The cast snapped from his hand like it had been waiting.
A white-blue pulse shot forward in a tight arc. Sharp. Fast.
The jungle beast lunged and the spell slammed into its front shoulder like a freight crate.
It didn't explode.
It didn't flash.
It just hit.
The impact threw the thing sideways, hard. It tumbled through the moss, bounced off a tree root the size of a small car, and skidded to a stop in a twisted heap of limbs.
Lucen froze.
Didn't breathe.
The creature didn't move.
He took a slow step forward.
Then another.
'Did I kill it? That worked? That actually—'
The beast twitched.
Then it growled.
Low. Wet. Furious.
Lucen blinked.
"Nope."
It shoved itself upright.
One of its legs hung crooked. Its jaw clicked open and stayed there, dripping with something green.
It looked pissed.
Lucen backed up a full three steps.
'Great. I annoyed it. That's worse than missing. Now it's angry and ugly.'
The creature launched again.
Faster this time.
Lucen's hand snapped up. The cast circle half-formed before he even aimed.
[Gravitic Snap – 12 Mana]
[Mana Remaining: 36]
He triggered it.
The air between them shimmered.
The monster surged forward then suddenly jerked mid-stride.
Its body twisted in the air as the spell pulled it sideways. Not far. Just enough to throw off its balance.
It hit the ground face-first.
Snarled.
Tried to get up again.
Lucen didn't wait.
He ran forward and kicked it.
Hard.
Right in the snout.
It flailed once.
Then collapsed.
Chest heaving. Not dead. But very much not trying again.
Lucen stood over it, breathing hard.
His system blinked once.
[+60 EXP]
[Enemy Weakened – Status: Crippled]
[No sigil recovered]
Lucen stared down at the thing.
One leg still twitched. Its jaw was still open. Maybe out of habit.
He took a slow step back and muttered, "Okay. That counts. I win. Nobody saw it, but it still counts."
His heart was still hammering.
His left hand shook slightly.
He flexed it out. Looked down at his system.
[Mana: 36 / 51]
[Cooldowns: None]
[Spells: Stable]
He exhaled.
Then crouched beside the monster and nudged it with the busted spell etching tool.
It didn't react.
'Not dead. Just humiliated. Honestly, same.'
He looked back at the shrine.
Still intact.
No more glyphs glowing.
No second wave incoming.
The clearing was quiet again.
He opened the sigil case and double-checked the drift fragment was still there.
It was.
Still faintly pulsing.
He closed it and latched it shut.
Then stood.
Stared at the jungle around him.
The silence stayed.
Lucen straightened his coat and said, mostly to himself, "So. That was my first fight."
He paused.
Looked at the creature.
Looked at the busted casting tool.
Then at his own shaking hands.
"…I did amazing."
Lucen took one last look at the creature.
Still twitching. Still drooling. Definitely not getting up fast.
He walked around it.
Gave it a solid six-foot radius like it might develop new ideas mid-concussion.
The jungle ahead sloped downward. Trees got wider. The air felt heavier. Each step sank deeper into moss.
He moved slowly.
No sudden movements. Just quiet boots on damp ground and the low hum of magic you weren't supposed to breathe for too long.
The canopy above blocked almost everything.
Blue haze drifted through the leaves like fog with a god complex.
Lucen's hand hovered near his belt.
Not on the knife. Not yet.
He didn't want to pretend it would help.
'Alright. First fight down. No injuries. No sudden death. That's either a good sign or the start of a cruel joke.'
He checked the system window again.
[EXP: 110 / 150]
[Level: 1]
[Mana: 36 / 51]
[Status: Stable]
One more spell cast and he'd probably level.
Maybe.
He closed it.
Kept walking.
The jungle opened up after twenty meters.
Another clearing.
This one smaller, shaped like a broken ring, with cracked stone peeking up through the moss. Almost looked like it used to be a courtyard.
Vines wrapped around everything. Some of them twitched.
Lucen didn't go in right away.
He crouched behind the nearest tree and watched.
Waited.
One minute.
Then two.
Something moved.
Low. Fast.
Skittered across the far edge of the clearing.
He didn't see what it was. Just heard claws on stone. Fast rhythm. Four-legged. Not heavy.
Then it stopped.
And didn't move again.
Lucen narrowed his eyes.
'That's not a bug. That's something smart enough to stop when it hears you.'
He scanned the clearing again.
No obvious sigil source.
No glowing glyphs.
Just half-sunk rubble and that silence again.
He whispered, "Why are these things always so quiet?"
Then realized he was whispering to a tree and shut up.
He checked his spell archive again.
[Kinetic Point – Ready]
[Gravitic Snap – Ready]
He crouched lower and picked up a chunk of broken bark.
Tossed it into the middle of the clearing.
It landed with a soft thump.
Then nothing.
Lucen waited.
Ten seconds.
Still nothing.
Then the left wall shifted.
Very slightly.
Just enough to notice if you were staring at it.
Which he was.
A vine slid off a flat stone.
Then another.
Then something rose from the ground.
Lucen stared.
Not a monster.
A construct.
Thin. Angular. Made of wood and scrap metal fused together with mana welds. Looked like someone gave a tree legs and a terrible attitude.
Its head jerked once, like a bird trying to identify sound.
Then it turned toward the center of the clearing.
Walked forward.
Lucen didn't breathe.
'Alright. No fangs. No slobber. It's definitely still violent though.'
He checked his mana.
Still enough for two spells.
He took a breath. Shifted forward half a step.
Then paused.
The construct turned its head sharply.
Lucen ducked.
Didn't move.
The thing stood perfectly still for three seconds.
Then slowly turned back to the clearing.
Walked to the center.
It stood there.
Didn't move again.
Just stared at the broken stone in front of it.
Lucen whispered, "Guard duty."
Quiet. Like a thought he didn't mean to say out loud.
He pulled the system open again and tapped the drift scan overlay.
It flickered once.
[Sigil Signature: Nearby]
[Trace: Weak – Location Unclear]
Lucen frowned.
'So there is something here. Just not obvious. Which means either the sigil's buried… or whatever that thing's standing on is it.'
He looked at his mana.
Then at the construct.
Then at the broken bark he'd tossed.
It was still sitting in the dirt. Useless.
He reached for another.
'Let's try something stupid.'