The Shadow Vein Sealed
A storm brewed over Sector 3, the wind howling as though the land itself was trying to warn the living. The clouds above were tainted—streaked with black veins of lightning, unnatural and thrumming with quiet malevolence. Beneath that cursed sky, a gaping rift pulsed at the heart of the valley—jagged, bottomless, and seething with raw, flickering energy.
It wasn't just a dungeon.
It was the Shadow Vein.
And it was awake.
Four high-ranking commanders stood at the edge of the chasm, their cloaks flapping in the wind like banners of war.
Commander Xin Zee, robed in black tactical armor, activated a holographic scan over the trench. The readings blinked red, unstable.
"This isn't a normal Vein. Energy levels are off the charts."
Beside him stood Commander Zian Zee, stone-faced and silent, a long spear on his back glowing faintly with protective enchantments.
"Containment first," Zian said.
Commander Xian, the oldest of the trio, knelt and touched the cracked ground. The soil vibrated beneath his fingers.
"This is where it started last time... 200 years ago."
Behind them, High Healer Vurnai raised a curved obsidian staff, chanting softly. Dozens of ADM Corps soldiers surrounded the area, placing energy pylons carved with suppression runes. As the last pylon activated, a dark blue dome of energy formed over the Vein, sealing it off from the outside world.
The chasm pulsed in defiance.
"Nothing gets in or out," Xin Zee muttered. "Not without royal command."
Suddenly—
THOOM.
A gust of wind erupted from the trees. Soldiers tensed, raising weapons.
A blur of black tore through the mist, and within seconds, Ryen Sylvan stood at the edge of the sealed zone. His silver hair whipped behind him. Ice crystals trailed from his boots, still smoking from the speed of his arrival.
He looked at the fissure with narrowed eyes.
"So… this is the Shadow Vein," Ryen said, voice low and cold.
Zian Zee stepped forward. "You shouldn't be here, Sylvan. This area is off-limits until we understand the danger."
Ryen didn't blink. "I'm not here for permission. I'm here for answers."
Before they could speak again, four figures emerged on the hill behind him—Yuji Kazehaya, Aika Miyawaki, and their teammates Sagai and Hakiru, all clad in dark field uniforms, their ADM rings dimly glowing.
Yuji's eyes locked on the Vein, drawn to its chaotic energy. He felt it again—that hum inside his blood. The same feeling he had during the Forbidden Forest. Dark… and familiar.
"What is this place?" he asked.
Xian turned slowly, voice heavy. "This… is not just a Vein. It's a portal. A tear between timelines."
Yuji blinked. "Timelines?"
Vurnai nodded grimly. "The Shadow Vein isn't like the other ten. It's older. It doesn't just summon monsters—it pulls them from other versions of our world. From other eras. If it opens fully, Zeyrus could be overrun by creatures that don't belong to this reality."
Sagai's expression hardened. "So what—you want us to go in?"
"No," Xin Zee said. "Not yet. No one enters until we understand the internal shifts. One step in the wrong direction, and you might land in a version of this world where Zeyrus doesn't exist."
Yuji clenched his fists.
Aika looked at him silently, her expression dark with concern.
Ryen finally broke the tension. "He's not ready."
The commanders turned.
Ryen gestured to Yuji. "He's still bound to a 1-Star ADM Ring. He wouldn't survive five minutes inside that place. If you want a chance of sealing it again, we need him upgraded."
Zian Zee frowned. "He's unstable."
"So am I," Ryen snapped. "And I'm still alive."
A heavy silence followed. No one dared argue.
Ryen turned to Yuji.
"We're leaving. The Hunting Forest. You'll find a monster there strong enough to test you. You survive—it upgrades you. You die—I was wrong about you."
Hakiru stepped forward. "We'll go too."
Ryen's voice sliced the air:
> "No. Stay here. Report everything to the King. If we don't return... warn him."
Sagai started to argue, but Ryen didn't even turn his head.
