The two Raie monsters stood motionless, like statues carved from midnight stone, their presence saturating the cave in a thick tension. Aria's boots made no sound on the stone floor as he slowly shifted his stance. Their glowing red eyes—dim yet aware—watched him. It was as if they were waiting.
The cave itself was silent, unnaturally so. Not even the sound of dripping water or echoing wind accompanied them. It was a silence that spoke of expectation, of judgment.
Aria swallowed. "My worth?" he whispered to himself. What did the voice mean by that? Was he supposed to prove his worth through combat—or was this another kind of test?
He narrowed his eyes. "If this is a trial... then who determines the terms? Them?"
He glanced at the two Raie again. They didn't move, but the quietness of the cave pressed in harder now, as though it demanded a response. Aria tightened his grip on his sword and let his mind run through the possibilities.
"Think," he muttered. "They said they'd choose the trial, but nothing's happened yet. Do I attack first? Or wait to be judged?"
Still, the monsters remained still, their crimson eyes half-lidded like they were on the verge of sleep—or restraint.
He sighed, frustrated. "This is getting ridiculous."
With a sharp breath, Aria placed his sword down beside him. The clink of metal against stone echoed through the cave, startling in the silence.
Almost immediately, the Raie monsters' eyes flared brighter.
"Swish!"
Aria leapt backward just in time as a tail the size of a tree trunk slammed down where he'd been standing. A loud crack rang out as the cave floor split beneath the impact.
Aria landed on one foot, rolling to a stop. "So, fighting it is," he muttered, unimpressed. He grabbed his sword and dashed forward as the second Raie lunged with terrifying speed.
"They're big... but fast," he noted.
The creature's massive arm came down in a punch, and Aria raised his sword to block. The collision sent a shock through his arms and pushed him back several feet, but he kept his footing.
He took a deep breath. He'd fought worse. "All I have to do is find the weakness."
Charging again, he slashed at the first Raie's hand just as it prepared another attack. The monster let out a pained roar. The second Raie came at him, claws extended.
Aria ducked and rolled under its swing. "Why am I doing this?" he thought.
He smirked. "Because it's fun."
He didn't need to use his overpowered skills. He could easily crush them if he wanted—but that wasn't the point.
"What's the thrill in that?"
He slashed at the creature's leg as it stumbled. The first Raie's tail whipped around and caught Aria mid-motion, lifting him off the ground and coiling tightly around him.
Aria grunted, struggling as the pressure increased. "Tch… come on!"
Gripping his thigh, he pulled out a small dagger from his boot and jabbed it into the tail. The creature howled and dropped him.
Before he even landed, a beam of red energy shot from the second Raie's mouth.
"No time to think!"
Aria twisted midair and kicked off the first Raie, propelling himself upward. The beam struck the first Raie instead, ricocheted off the glowing blue wall of the cave, and bounced right into the second one.
Both monsters crashed to the floor.
Aria landed gracefully. "Overpowered characters usually ruin the whole 'trial and error' process," he said, brushing dust from his cloak. "There's no growth, no risk... and that's boring."
He observed the monsters, twitching slightly. Their bodies jerked as they began to rise again.
"Huh?"
He noticed it then—the beam had bounced off the blue glowing walls. That glow—he'd seen it before.
"That's why I'm only a C-rank adventurer," Aria muttered. "I'm not in this for money or titles. It's the adventure... the thrill."
Opening his status window, he scanned through his list of skills. He rarely used most of them—too flashy, too final. But one in particular caught his eye.
The Raie monsters were back on their feet now, their bodies still smoking slightly. Their eyes locked onto him with fresh intensity.
Aria closed the window. "Let's try this."
He rushed forward, sliding between the monster's legs and using the cave wall to launch himself toward the ceiling.
His hands began to glow—a blinding white light surged from his fingertips, intensifying by the second.
The monsters growled and shielded their eyes.
Aria unleashed the beam of light.
The entire cave lit up. The blue walls refracted the light, sending beams flying in every direction. The Raie screamed, blinded by the multiplied assault.
Light poured behind Aria as he spun midair, performing a 360 turn before diving straight down.
"YAAAH!"
He slashed through both monsters in one smooth strike. Green blood sprayed across the floor.
The Raie monsters stood for a moment… then split apart, collapsing in halves to the ground.
Aria exhaled and flicked the blood off his blade. He returned the dagger to his boot and stood, waiting.
Nothing happened.
No voice.
No path opening.
"Was that not the trial?" he asked, annoyed.
Suddenly—
Clank.
He turned around.
"What in the...?"
The two Raie corpses were moving—flesh stitching itself together, bones realigning, organs crawling back into place.
Aria gagged at the sight, swallowing the bile rising in his throat. "This is... disgusting."
The monsters roared as they fully reformed, their glowing eyes bright with renewed malice.
"And the voice said they were harmless?" Aria growled. "Lying piece of—"
These weren't normal regenerations. Even the best regeneration magic couldn't reverse death like this.
"There has to be a mistake," he said, stepping back. "I killed them. That was the trial. Wasn't it?"
The monsters approached, slower this time. Their legs were still healing, muscles twitching awkwardly.
He raised his sword again, preparing for round two.
Then something clicked.
A flashback.
"It was easy to break because it wasn't covered by the Bleu."
Bleu—the glowing stuff on the cave walls. What had the little girl said?
"Daddy, didn't I tell you I could control them?"
"You can hear them..."
"Some of them are kind of cute and harmless—like the Raie in front of you."
The flashback faded.
Aria blinked.
"They're... harmless?" he muttered.
He looked at them again—big, powerful, dangerous. They could easily defeat anyone. Even the guild master.
But those words echoed again.
"I'm not afraid of them... because I can control them."
"Like now."
Aria lowered his sword. His hand dropped to his side. The blade clattered to the floor.
One of the Raie monsters raised its fist.
Aria didn't flinch. He closed his eyes and waited.
Bang.
He opened one eye.
The fist had stopped.
The Raie monsters... had stopped.
They stood still before him, no longer growling. Their glowing eyes looked into his—but something was different now. There was recognition.
Aria smiled.
"So this... was the real trial."