10 PM. A moonlit night.
The location of the gate had been determined.
Receiving a message through her Gate Watch, Cha Eun-sol set off into the darkness of Honrim Island.
Even though monsters lurked within the shadows and the path was barely visible, it didn’t trouble her.
She had the spirits on her side.
Thanks to their assistance, Eun-sol reached the gate without encountering any real danger.
“Ah, here it is.”
Once she passed through this gate, she could return to the world she originally came from.
If it were up to her, she would have gladly exited right away and lazed around in her dormitory room.
However, since the exam was still in progress, that was not an option.
Instead, Eun-sol decided she would camp nearby and, when the test concluded, be the very first to step outside.
She looked around carefully.
‘That tree should do.’
Choosing a place unlikely to be attacked by monsters or fellow examinees, she decided to make herself a safe and cozy resting spot.
Eun-sol summoned the spirits slumbering within the island’s ambient mana.
‘Please help me.’
The spirits responded.
The spirit of earth formed a cocoon from soil, just large enough for her to crouch inside.
The spirit of wind gathered leaves to create a soft bed within.
The spirit of flame lit a small ember to gently warm the surrounding air.
Other spirits also lent their power for her comfort.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
Even the lowest-ranked spirits, those without a clear sense of self, had a will—faint, but real. It was wrong to treat their aid as a given.
Gratefully, Eun-sol crawled into the earthen cocoon.
She lay her body down on the leafy bedding.
Closing her eyes, she murmured,
“Good night.”
Exhaustion and drowsiness pulled her under.
Thinking of what delicious meal awaited her once the exam was over, Cha Eun-sol drifted into a deep, peaceful sleep.
The night deepened over Honrim Island.
Since the gate’s location had been announced, more and more examinees gathered in the forest.
After all, to pass the exam, everyone needed to reach the gate.
Tension crackled like electricity in the air.
No words were exchanged.
Each held onto their exam passes, guarding them fiercely—while also eyeing others, ready to steal theirs if needed.
They maintained distance, preparing themselves for the inevitable battle that loomed.
It would only take a tiny spark for the forest to turn into a battlefield.
And when it did, there would be one person at the center of the carnage.
Do Gyeon-woo, the famed prodigy of the Divine Sword Clan, rumored to have collected the most passes so far.
Any skirmish involving him would surely descend into chaos.
“I can’t let that happen.”
Perched on a tree branch, Lee Ga-hyeon narrowed her sharp eyes.
She wanted to test Do Gyeon-woo’s abilities herself—without anyone else’s interference.
“What should I do about them…”
The examinees gathering below were obstacles in her path.
She needed to put them in a situation where they wouldn’t even think about challenging him.
“Ah. That will do nicely.”
A slow, wicked smile spread across her lips.
Monsters lived within the forest—and as more examinees arrived, other monsters had followed them in.
Now, the woods were a seething mix of humans and beasts.
Moreover, the mana in the air was becoming increasingly unstable due to the mana spilling unconsciously from so many people.
Zzzzt!
Grrrrrr…
Dimensional rifts began to tear open.
From those rifts, even more monsters emerged, escalating the crisis.
Ga-hyeon decided to use it to her advantage.
“You all are going to help me,” she whispered.
Her eyes turned a deep crimson.
It was a trait of Ains and demons alike—eyes that shone blood-red like those of monsters.
Piercing the darkness with that gaze, she spoke to the monsters lurking within the woods.
Grrrr!
Kieeeeek!
The power of compulsion awakened.
Monsters howled in unison, roused by her command.
Their cries echoed through the night as they rose from the shadows.
“Kyaaaaah!”
“M-Monsters! They’re—urk!”
The monsters attacked.
The examinees’ screams resounded through the forest as chaos erupted.
In an instant, the peaceful night transformed into a battlefield, a brutal war for survival.
“Well then, it’s time for me to move.”
Looking pleased, Lee Ga-hyeon leapt down into the darkness—where screams never ceased.
Thus began a night where no one could sleep.
Surprisingly, attacks from other examinees were few and far between during the night.
They were too wary of each other to act rashly.
Thanks to their mutual vigilance, only a handful of ambushes occurred.
Taking turns keeping watch, we managed to rest and recover some strength.
However, for me—who needed to stay alert against Lee Ga-hyeon—I could not afford real sleep.
I kept my eyes closed but my ears open, ready to react at any moment.
It was during this light doze that I sensed it.
Grrrr!
Kieeeeek!
The monsters howled—a sound far more ferocious now that night had fallen.
It wasn’t just their cries.
“Kyaaaaaah!”
“A healer! Somebody—someone cast a healing spell—!”
“Aaaaagh! Get away! Get away! Get away!”
