Chapter 17 – Five for the Dark
The forest no longer felt like a place.
It felt like a memory being erased.
Branches hung lower. Paths narrowed. Shadows didn't stretch anymore—they pressed inward. Ariz moved through the brush like a blade sliding through cloth. Each movement was stripped of hesitation. Each kill brought clarity.
He no longer counted the days.
The third beast fell before it even saw him.
A Graveclaw Mole—a blind, armored predator that burrowed beneath the forest in long spirals. He baited it with a cut of deer meat and waited above on a low stone ledge, the sword already drawn. When the earth split open, Ariz blinked behind it.
One downward strike between the armored plates.
No scream.
Just a sudden silence that didn't lift.
[System Notification]
Tier-2 Beast Kill: 3/5
He stayed long enough to watch the body begin to rot unnaturally.
Then walked on.
The fourth was more troublesome.
A Frost-fanged Windcat, fast and clever, hunted by scent and silence. It stalked him for half a day. He let it. Let it circle. Let it believe.
By twilight, it leapt from the canopy, claws aimed for his throat.
He didn't blink this time. He simply ducked and spun. His blade caught it midair, slicing through muscle and bone in a single, brutal arc.
The beast landed hard.
Tried to crawl.
He ended it swiftly.
[System Notification]
Tier-2 Beast Kill: 4/5
He knelt beside its body. Blood pooled beneath his boots, steaming faintly.
And still—no remorse. No weight.
Only clarity.
Only purpose.
That night, as he washed the blood from his chest, he noticed the second sigil. It had grown, snaking across his shoulder blade like ink poured in slow motion. His skin tingled where it pulsed. The first sigil—beneath his ribs—had deepened to coal-black.
He didn't ask the system what it meant.
He didn't need to.
The fifth beast came the next morning.
It was already waiting.
A clearing. A pool of dark water. Mist curling along the moss.
And the beast stood in the center like it belonged there.
Ariz stopped at the edge of the glade.
This one was… different.
Tall. Lean. Humanoid, almost. Covered in patchy black fur, with a hunched back and long arms that ended in crooked claws. Its eyes—not beast's eyes—locked on his.
No hunger.
No fear.
Recognition.
They stood like that for nearly a minute. Neither moved.
Ariz's fingers curled around his hilt.
Then it charged.
Fast.
Too fast.
He blinked—right, then low. Came up beneath its ribcage and slashed. The blade tore across flesh but didn't drop it. It whirled, claws catching his side. Blood splattered the ground.
Ariz dropped his shoulder and drove forward, tackling the thing into the mud. It shrieked—a raw, human sound. He slammed the blade into its chest. Again. Again.
It shuddered.
Grinned.
As the beast bled out, it whispered:
"Zith'rel av karun... votha'dan ech mor."(You carry the silence. Soon it will carry you.)
Ariz's eyes widened.
Not because of the words.But because he understood them.Every syllable landed in his mind like a memory he'd never lived.
System Reaction:
Immediately after:
[Race Resonance Detected]Ancestral Link ActiveRace Evolution Available: Umbrakin(Language comprehension unlocked: "Vorthak'thal" – Shadowtongue)
Final thrust—straight through the throat.
Silence.
He stayed crouched over the body, his hand still on the hilt. Breathing hard.
The creature's eyes slowly dimmed. Its mouth stayed open, almost smiling.
Then came the system.
[System Notification]
Tier-2 Beast Kill: 5/5
Sub-Task Complete
+5 Stat Points
Rank Up: beginner Swordsman → novice
Race Catalyst: Second Sigil Acquired. Race Transformation Ready.
[Race Evolution Available: UMBRAKIN]
Ariz exhaled.
For the first time in weeks… his hands shook.
Not from fear.
From readiness.
He stood, wiped the blade clean with a torn cloth from his cloak, and turned from the body.
The fog had thickened.
But he was no longer alone.
Something moved.
A shadow—then a man stepped into the clearing, relaxed and smirking. Light armor. A curved blade at his hip. Confident.
"You're quick," the man said, nodding at the corpse. "Didn't think anyone else was working this far out."
Ariz said nothing.
The man glanced at the steaming blood, the near-flawless kill.
He scratched his chin.
"Freelancer? Guildless?"
No answer.
He smiled, casually dangerous.
"No problem. I just want the core. You can keep the hide. Fair trade, yeah?"
Ariz didn't move.
Didn't blink.
His hand was already on the hilt.