"The Hunger Beneath the Skin"
The skies above Zeyrus had dimmed, as if sensing the weight of the truths about to rise.
Muted sun filtered weakly through fractured clouds, draping the kingdom's tallest tower in a ghostlight glow. Inside that spire of black stone and silver arches, the great council of Zeyrus had gathered—though none spoke.
The war room was unusually silent.
Tension lived in the corners. It whispered between the flickering wall torches and the restless fingers of high-ranking generals. Wax dripped down untouched candles, each slow drop echoing like a countdown none could see.
King Kael stood before the obsidian table—his hands clasped behind him, his cloak still as midnight. Emerald eyes scanned the chamber not with fury, but with the weight of decisions carved in blood and fear.
At his left stood Commander Xian, the youngest among them yet already the bearer of haunted eyes.
To his right: Zian Zee, a silent tactician in armor that reflected no light.
Commander Li, healer general, the calm within any storm.
And Commander Heian, grim-eyed, jaw clenched, his aura always smelling faintly of smoke and steel.
Kael's voice, when it came, broke the silence like a sword drawn in a holy place.
> "What did the book say?"
Not a demand. A request. But one that carried centuries of kingdom memory behind it.
Xian stepped forward slowly, the ancient leather-bound tome still in her hands. Its pages had blackened edges, and the cover seemed to pulse faintly as if something behind the words still breathed.
She opened the book with care, her voice quiet.
> "Dark EB… is not just a source of power. It has… life."
The sentence settled into the room like ash after a funeral pyre.
Kael's eyes narrowed. "Explain."
Xian nodded, flipping carefully through brittle pages. "It mimics a normal EB when placed into an ADM Ring. It feeds the same energy. Boosts your element. Responds to command."
She paused. Her breath caught for a second. "But the more one uses it… the more it feeds back. It reacts to emotion. Specifically—hatred, rage, sorrow. The darker the mind, the stronger the grip."
> "It doesn't amplify your rage," she whispered.
"It drinks it."
A beat passed.
Commander Li leaned forward, brow furrowed. "So you're saying… if someone like Yuji had unknowingly absorbed even a single Dark EB…"
He didn't finish.
Commander Heian did.
> "...Then it's possible the darkness inside him isn't his fault. Not entirely."
His voice was bitter, filled with memories. "It grants you strength, yes. But in return—it takes the wheel. Slowly. Softly. And then all at once."
The flames in the wall sconces flickered sharply—an unnatural wind brushing through the war chamber.
King Kael turned his gaze back to the book. "Have we seen this before?"
Xian hesitated. "There are… whispers. Long ago, one of the old Lords of Verin fell into madness after using a strange black EB during a border war. His power was unmatched—but he slaughtered his own army by the time the battle ended."
> "They buried him standing," she added. "Said his shadow wouldn't stop moving."
No one spoke.
The silence now was not of respect—but of fear.
And then—a shrill alarm burst through the tower, slicing through stone and thought alike.
WEEE-OOO. WEEE-OOO.
The crimson alert sigil pulsed in the air above them. A sound that was only ever heard when the very veins of the kingdom were under siege.
"Enemy attack…" Commander Zian muttered.
King Kael didn't flinch. "Which Vein?"
An aide burst into the room, panting. "My King! It's Vein-12. Our forces report enemy signatures from the Sarenya border. They've brought reinforcement units. At least three squads already engaged!"
Kael didn't hesitate.
> "Commander Xian—take our first line intercept squads. Hold the forest rim. Buy time and break their reinforcements."
> "Commander Li—bring all healers and stabilizers. Prioritize field rescues. If they fall, we fall."
> "Commander Heian and Zian Zee—you're last line defense. Pull from our elite units and monitor the Vein stabilizers. If the line breaks—detonate the EB Bombs."
The room flared with movement as orders became action. Cloaks swirled, armor snapped into place, and boots struck marble like war drums.
But Xian… didn't move yet.
She stared down at the book, at a page near the center. Her brow furrowed.
