The flames tightened into a burning cage.
Ryn narrowed his eyes. Sweat rolled down the side of his face as heat clawed up his throat. His lungs hurt just breathing.
Across from him, the Hellhound limped forward—two heads snarling, saliva hissing as it hit the molten stone.
Outside the fire, Amelia slammed her hands against the barrier.
"RYN!"
Before he could answer, the hellhound's right head snapped forward while its other head spewed a cone of flame across the ring.
Ryn dove aside, rolling through the narrow gap between fire and the charging beast.
He checked his status, it popped up, confirming his fear.
[MP: 70/110]
Ryn only had two uses of Aquila's Dash left, he had to make both of them count somehow. No mistakes.
He couldn't breathe just yet, as the hound went for a swipe with its massive claws
Ryn planted his heel and pivoted hard, the claws missing him by merely a few centimeters. He even heard the slight swish of the wind as it flew past his face.
Thank you, [Enhanced Senses]
But the beast recovered quickly, using the same claw to position itself for a body slam.
WHAM—!!
Ryn's breath exploded out of his chest as the monster's full weight smashed into him, sending him flying across the field.
He crashed onto his back, skidding across the ground. A sharp red notification flickered in his vision.
[HP: 87 → 65]
Ryn grit his teeth, using his sword as a balance to stand.
"Damn—"
He steadied his breathing, eyes locked onto the Hellhound's stance.
Its right foreleg, the injured one, dragged hard. The beast looked like it had shifted its entire weight over to its left side.
That's the weakness.
However, the distance between himself and the beast was around ten steps—far enough that the monster could react if he simply charged.
What it didn't realize was that Ryn already knew about this. And he was going to exploit that fact.
Aquila's buff surged. His legs felt like loaded springs ready to release. He could see the path of light immediately.
[MP: 40/110]
With one explosive step, he arrived at the beast's strong side, right where it expected him. The right head snapped toward him immediately…But he wasn't there anymore.
Ryn planted his heel, and pivoted hard, letting his extra momentum slingshot him.
By the time the monster tracked him again, Ryn was already on its injured side.
The Hellhound tried to follow—and its wounded foreleg buckled under the sudden weight shift.
A choked roar escaped both heads as the massive frame started falling sideways.
Ryn's blade flashed.
SHHK—!
A clean cut opened across the already mangled joint, forcing the limb to give out completely.
The Hellhound crashed to the ground, both heads struggling to rise, but its balance was broken. Its entire underside, the one spot even a Hellhound couldn't fully protect, was exposed.
His mind tunneled into the opening, the world blurring as instinct took over.
Ryn stepped into the opening without hesitation.
His blade lowered, air filling his lungs. He held the breath within.
Even without Aquila, he can see the path his blade needed to take, clear as day.
Arctis Sword Technique — First Form: Frost Bloom
…
The slash descended like a falling crescent.
Steel carved a single unbroken line from throat to abdomen, a straight and precise line. The Hellhound's body jerked once, hanging mid-motion as though time itself had stuttered.
For one heartbeat, nothing happened. Blood hadn't even flown out yet.
Then—
FWOOOM—
Cold exploded outward from the wound.
Frost spread like blooming flowers, pale-blue petals racing along the Hellhound's body. Ice blossomed across fur and flesh, blooming from the inside out. First tracing the wound, then branching into fractal patterns over both heads and down its legs.
In seconds, the entire creature froze solid.
A frozen sculpture, mid-roar.
Ryn exhaled, his breath spilling out as pale mist. Then, with a soft crack.
CRKKKK—
The Hellhound burst into a million pieces of ice, scattering everywhere across the field.
The last shards of ice hit the ground with soft, crystalline clinks. For a moment, the only sound in the ruined courtyard was Ryn's strained breathing.
The barrier of fire finally flickered—then collapsed completely.
Light and sound rushed back in.
"Ryn!"
