The crack of splintering wood echoed like a gunshot, sharp and violent. The tree in front of us convulsed, its golden leaves trembling before snapping inward, crushing into itself. The bark twisted unnaturally, curling inward, warping.

And then it moved.

Branches contorted, knotting together into a grotesque, sinewy form. The thick trunk compressed and shifted downward, sprouting four jagged, gnarled limbs that slammed against the ground, kicking up dirt. Its back was lined with golden leaves, but now they looked more like razor-sharp, plated scales, catching the dim glow of the cavern.

It wasn’t a tree anymore. It was a beast.

I sucked in a sharp breath, my body tensing instinctively. The air felt different, like it had thickened with something perverse, against nature…wrong.

“Thea,” I started, noticing she wasn’t moving.

Her breathing had changed when I spoke, a sharp inhale, controlled but not steady. Her hands twitched slightly as she stepped back, a defensive stance forming out of sheer instinct.

But her voice trembled when she spoke, “S—stay together!”

Behind us, two more trees from a group of five shuddered violently, these with pink leaves. Their trunks split apart in wet, organic cracks. Branches unraveled like severed tendons, limbs twisting as knotted wood reshaped itself into long, spiked legs.

The second one lurched forward, its movements uncanny. Too fast, too jerky, too unnatural. It had no eyes, no visible mouth, just a deep, hollow indentation in its "face", something like a twisted knot of wood pulsing faintly, almost like it was… breathing.

Then it screamed.

A grating, inhuman noise. Like two sheets of metal grinding together, amplified until it scraped against my skull. It wasn't just loud. It disoriented. Like my ears couldn't fully process the sound, my balance tilted, and my vision blurred at the edges for just a moment.

I barely got my bearings before my mind caught up.

Fire.

I turned to Sia, instincts clicking into place. They were made of wood, or something like it, and she was a fire mage. That meant…

Too slow.

The beast didn't charge.

Instead, its golden leaves vibrated, a shimmer rippling across its scales. Its jagged limbs clicked inward, tightening, then in one sharp motion, it pointed.

Not at me.

At Sia.

Even though I was closer.

I bolted, the horrible sensation of wrongness clawing at my gut. I didn't know why, but I knew, I knew, whatever it was about to do, it would hit her directly.

I barely had time to throw myself in front of her before her eyes widened at my sudden movement.

Then, fire.

Not hers.

Mine.

A sharp, searing pain exploded across my back.

I gasped. No scream, just air stolen from my lungs.

Those jagged leaves had pierced into me, burrowing through skin like molten needles, and suddenly it felt like something was crawling under my flesh.

I staggered, vision fracturing at the edges. Sia’s blurred form wavered in front of me, her mouth moving. Was she shouting?

"Peter!"

Ah. That made sense.

I tried to answer.

Only nothing came out.

The venom was gnawing at my mind, I could barely think through the pain.

The world flickered. My thoughts stretched.

Then… oh.

The air was so sparkly.

Lyra was touching my arm, saying something. Something…chanting maybe?

The pain vanished.

Wow. That is nice.

I blinked at Sia, who still looked so serious all of the sudden for some reason. She was making… fireworks? That was a really big fireball.

“Hey, Sia,” I mumbled. My voice sounded far away. “Thea said if I dropped her, she’d shock me. Isn’t that cruel?”

Now she just looked annoyed. Maybe she’s in a bad mood. “Did Elric do something wrong, he was probably just teasing?”

Lyra’s hands glowed brighter. “Peter, focus. Just a bit more! Elric can’t move like that for long!”

I frowned, glancing at Elric, who was moving like an ice skater, slicing through the battlefield with inhuman speed.

Showoff.

Two of those gross tree monsters were turning toward Sia, but he kept slashing at them, with my skill. Can you believe the arrogance.

Something had to be done about this.

I stopped hugging Sia, and circulated energy into my legs, ready to bolt forward and save the day.

One brilliant step.

