Peril's voice had began echoing further and further into the forest, Lore and Trogan began understanding how dangerous a threat this woman was to the kingdom. So they decided on what to do.
"Knights!! Stay here!! Inform the king of what you just heard and wait for us." Trogan ordered.
"YES SIR!!" They all understood. Staying in the position they were left, each of them standing, looking outward at the roads back to the silver palace. One of them took out a com-crystal and began calling to the royal guards at the Zeron gate. They failed to answer, all of them were busy wondering what the hell made Eliza begin gambling, and others were ballsy enough to place bets on the race, they were loosing and winning, completely distracted from the events of the forest. They could only see the dust clouds made from their horses and Trogan had won. The sun had set and dark clouds were setting in, signaling rain on the forest, however, they couldn't really see what was going on, and neither could Eliza sense it. She was skilled, but the Night forest was literally on the ends of the kingdom, it was a bit far for her to notice a small disturbance.
"No one's answering the Zeron bridge!!" The knight urged.
"Call the palace directly!!"
"On it!!"
*****
Lore, Trogan and Ivy were moving toward the shallower voices of Peril's taunts deeper in the forest. She was fast, but they were also agile. Ivy couldn't help but look at Lore and ask, "Why did you let me come along?? Isn't it what she wants??"
"It could be, that's why I told the others to call for help. What we manage to do here by the time our stamina depletes, will be taken over by those who come."
"You mean Kal and Qete??"
"When did I ever mean Kal and Qete??" Lore said with a smile on her face. Just then, all three of them came to a stop, Peril had landed right in front of them on an open air space in the forest. It wasn't that big of an opening, but too much would happen in this area for any of them to forget it. The air whistled as the three found seven different opponents waiting for them. The dust from Peril's landing dissipating above five normal as can be kareki, two abnormally looking ones… more abnormal than what they had seen, that is, one held the figure of a cheetah, its legs were woven from thin, sinewy branches, coiled tightly like springs, gently snapping forward with every subtle movement it made, it made a low growl as its piercing green eyes looked at Ivy, catching hers.
The other was bigger than what they were, only recently, used to, way bigger. It wielded a thick, layered bark and gnarled knots, giving it a more solid frame. What caught their eye were the thorns it layered its entire body with jagged thorns, some as small as needles, others as massive as daggers. Perilius was right in front of them, seen clear as day under the shining moonlight, she removed the black clothing she had covered herself with, revealing her cropped black wrap-top, showing her inward belly button surrounded by golden-sand brown skin, which from the shining moonlight, colored part of it a lighter, nude brown hue. Her torso was complete with two black belts that held up a pair of dark red, slightly tight cotton pants. Her look was complete with black boots, clearly designed for stability and thanks to her mission, swordsmanship. She definitely needed those to help wielding the treasure sheathed across her back. She stood as their leader with a smirk on her face, signaling that the night was almost over."What are those things?!?!" Trogan asked. His shield and blunt sword held defensively in front of him.
"Finally, you talk again." Lore said. Her lance held right in front of her to show how ready she was. All three of them watched Peril to see what her next move would be.
"You brought her to me. Perfect." She smirked. Ivy's eyes readied themselves to react to her next play.
"Don't worry, these two are still kareki. I see how much they make you wonder." She scoffed. "The cheetah is one of the greatest weapons the master wields. It's more than an honor to use him here. The big one you see there is called a thorned kareki. As its name implies, it's built for endurance and destruction. It should be perfect to hold back against… you." Her tone changed, a darker hue was painted on her final word as she pointed her right index finger at Trogan. His jaw clenched as he watched her focus on the design of his armor. The face she made as she glanced on the symbol he wore signified just how much she was clearly disgusted.
"Syndicate dogs need to be euthanized." With her finger still pointed, she faced the thorned, faceless monster and commanded. "Go."
Filled with thorns from head to toe, it lived up to its name without question. It began moving, each step splinting large chunks of wood on its rough joints and shaking the ground around them. In absolute shock, Lore and Ivy glanced up, their faces frozen at the sight, they had never, ever seen such a thing in Zephro before. Lore, however, noticed that the cheetah wasn't making any movements. Trogan bellowed a war cry, a roar that sent a jolt through the knights at the entrance before he hurled himself at the beast. Wielding both blunt weapons with relentless force, in rapid succession, each blow landed with bone-crushing precision. His sword ignored its bluntness through his strength and cleaved through the creature's head, splintering it apart as fragments scattered. With a final collapse, the beast crashed backward, kicking up a dense cloud of dust that billowed toward the ladies. They instinctively shut their eyes, raising their arms to shield themselves from the swirling debris.