“They’re attacking in groups—!”
Screams and shouts erupted everywhere as the forest shook with turmoil.
Sounds of fighting came from not far away.
Monsters that had hidden in the dark had finally begun their hunt.
It was expected, to an extent.
Drawn by the scent of mana, monsters would never leave a gathering of humans untouched.
Frankly, it had been strange that they hadn’t moved sooner.
Still…
‘This is too much.’
Monsters were surging from every direction.
It felt as if the entire forest’s population of beasts had risen at once.
It was hard to believe.
Normally, monsters were fiercely territorial and often even cannibalistic—they rarely acted in such large, coordinated groups.
There were only three possibilities:
First, mass migration to escape a natural disaster.
Second, a species of monster that inherently moved in packs.
‘No. It’s neither.’
I dismissed both options.
There were no signs of a natural disaster, nor were the monsters of the same species judging by their cries.
Thus, there was only one explanation left.
Third.
‘Lee Ga-hyeon’s doing.’
A higher-level entity capable of commanding monsters had appeared.
Except for pack-dwelling species, monsters usually acted independently.
If they moved as one, it meant a superior being was exerting control.
The larger the horde, the stronger the overlord.
Yet the highest-ranked monsters appearing in the Yellow Gate of Honrim Island were only third-rank.
Controlling a force of this size should have been impossible.
Unless—
Lee Ga-hyeon.
As a demon rather than a human, she could dominate monsters.
She was moving.
There was no other explanation.
“Gyeon-woo! Get up, quickly! Monsters are attacking everywhere!”
“I know. Tell everyone to grab only what’s necessary.”
Just then, Go Eun-bi burst into the tent, her voice urgent.
Grabbing my Azure Sword, I got up and issued orders.
Outside, faint lights flickered through the dark—where examinees’ campsites were located.
“Kyaaaaah!”
“I-I don’t want to die!”
“Run! Hurry!”
Panic and fear echoed from the distance.
Clearly, the camps were under siege.
Judging by the proximity of the sounds, the monsters would soon reach us too.
We couldn’t stay.
We had to move.
“Gyeon-woo! We’ve packed up!”
“Good. Let’s evacuate to a safer place.”
Go Eun-bi looked pale with fear.
So did the others.
No one could stay calm with monsters pressing from all sides.
Understanding their fear, I spoke as calmly as possible.
Our first objective was to escape the forest.
It was then—
Boom!
A sudden tremor shook the ground behind us.
Something had fallen.
“…”
We turned.
In the moonlit clearing, a cloud of dust rose, revealing the silhouette of a massive monster.
[You have encountered a monster.]
[Mauler Baboon (Rank. 02) x 1]
Mauler Baboon.
A monstrous beast with the face of a baboon crossed with a gorilla, its arms and fists grotesquely large and disproportionate to its body.
The creature held a half-conscious examinee in one massive hand.
“P-please… help… me…”
“….”
The trapped examinee, writhing in agony, desperately pleaded toward us.
But the monster reacted first.
“H…elp…?”
“A-Aaah…”
“How…?”
The beast clumsily mimicked human speech, its massive shoulders shaking with a grotesque chuckle.
Then, without hesitation, it raised the examinee high above its head.
And—
“Like…this?”
Crack!
With a sickening sound, the monster slammed the examinee into the ground.
Bones crunched, flesh squelched.
As it lifted its bloodied hand again, the examinee’s teeth scattered across the ground, and thick blood streamed down like syrup.
Apparently unsatisfied, the monster raised the broken body once more.
“Or…like…this?”
Crack!
Crack! Crack! Crack!
It smashed the examinee over and over.
It happened so quickly, we had no chance to intervene.
The examinee died instantly, crumpled like a broken doll.
“He…dead…?”
The creature dropped the corpse with a wet thud.
Laughing lowly, it wiped the blood from its fingers and turned its gaze toward us.
“N…next…is…you?”
“G-Gyeon-woo…”
“Hiiiek!”
“….”
The others stumbled back under the monster’s chilling gaze.
Go Eun-bi’s friend whimpered, her face frozen in terror at the horror she had just witnessed.
The beast, clearly enjoying our fear, grinned grotesquely.
“Gyeon-woo, it’s a second-rank monster. It’s not something we can underestimate… and it’s nighttime too—”
“I know. Don’t worry.”
Despite Go Eun-bi’s attempt to stop me, I stepped forward without hesitation.
The fact that it was a second-rank monster—and that it was nighttime—meant nothing to me.
It wasn’t unbeatable.
“Alone…”
The instant the monster blinked, I exploded into motion, kicking off the ground.
Startled, the monster swung its massive fist.
Fwoosh!
My gift, Reflex Evasion, activated instinctively.
