Kit's heart fluttered with excitement at the thought of finally getting some hugs. A grin spread across his face. "I wish we could just jump back in!" He pouted, disappointed that they couldn't continue searching for Snowball.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Peaches went to answer it and Kat's voice could be heard from outside. "Is Kit here?" Peaches opened the door wider, revealing Kat standing on the other side. "Kit! It's an emergency!" Kit's heart raced as he jumped up. "What is it?"

"I'm all out of snacks!" Kat announced with a pout, causing Mars and Peaches to chuckle while Kit simply rolled his eyes. He left his friends to go shopping with Kat and ended up spending the next two days trailing after her at her request. Although he missed his friends, the time flew by quickly and before he knew it, Kit was back in CAL.

Upon emerging from his tent, Kit was greeted by Leonard and Kai. He filled them in on what had happened with the rest of their group and they set off immediately to find them. As night fell, Leonard led them to a nearby camp where Kit was overjoyed to be reunited with his friends. "Kit! You made it!" Twix exclaimed upon spotting them.

Leonard made a beeline for Snickers, while Kai joined Kit in greeting the others. Kit then introduced Kai to the group, Mars was the only one already familiar with their desert warrior. Kai retold the tale of the shifter to the group, Grandpa's demeanor turned nervous upon hearing about Kai's experiences.

The old man grabbed Kit's arm and pulled him aside. "Kit, we can't afford to waste any more time. We should try entering those rooms shown on the map tonight." He then glanced towards Kai. "What do you think of Kai, Kit? How much do you trust him?"

Kit had a positive impression of the desert warrior; after all, he had helped Mars and himself reach safety before. Kit spoke honestly with his Grandpa. "I don't know him very well, but he seems like a good person."

"In that case, do you trust him enough to join us?" Grandpa asked. "I would feel more at ease having someone who can control that beast by our side."

Kit felt trapped, torn between his need to find the treasure and his desire to leave this dangerous area. "Maybe I should try talking to him first," Kit thought to himself as he made his way over to Kai. When he reached him, Kai spoke up before he could even say a word.

"Kit, we need to leave early tomorrow morning," Kai said, gazing up at the sky. "It's not safe to travel at night, that's when the adorable shrewd shifter prowls."

"That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about," Kit began, taking a deep breath. "There are some rooms inside a cavern that we have to search before leaving. There's something in there that I have to find."

Kai shook his head. "Kit, this is the closest I've ever been to capturing the shifter. I can't risk losing it by delaying our departure for something else. My duty is to capture it."

Kit let out a deep sigh, bracing himself for the inevitable response. Kai would surely object to their plan of entering the cave and insist on getting everyone to safety.

Kit's mind raced for a solution, but before he could come up with one, a deafening roar echoed through the skies. A wave of terror washed over him, causing his legs to buckle and sending him tumbling to the ground. He looked around and saw that everyone else, except for Kai, was also on the ground. "What was that?!" Kit exclaimed in fear and confusion.

"That, my boy, was one of the powerful spiritual beasts that reside atop this mountain," Grandpa explained calmly.

Mars piped in with a question, "But how can it affect us from such a distance?"

Grandpa chuckled and replied, "That is no ordinary beast; it is a Divine spiritual beast. Its mere proximity can drain your health. I warned you about underestimating the dangers of the Devouring Ranges."

"We were lucky that our destination wasn't any higher on the mountain, as it would have been impossible to reach. Beyond this point lies certain death. Even the residents of Forsaken State steer clear of this area," Grandpa's tone was serious as he shared this information.

Kit felt his anxiety spike at the mention of another powerful opponent, on top of the dangerous shrewd shifter they were already facing. "Grandpa, do the Devine beasts ever come down the mountain?" Kit asked with a trembling voice.

A small smile appeared on Grandpa's face. "No need to worry, my boy. The Devine beasts never leave their territories. And if one were to do so, another beast would snap it up." But despite Grandpa's reassurances, Kit couldn't shake off his fears knowing that there were multiple Devine beasts up there.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Twix couldn't help but laugh at Kit's pale expression. "Don't worry Kit, Spartan Fire will be just fine. In all its history, not a single Devine beast has set foot on its soil."

As Kit watched, his apprehension faded. If nothing like this had ever happened before, then surely Spartan Fire would remain safe. After all, it was just a game; high-level beasts were meant to be conquered by skilled adventurers. It wasn't something he needed to worry about personally.

But suddenly, another explosive roar tore through the air, causing Kit to collapse to the ground in an instant. This time, the roar felt different - as if he had sustained an injury from it. His ears rang and he could feel wetness dripping from both of them.

Terror flooded through Kit's body as he realized that the first roar was nothing compared to this second one. He tried to give his body commands, but it took a full minute for it to respond. When he finally sat up, all he wanted to do was escape.

