The dismembered bodies of countless Moon Crawlers lay strewn across the forest floor, their blackened, chitinous exoskeletons split open like shattered armor. Raymond exhaled slowly, wiping the blade of his massive broadsword against the ground, its edge still humming faintly from the sheer force of his swings. Joel followed behind him, her robe fluttering in the faint breeze, her staff crackling with residual magic energy.
"These things are all over the damn place," Raymond muttered, nudging a corpse with the tip of his boot. "Something stirred them up. Moon Crawlers don't roam like this without a reason."
A cluster of ragged survivors stumbled out from behind the dense foliage. They were gaunt, covered in grime, their eyes filled with fear and exhaustion. Raymond's sharp gaze landed on them. "Villagers?"
One of them, an older man with a thick beard, nodded hesitantly. "We—We've been hiding. The Moon Crawlers attacked the village without warning. Most of us…we couldn't escape in time."
Joel stepped forward, her voice calm but firm. "Where's the rest of your group? Are there any other survivors?"
A younger woman among them stepped forward, her face streaked with dried tears. "My brother... Elias. He left to find help days ago, but he never came back."
Raymond's expression darkened. "How far are we from your village? We need to regroup."
"Not far. But..." the older man hesitated. "We saw something deeper in the forest. A... presence. Something unnatural."
Raymond exchanged glances with Joel, his grip on his sword tightening. "Then we need to move fast. Stick close. We'll get you out of here."
---
Tayla grit her teeth as she spun mid-air, her blade slicing through the thick hide of a lunging Moon Crawler. Black blood splattered across her armor as she landed, her breathing heavy. Kaido, standing beside her, bared his teeth in a snarl. His presence was suffocating—his Blood Lust skill saturating the air around them like a thick fog. The Moon Crawlers hesitated, their instincts screaming at them to flee, but their hunger kept them rooted in place.
"You overdid it, kid," Tayla muttered, pressing a hand to her shoulder where a deep scratch had torn through her armor. "You scared 'em off."
Kaido scoffed, his crimson eyes flickering in the dim light. "Better than letting them take a bite out of us."
She chuckled, shaking her head as she tightened the cloth around her wound. "Fair point. But something's wrong. This many Crawlers, this aggressive? What the hell's going on?"
Kaido's gaze hardened. "Dunno. But I don't like it."
---
Frank panted as he wiped his face with his sleeve, staring at the glowing status window in front of him. The letters were crisp, clear, and floating in midair like a holographic projection.
NAME: Elias
LEVEL: 67
SKILLS: Tri-Slash, Propel, Quick Step, Accelerate
He blinked. "What... the hell?"
Elias, standing beside him, sheathed his katana, the faint glow of its enchanted edge dimming. "You're seeing it, aren't you?"
Frank swallowed hard. "Y-Yeah. But what am I even looking at? Some kind of game menu?"
Elias frowned. "You're not from around here, are you?"
Frank hesitated. "It's... complicated."
The older man watching them rubbed his arms, still trembling from the fight. "W-We need to keep moving. This place isn't safe."
Elias nodded. "He's right. We should—"
Frank suddenly tensed, a cold shiver running down his spine. Something was watching them. His instincts screamed at him to look ahead, and without thinking, he muttered, "We need to go that way."
Elias shot him a look. "You sure?"
"I don't know how, but... yeah. Trust me."
Elias studied him for a moment before sighing. "Fine. Lead the way. But if we run into trouble, stay behind me."
They moved carefully through the dense undergrowth, the eerie silence pressing down on them. The trees around them felt... wrong. Twisted. Warped. As if reality itself had been distorted. When they finally stepped into a clearing, Frank felt his breath hitch.
The area was... unnatural. The air was thick, charged with an oppressive energy. The trees surrounding the clearing were gnarled and blackened, their roots protruding from the ground like grasping hands. The ground itself was cracked, as if something had scorched it long ago. At the center, a half-destroyed Moon Crawler lay in a crumpled heap, its body mangled beyond recognition.
The older man gagged, turning away. "G-Gods... what did this?"
Elias didn't answer. He was already gripping his katana, eyes scanning the area with sharp precision. Frank swallowed hard. His gut told him something was still here.
Something was watching them.
Then, a second body fell from the trees above, landing with a sickening thud. It wasn't a Moon Crawler.
It was half of a human torso.
Frank's stomach turned violently, and before he could stop himself, he doubled over, vomiting. Elias grimaced but remained on guard, shifting his stance.
"We need to move. Now."
A guttural growl rumbled through the air.
Frank turned, his heart hammering in his chest. From the shadows, something massive stirred. A grotesque silhouette emerged, its limbs too long, its face twisted into something beyond human recognition.
A monster.
---
Kaido's eyes widened as a sudden wave of nausea hit him. He staggered, gripping his head. "What the hell was that...?"
Tayla, panting, glanced at him. "You felt it too?"
Kaido nodded, his expression grim. "Something bad just woke up in this forest."
Tayla sheathed her blade, her grip tightening. "Then we need to find the others. Fast!!.