Trogan landed back on the ground at its massive right foot. He already began slightly panting due to the energy it took for his brute move. Lore and Ivy remained shocked, Trogan was indeed a tank of a man, but that speed and precision was impressive. Unfortunately, they didn't keep in mind that these things had lives like cats. Upon looking at its completely destroyed faceless facade, Ivy watched as the same debris of branches and wood begin to gather on his face. She turned immediately and warned.
"TROGAN-SAN!! MOVE!!"Unfortunately, he processed her warning a second too late. The realization struck just as the massive right foot he had stopped in front of snapped backward— only to rocket forward an instant later, slamming into his entire body with crushing force. The sheer impact sent a violent gust tearing through the dust-filled air, clearing the haze in a single sweep.
Trogan bore the full brunt of the blow, his body hurtling like a ragdoll through two colossal trees, each thick enough to carve two beasts from their trunks. The thunderous crack of splintering wood echoed through the forest, a sharp chorus of destruction that ended with a sickening thud as Trogan's battered form crashed against the base of a third tree."I can't tell if that sound was the tree or his bones," Peril sneered, her voice laced with amusement. The girls stood frozen, eyes wide with shock, their bodies near trembling from the sheer force of what they had witnessed.Before Peril could enjoy their reaction, Ivy lunged at her, sword drawn. Metal met metal in a fierce clash, sparks igniting as their blades ground against each other. Peril's smirk twisted into a scowl as she braced against Ivy's fury, her grip tightening around the hilt of her weapon.
"Trogan!!" Lore called. Her eyes widened, watching him spew blood from his mouth as he got back up slowly. He coughed a few more times, struggling to steady himself—then the ground trembled again. The monster had regenerated. It rose to its feet, its grotesque form twisting unnaturally as bones snapped back into place. By the looks of it, it wasn't planning on letting him recover. Without hesitation, it lunged forward, its entire body contorting with each thunderous step. The earth shook beneath its weight—eight strides, and it halted. Its head splintered down, looming over him like a living nightmare. Lore watched as a massive fist, lined with tiny, needle-like protrusions, formed above the beast, poised to strike Trogan at any moment. That first blow had cost him more than anything he had endured before.
With what little strength he had left, he forced himself to his feet, willing his shattered body to move. Blood trickled from his hair and the corner of his mouth. At least ten ribs, for sure, were broken. His breath came in unsteady, ragged gasps.
"Sorry, Lore… I was just—caught by surprise." He clasped his hands together, gathering the last of his strength to fuel his defensive drift. He chanted.
"鉄の防御 二万の層 Tetsu no Bōgyo Nimān no Sō (Iron Defense, Twenty Thousand Layers)"
Trogan raised his trembling arms, his body seemed to harden—not in the way of solid steel, but as if countless invisible layers were settling over him, compacting like the weight of the earth itself. A faint metallic sheen rippled across his skin, glinting under the fractured moonlight.
Dust and shattered debris stirred at his feet, drawn upward in slow spirals, caught in an unseen force weaving around him. His breath was ragged, shallow, yet his stance and resolve unyielding. Cracks formed along his arms, dark like old battle scars, but instead of breaking, they sealed over—each fracture replaced by another layer of unseen fortitude. The air grew heavy, his fingers twitched with strain, his knees barely held, and beneath the illusion of an indestructible defense, blood trickled down his lip. He was absolutely secretive of his ability through the years. But Lore had never even imagined twenty thousand layers before. Just then, the clashes between Ivy and Peril had left them both standing, distracted by the power being displayed by Trogan.
"BRING IT YOU UGLY THING!!" Trogan demanded, ready to set his strongest defense to the test when suddenly, his, Lore's and Ivy's eyes widened to see the thorns, the size of needles on the beast's fist, growing instantaneously into the size of daggers. It roared loud enough to scare the remaining birds at the ends of the forest before it used all its force to reply to Trogan's taunt. Its fist hurtled toward Trogan, its jagged spikes, each the size of a dagger and gleaming under the fractured moonlight. There was no time to react, no strength left to add more layers. The brutal strike landed, and for a fleeting second, silence followed. Then, the sickening sound of tearing filled the air.