Beast Evolution Forge

"How are you holding up?" Wren asked, defending against another attack. She could faintly sense where they were, but unlike her master, her senses fell short. Yenna could not sense anything at all, so she stayed behind Wren, putting up her guard, just in case.

'It's happening again... I am being useless once more. Why does this keep happening?' she thought, trying to pick up on the monster's presence, but she could not feel anything no matter how much she tried.

The monsters were toying with them; it was clear their objective was not to kill them. It was as if they were waiting for orders. 'Where the hell are those guys? They should have been back by now. Don't tell me they are struggling with a mere human? Tsk.' This one's patience was wearing thin, but it tried its best to hold that anger in.

'Why is Mother telling us to gather information on them? They are humans, our natural enemy. We need to kill them now before something goes wrong.' It kept thinking, staring at the girls, its claws itching to rip them apart. 'Hold back; it's all for Mother... it's all for her.' Its gaze turned to look around after it felt like it heard something.

"Guys, did you hear that?....... Guys?" No response; it knew something was wrong, so it created some distance. 'I sense something, someone... could it be that human? Impossible, they may have been weak, but there is no way a human like him dealt with them.' It knew it should have been impossible, but its instincts told it to run, before—

"You are the last one, huh?" His voice sent a chill through its body as it tried to strike, but it was too late.

His blade was already descending, slicing cleanly through the space the monster occupied. It barely managed to twist its body, the edge grazing its arm instead of taking its head. Blood sprayed as it staggered back, clutching the wound, its breathing ragged.

"Wow... You actually dodged that?" His tone sounded annoyed; his swing should not have missed.

The monster hissed, its fear overridden by desperation. "You... what are you?!" it snarled, its voice trembling despite its bravado. "No human moves like that!"

Vell smirked, his smile twisted. "Wrong, you just haven't come across 'this' kind of human before," he finished, his predatory gaze making the monster's blood run cold.

'I need to run... immediately.' It turned its back to run, and Vell's smirk vanished.

"How disappointing." He swung, and in the next few seconds, the monster froze and fell apart. He sighed again, sheathing his sword, and walked away. "Even your core is not worth my time." He stopped and looked in the direction of the strong mana presence. "Now then, 'Mother', what will you do? Send more, or should I come to you myself?"

He leaped down from the mountain and landed next to Yenna, who threw a punch on instinct. Obviously, he easily caught it, but he was amused by her reaction time. "Not bad."

She gasped in shock, quickly pulling away her punch. "I am sorry; I thought it was those monsters."

He handed her a core he saved just for her. "You worry too much. Absorb the mana from this; I am sure it will help, even if only a little." He walked over to Wren, who was tired and barely on her feet.

She looked at him, eyes barely open. "Welcome back, Master. I hope your hunting went well."

"It sure did. Thank you for protecting them; you are the best." He patted her head, and she giggled in joy before transforming back to normal. He picked her up and gave her to Yenna. "Protect them while they rest; I will do the fighting."

"Okay, leave it to me."

The monster following behind them stopped for a moment. She was wondering if going after them was the right idea or if she was walking to her own death. 'I can't go back without him... Either way, I might die anyway, so I might as well see this through.' She continued following them deep into the mountains, not aware that her presence was being sensed.

'Whoever is following us is beginning to get on my nerves. Should I just kill them right now? No, I need to preserve my strength. I don't know how strong the captains are, so I need to be ready.'

The deeper they went, the stronger and denser the mana got. Vell was enduring well enough, but Yenna was struggling; it was too much for her normal core to handle. He glanced at her, his mind questioning if it was right to bring her. 'I want her to grow stronger and fight by my side, but... maybe she is not cut out for this?' He scanned her body, noticing that she was using her mana as a shield to endure. 'Well, it's not my place to tell her that; I will see how far she can go.'

She could feel his gaze; she knew what he was thinking. After all, he knows the type of personality he has. 'I am going to be thrown away. I am weak after all. My powers are too weak to be beside him. I keep trying to push myself, but there are limits to what a normal player like me can do... Such an annoying feeling is building up in my body; just what is this?' It was the beginning of something that would change her life forever; she just didn't realize it yet.

A few hours later.

They found a cave and decided to rest there for a while. The sky didn't change once, so they could not tell what time it was; all they knew is that their bodies needed a rest. "What do you think of the dungeon so far?" he asked her, taking a bite of a piece of bread.

She replied, swallowing a berry, "It's creepy; first, a giant mosquito, and now this suffocating place. I can't tell what will happen next."

He nodded, taking in her words as he leaned back against the cold cave wall. "That's the essence of these places. Dungeons are meant to push you—mentally and physically. But it's in the darkest moments that people either break or evolve." He glanced at her, gauging her reaction. "You're still here, so maybe you're tougher than you think."

She sighed, her hands trembling as she fiddled with the remains of the berry. "I don't feel tough. I feel... like I'm always falling behind. You, Wren, even those monsters—everyone seems to have some special strength. But me? I'm just... here."

He reached out, placing a firm but reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Strength isn't just raw power. You keep trying to follow in my footsteps, but you are not me. Have you thought about truly following your own path, your own way of fighting? I mean, look at me—it's been roughly two weeks since I awakened. I have never entered a dungeon, have no experience being a player, and yet, here I am, following my own path. You need to find that path as well, one meant just for you."

Her breath hitched, her eyes widening as she processed his words. She looked down at her trembling hands, clenching them tightly. "My own path..." she murmured, almost to herself. The thought felt foreign, even daunting. She had spent so much time trying to emulate others, to live up to expectations set by people stronger than her, that she had never stopped to think about what her own strength could look like.

"You can't walk someone else's road and expect to reach your destination. You've got potential, Yenna. You just need to stop measuring yourself against everyone else and figure out what makes 'you' special."

She looked at him, her brows furrowing as frustration and hope battled within her. "But what if I don't have anything special? What if I'm just... ordinary?"

He smirked, his tone carrying a hint of teasing. "Ordinary doesn't survive in a place like this. The fact that you're still here, still fighting, says you're far from ordinary. You just need to believe it—and start acting like it."

"....Right, than—"

Her words were cut short by a massive claw that pierced her chest from behind. The look in Vell's eyes was utter shock and pure rage.