The scream echoed across the forest.

  Oscar and Aster ran side by side, weaving between trees and leaping over fallen branches.

  “Someone’s having a bad time,” Aster muttered.

  Oscar didn’t respond. His senses were already spreading through the forest.

  Dead Man’s Intuition was still active.

  I need to pinpoint the exact location.

  Oscar concentrated.

  There you are.

  “Aster, follow me.”

  “Right behind ya.”

  The two began moving faster.

  “How can you tell where it is?” Aster asked.

  “Call it intuition.”

  They burst from the trees and landed in a clearing.

  What they saw stopped both of them instantly.

  A girl lay on the ground beside a shattered tree. One of her arms was missing, and blood poured across the dirt beneath her.

  Two beasts stood nearby.

  They weren’t wolves.

  They were larger.

  Twisted.

  They resembled giant boars, but their skin was cracked with black veins spreading across their bodies.

  Each one had a glowing jewel embedded in its neck.

  “Corrupted boars,” Aster muttered.

  “Oscar?”

  “What’s up?”

  “Can you buy me some time?”

  Aster sighed.

  “You’re asking for a lot, you know.”

  “I can’t let her die.”

  Aster nodded.

  “I can probably hold them off for a couple minutes.”

  Oscar’s eyes sharpened.

  This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

  “Perfect.”

  The boars immediately charged toward Aster.

  “Water Manifestation: Flowing Tide.”

  A stream of water surged forward, sweeping the boars off their feet.

  Aster leapt into the air.

  “Water Convergence: Geyser.”

  The water left behind by Flowing Tide surged upward as Aster forced his energy into it, launching a powerful blast toward the beasts.

  The boars roared loudly.

  When the water settled, the damage they had taken began slowly healing.

  “Hey Oscar,” Aster called out, “I could really use some backup here.”

  “Almost done.”

  Aster clenched his teeth.

  If that girl wasn’t so injured, I could go all out…

  But I can’t risk hitting her.

  His hands were tied.

  He could only stall for so long.

  The boars charged again.

  “You guys are all brawn and no brain.”

  Aster took a deep breath.

  “Water Convergence: Coral Reef.”

  Water surged upward and hardened into jagged coral formations.

  The charging boars slammed into the barrier.

  CRACK.

  Aster groaned.

  “Oscar, hurry! It’s going to break!”

  There was no response.

  Then—

  “Dead Man’s Intuition: Coffin Crusher.”

  Oscar appeared beside the first boar.

  His fist slammed into its skull.

  The impact crushed its head instantly.

  The second boar charged at Oscar.

  “Water Convergence: Water Prison.”

  A sphere of spinning water trapped the beast’s body, leaving only its head exposed.

  Oscar jumped.

  “Dead Man’s Intuition: Skull Breaker.”

  His strike shattered the boar’s skull and cracked the ground beneath it.

  Both beasts collapsed.

  Oscar and Aster let out a long breath.

  “Looks like the head is their weakness,” Aster said.

  “Seems that way,” Oscar replied.

  Both of them turned toward the injured girl.

  “Well… what the heck do we do with her?” Oscar asked.

  “Don’t ask me. I don’t want people thinking I beat up some girl.”

  “Me neither. I killed the boars, so it’s your responsibility.”

  Aster turned toward him.

  “Listen here, pal. I had to hold them off before you finally decided to help.”

  Oscar shrugged.

  “Yeah, yeah. Whatever helps you sleep at night.”

  Both of them laughed.

  Aster glanced back at the girl.

  “It’s probably better if we leave her here.”

  Aster frowned.

  “Why?”

  “Think about it. We don’t have time to carry her back to the start and still make it to the exit. We already have four jewels. That should be enough to pass.”

  Aster sighed.

  “You’re right.”

  Oscar gave him a reassuring nod.

  “Besides, people come through and collect the seriously injured applicants.”

  “Let’s go, Aster. Standing around won’t help.”

  “Got it.”

  The two began heading toward the designated area.

  Then suddenly—

  A distant roar echoed somewhere deep within the forest.

  The sound was massive.

  Even the trees trembled slightly.

  Oscar stopped walking for a moment.

  That wasn’t a normal corrupted beast.

  Aster glanced toward the darker part of the forest.

  “…You heard that too, right?”

  Oscar nodded slowly.

  “Yeah.”

  Neither of them said anything else.

  They simply kept walking.

  Whatever made that roar…

  Was far deeper in the forest than they wanted to go.