Kael noticed. "What is it?"
Her voice came slowly. As if unsure whether to speak or burn the page instead.
> "This page says something about…"
Her eyes narrowed as the symbols seemed to change in front of her.
> "The Shin Kenai."
Time froze for a heartbeat.
Kael's breath caught. "Say that again."
But Xian's voice was already fading, her pupils dilating slightly as if the book's ink had whispered back into her mind.
> "It's… not just energy, Majesty. There's something underneath all this. Something older than EBs. Something... watching."
Her voice faltered—not from fear, but from awe—as she traced the ancient symbol again.
> "The Shin Kenai…" she breathed.
It is not an object.
Not an element.
Not a name carved into any royal record.
> "It is… a way."
A forbidden technique. A forgotten script etched in silence and sealed in memory.
> "A method of creation… to pierce the veil between worlds."
"A key, not to power—but to possibility."
And for a fleeting second, the room felt thinner.
Like a page turned… in the wrong book.
---
And then—
The book trembled.
Just slightly. But enough that the stone table beneath it cracked.
Kael stepped forward slowly, gaze locked on the pulsing black leather.
The sigil above them pulsed again. WEEE-OOO.
Outside, the war horns began to howl.
And from deep beneath the capital…
The faintest echo of something laughing through the stone.
A laugh with no mouth. No voice.
Just hunger.
---
"The Cave of a Thousand Cuts"
The cavern walls wept with moisture, their jagged edges gleaming under the ghost-light of the moss that clung to the stone like wounded skin.
Ryen Sylvan and Aika Miyawaki stood shoulder to shoulder—backs pressed against each other, blades shattered, armor torn, and bodies leaking warmth into a place that knew only cold.
Blood pooled at their feet.
Their breathing came in short, ragged bursts. Every inhale was pain. Every exhale was defiance.
All around them, the Death Rabbits circled—thirty of them, perhaps more now, their claws clacking against stone in eerie rhythm. Red eyes blinked from walls, from ceilings, from cracks no human hand could reach. They were not animals. Not anymore.
They were instinct twisted by centuries of something unspoken. Of hatred given form.
One leapt—
Aika turned just in time to duck, but another slashed across her arm. Blood sprayed, catching the torchlight like rubies midair.
Ryen growled, slashing with his energy-charged blade, but the blade deflected off the chitin-like fur of another attacker. "We can't hold much longer!"
Aika, panting, eyes wide: "They're not just attacking. They're… calculating."
And they were.
The rabbits weren't charging blindly. They were coordinated.
Predators with patience.
The air smelled of metal, stone, and growing despair.
> "Enough!" Aika whispered.
She clenched her fists.
From the torn sleeve of her ADM ring, icy veins of blue light began to surge upward. It pulsed around her body—cold, divine, commanding.
> "I won't let these monsters take another inch!"
She slammed her palm to the ground.
SHHHHHHHRAAAAKKK!
A wave of frost erupted from her in a violent ring, slamming outward. The rabbits reacted too late. One by one, they froze mid-pounce—mid-slash—locked in eerie poses, mouths open, claws out, like statues sculpted in terror.
The entire chamber shivered with sudden cold. A fog crept in.
Aika fell to one knee, coughing blood. "Move… now…"
Ryen didn't hesitate. He grabbed her arm and they ran—
Deeper into the cave, where the cold hadn't reached, where silence returned like a curse, and the shadows waited with unknowable intent.
---
The path twisted, narrowed.
They stumbled into a second chamber, smaller, more ancient. Here, the air was thick with spiritual pressure—as if something holy had once lived here, but died long ago.
And at the center…
A single sword floated.
Not embedded in stone.
Not placed on a pedestal.
It hovered—tip down, inches from the ground, surrounded by a ring of broken rabbit bones and cracked sigils etched into the floor. The blade was curved, narrow, sleek like a fang. A white fur ribbon was tied to the hilt, fluttering without wind.
Ryen's eyes widened. "What is this?"