I narrowly dodged the blow and lunged straight toward it.
Sparks flew from the ground as compressed mana shot skyward.
〈King of Beasts Sword Art, Form Ten〉
Lion’s Skyward Strike
Kyaaaaargh!
A flash of lightning-imbued energy carved deep wounds into the monster’s right arm and chest.
Howling in agony, the creature staggered backward.
Not wasting a second, I launched a second attack midair.
Boom!
Another Lion’s Skyward Strike.
This time, the blow wasn’t as deep.
The monster managed to block with its left arm, cushioning the hit.
But that wasn’t my real target.
I was aiming for its eyes.
〈King of Beasts Sword Art, Form Two〉
Lion’s Quiver
Before the monster could react, I landed on its shoulder and slashed at its face with the Azure Sword.
Kyaaaaargh!
Its vision stolen, the creature shrieked in blind rage.
The fight was decided.
With Reflex Evasion on my side, there was no way I would be caught by a monster without sight.
Its wild fists pounded only the earth, injuring itself more with every missed blow.
I waited patiently for the moment it revealed an opening—
〈King of Beasts Sword Art, Form Four〉
Lion’s Returning Fang
The instant the opportunity arose, I drove my blade deep into the wounds I had already carved.
“H…elp…me…”
“How? Like this?”
The beast whimpered, helpless now, unable to move.
Of course, I had no intention of showing mercy.
“Or…like this?”
Thud.
“And like this.”
I stabbed again and again with ruthless precision.
Only when death neared did the monster finally fall silent.
Its body crumbled into particles of mana, leaving behind a single mana stone.
“See? I told you not to worry,” I said, tossing the mana stone to Go Eun-bi.
Startled, she caught it reflexively, her expression dazed.
“Keep it safe for me. I still have…”
“You still have?”
“…more enemies to deal with.”
I turned my gaze upward.
In the darkened branches above, a familiar presence lurked.
“Come out. I know you’re there.”
“Well, looks like I’ve been caught~”
Lee Ga-hyeon, the Dollstring Witch.
Realizing she had been exposed, she gracefully slid down on a strand of thread.
Wearing her Yellow Trial Pass, the female examinee landed softly, slicing the threads with a flick of her fingers, letting them dissolve into ambient mana.
“Hi~ Nice to meet you!”
Borrowing the body of another examinee, Ga-hyeon flashed a bright, mischievous smile.
“Wanna have some fun with me?”
“You’re the same age as me. Don’t call yourself ‘noona.’”
“Ah, right! In this body, we’re the same age! Then, let’s—”
She didn’t finish her sentence.
Because I had already lunged.
There was no room for playful banter.
I swung the Azure Sword down with all my might.
Ga-hyeon hastily crossed her twin swords to block my strike.
“Ghk! You’re really impatient, aren’t you?”
“I guess I am.”
“You’ll never be popular with girls that way, you know~”
“…Yeah, I know. Screw it.”
Bullying a lone person with a group was nothing short of cowardice.
It was disgraceful—something no man of honor should ever do.
Yet right now, Do Gyeon-woo was surrounded, targeted by dozens of examinees.
Upon hearing the news, Yong Hae-rang couldn’t just sit idly by.
“Hang on! Hang on, Gyeon-woo! I’m coming for you!”
Driven by loyalty to his friend, Yong Hae-rang raced through the woods, following the rumors of where Gyeon-woo had been isolated.
Unfortunately, when he arrived, the forest had already darkened, and with so many examinees crowding the woods, he couldn’t locate Gyeon-woo’s exact presence.
“Where are you, Gyeon-woo?!”
He had no choice but to search blindly.
Even as the monsters grew fiercer with the deepening night, Yong Hae-rang never gave up.
If Gyeon-woo was in danger, his own safety meant nothing.
He smashed through monsters and any obstacles in his path without hesitation.
It was then that an abnormality unfolded.
The monsters began attacking en masse.
“What the hell is going on?!”
While cutting down charging monsters and rescuing nearby examinees, Yong Hae-rang realized:
Something was happening—something he didn’t understand.
He clicked his tongue.
If the situation was this dire, Gyeon-woo must be in even greater peril.
His best friend was in danger.
“I have to find him quickly! Outta my way!”
Crashing through another monster, Yong Hae-rang sprinted into the darkness.
He screamed at the top of his lungs, hoping Gyeon-woo would hear him.
“I’m coming for you, Gyeon-woo! I, Yong Hae-rang, won’t abandon a friend in need! Hold on!”
He raced off somewhere into the forest.
Where, exactly, even he didn’t know.
He trusted only his instincts.
Believing that if he kept running—just like how the Earth is round—he would find his friend eventually.
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