I was out of my league.

  The Gangwrolves closed in. Each step they took warped the ground while miasma seeped into the terrain like ink into cloth.

  One of them leapt, teeth bared, claws flashing in a downward arc—straight at me. It had [683,000] APeX! Mine was [158,000]!

  One hit from that thing, and I'd vanish like a bubble. Just poof. Over.

  But just before it landed a hexagonal barrier snapped into place in front of me, inches from my face. The Gangwrolf's claws screeched across its surface, biting sparks into the air. The impact sent a shockwave through the ground, but the barrier didn't so much as flinch.

  A ripple of golden energy erupted from the surface in retaliation, slamming into the Gangwrolf midair and detonating through its ribs like a missile. It howled, black mist bursting from its wound as it was hurled sideways into a cluster of floating stones.

  The MereShaman floated beside me, paw still raised, robes billowing, and his scepter gleaming with power.

  "I told you to stay behind me."

  His voice was suddenly very, very different. Gone was the nasal pomp. Now it was calm with a delicate sneer. I had no time to consider why it shifted.

  Another Gangwrolf darted toward me, sprinting low, zigzagging across the field.

  "I lack the firepower to assist!" I called.

  It became glaringly obvious when the [Spectral Flame] I unleashed merely wrapped around it like a chilly mist, failing to leave even a scorch mark on its ghastly form.

  "You won't need it," he replied flatly.

  Another barrier flared into existence as the wolf reached me. Not a wall this time; but a prism, refracting ambient light into brilliant spears.

  As the creature lunged, the prism imploded inward, dragging the beast into its core with a horrible wet crunch; then exploded outward in a burst of twisted geometry and collapsed air. The ghastly wolf was left twitching on the ground, part of its chest missing, ethereal mist hemorrhaging from the wound.

  My pulse may have raced with dread then, but there was no time for hesitation.

  I ran in, one paw pressing into the cracked stone for traction; and drove my claws into what remained of its chest. Light siphoned into me as soon as the Gangwrolf shuddered, then shattered into pale fragments.

  A system flash echoed in my head.

  ???

  [Status] KiAera's

  ? [Gangwrolf] defeated!

  ? [ApeX obtained: 553,100 Units]

  [Conversion: → 55,310 Units!]

  ? APeX: [158,480] Units → 168,750 Units

  {Limit Reached}

  ? Stored AP: [→ 59,620 Units]

  ? Variant Grade: [Uncommon] (61%) → (81%)

  ???

  My mind fought against the disbelief of the victory. I felt vigorous and forced myself to accept it. That counted. I got credit again. I realized he was handing me kills—intentionally.

  "Don't get cocky," the MereShaman warned, floating past me with a low and dispassionate voice. "They'll adapt. They always do."

  Ten dozen more wolves closed in.

  The MereShaman let out a sudden delighted, breathy laugh that didn't sound remotely sane. His orb flared beneath him, bright enough to cast twisted shadows of the gangwrolves on the floating stones around us. He prepared an incantation.

  "[Oblivion Edict]," he whispered, and I felt the words vibrate right through my bones.

  Dark lines of force carved through the air, contorting into impossible shapes—equations I couldn't decipher if my life depended on it.

  When they struck the wolves, their bodies folded inward, as if reality itself had decided to take a more efficient form. They crumpled into angular masses that sparked and hissed, collapsing into smoky voids before winking out of existence entirely.

  The MereShaman lowered his paws slowly, breath coming in little ecstatic pants.

  "I love this part," he said, with all the tender reverence of someone admiring a priceless painting. Then he glanced at me, eyes twinkling behind that skull mask. "Go on then. Clean up what's left."

  My mouth went dry. "…You enjoy this."

  "Of course I do. Why else perfect an art if not to savor its exquisite applications?" His head then tilted to exhibit thought. "And besides, our adorable little power progression depends on final hits, does it not? Be grateful. I've left a few fragile."