Aika stepped forward, sweat beading on her brow, blood dripping from her fingers.
Her voice was soft. Almost reverent.
> "I've read of it… in the Lost Flame Scrolls. A weapon left behind by a beast who ran faster than lightning—who outran death itself."
> "This is the Rabbit Sword."
She turned to him, a flicker of hope in her tired eyes.
> "They say… it unlocks the speed of a rabbit. Those who wield it can step through time between heartbeats. They move not like warriors—but like illusions."
A low hum began to rise from the chamber floor.
The sigils responded to her words.
Ryen stepped forward. "Wait—"
But she was already reaching.
And then—
> A shiver went through the chamber. A presence.
From behind a frozen rabbit statue, one figure twitched.
Not all were caught in the ice.
This one—larger than the rest. Taller. Its ears longer, torn at the edges. Its eyes…
glowed with dark light.
Not red. Not wild.
But intelligent. Cold.
Awake.
It did not move.
It only watched.
Aika's fingers touched the Rabbit Sword—
And it shot into her hand like it had always belonged there.
The entire cave pulsed.
> "Let's go," she said, chest heaving. "Before that thing unfreezes."
They turned and ran—this time faster. The sword pulsed in Aika's hand, not with bloodlust, but with wind.
It whispered.
Almost guiding her feet, accelerating her steps.
They dashed back through the frozen battlefield. The ice had started to crack.
Tiny sounds.
Faint twitching limbs.
The rabbits were thawing.
One moved. Then another.
> "Too late!" Ryen roared.
A chorus of shrieks echoed behind them—like hundreds of blades scraping through bone.
Aika screamed. "They're fast again—too fast!"
Ryen closed his eyes. There was no choice now.
His ADM Ring surged. Ice circled his boots in a spiral.
He activated the skill he'd reserved for death moments only:
> "Phantom Steps!"
A blast of wind and frost exploded behind him.
He lifted Aika in one arm, and the world blurred around them.
He didn't run—he vanished between movements.
One step. Gone. Another. Gone again.
The world became streaks of color.
They reached the outer edge of the cave—light visible ahead. Hope visible ahead.
And then—the floor vanished.
A trap.
The ground below them split open, revealing coiled vines that moved like snakes.
They fell—
Hard.
Roots exploded upward like claws and grabbed their wrists, ankles, throats—twisting and slamming them against the cavern floor.
Their limbs locked. Muscles frozen.
> "I… can't move," Ryen gasped, teeth grinding.
> "These aren't normal roots," Aika whispered, breath ragged. "This is… magic. Higher-tier."
And then—
A figure stepped out from the shadows.
Blue hair.
White lab coat, stained with ink and faint streaks of blood.
Eyes like twin oceans—but far too calm for a battlefield.
> "You made it far," she said softly. "I wasn't sure if you would. But I suppose... the sword chooses."
Aika's heart dropped.
> "You…"
Ryen's eyes widened.
> "Mina."
She smiled, gently brushing dirt from her glove.
> "Don't worry. I'm not here to kill you."
"I'm here to study what's left of you… when the Dark truly begins to bloom."
She wore a lab coat stained by curiosity, eyes polished by secrets no one had asked her to keep.
She was Mina. Scientist from Zeyrus. But...
How did she know of the Flame World's existence?
How did she find them through forests, flames, and fate?
How many paths had she walked… and which one led her here?
Thousands of questions stirred beneath the surface—
But not a single answer dared rise.
She was a mystery wrapped in logic.
A smile sharper than any sword.
And in that moment, the most terrifying truth was not her presence—
It was how natural it felt.
---
"When Roots Begin to Tremble"
Far from fangs, warhorns, and whispers in stone…
Yuji Kazehaya sat cross-legged beneath the emerald canopy of the living jungle, where vines danced like veins and the soil pulsed with silent rhythm.
Here, the air was thicker, gentler—more ancient.
Around him, five glowing flowers bobbed softly in the breeze. Each one radiated green light, their petals twitching with personality.
