Yuna and Nautilus quickly realized something was wrong.
Their way out… had vanished.
The trees that once stood silently had now shifted positions. Each trunk turned like moving walls, canopies interweaving to form an unyielding structure that sealed off every path.
There was no way forward, no gap to escape through.
It felt as if the entire forest was closing in on them, forcing them to fight.
They were trapped inside a natural arena.
The air suddenly turned suffocating. The damp, musty scent of wood and leaves invaded their senses, but now… it no longer smelled like nature.
It was the scent of something alive, a being with a will of its own.
Yuna tightened her grip on her weapon, her fingers trembling slightly. A chill ran down her spine, making her shiver without thinking.
She wasn't an experienced warrior, but even she could sense that something was terribly wrong.
This forest… was alive.
This forest… was moving.
Yuna swallowed dryly. She recalled that strange sensation when her foot first touched the ground earlier, something faint, something subtle, as if the earth itself had shifted beneath them.
And now, everything was clearer than ever.
"So… that feeling of movement under our feet wasn't an illusion."
The moment she whispered that, Nautilus clenched his sword tighter, his entire body tensing.
He didn't respond, but his eyes were darting around with utmost vigilance. He saw the treetops trembling slightly even though there was no wind. He saw roots slithering along the ground, as if ready to snatch their prey.
No, this was no longer just a forest.
It was a colossal creature. A living entity. Something no one could control.
And they… had stepped into its domain.
The roots struck all at once.
They were no longer mere lifeless branches growing from the earth, but living tendrils, slithering, tightening, lashing through the air with the intent to crush anything in their path.
A tangled web of roots.
They crawled across the ground like ravenous snakes, weaving into a deadly net meant to trap anyone trying to escape.
They left no room for hesitation. Stand still for even a second, and they would wrap around you instantly.
Whoosh!
A root lashed out like a whip, aimed straight at Yuna. The moment lasted less than a second, but her survival instinct flared with overwhelming intensity.
Yuna dove to the side just in time, barely avoiding it by a hair's breadth. The icy air stirred by the root's swing brushed past her cheek, making her heart pound wildly.
Nautilus clenched his teeth and raised his sword to block another attack.
Clang!
His blade collided with the root, producing a sharp metallic sound. But instead of being cut, the root only paused for a split second before surging forward again. The impact was so strong that Nautilus nearly lost his footing, his heel sliding on the bed of dead leaves.
They couldn't stay still.
They couldn't allow themselves to be surrounded.
The group had to keep moving.
"Yuna! Protect yourself!"
Ren shouted, his voice cutting through the chaos. There was no room for hesitation or panic. With every second that passed, the situation grew worse.
A root lunged from behind.
Ren spun around, slashing hard. His blade tore through the root's tip, but before he could catch his breath, three more sprouted up in its place, attacking from every direction.
"Nautilus! Protect both yourself and Yuna!"
His command was sharp, absolute. There was no time for argument or confusion.
Nautilus froze for a brief moment, but then he nodded, eyes lighting up with resolve. He understood.
Ren gripped his sword tighter.
He couldn't afford any distractions.
Ren would fight.
He was closest to the tree.
If there was any way to sever its control, if there was a weakness hidden somewhere on its trunk...
He had to find it.
Right now.
Ren moved like a passing breeze, his body light, graceful, yet terrifyingly sharp… like a ghost of death.
His figure slipped between the thrashing root tendrils with such speed it seemed unreal.
Every step was calculated, every leap weightless, making him seem like a phantom weaving through the battlefield, leaving no trace, no sound, only the faintest flicker of presence that disappeared in an instant.
A root struck from the left.
Ren tilted his body, dodging it by a hair's breadth, leaving behind only a blur in the air, as if he had never been there. But not every attack could be avoided.
The blade in his hand traced a perfect arc, cleaving through the entangling roots in a single breath. His strike was sharp, precise, with no wasted motion.
The severed roots fell to the ground, but in an instant, dozens more surged from the earth, as if the creature didn't care about losing part of itself.
Ren didn't stop.
He shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow, moving so fast it seemed to tear through the air itself. His eyes locked onto a single target, the massive tree standing tall ahead.
A flash of steel.
His sword came down, slashing directly at the monstrous trunk.
A direct hit.
But...
Nothing happened.
There was no sound of flesh being torn.
No HP bar appeared.
No damage text popped up above it.
No reaction.
His blade was embedded in the trunk, yet there was no sensation of striking something alive. No resistance. No weight. As if he had just stabbed into an illusion.
A cold chill crept down his spine.
Ren froze momentarily, his grip tightening on the hilt of his sword.
A thought suddenly flashed through his mind, so cold it bit through his bones.
He had just attacked something…
That might not be attackable at all.
Before Ren could fully register the horror, the surrounding roots began to move.
No longer were they disorganized strikes, no longer was there chaotic aimlessness.
This time, they moved with perfect coordination, with a chilling precision, as if a will was guiding them from deep beneath the earth.
They had a target.
They were besieging him.
Rustle...
The sound of roots slithering echoed from every direction.
The massive roots shifted slowly, not rushing in like before, but began weaving together.
Like giant serpents, they slithered forward, twisting and wrapping around one another to form living walls, enclosing the space around Ren.
The gaps between the roots lasted only a heartbeat before other branches crawled in and sealed them completely.
Ren turned around.
There was no way out.
The paths that had existed just seconds ago were now swallowed whole.
He dashed forward, slashing a bundle of roots blocking his path, but it was useless.
For every one he cut down, ten more took its place.
The walls of roots grew denser.
Taller.
Tighter.
He was being trapped inside a cage.
Not an ordinary cage.
But a living prison, a nightmare slowly closing in, ready to devour him in darkness.
"Horizontal Arc!"
A familiar voice rang out, piercing through the thick wall of roots tightening around him.
And then....
Swish! Swish!
Sharp slashes sliced through the air, icy streaks of light cutting into the dense veil like lines of death tearing through the dark.
Then...
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The sound of snapping echoed in rapid succession.
The roots that had extended to strangle Ren were sliced cleanly, severed segments falling and twitching like tentacles just cut off.
Gaps opened up.
Light seeped in through the broken gaps, shining into the living cage.
Ren looked toward the source of the light.
The blade that had just completed its arc still shimmered with steel's breath, reflecting a cold green gleam through the forest canopy.
And the one who had appeared amidst the chaos.
None other than Nautilus.
No words were needed.
The moment the roots were cut, Ren dashed out of the trap, fast, precise, without hesitation.
He didn't need a second to assess the situation. Didn't need to look back. No exchanged glances. No words of thanks. Not even a nod.
Nautilus was the same.
No reminders, no signals, only action.
From the brief battles they'd fought together, from those moments facing danger side by side, from the heavy breaths in chaos, from blades brushing past each other by inches, they'd slowly learned to understand without speaking.
As Ren escaped the trap, Nautilus instantly repositioned, turning back, covering the rear, ready to intercept any lingering threats.
And Ren...
Without delay, he charged forward, not needing to think, not needing to question, because he knew.
Nautilus was right behind him.
Once more, Ren's sword came down, slashing at the tree's trunk.
The sharp blade ripped through the air, delivering a frontal blow with all his strength.
Immediately...
"Haaah…!"
Nautilus followed up with his own swing.
Two strikes, one straight and one diagonal, intertwined like beams of light cutting through darkness.
But...
Nothing happened.
No HP bar appeared.
No damage numbers popped up.
No indication that the grotesque tree had been affected.
Ren and Nautilus instantly moved back to back, reflexes kicking in within a heartbeat.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
From behind, roots lunged forward like spears, targeting the smallest gaps in their defense.
Slash! Slash!
Their swords lashed out in unison.
The roots were neatly severed, falling to the ground with a wet squelch.
But there was no time to celebrate.
Ren and Nautilus lowered their stances, gripping their swords tightly, both of them knew full well.
Even with all those slashes, they hadn't done a single point of damage to that tree.