Amelia sprinted through the dissipating flames, boots skidding across the scorched stone. She dropped to his side immediately, grabbing his forearm.
He didn't respond.
His eyes were unfocused, still locked on the space where the Hellhound had been. Cold Aura still clung to his blade and hands, numbing his fingers and crawling halfway up his forearms like frostbite.
Amelia shook him once, panicked.
"Ryn! Hey—Ryn, look at me!"
He blinked. Once. A second time.
And the trance cracked.
His pupils refocused, the numbness fading enough for him to suck in a full breath. Finally registering Amelia's grasp on his arm, he muttered.
"A-Ah—sorry."
She exhaled, relief unraveling her shoulders.
"Don't scare me like that again."
Ryn didn't answer right away. Something else tugged at his attention.
He followed the line of her gaze.
Behind the dissipating smoke, Ardan stood with several Arctis knights and Deimos survivors. They stood still, like a statue at an exhibit.
A dull weight settled in his stomach.
I'm fucked.
Ardan stepped through the thinning smoke. The knights followed a half-step behind him, but none dared speak. Their eyes kept drifting back to the shattered ice where a Hellhound used to be.
He stopped in front of Ryn, his gaze swept briefly over the courtyard.
Ryn straightened, forcing himself not to look guilty. "It—uh—it was the Cold Aura. The beast tripped, and…things lined up."
"I got lucky."
Ardan's eyes lingered on him, clearly waiting for more. He needed to steer this away fast.
"Uh—actually," he said, clearing his throat, "how come none of you got in?
That did it—the captain's expression shifted. Ryn felt the pressure ease off his shoulders.
Amelia stepped forward before Ardan could answer.
"It definitely wasn't normal," she said. "Hellhounds breathe fire, sure, but that—" she gestured to the scorched circle on the ground
"—that had to have been a structured spell."
Ardan and the knights were still debating the nature of the flame barrier when something cold crawled up Ryn's spine.
He turned his head sharply toward the far edge of the courtyard.
[Enhanced Senses] — Active
At first, nothing.
Then—
A faint sound. A single pebble skittering across stone.
Ryn's eyes narrowed.
There, by the charred remains of a collapsed wall, something had moved. Just enough to knock loose rubble.
"Ryn?" Amelia's voice dropped. She noticed his body shift.
He didn't answer.
The courtyard was still again.
Ardan glanced over. "Something wrong?"
Ryn swallowed. "It's probably just a small animal, my Blessing picks up everything after all."
Complete lie again, but they seem to have bought it.
Amelia followed his gaze for a moment longer, then drew in a steadying breath.
"Let's head to Deimos," she said softly. "We'll report this to the Baron."
Ardan nodded, already barking quiet orders to the knights.
Ryn didn't move.
His eyes stayed on the corner where the pebble had skittered, muscles tight beneath his sleeves.
Amelia reached out and lightly tugged his arm. "Ryn…why'd you lie?"
He leaned in just enough that only she could hear him.
"Because it wasn't an animal."
Amelia's eyes widened a fraction.
Ryn kept his voice low, steady despite the cold lingering in his fingertips.
"Someone was there. Watching. They left the moment the barrier dropped."
Amelia's grip on his sleeve tightened. "Are you sure?"
He nodded.
She drew in a breath, slow and quiet. Her gaze drifted back toward the collapsed wall, the one corner none of the knights seemed to think twice about.
"What do we do?" she whispered.
"We go," Ryn said. "First chance we get… Stay close."
Amelia gave a small, sharp nod, the kind she used when she was trying not to show fear.
Together, they turned toward the carriage, pace quickening without needing to speak.
But as they walked away, Ryn couldn't shake the feeling that the presence he'd sensed…was still somewhere out there.
As he sat on the carriage seat, Ryn couldn't stop a thought from rising:
Apart from the pebble, he definitely heard the wind carry another sound, a voice. And it said:
"...wrong one."