> "Bloomie One reporting: humidity stable, no beast activity for fifty meters!"
"Number Two here. Monitoring the left flank. Slight heat trail, but nothing immediate."
"Bloomie Three says: I found a mushroom that looks like your face!"
"Bloomie Four… um… hiding behind a leaf…"
"Bloomie Five: perimeter locked. Formation tight."
Yuji chuckled quietly.
The bruises on his body had faded into dull memories. The cuts sealed. His breathing, once strained, now flowed with the rhythm of wind through trees.
Inside his chest, the Green Flame swirled quietly. Not like fire, but like a stream of life weaving through every vessel.
He reached inward.
> "Stage One…" he whispered. "Let's see if you grow."
A slow inhale.
The jungle responded. Energy, like invisible pollen, drifted toward him. The five Bloomies pulsed in harmony, syncing their roots with the land and their hearts with Yuji.
His ADM Ring flickered faintly—both Wind and Dark elements glimmering at the edge of control.
And then—breakthrough.
The wind within him surged. The Dark stirred.
A burst of pressure cracked the air around his shoulders like shifting gravity.
> Realm 1, Level 1, Stage 3.
Yuji's eyes snapped open. A breeze brushed through his hair as if the forest itself bowed in recognition.
> "My Wind… it's faster now. Lighter. And the Dark…" he hesitated. "It's clearer."
A Bloomie chimed in cheerfully, "Elemental increase: two percent! I'm so proud of you, master!"
He smiled. "Thanks. All of you. You're… different. Not just skills. You're alive."
Bloomie Four peeked from behind a leaf. "Don't cry, boss… but we love you too…"
He leaned back slightly, letting the soft grass cradle him.
For the first time since entering the Grand Treasure Hunt, he felt peace.
And then—
> "Alert."
Bloomie Five's voice went flat.
"Strange energy detected. Seventy meters northeast. Unfamiliar pattern. Possibly… not human."
Yuji was on his feet instantly.
The flowers shrank into the earth, their lights flickering into standby. His hand reached for his side, feeling the faint pulse of Wind energy coil along his palm.
The jungle around him grew still.
Too still.
Yuji walked forward slowly, weaving between the thick trees and glowing vines. Every footstep measured. Every sense open.
Then he stepped into a small clearing—lit faintly by slanted sunlight breaking through canopy cracks.
And standing at the center…
> A boy. His age. His height. But… wrong.
He wore no insignia. His eyes were violet. His aura?
Dead silent.
Not unreadable—just empty.
And next to him, leaning casually against a twisted tree with one leg crossed over the other—
> Silas Reign.
Smirking. Cloaked in black mist.
As if the shadows chose him willingly.
> "Yuji, Yuji, Yuji…"
His voice was velvet and venom.
> "Did you miss me? I've been watching your growth. Your new friends. Your precious little jungle toys."
Yuji clenched his jaw.
Silas tilted his head toward the quiet figure next to him.
> "Say hello to Ziyan. He's one of us. A proud member of the Shadowbound Society."
He paused, smile widening.
> "And me? I was the one who helped end your precious Ara."
That name—Ara—cut through Yuji like a whip made of ice.
His breath caught.
And from within the quiet sanctuary of his mind…
A voice returned.
Not soft. Not nurturing.
But fierce. Gritted.
> "This bastard again…"
Ara's whisper.
Her rage.
Yuji's body tensed.
The Green Flame exploded to life inside him, veins glowing with emerald light. His eyes burned—not just with power, but with conviction. The ground beneath his feet quivered slightly. The vines around the trees recoiled, as if the air itself had sensed an approaching storm.
> "Silas…" he said, voice low.
> who are you??."
Silas chuckled, eyes narrowing with amusement and calculation.
> "Good. Then maybe now… we can truly begin."
Yuji didn't flinch.
The jungle around them pulsed. The roots shifted.
And somewhere in the background, one of the Bloomies whispered quietly—
> "Master… be careful. His shadow is… hungry."
---
END OF CHAPTER 22.