Chapter 62: Chapter 62: Breath of Fresh Air Rhian shot out of the ravine, wings stretched wide as he floated above the opening. He took a second to look around, breathing hard but grinning.
He hovered down slowly, lowering himself and Nia back onto solid ground. His boots touched dirt, and the weight of the climb finally settled into his shoulders.
"Hoo, finally," he muttered.
Nia glanced around, taking in the unfamiliar forest around them.
Rhian noticed she hadn’t moved away yet. She was still in his arms, her hand resting lightly against his chest. He shifted awkwardly. "Uhm, we should probably try and find the rest," he said.
Realization hit her, and she jumped down quickly, brushing at her clothes. "Right. And we don’t have any weapons either," she added, sighing. "We should be careful."
Rhian nodded, but before he could even reply, a low growl broke through the trees.
Both of them turned toward the sound.
Six large wolves stood in the clearing, slowly advancing. Their fur was dark grey, patches of it matted and bristling. Their yellow eyes locked onto Rhian and Nia without blinking.
Rhian glanced down at his watch. It glowed green at first, making him relax a little.
But then it flickered—green, then orange, then back to green, then yellow, then orange again.
He stared at it.
They weren’t just normal wolves.
But Rhian didn’t move to run. Neither did Nia.
He folded his wings slightly behind him, keeping them out but compact, ready if he needed the extra movement.
"We’re fighting," Rhian said, voice low but sure.
Nia didn’t argue. She pulled up her fists, her stance tightening immediately.
They waited until the wolves crept closer, snarling.
The first one lunged.
Rhian moved fast, sidestepping the charge and swinging his foot into its ribs. The impact cracked bone and sent the wolf sprawling to the side, whimpering.
Another wolf leapt at Nia. She ducked low and rolled forward, using her momentum to sweep its legs out from under it.
She grabbed a rock from the ground mid-movement and slammed it into the wolf’s head before it could recover.
Two more closed in on Rhian at once.
He dropped low, wings spreading wide to startle them, then surged forward.
His claws shot out, sharp, natural extensions of his hands now, and raked across the throat of the nearest wolf.
The second snapped at his arm, but Rhian twisted, grabbed it by the scruff, and hurled it into a tree with a sickening thud.
The last two wolves hesitated, their ears flicking back.
Rhian and Nia stood side by side now.
Both breathing heavy. Both focused.
The moment the last two charged, Rhian grinned slightly. He bent his knees, wings flaring wide, and shot forward faster than they expected.
He smashed into one with a shoulder tackle, sending it flipping backward.
Nia caught the last one mid-jump. She twisted, using its own momentum to slam it hard onto its back, and drove her elbow down into its skull.
The forest went quiet.
Rhian stood still, looking over the fallen bodies. His wings twitched slightly behind him as he exhaled.
"Well," he said, catching his breath, "that was... not bad."
Nia let out a small laugh, wiping blood from her knuckles. "We make a good team."
Rhian grinned. "Yeah. Let’s hope that’s the last welcoming party."
Before either of them could relax, two deep, menacing growls rumbled across the clearing.
Rhian and Nia turned immediately.
Two massive wolves stood there, watching them with sharp, furious eyes.
Drool dripped from their mouths, their teeth bared in silent rage.
Behind them, some of the wounded wolves from earlier still twitched weakly on the ground, barely alive.
The newcomers were different. Bigger. Meaner.
One was huge, its frame towering over the others they had fought, easily twice the size of a normal wolf.
Muscles rippled under its dark, dirty fur, and its jaw looked like it could snap a man in half.
The second was shorter, but just as wide. It looked faster, its body coiled and tense, ready to strike.
Rhian glanced at his watch. It flickered rapidly—yellow, orange, yellow, orange.
E-Rank.
D-Rank.
Their eyes met.
At the same time, they said, "I’ll take the big one."
They both scoffed immediately afterward, neither willing to back down.
No more words were needed. They dashed forward, splitting apart.
The bigger wolf, the one leaking raw pressure, was clearly the D-Rank. Neither of them cared. Titles didn’t matter. They both wanted the hardest challenge.
Nia wanted to test her strength. She could feel herself nearing another breakthrough, her body itching for a harder fight.
Rhian wanted to push his limits, to see what he could really do now that his body wasn’t battered and worn down.
He could feel it, the surge of energy inside his core, stronger and steadier than before.
His breathing was smoother. His heart beat strong but steady.
He couldn’t help but wonder if that strange woman’s voice, the one he heard when he was unconscious, had something to do with it.
But that thought faded quickly as the wolf charged at him, fangs bared and eyes wild.
Rhian grinned.
He sprinted to meet it head-on.
Rhian charged straight in. He didn’t hesitate.
The moment he closed the distance, he triggered his illusion.
Another Rhian appeared, sprinting ahead, almost perfectly mimicking his motion.
The big wolf pounced, its massive jaws snapping forward, passing straight through the illusion.
Rhian slid to the side and used the opening. He moved like a bullet, pushing off the ground and leaping onto the wolf’s broad back.
His nails extended without needing to focus, responding to his will as if they had been part of him all along.
The wolf snarled, bucking and twisting violently, but Rhian wrapped one arm tight around its thick neck and dug his claws in with the other.
Blood sprayed up in thick pulses as he slashed down, tearing through the dense hide.
From the corner of his eye, he caught Nia watching with a flash of shock across her face.
She hadn’t known about his abilities. She had seen his claws before, but an illusion was another matter entirely.
She didn’t have time to dwell on it.
The D-Rank wolf was already lunging for her.
Nia dodged fast, rolling to the side, but the wolf was faster. Its paw clipped her, sending her sprawling.
She hit the dirt hard but didn’t stay down. She kicked off the ground, flipping backward as the wolf came at her again, snapping its jaws.
She ducked low and slammed her elbow into its ribs, twisting as she moved, keeping it from pinning her.
The wolf snarled, circling her with low growls. Its orange eyes glinted, filled with raw hunger.
Nia’s hands curled into fists.
This was good. This was exactly what she wanted.
She grinned fiercely.
Rhian, meanwhile, clung to the E-Rank wolf’s back as it bucked and slammed itself against a tree, trying to dislodge him.
He grit his teeth as the impact rattled his bones, but he didn’t let go.
His claws raked down again, cutting deeper.
The wolf howled, twisting hard enough to finally throw him off.
Rhian landed rough, rolling across the dirt. He pushed up quickly, ignoring the sharp ache in his shoulder where he hit the ground.
The wolf turned, blood streaming down its back, fur matted with dark streaks.
Rhian didn’t give it a chance to reset.
He sprinted forward again, feinting left before pivoting right, slashing at its front leg. The wolf lunged to counter, but Rhian dipped low, driving his claws deep into the exposed gut.
The beast shrieked, a horrible sound that shook the ground.
It staggered, its movements growing sluggish.
Rhian didn’t stop.
He moved forward, slamming his knee into its jaw as it tried to bite him, then hammering his fists into its ribs again and again.
One final punch to the throat ended it. The wolf collapsed, twitching violently before falling still.
Rhian stood over it, blood dripping from his hands, his chest rising and falling in deep, steady breaths.
He turned toward Nia.
She was still fighting.
Her D-Rank opponent was faster, sharper, every movement filled with raw, vicious intent.
But she matched it, weaving through its strikes with precision, landing brutal counters whenever she found an opening.