  A bark, then a gag of laughter reached my ears.

  I turned just in time to see a gangwrolf stagger toward me, crawling and coughing up motes of black. I didn't have time to overthink it—I lunged, my claws sinking into the soft rot of its side.

  This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

  We wrestled for dominance, and soon, with a final push, it collapsed, dissolving into experience that poured into me like warm lightning.

  ???

  [Status] KiAera's

  ? [Gangwrolf] defeated!

  ? Stored AP: [→ 99,114 Units]

  ? Variant Grade: [Uncommon] (81%) → (100%)

  ???

  My Chimera's Mark lit up. The kaleidoscopic lights startled the other Gangwrolves. I realized I had reached the requisite for [Variant] evolution. I didn't hesitate to accept it before I got the HUD memo. It began in an instant.

  While my form was undergoing the transformation from the [Uncommon] to the [Rare] variant, the Gangwrolves tried to circle us, their eyes gleaming with a cunning hunger. They were prepared to strike me down before the metamorphosis was complete.

  Yet the MereShaman didn't wait. With a casual flick, he conjured half a dozen smaller barriers that snapped around the wolves like bear traps. Each one contracted with an ugly crunch. When they fell away, all that remained was drifting ash.

  "I am the high priest. I am the barrier. I am the judgment. None shall pass."

  One of the remaining Gangwrolves made the mistake of charging him. This time, he didn't raise a barrier-shield; instead, he hovered into its path.

  The wolf struck and instantly screamed as its body folded like paper against a burst of inverse force. It wasn't just magic—it was his [Dominion]. Virtuoso and Manifest. His aura warped the space around him and turned the rules off. The beast collapsed with a gurgle, and just as quickly, he turned to me with a smirk.

  And I couldn't help but shudder. It was ridiculous how quickly the line between surviving and thriving could shift in the company of someone like him.

  But thanks to him stalling for me.

  The evolution had been completed.

  ???

  [Status] KiAera's

  Variant Grade Raised from: [Uncommon] → [Rare]

  ???

  I stood there panting, my fur matted with sweat and half-glowing from siphoned power. My heart continued to thunder in my chest; the metamorphosis had been intense, and the presence of that darn critter began to unsettle me. He enjoyed the act of slaughter. His vibes reminded me of Jalkra's.

  Unfortunately, I had to shake the thought away and regain my composure. I glanced over at myself as everything began to settle.

  I was still a Mearcritt, but I now had subtle blue streaks patterned across my fur coat, and my tail had split slightly at the very top. Additionally, I now had two coiling bonfires spiraling like a helix there, as my Specter Fire burned with a soft violet hue.

  I went ahead to confirm my development.

  ???

  [Status] KiAera's

  Age: 100 Cycles (25)

  Dominions: [Revise] [Virtuoso]

  APeX: [225,000 Units]

  Power Limit Cap (APeX): [500,000 Units]

  Attributes: [Fire] [Beast]

  Evolution Stage: [Emergent]

  Current Variant Grade: [Rare] (1%)

  ???

  The MereShaman floated a slow circle around me. "You see? There's an artistry to devastation, young KiAera. It is not merely about survival. It is about expression. About refining the most elegant means to dismantle those who threaten the balance."

  I met his masked gaze, my tail lashing behind me. "Or maybe you just like breaking things."

  He paused. Then, with a tiny, pleased shrug that set his ears swaying, he said, "Why not both?"

  "You were feeding me kills."

  "Yes," he said, without pause.

  "Why?"

  "Because if you die," he added, "I have to carry your smug two-legged corpse all the way back out of this forest. And I refuse."

  "That almost sounded like you care."

  He didn't look back. "No. I strategize. Now hush, more are coming."

  And they were. The moment I thought the last Gangwrolf had fallen, the forest exhaled, then it laughed.

  Somewhere above us, that grotesque moon still grinned, as if sharing in our private, terrible joke.

