The fox girl's eyes flicked to the wolf girl, ears twitching, tail flicking with subtle tension.
"…I could ask the same thing," she said, voice calm but sharp, scanning her briefly before glancing at Lucien. "…Did you find who you were looking for?"
Lucien's gaze softened slightly, though still wary. "…Yes," he said, voice low but certain. "…This is my big sister. The one I've been searching for."
He turned slightly, gesturing toward the wolf girl. "…I don't know who she is. Seems… she was teamed with my sister. Protecting her, I guess."
The wolf girl's ears twitched irritably, tail flicking. "…This brat is really damn annoying," she muttered, but she didn't dwell on it, letting her annoyance fade into the corner of her sharp gaze.
"…Anyway," she continued, tone neutral now, "…my name is **Kaelira**." She glanced at the fox girl. "…And who the hell are you supposed to be?"
The fox girl paused for a moment, letting the tension hang, before her lips curved slightly. "…I'm **Seryna**," she said, voice calm but edged with that quiet certainty that had carried her through every battle so far. "…And this is…" Her gaze flicked to the man behind her. "…**Tharic**."
Tharic inclined his head briefly, calm, silent, aura quiet but dangerous.
Now, with names exchanged, identities known, the small group's attention shifted naturally toward Draven.
But Draven didn't look.
Not at them. Not at the battlefield.
He stood slightly apart, crimson eyes unfocused, scanning something only he could see. Silent. Lethal. Untouchable.
The world around him continued to pulse with chaos, but he remained elsewhere.
The others felt it instinctively. Whatever Draven was seeing, calculating, or waiting for—it wasn't theirs to know.
And for the moment, that was enough.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Not because there was nothing to say.
But because of **him.**
Draven stood apart.
Still.
Unmoving.
Like the chaos didn't exist.
Seryna's eyes lingered on him for a second longer than the others.
Not curiosity.
Not confusion.
Assessment.
"…He's tracking something," she murmured quietly, more to herself than anyone else.
Kaelira's ears twitched. "…Tracking what?"
Before Seryna could answer, Draven moved.
Not fast. Not sudden.
Just a single step forward.
"…Another one's about to drop," he said flatly.
All eyes snapped upward instinctively.
For a split second, nothing.
Then, a pulse.
A token materialized midair, dropping, spinning.
And the moment it appeared, the crowd **exploded.**
Bodies lunged. Feet slammed against the ground. Dozens moved at once. All aiming for the same point.
Lucien's eyes widened. "…That's ours—!"
Seryna's hand shot out, stopping him.
"…No." Firm. Immediate.
He froze. "…What?"
Her eyes didn't leave the battlefield. "…Look."
Lucien's words died in his throat.
Because now, he saw it.
The crowd didn't just surge toward the token.
It **broke** around something.
A force.
A presence.
The lizardman.
His body moved with unnatural fluidity—low, coiled, then striking with explosive bursts of motion. Muscles twisted under scaled skin, every step cracking faintly against the ground.
Someone reached him first. A man. Desperate.
The lizardman caught his arm mid-lunge and twisted.
Not a throw. Not a strike.
A **twist.**
Bone snapped.
The man's body followed unnaturally, folding in a direction it was never meant to go.
A scream—cut short.
The body dropped.
Silence rippled outward for half a second.
Then panic.
But it didn't matter.
The lizardman kept moving.
Another attacker came from the side, blade drawn.
The lizardman didn't dodge. Didn't block.
He stepped *into* it.
His hand shot forward, gripping the man's face, and slammed him into the ground.
**BOOM.**
Stone cracked. The body went limp.
And through it all, mana surged around him.
Unrestricted. Wild, but controlled.
Seryna's eyes narrowed. "…He already has one," she said quietly.
Kaelira's tail stilled. "…And he still wants another…?"
"…Of course he does," Seryna replied, voice calm, analytical. "…That's not greed."
A pause. "…That's dominance."
The token above dropped lower, closer.
And no one could reach it.
Because he was already there.
Bodies scattered in his path. Some tried to fight. Most didn't.
Lucien swallowed. "…We can't take him," he muttered.
"…No," Seryna agreed instantly. "…We don't contest him."
Tharic nodded slightly, voice low. "…Anyone who goes in there dies."
Kaelira clicked her tongue, clearly irritated, but even she didn't move. "…Tch… fine."
Above, the token fell.
The lizardman jumped. Not high. Not flashy. Just enough.
His hand closed around it midair.
The moment he landed, the ground cracked slightly beneath him.
He didn't even look at the others. Didn't acknowledge them.
He just stood there.
Two tokens now in his possession.
And slowly, his head turned.
Scanning.
Hunting.
Because now, he wasn't just collecting.
He was **choosing.**
Back with the group, Lucien's voice dropped. "…We're not fighting that."
Draven's voice cut cleanly through the tension. "…Is it up yet?"
Lucien's sister glanced down at the token in her hand. The faint glow pulsed once, then stilled.
"…Right on time."
The air around her shifted.
Mana—unsealed.
It surged back into her like something returning home. Smooth. Controlled. Vast.
Lucien's breath caught slightly. "…Sis…"
Draven didn't waste a second. "…Then move," he said flatly. "…Take the token from the lizard."
Silence.
It hit harder than anything before.
Lucien's head snapped toward him. "…Sir—what are you talking about? You want her to—?!"
"…Yes."
The answer didn't come from Draven.
It came from her.
Lucien froze. "…Sis…?"
She stepped forward. No hesitation. No fear.
Mana began to ripple around her body, soft at first, then rising, stabilizing, bending to her will like it had never left.
"…I'll do just that."
Lucien's chest tightened. "…Sis—"
She glanced back at him. Just once. "…Lucien. Don't worry."
A faint pause. "…I'll be fine."
Then she turned and walked forward.
Power followed.
Seryna's eyes narrowed slightly, watching the flow of mana around her. "…She isn't weak," she said quietly.
Kaelira huffed lightly, arms crossing, tail flicking. "…Yeah. I can't even argue that."
A beat. "…I've seen it. She's strong."
Lucien didn't respond. His eyes were locked on her back.
And then, they shifted.
Toward Draven.
A glare. Tight. Frustrated. Angry.
But Draven didn't even look at him.
Not a glance. Not a flicker.
His crimson eyes were already elsewhere.
Locked.
On the lizardman.
Watching. Measuring.
Because this wasn't a gamble.
It was a test.
Ahead, the lizardman stood still, two tokens in hand, waiting.
As if he already knew someone was coming for him.