hesitation.
He adjusted his grip on the dagger.
The distance.
The wind.
The beast's rhythm.
Everything registered instantly.
The Duskbeast stopped.
Sniffed the air.
Then crouched.
Muscles coiled.
It was about to strike.
Raze stepped out from the shadows.
Just one step.
Enough.
The pressure in the clearing shifted.
Raze stepped forward.
The cold spread quietly, subtle enough that it didn't scream power—but deliberate enough to be felt.
Frost traced the ground beneath his feet.
Rina noticed it first.
Her eyes flicked toward him, sharp with recognition.
Tamao felt the chill a moment later and stiffened slightly, but she didn't speak.
Raze raised his hand.
Mana gathered—compressed, precise.
Ice formed.
Thin slashes shaped from condensed frost hovered for a brief instant before shooting forward.
The Grade V Duskbeast reacted immediately.
It twisted its massive body aside, claws tearing into the earth as it avoided most of the attacks. Ice blades carved into trees and stone behind it, leaving clean, frozen cuts.
Fast.
The beast snarled and leaped again.
Another slash followed.
This time, it wasn't fast enough.
One blade grazed its side.
The cut wasn't deep—but frost bloomed across the wound, spreading outward as the beast landed heavily, growling in irritation rather than pain.
It wasn't defeated.
Just injured.
The Duskbeast lowered its stance, eyes glowing brighter as it stared at Raze.
Tamao's grip tightened on her chains.
Ice…?
She glanced at Raze again, confusion flickering across her face.
Rina's expression shifted only slightly—but her gaze lingered longer than before.
So he can use ice magic too.
Raze didn't look back at either of them.
His attention stayed locked on the beast as cold mana continued to circulate around him, controlled, restrained.
The Grade V Duskbeast moved first.
It exploded forward without warning, claws ripping through the ground as its massive body closed the distance in an instant.
Fast—far faster than before.
Raze didn't step back.
Ice surged.
A frozen wall formed in front of him just as the beast's claws struck.
Crack.
The impact shattered the ice, fragments scattering through the air, but the attack slowed—just enough.
Raze shifted sideways.
The Duskbeast's jaws snapped shut where his neck had been a moment earlier.
Cold gathered around Raze's arm.
He swung.
A wide arc of compressed ice tore through the air and struck the beast's shoulder.
The sound was sharp—metal scraping stone.
The beast roared, staggering as frost spread rapidly across the impact point, freezing muscle and fur together. It twisted violently, tearing itself free at the cost of skin and blood.
It didn't stop.
It couldn't afford to.
The Duskbeast lunged again, desperation creeping into its movements.
Raze exhaled slowly.
Multiple ice slashes formed at once—denser, sharper, faster.
They fired.
One tore across its flank.
Another cut into its hind leg.
A third slammed into its chest, detonating in a burst of freezing air.
The beast crashed into the ground, skidding across dirt and broken roots.
For a moment, it stayed down.
Then it rose—unsteady, breathing heavily, frost crawling along its wounds.
Its glowing eyes locked onto Raze.
Not with rage anymore.
With caution.
Fear.
The Duskbeast took a step back.
Then another.
Low growls rumbled from its throat as it slowly retreated into the trees, disappearing into the forest with heavy, uneven footsteps.
Silence returned to the clearing.
Raze lowered his hand. The cold receded.
Tamao released a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.
Rina didn't speak—but her eyes never left Raze.
He hadn't chased it.
Raze stepped back toward them, eyes still on the direction the beast had fled.
"It's injured," he said.
Tamao stiffened. "Then—?"
"You can handle it," Raze replied, voice calm, certain.
Rina looked at him sharply. "You're not coming with us?"
Raze's gaze shifted briefly toward the clearing behind them.
"I will," he said. "After I finish something."
A pause.
"Don't hesitate," he added. "End it."
Rina studied him for a second, then smirked faintly.
"Understood."
Tamao nodded, gripping her chains tighter.
They turned and moved, following the trail the beast had left behind.
Raze didn't follow immediately.
After Tamao and Rina disappeared into the forest, the clearing fell silent once more.
Raze remained where he was.
Then—
A faint shift in the shadows.
Raze spoke without turning.
"So," he said calmly, "what are you trying to do, Mia?"
The darkness behind him peeled away.
Mia Vareen stepped forward, her expression cold, eyes fixed on him.
"Just like what you did to me," she said quietly,
"I'm going to take my revenge—from behind."
Raze turned to face her fully.
Before he could speak—
Footsteps.
One after another, figures emerged from the surrounding trees.
Students.
His classmates.
They spread out instinctively, forming a loose circle around him—blocking every escape route.
Raze's gaze swept across them, sharp and unreadable.
So this is it, he thought.
Mia didn't move.
She didn't need to.
Raze stood alone at the center of the clearing, surrounded.
And for the first time since the activity began—
The hunt had turned toward him.