Blackstone Forest grew quieter the deeper Kael ventured.
The towering trees blocked most of the sunlight, leaving only scattered rays that reached the forest floor.
The deeper he walked...
The heavier the air became.
Kael stopped.
A footprint.
No...
Not a footprint.
A paw print.
Small.
Shallow.
Yet the pressure it left in the soil told a different story.
"...Bronze."
He followed it.
The tracks barely disturbed the forest floor.
Whatever made them...
Moved lightly.
Like the wind.
Minutes later—
Rustle.
A silver blur shot across his vision.
Kael instantly drew his sword.
Nothing.
Silence.
His eyes narrowed.
"...Fast."
A cold breeze brushed past his neck.
Instinct screamed.
Kael twisted.
Slash!
A razor-sharp tail sliced through the air where his throat had been moments earlier.
The beast landed several meters away.
It resembled a fox.
Silver-grey fur.
Slim body.
Long ears.
Its tail ended in blade-like black fur that gleamed like steel.
Its golden eyes calmly observed Kael.
A Bronze Razor Fox.
The fox disappeared.
Kael's pupils shrank.
Left.
No—
Right.
Too late.
Slash!
A shallow cut opened across his shoulder.
The fox had already leapt away.
"Tch..."
Kael steadied himself.
The beast wasn't stronger.
It wasn't bigger.
It was simply...
Faster.
The fox circled him lazily.
Almost as if it were playing.
Kael attacked first.
"Ripple Slash!"
His blade swept through the air.
Nothing.
The fox was already gone.
Another sharp pain.
A second cut appeared across his arm.
Kael frowned.
"...I'm chasing it."
The fox darted between the trees again.
Its paws barely touched the ground.
No wasted movement.
Every step flowed into the next.
Kael lowered his sword.
He stopped attacking.
The fox tilted its head.
Confused.
It rushed forward again.
Kael didn't swing.
He watched.
Not its claws.
Not its tail.
Its feet.
Every change in direction...
Began with the slightest shift of weight.
Every leap...
Started before its legs even moved.
"So that's it..."
The fox attacked again.
Kael copied the movement.
Instead of jumping backward...
He shifted his weight first.
Then moved.
Too slow.
Slash!
Another cut.
Blood trickled down his side.
Again.
The fox attacked.
Kael shifted.
Moved.
Still wrong.
The blade-like tail grazed his ribs.
He exhaled slowly.
"...Again."
Minutes passed.
The fox attacked relentlessly.
Kael was forced to adapt.
Each dodge became smaller.
Cleaner.
He no longer tried to outrun the beast.
He simply moved...
At the exact moment he needed to.
The fox lunged once more.
Kael shifted his weight.
One small step.
His body slipped past the attack by inches.
For the first time...
The fox missed completely.
Kael's eyes widened.
"..."
He had felt it.
No wasted movement.
No unnecessary speed.
Only perfect timing.
The fox landed and immediately turned.
This time...
Kael was already there.
His feet moved almost instinctively.
Not faster.
Smoother.
The distance vanished.
"Ripple Slash."
SHING!
The blade carved across the fox's flank.
The beast cried out and stumbled.
A clean hit.
The fox quickly leapt backward, its golden eyes no longer playful.
It had been wounded.
Kael looked down at his own feet.
A faint smile crossed his face.
"...I'm getting closer."
The fight...
Had only just begun.
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