Ash shot forward first.His body struck the air like a thrown stone, his claws aimed at Balton's chest, but the large man tilted his body half a step and his iron baton swung to meet him from below. Ash caught the baton's shaft with one hand, his momentum stopped, and the two pushed against each other for two seconds before Ash leapt back onto the rocks."Good." Balton straightened his posture, his right shoulder rotating once. "You don't attack twice from the same direction."Ash wasn't listening, his eyes had already locked onto the next position.Balton reached to the side of his belt with his left hand, three objects the size of a fist appeared between his fingers, then were thrown in three different directions at once. The objects struck the ground around Ash and exploded not with fire, but with intensely bright white light and a deafening sound.Ash flinched, his head turned away from the light, and that was when Balton's iron baton struck his left side with full force. The soun

Morning light grew more visible through the gaps between tree branches in narrow strips, illuminating forest ground still wet from the night's dew.Shiva opened her eyes, seeing the thick trunks and branches above her head. It took two seconds before her memory caught up with her body's condition, sitting propped against a large tree root on the ground.She looked up, left, and right, a more open area at the river's edge, though still inside the forest.A small cloud of smoke was visible not far from her, rising thinly with an appetite-stirring aroma. Beside her, the back of someone larger than most people she had ever known sat facing that small fire, silver hair visibly disheveled from behind.Shiva tried to get up, moving her body that ached in every part. "Where are we now?"Ash didn't answer. His hands turned the fish skewered on a stick beside the small embers, his eyes staring at the fire.Shiva waited several seconds, then gave up and leaned back against that tree root. The so

That sacred forest stretched wide, splitting two territories, the human lands to the east and the elf territory to the west.Its presence forced trade routes to be made in long detours, through the mountains or along the southern territory, because not a single merchant was willing to cut the distance through that forest.Its myth was simple and consistent, anyone who entered never came back to tell what was inside.There had once been an Aegis group that tried to hunt there, eight people fully armed with tactical equipment that was usually enough to handle medium-class threats.They had entered a few hundred meters before running back out, carrying nothing but a fear they couldn't explain in words that made sense.All they said was there was something inside, without clearly knowing whether it was a monster, a troll, or some other entity.In one area inside that forest, among trees whose trunks were wider than two adults embraci

On one bridge, a woman carried a large basket on her back, walking without holding the rope rails on either side, her body adjusting to the bridge's sway naturally as if it had been done thousands of times.On the terrace of one house jutting out from a tree trunk, two women sat with something in their hands that appeared to be weaving. From a higher bridge, the sound of conversation came down from above, the words unclear but the tone sounding like ordinary talk.Ash stopped walking, his eyes sweeping the village from side to side. One detail began rising to his awareness, something that took a few seconds to notice.Everything visible was women.On that bridge, women. On that terrace, two women. The voices above, women. A small girl appeared at the edge of the lowest bridge, staring down at them with round eyes, then ran into the nearest house.There were no men visible anywhere.Several women who were on terraces and bridges facing downward had already taken notice of their arrival

Velkarr went to sleep earlier than any village Shiva had ever visited. There were no sounds of conversation from the tree houses around her, no footsteps on the hanging bridges, no children being called inside for the umpteenth time. The moment night fell completely, the village closed itself off, and the only sign of life that remained was the yellow glow of the light creatures that kept shining from behind the transparent nets in front of every door. Shiva lay on the left side of the Arakvein net bed, her eyes open toward the ceiling of the room. Beside her on the right, Ash slept in a way that showed no consideration for the silence of Velkarr. His snoring was heavy and steady, rising and falling in a rhythm that didn't care that there was someone else in the same room. "Disgusting," Shiva muttered, turning onto her side. The bed vibrated faintly every time Ash exhaled too hard. Shiva shifte