Even Kai, who had seemed so fearless before, fell to his knees at the sound of this second roar. Shocked, Kit watched as Kai struggled to his feet and ran off into the darkness. "I won't be able to accompany you down the mountain," Kai yelled back at him. "That was the adorable shrewd shifter." And with that, Kai disappeared into the night.

Dove's attention snapped away from the distant figure. "Kit, let's hurry and open this cave. It will be safer inside." Kit could only nod in agreement, still shaken by the monstrous scream.

Mars led them to the rock surface with the bird symbol. As soon as Kit approached, he felt a tingling sensation on his wrist. "Kit, try placing your hand on the symbol," Mars instructed.

Following his lead, Kit placed his hand over the insignia. The tingling intensified into a burning pain that shot through his wrist. He gritted his teeth and endured it, but the smell of burnt leather filled his nostrils. When he couldn't take it anymore, he snatched his hand back and removed his now ruined wrist guard, which fell to the ground with a thud.

Kit's wrist began to emit a bright light, but despite his pain, nothing about the rock face changed. "What do we do now?" Kit looked to Mars for answers.

Mars scratched his head in frustration. "I was sure that would work." He shrugged, indicating he was out of ideas.

Unexpectedly, it was Cupcake who broke the tense silence. "Map, out." He pointed to Kit's pouch, urging him to retrieve it. In his haste, Kit struggled with opening the pouch, but eventually he held up the map for all to see. The light from his glowing tattoo on his wrist provided enough illumination for them to examine the map's contents.

Mesmerized, Kit observed as the ink on the side of the map depicting the Devouring Ranges began to shift and rearrange itself. Mars stood behind him, also peering over his shoulder in amazement. "This is unbelievable! It's showing our exact location!"

The map now revealed a detailed layout of the surrounding terrain, clearly marking their position. Kit had no trouble recognizing it, as their specific insignia was etched onto the map in the correct spot.

On one half of the parchment, there was a new map, but it didn’t reveal their final destination. Kit furrowed his brow in confusion; how were they supposed to find the cave now? "What's our next move?" Kit looked up at Cupcake, hoping that the man who had suggested pulling out the map would know what to do next.

To Kit's relief, Cupcake motioned towards the blazing emblem on the map and tapped Kit's wrist. "Touch it."

Kit followed Cupcake's instructions eagerly, pressing his wrist against the glowing insignia on the map. A burst of light blinded him and pain shot through his body, causing his face to contort in discomfort. "Ouch, that hurt!" he exclaimed.

A fluttering of light caught Kit's attention and he turned to see a small bird with fiery wings hovering in front of the rock that held the emblem. As he watched, the symbol disappeared from the surface of the rock.

Kit's eyes widened in amazement as the insignia on his map suddenly came to life. Everyone in the group immediately turned their attention towards the delicate bird hovering above them. It let out a cheerful chirp before darting off towards the top of the mountain.

Kit snapped out of his daze and yelled, "Let's chase it!" The group sprang into action, racing after the glowing bird.

Cupcake followed closely behind Kit as they struggled to keep up with the bird's pace. Dove shouted at Kit to not lose sight of it. Kit was determined to follow the bird wherever it went.

He was about to take a bite of a cookie when the bird suddenly disappeared into a small cave. The ground began to shake and rocks tumbled down from the steep cliffs surrounding them.

Kit's eyes widened in horror as he watched a large boulder that had been precariously balanced above the entrance to their small cave start to tumble towards them. Without hesitation, Kit flung himself into the safety of the entrance. But before he could turn around, he felt a heavy weight crash into him.

Soon, Kit found himself buried under a pile of bodies. "Grandpa, you're so strong! You slowed down the boulder's fall so we could all make it inside," Twix exclaimed happily.

Kit was struggling to breathe and see under the weight on top of him. "Can someone please get off me?" he wheezed. Eventually, the pressure lifted and Kit was able to stand up again, brushing dirt and dust from his clothes. He turned back to face the group.

But as he turned back towards the entrance of the cave, Kit's eyes widened once again. The entrance had disappeared, replaced by a smooth wall. The boulder was nowhere to be seen. Kit rushed over to the wall, searching for any gaps or openings, but there were none.

"What the hell!" Kit exclaimed as he spun around, only to find that the entrance had vanished without a trace. The bird was also gone, adding to his confusion. As he scanned the room, his eyes landed on something in the distance that made his legs tremble. A feeling of weakness overtook him as he realized what was behind him.

Ding!

[Black winged fire bird dungeon found]

Congratulations to player Kit for being the first player to enter the dungeon.

Rewards:

The notification went unnoticed by Kit, who was too consumed with hyperventilating at the sight before him.