The sunlight burned gently through the canopy as Kael stepped out of the cave, a new weight or power resting calmly under the skin of his arm. The black snake tattoo shimmered faintly as if acknowledging the freedom of open air once more.
He found a clearing not too far from the cave's mouth and set up his tent using gear from his sister's storage ring. With two months left before returning home, his path was clear:
Grow. Sharpen. Hunt.
He wasn't just training anymore he was preparing for war.
Two days passed in silence, broken only by the occasional snap of twigs and the hum of wind through trees. Kael had taken down lesser beasts without issue mana wolves and scaled hounds But nothing pushed him.
Not until they appeared.
As he stalked a ridge deeper in the forest, he froze.
A herd of sabertooth tigers.
Eight of them.
Each one as large as a small car, their muscles coiled under striped, mana-hardened fur. Their fangs gleamed like daggers, eyes glowing with primal hostility.
Kael didn't run.
Instead, he reached toward his arm.
"Vanta Edge."
The tattoo unraveled, and the black sword formed in his hand with a chilling hiss. Shadows pulsed along its edge.
The tigers roared.
Kael's crimson eyes narrowed. "Come on, then."
They charged.
The first met its end instantly Kael flashed past it, a blur of motion, Swift Steps active. The Vanta Edge cleaved through muscle and bone like air.
Two more leapt at him he spun, shadows binding their paws mid-air as he sliced them down.
He moved like a phantom. Battle Perception guided him, Calm Mind steadied him, and the Vanta Edge tore through the herd like a reaper's scythe.
Moments later, all eight lay still, their bodies fading into mana particles.
Kael didn't say a word.
He just let out a long breath and wiped his blade clean before dismissing it. The tattoo returned to his arm.
Back at camp, Kael sat by the fire, roasting fruit and beast meat. His eyes reflected the flames, but his mind was somewhere else.
He was growing stronger.
But something told him this was just the beginning.