"Yuji. Aika. Mount up."
The three turned and walked toward the eastern trail, where three black horses waited—battle-trained, muscle-bound, and restless beneath the crimson skies.
Yuji glanced once more at the sealed Shadow Vein as they departed.
It still pulsed… like a heartbeat.
Waiting.
---
Into the Hunting Forest
The cold wind howled across the craggy cliffs as the three riders thundered down the mountain path. The trees below loomed like a jagged ocean of green, and far in the distance, the endless stretch of the Hunting Forest waited—dark, ancient, and breathing with unseen life.
Yuji, riding at the center, gripped the reins tight. The battle horse beneath him was fierce and wild, but his grip didn't waver. To his left rode Aika Miyawaki, her gaze focused, hair tied back in a tight braid. On his right, leading them with terrifying calm, was Ryen Sylvan.
None of them spoke for a while.
Only the thunder of hooves.
Then—Ryen broke the silence.
> "Do you know why the Hunting Forest exists?"
Yuji narrowed his eyes. "To train soldiers."
Ryen let out a small, cold breath. It could've been a laugh—or a curse.
> "No. It exists because the world needs a place to hide its sins."
Aika looked toward him, brows furrowed.
Ryen continued, voice sharp like shattered glass.
> "Every monster that ever escaped a broken Vein… every creature the world couldn't kill, it got pushed into this forest. Over centuries, they adapted. Mutated. Evolved."
He pointed ahead.
> "You see those black trees? That's the outer ring. Monsters here are weak. Two to ten thousand years old. If we go deeper, the power levels rise."
Yuji blinked. "How old can they get?"
Ryen's eyes darkened.
> "Some are over a million years old. Their bones are tougher than any gear. Their blood burns like lightning. They've seen kingdoms fall and rise—and they don't fear humans."
Aika whispered, "Then why are we going in?"
Ryen didn't answer for a moment.
Then—
> "Because power doesn't come without pain. If Yuji wants to survive the Shadow Vein… he needs a monster that can break his limits."
Yuji stayed quiet, the wind lashing his face. His heart beat harder with each hoofbeat.
In his mind, a whisper echoed again:
> how many mysteries this forest might be hiding from us
His hand instinctively touched the black ADM Ring on his finger. It hummed with suppressed power.
> "Aika," Ryen said suddenly, "Your ring is 3-Star. You'll support. Don't interfere unless he's dying."
She nodded without question.
Yuji clenched his jaw.
> "And me?" he asked.
Ryen's reply came sharp and final.
> "You fight. You bleed. You survive. That's how you earn your next star."
Ahead, the trees finally parted.
And the Hunting Forest welcomed them… like a beast with its mouth wide open.
--
The ancient hunt
The moon hung like a pale eye in the sky, casting a haunting glow over the twisted branches of the Hunting Forest. Every tree groaned in the wind, and the deeper they traveled, the more unnatural everything felt. No birds. No distant roars. Just silence… too perfect.
Yuji, Aika, and Ryen moved cautiously beneath the ancient canopy. Wind howled gently between the gnarled trees, whispering secrets in a language only the forest understood.
Yuji's grip tightened around his Wind Blade, the glow from his 1-Star ADM Ring pulsing dimly. Each of them had synced to their gear before entering—10 Energy Bottles each, the bare minimum for a mission this risky.
Crunch.
A single branch snapped ahead.
Ryen's hand shot out. Everyone froze.
"Something's watching," he said quietly.
Aika narrowed her eyes. Her breath frosted in the air.
Then—
CRACK—SSSSSSKKKKREEEEEEE!
A monstrous form burst from the canopy above. Eight glowing crimson eyes. Fangs dripping molten-green venom. Legs like blackened tree trunks smashing into the ground.
The Poison Widow.
Not just any monster.
This one radiated death.
Yuji's breath caught in his throat. "That's no 20,000-year-old Wind Beast…"
Ryen's jaw clenched. "No. It's an 80,000-year-old poison-type. And it's angry."
