The forest around us was a frozen labyrinth—a world of whispering pines, ancient oaks, and a silence so deep it nearly swallowed every sound. I'd spent weeks studying necromantic theory and the finer points of dark mana manipulation, but nothing could have prepared me for the reality of this hunt. Today, Seraphina and I were to face the alpha—a five-star beast, the leader of its pack—lurking in a clearing near a jagged outcrop.
We moved as one along a narrow, winding trail, our heavy boots crunching over brittle leaves and broken twigs. The cold was relentless, the air thick with frost that clung to our skin, but I barely noticed it. My mind was already tuned to the challenge ahead. Every step, every pause, was a calculated move in the grand game of survival.