Why am I looking at the ceiling?

…Oh.

Right.

No more Swift Stride.

Fine. One more time.

I pushed forward, still feeling weirdly stiff.

Huh. Why is the grass moving toward me?

Focus. Not important.

Elric was hogging the limelight.

Something screamed.

Not sure what, though.

A blinding ball of flame boomed behind me, Sia and Thea? Huh. That rhymed.

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Anyway, they probably handled it.

I finally reached one of the pink-leafed freaks, gathered all my inner strength into my hands, and tackled it to the ground.

Oh.

That was not smart.

Sharp scales dug into my arms, piercing deep. I was bleeding again.

But I shoved my hands in ready to release the ultimate attack, Blasting Wave…I miss my name.

And…Oh wait, this takes a while. Forgot.

I flailed, annoyance creeping up. The scales kept biting, resisting my grip.

But then…

I was ready.

From the inside of the sinew, there was a brief expansion, the pulsing wood beneath my fingers convulsing.

A sound escaped from it. Something like a whimper.

“Boom.”

Nothing actually made noise, so I made one.

…Oh.

The roof again.

Also, I’m pretty sure something just went deeper into my back.

"Hey guys, the grass is tickling me!"

I shouted at the weird sensation of something wrapping around my arms. The little strands hugged my skin, shifting against me, pressing into the open wounds.

Some of them squirmed.

I blinked. They were trying to get under me.

That seemed… mildly concerning.

Another loud explosion rang out, followed by a wave of heat.

I lay there impatiently as my little leafy friends danced around my wounds.

Starting to feel a bit queasy now.

I turned my head sluggishly.

"Also, there’s new grass! This one isn’t blue!"

Someone grabbed me, lifted me up, carried me away from my tickling little buddies.

"Elric, I blew one up."

I grinned at the guy carrying me.

"How’s that for a little brother?"

His response?

He dropped me face-first onto stone.

Which, honestly, felt holy unnecessary.

Then the group crowded around me, and before I could process what was happening, I felt tugging.

Someone was pulling things out of my back.

I’m no expert, but isn’t that usually a bad ide—

There was a sudden, deep tugging inside me.

Oh. Right.

Elric’s a healer.

I groaned as my head was shifted to the side, freeing my face from its firm friendship with the rock.

And suddenly.

Thea.

Her hair was a mess, strands falling loose in front of her face, partially covering her eyes.

Beads of sweat dripped down her neck, slipping beneath her collar.

She looked focused. Worried.

Battle Mode Thea was kinda…

"Hot."

She frowned slightly, confused by whatever was going on in my head.

Someone handed her a pouch of water, and she brought it to my lips.

I shook my head.

"No."

She hesitated.

My vision started to darken.

…

I exhaled.

A dull ache pulsed in my skull, a steady, annoying throb that felt like someone had taken a hammer to the inside of my head.

My body was heavy, my limbs reluctant to move. The air was cooler than I expected, carrying the faint scent of damp earth and lingering smoke.

I shifted, feeling the rough canvas floor of the tent beneath me.

I groaned, rubbing my temples as my vision adjusted to the dim lighting.

When did I fall asleep?

I must’ve passed out cold.

"My head kills."

The words came out in a mutter as I blinked up at the tent ceiling. The familiar shape of Thea sitting beside me came into focus, her silhouette outlined by the faint glow filtering in through the fabric walls.

Her eyes sharpened the moment I spoke.

"How you feeling?" she asked, voice soft but steady.

I twisted my waist, stretching, rolling my shoulders, feeling the faint pull of sore muscles. Everything felt stiff, but functional.

I lifted my arms, flexing my fingers experimentally.

"I’m good. My head still kills, though."

Then, a flood of memories hit me like a motorboat.

I stilled.

My behavior. My actions.

Slowly, I looked down at my arms.

The wounds were closed, but unlike Elric’s usual healing, faint white scars remained, barely visible, but there.

Thea must’ve noticed my reaction.

