The Obsidian Fang headquarters buzzed with activity well into the late afternoon, crates of equipment scattered across the labs and halls, wires and mana conduits spilling out like veins of some half-grown beast. Seojin hefted a crate of training pads, arms straining as he followed Mirae's directions toward a storage room, while Yuna walked ahead, balancing a box of tech components, Pyra chirping indignantly on her shoulder every time it wobbled."This is worse than training," Yuna groaned, setting her crate down with a thud. "My arms are gonna fall off."Mirae, leaning against a cluttered lab table, smirked without looking up. "Quit whining, firecracker. You're building character.""I've got plenty of character already," Yuna shot back, flopping down onto the crate to catch her breath. "I don't need more; I need a nap."Seojin lowered his own crate and wiped the sweat from his brow. The work was grueling, but there was a rhythm to it, and despite the ache settling into his shoulders,

The shadow lunging in from the side never reached him.Fenrir met it head on, already at his full size before the attacker's blade could finish its arc, shoulders slamming into the masked figure with enough force to send them crashing through a stack of crates and into the alley's far wall. Wood splintered. The masked figure crumpled to the ground and didn't get back up right away, one arm bent at an angle it shouldn't have been."One down," Fenrir said, not even looking particularly satisfied about it.Seojin scrambled the rest of the way to his feet, heart slamming against his ribs, the quest prompt still glowing faintly at the edge of his vision. He counted heads fast. Not four. Closer to seven, maybe eight, spread across the mouth of the alley and the fire escape above, cutting off every exit he could see."Fen, there's too many—""There are exactly as many as there are," Fenrir cut in, unbothered. "I could end this in under a minute if I wished. But you will not grow if I always

By the time Seojin got home, showered, and finally collapsed onto his bed, exhaustion had settled so deep into his bones that even lifting his arm to pull up his interface felt like a small act of defiance. He did it anyway, curiosity winning out over how badly he wanted to just close his eyes. The skill tree bloomed into view above him, familiar branches for Strength, Speed, and Durability arranged in their usual loose spiral, most of their paths still dimmed and locked further out. But now there was a fourth branch sitting beside them, one that hadn't existed before tonight, glowing faintly gold where the others glowed blue. A small label hovered over it: Technique, Unlocked by Skill Key. "Guess that's what the key was for," Seojin murmured, propping himself up on one elbow to look closer. Fenrir, curled at the foot of the bed in his smaller form, cracked one eye open. "Show me." Seojin angled the interface slightly, though he wasn't entirely sure Fenrir could actually see it th