  I shivered—and followed the MereShaman deeper into the forest. Because as much as he unsettled me, I suspected I'd need every bit of his particular brand of monstrous genius before this was over.

  More laughter rang from the thickets as shadows flickered. It wasn't one voice; it was many. Layers of cackles, overlapping and out-of-sync like a broken choir of madness. It echoed off the twisted trees, seeped out of the earth, and curled beneath my skin like frostbite. The MereShaman's orb flickered uneasily beneath him.

  I turned. They were everywhere.

  Dozens of Gangwrolves, creeping from the trees, phasing through the broken terrain like shadows. Their miasma was thicker now—more aggressive, more alive. Some of it drifted like fingers through the air, dragging behind them like sickle-shaped tails.

  They began to circle, and rings of dreadful symbols etched themselves beneath their feet.

  I took a step back. "When will this damn hunt end."

  "They smell the rite on you," the MereShaman said while raising a fresh set of barriers with practiced ease. "The Rite's power always calls predators to the edge of ascension."

  "But what's with these cult circles?" I muttered, my heart pounding as I shot another glance at the ground.

  The circles were more profound and eerie. I almost recognized them as a drawing I'd seen in GamaGen's book.

  I couldn't think long enough to figure it out. The wolves finalized their strange ritual by spitting on the circles. The glow in the darkness took on an eerie tint.

  The wolves looked up at us, though they didn't lunge yet. They simply watched, their eyes too intelligent and their movements too calculated. They were waiting for something.

  Then the grinning moon above pulsed and cackled. It was a command. The wolves howled, and the forest exploded into motion.

  One wolf came from the right, moving too fast and silent. It got too close.

  MereShaman's barrier caught it a millisecond before it reached my throat. Another dove low, its claws sparking across the ward's underside. I twisted, barely catching its flank with a swipe of my fiery claws.

  But the flame that erupted from me wasn't the same ghost-light I'd wielded before.

  It was sharper now, edged like scythes. Where it grazed the beast, it left frost-burn lines that sizzled and hissed; a breath of blizzard laced through my fire.

  The wolf shrieked, its flank steaming with vapor, before it crumpled sideways.

  I blinked, eyes widening. And realized the darkness wasn't so dark anymore.

  I could see the subtle contractions of muscles beneath the wolves' pelts, their intentions mapped out a breath before they moved. Whiskers along my muzzle twitched, catching the breath of a wolf behind me.

  I pivoted before it lunged. My peripheral sight caught another creeping low, and my [Spectral Flame] lashed out almost before I decided to strike, catching its snout and sending it yelping away.

  Just then, a third wolf phased through the barrier, bypassing it completely.

  "What?!"

  "Spatial bleed!" the MereShaman barked, already casting. "They’re adapting—!"

  The Gangwrolf inside the shield launched itself at me. I ducked instinctively, but it clipped my shoulder.

  The impact sent me sprawling, stars bursting behind my eyes. I tasted copper. Another howled behind it, ready to follow through.

  My legs wouldn't move fast enough.

  Another impact. A barrier barricaded between us. The MereShaman again. But he was faltering—his orb was flickering wildly while his paws were twitching mid-cast.

  I glanced at the circles that were still creeping across the ground. They must have been the reason for the Gangwrolves' adaptation. It only made sense for the moment.

  I looked back at the MereShaman. Sweat dotted his fur under his mask. He couldn't keep this up. Not with so many.

  Then the grinning moon laughed again, louder this time, and the symbols beneath the wolves' feet began to conjure more of them. There were thousands of them now.

  "MereShaman!" I cried out as they converged on us. "Stay focused. Narrow the barriers so they're concentrated on me!"

  "Are you bloody mad?!" A few Gangwrolves almost phased through a wall when his gaze snapped at me.

  I sheathed my claws. I planned to be the blade while he remained our shield.

  "You need to focus! Now do it!"