"Elric thinks it was the grass," she explained, her voice laced with something unreadable. "Something in them prevented him from closing the wounds as effectively as usual… and it kept you bleeding."

I exhaled slowly.

"Vampire grass."

"What?"

I looked up. Thea was staring at me, brows furrowed.

"Are you still loopy?"

I shook my head. "No. A monster from my world. Drinks blood."

She hesitated. "You have monsters on your world? How does that work with no system or cultivation?"

"Huh? Oh, no. They’re from storybooks." I frowned, then added quickly, "I hope."

She sighed, rubbing her temples. "Anyway, we’re back up on the cliff. Nothing has bothered us up here. Your ‘vampire grass’ only seemed to go for you."

I raised an eyebrow. "Great. I’m a delicacy."

"I think they work in unison with the tree beasts." Thea continued. "When you bleed, they move in."

I clicked my tongue. "That’s good news."

Pushing myself up, I moved toward the tent flap, ready to step outside.

Only to nearly walk straight into another tent.

I blinked.

Frowned.

Then glanced back at Thea.

She met my gaze, already anticipating my question.

"Not a lot of space up here. We put the tents next to each other."

I grumbled and awkwardly twisted my body to fit into the tiny gap between the tents, diving out onto the rock.

The cool stone pressed against my hands, solid and grounding after everything that had happened.

Across the clearing, Lyra and Sia sat with furrowed brows, obviously deep in focus as they practiced the Grand Carving technique.

Elric, meanwhile, was perched at the cliff’s edge, legs dangling off the side as he watched over the beautiful yet deadly garden below.

I plopped down next to him, mirroring his posture.

"So, we’ve all agreed to deal with the stench they’re about to cause, right?" I asked, nodding toward Lyra and Sia with a smirk.

Elric turned his head slightly. "Careful. If you get them upset, I won’t be able to save you."

I chuckled, watching the shimmering grass sway below us.

"Thanks."

The quiet sincerity in his voice made me glance at him, though I didn’t turn my head fully.

"For?"

Elric pulled one knee up to his chest, resting his arm on it.

"You saved Sia’s life," he said simply. "Those petals…if you hadn’t reached your current level… she would’ve been dead before any of us could’ve done anything about it."

I let that sit for a moment, the weight of his words pressing against the silence.

Then, movement caught my eye.

Thea squeezed through the tent opening, awkwardly maneuvering the tight space like I had. When she spotted me watching, she blushed slightly, tucking a few loose strands of hair behind her ear before sitting beside me.

"I think we should focus on body refinement before going back down," Thea suggested, her tone thoughtful.

I nodded. "Maybe we should teach Sia the Air Lance?" It wasn’t exactly a long-range attack, but it had more distance than Blasting Wave.

Elric gave me a weird look.

"Peter… man, it comes from Fireball… she already knows how to use it."

…Oh.

I ran a hand through my hair, exhaling. "I’m not making myself look great today."

"Can she hit things from up here by channeling cultivation and her MP?" I asked.

Thea tilted her head. "You want to light this place up?"

I shrugged. "Why not? I mean, sure, not all the trees seemed like monsters, but I’d rather burn a few normal ones than get hit by those leaves again."

I glanced between them.

"By the way, have either of you gotten any missions?"

Both shook their heads.

Elric’s eyes lingered on Thea. "Nothing past your first one… That’s strange."

"How often do you check your status?" I asked.

"Every day," Thea answered, shifting slightly before leaning her head against my shoulder.

Elric, never one to be left out, leaned his head against me too, but with way too much enthusiasm.

"Only when I develop a new skill," he said, voice sickly sweet, as if trying to one-up Thea.

I pushed him off immediately. "Get off."

Then.

The smell hit.

A strong, pungent stench drifted over, sharp enough to make my eyes water.

A moment later, Sia and Lyra emerged.

Transformed. Renewed. Powerful.

But, man… did they look uncomfortable.