The spider let out a horrid screech and fired acidic webs straight toward them. Aika spun instantly, generating an Ice Shield to block—but the webs melted right through it, burning holes in the ground.
"Poison that burns like fire," she gasped. "My ice can't stop it!"
Yuji swept his arms wide and summoned Black Storm, swirling gales infused with shadow that hurled them out of range. The three hit the ground hard and rolled.
"Separate!" Ryen barked. "Surround and confuse!"
Aika shot left, spikes of ice forming beneath her feet. Yuji dashed right, drawing his Wind into his legs for a speed boost. Ryen charged straight ahead, his body cloaked in misty ice aura.
The spider turned on Ryen, its eight legs pummeling the earth as it lunged. He met it head-on with an upward slash, ice crystals flaring into its underbelly—only to shatter instantly.
"No effect," he muttered. "Its shell's too thick!"
Behind it, Aika launched spears of glacial energy at its hind legs. They hit—but barely cracked the exoskeleton.
Yuji leapt into the air and fired a Shadow Arrow directly at the spider's head.
BOOM!!
The explosion shook the trees, black smoke clouding their view.
For a moment, they paused—breathing hard.
Then… movement.
The smoke cleared.
The spider stood… completely unfazed.
Its fangs opened wide. Green mist poured out.
Aika screamed, "Don't breathe it in! It's paralyzing poison!"
Yuji covered his mouth with his sleeve, but his vision was already blurring. His knees buckled. "Damn it…"
Ryen blasted a frozen wave at the poison mist, trying to cool and suppress it, but the mist kept regenerating—hot poison that countered ice directly.
The spider screeched again and lunged toward Aika.
"AIKA, MOVE!" Yuji shouted.
She rolled, barely avoiding a strike that tore the ground apart like paper. But her leg was grazed—poison sizzling through her boot.
"I… I can't feel my foot…"
"Yuji, boost her!" Ryen yelled.
Yuji concentrated, his wind spinning violently around Aika, lifting her and pushing her back toward safety.
But the cost was severe.
[EB Energy Level: 3 remaining]
Yuji looked at his ADM Ring. Only three EBs left.
Aika fell beside him, breathing hard. "That thing… It's draining us too fast…"
The spider turned on Yuji now.
It knew who the weakest was.
It knew who was tiring.
It struck.
Yuji raised his Wind Blade to block.
The blow shattered his weapon.
He flew back, crashing into a tree.
Pain spiked through his chest. His shoulder dislocated. Blood spilled from his mouth.
[EB: 2 remaining]
"YUUJIII!" Aika screamed.
But she couldn't move.
And Ryen—Ryen was pinned beneath one of the spider's legs, his arms straining to hold it off.
He snarled, blue energy bursting from him as he kicked the leg off and slid backward.
"We can't keep this up," he muttered.
Yuji crawled to his knees, coughing. His Dark energy was stirring again—screaming in his veins. But he couldn't release it fully.
The Red Coil. The poison inside him.
If he went all out, it would kill him in sixty seconds.
His vision blurred.
His mind spiraled.
> "if.... a 80 thaosand years old spider is this strong... how many more might be here"
The spider reared back, venom dripping.
This was it.
It would end them.
Unless—
"YUUJI!!" Ryen roared.
Yuji snapped his head up.
Ryen was staring at him with fire in his eyes.
"Give me the sword."
Yuji's pupils widened.
"You—"
"Now!"
Yuji reached behind his back—where he'd hidden silver sword: his personal weapon
It pulsed with corrupted energy.
Ryen held out his hand, no hesitation.
But Yuji's mind raced. Could anyone else wield it safely?
The spider shrieked and lunged again—this time, no hesitation, no mercy.
"YUUJI!!" Aika shouted.
Ryen's voice was calm, unwavering.
"Trust me."
END OF CHAPTER 12