The infected pack snarled in unison, crimson forms silhouetted against the flickering light of the extraction archway. Amber eyes glimmered with mindless hunger, claws scraping the blood-soaked earth as they tensed to lunge.
Sun Li tightened his grip on the trembling girl, her body hotter against him as the mutation clawed deeper. The portal was mere steps away—safety, the end of the tutorial—just beyond the snarling wall of former players.
Come on… just a little further…
But the ground trembled.
THUD—ROAR! A thunderous sound split the air, deeper and more resonant than the Alpha's had ever been. The infected froze mid-growl, whimpering like scolded hounds. One by one, they scattered, scrambling aside as though some invisible force shoved them.
From the shadowed treeline emerged a colossus.
The King of the Crimson Forest.
Nearly fifteen feet tall, a sovereign evolution of the Alpha's lineage. Its glistening crimson hide was layered with thick plating that shimmered like polished garnet. Bone spikes crowned its spine in an imperial mantle, curving like warlord banners. Its maw gaped wide, fangs gleaming like obsidian. Twin horns spiraled from its brow with cruel elegance, and a mane of dark tendrils flowed, moving as if alive.
Molten gold eyes fixed on Sun Li.
The system panel appeared in flaming crimson letters:
[True Guardian: Sovereign of the Crimson Thicket]
[Level 15]
[Lord of the Tutorial Domain]
[Warning: Solo confrontation impossible. Evacuate immediately.]
Sun Li's blood ran cold.
This… this is the real boss? The Alpha was just a lieutenant?
His mind screamed: Run. RUN. Think—there has to be a gap! But his body froze. The Sovereign's presence pressed down like gravity, rooting him to the mud-streaked ground.
The Sovereign lowered its massive head, nostrils flaring as it inhaled. A low, rumbling chuckle reverberated from its throat—almost amusement.
The girl in his arms whimpered, nails fully elongated into claws pricking his skin. Time was running out for her too.
Then—movement.
A flash of steel from the treeline.
A figure burst forward, cloak billowing, crimson hair wild in the wind. Tall, lean, clad in ornate black-and-gold armor trimmed with fur, chains draped like regalia. Sharp, handsome features, eyes burning with fierce resolve.
Dio.
Twin curved swords shimmered with faint crimson runes as he vaulted forward, faster than the eye could track, slashing across the Sovereign's foreleg.
Black-crimson blood sprayed. The King roared, fury erupting, deep gashes tearing its plated limb.
"GO!" Dio shouted, voice slicing through chaos. "Now!"
Sun Li snapped from paralysis, bolting toward the portal.
"Why are you—?!"
"No time!" Dio parried a claw swipe that shattered a nearby tree. "Get the evacuation wagon ready! I'll buy you seconds!"
Evacuation wagon? Sun Li barely processed as he spotted it: half-hidden behind the archway, a sturdy wooden cart reinforced with metal, hitched to two spectral horses of swirling light. Supplies and blankets stacked inside—prepared for emergencies, likely for groups.
He sprinted, dumping the girl into the back. She curled up, biting back whimpers as mutation clawed at her humanity.
Sun Li seized the reins. Nothing. Wheels sunk deep in crimson mud, ensnared by roots and debris.
"Come on…" He heaved, muscles straining.
The wagon creaked. Inches forward. Stopped.
He kicked, slashed vines, cursed. "Roll, damn it!"
Behind him, Dio danced around the Sovereign like a crimson phantom. Blades flashing, striking, drawing blood—but bleeding himself. Armor cracked. Crimson trails streaked his side.
The Sovereign slammed a claw down, missing Dio by inches, shattering the ground. Sun Li strained, pulling.
Finally—wet, sucking sound—wheels broke free. The wagon lurched forward.
The Sovereign cornered Dio, jaws descending. Sun Li whipped the reins.
"Dio!"
He twisted, rolling under the maw. Sun Li grabbed his forearm, hauling him aboard. Limbs and steel tangled as the wagon thundered forward, crashing through the edge of the archway. The Sovereign's roar shook the forest. Crimson claws raked air inches from the rear wheels.
Light engulfed them.
When it faded, they raced across a vast open plain under twilight. No crimson trees, no blood-soaked earth. The tutorial was behind them.
Sun Li collapsed against the wagon's side. Chest heaving. The girl lay unconscious, mutation halted at the edge of humanity. Dio sat opposite, wiping blood from his blades, unreadable expression intact.
Sun Li glanced back through the fading portal.
The Sovereign stood at the threshold, golden eyes locked on him. The infected knelt around it like loyal subjects.
Then the portal winked out.
Sun Li exhaled. Whatever came next, he wouldn't face it alone.