The deeper Auren walked, the quieter the forest became.
It wasn't the natural silence of night.
It was something heavier.
As if the very creatures that ruled this place had chosen to stay hidden, watching… waiting.
Auren stopped for a brief moment, his gaze shifting slightly. The faint distortions he had begun to sense earlier were becoming clearer now. Not visible to the eyes—but present. Like ripples across an unseen surface.
"…So it's not just me."
Something else existed here.
Something stronger.
A faint breeze passed through the trees, yet the leaves above barely moved. The air itself felt… wrong.
Then—
A presence.
From the darkness ahead, low footsteps echoed—slow, deliberate, heavy.
Auren didn't move.
His eyes remained calm, but his focus sharpened.
Another screen appeared before him.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Name: Horned Bear
Rank: D
Element:
Earth: C
Mana Capacity: Medium
Skills:
Crushing Claw
Iron Hide
Charge
Condition: Highly Hostile
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
The creature stepped into view.
It was massive—far larger than any normal beast. Its thick, dark fur blended into the night, while two jagged horns protruded from its head like natural weapons. Its eyes glowed faintly with a dull, dangerous light.
Unlike the wolf—
This one did not hesitate.
It charged.
The ground shook beneath its weight as it rushed forward, tearing through roots and soil alike. Its sheer size alone made dodging difficult in such a confined space.
Auren exhaled slowly.
This time—
He didn't just react.
He focused.
The moment the beast entered his range, Auren lifted his hand slightly.
The air bent.
No—more than that.
The space in front of the beast stretched unnaturally.
Its charge slowed, not because it lost strength, but because the distance itself refused to close. The bear pushed forward with brute force, muscles straining, yet something invisible held it back.
Auren's eyes narrowed.
"…Control."
The distortion wavered.
For a brief second, it almost collapsed.
The bear broke through.
Its claw came crashing down.
Auren vanished.
Or at least—that's what it looked like.
In reality, he had stepped through space itself, appearing several meters to the side. The ground where he had stood split open under the force of the impact.
Auren steadied himself.
"…Still unstable."
The movement had drained more from him than expected. His breathing remained calm, but he could feel the strain.
The bear turned again, enraged now.
It roared and charged once more.
Auren didn't retreat.
Instead, he stepped forward.
The shadows beneath him responded instantly, spreading faster this time, thicker than before. They weren't just reacting—they were obeying.
As the beast closed in—
Auren clenched his hand.
The space around the bear twisted sharply.
At the same time, the shadows surged upward.
Not as thin strands anymore—
But as multiple bindings.
They wrapped around its limbs, its body, tightening with unnatural force. The beast struggled violently, roaring as it tried to break free.
Auren held his ground.
"…Not enough."
The distortion alone wasn't sufficient.
The shadows alone weren't sufficient.
But together—
They began to synchronize.
The space around the bindings compressed.
The shadows tightened.
The bear's movements slowed drastically, its strength being crushed from two directions—space and shadow working as one.
Auren stepped closer.
For the first time, there was a faint coldness in his eyes.
"End."
The distortion peaked for a brief instant.
A dull, heavy crack echoed through the forest.
The beast collapsed.
Silence followed.
Auren stood still, his hand lowering slowly as the shadows receded once more. His breathing was slightly heavier now, though his expression remained composed.
Then—
The same sensation returned.
Stronger this time.
A screen appeared.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Target Eliminated
Energy Absorbed: Moderate
Authority Level: 1.02 → 1.10
Control: Increased
Shadow Density: Increased
New Skill Unlocked:
Shadow Bind (Basic)
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Auren observed it quietly.
"…So battle refines it."
Not just growth.
Evolution.
The shadows around him no longer flickered as before. They were more stable now, more responsive.
He extended his hand slightly.
A thin strand of darkness formed instantly, coiling around his fingers like it had always belonged there.
"…Better."
A faint sound echoed in the distance.
Not from an animal.
From something… else.
Auren turned his gaze toward it.
His expression didn't change.
But his eyes sharpened.
"…I'm not alone."
Far above, hidden among the branches of a massive tree, a figure watched.
Small in stature.
Green-skinned.
Sharp eyes filled with intelligence—not instinct.
A goblin.
But not a normal one.
It had witnessed everything.
The distorted space.
The unnatural shadows.
The fall of a creature far stronger than itself.
Its grip tightened around the crude dagger in its hand.
"…Monster," it whispered under its breath.
But its voice did not carry fear.
It carried something else.
Curiosity.
Interest.
And something close to… recognition.
Auren slowly lifted his gaze.
Directly toward the tree.
For a moment—
Their eyes met.
The goblin froze.
Auren said nothing.
But the space around him shifted slightly.
Not as an attack.
But as a warning.
Silence stretched between them.
Then—
Auren turned away.
"…Not worth it."
He continued walking deeper into the forest.
Leaving the goblin behind.
But the goblin did not move.
Even after Auren disappeared into the darkness, it remained there, staring in the direction he had gone.
Its mind raced.
"That human… is different."
Very different.
And in a forest ruled by strength—
Difference meant opportunity.
Back within the empire, far from the silent tension of the forest, the first search parties had already begun to move.
Knights.
Mages.
Scouts.
All dispatched under a single command.
Find the abandoned prince.
Before his existence became a threat.
Deep in the forest, unaware of how quickly the world was beginning to shift around him, Auren walked forward without looking back.
But now—
The forest was no longer just watching him.
It had begun to notice him.