The Executioner roared.
The sound rolled through Blackthorn Forest like thunder.
Its golden veins blazed beneath the black crystal armor, brighter than before.
Noah took a slow step backward.
His lungs burned.
His mana was nearly empty.
The brief use of Shadow Step had drained him far more than he’d expected.
"So that’s the price..."
The System answered immediately.
Mana: 3/20
Warning: Insufficient Mana.
"Tch."
Noah clicked his tongue.
Three points.
One more Shadow Step would empty him completely.
The Executioner lowered its body.
It wasn’t charging blindly anymore.
It had learned.
"So you’re adapting too."
The monster’s head tilted ever so slightly.
Almost as if it understood him.
Then it disappeared.
No.
It was simply too fast.
Predator’s Instinct erupted.
Danger!
Left!
Noah twisted.
A claw grazed his ribs.
RIIIP!
His jacket split open.
Blood splattered across the black earth.
Pain lanced through his side.
"Damn it!"
The impact threw him into a tree.
The trunk cracked from the collision.
His vision blurred.
The Executioner didn’t give him time to recover.
It slammed both fists into the ground.
BOOOOOOM!
The earth exploded.
Jagged black spikes erupted from beneath Noah’s feet.
He rolled desperately.
One spike pierced his calf.
"AAGH!"
The pain almost made him black out.
The Executioner advanced.
Slowly.
Confidently.
Like an executioner approaching a prisoner whose fate had already been decided.
Noah forced himself to stand.
His injured leg trembled beneath his weight.
Blood dripped steadily onto the forest floor.
The heartbeat echoed again.
BOOM.
The blood at his feet suddenly moved.
Noah frowned.
"...What?"
The crimson droplets began sliding across the ground.
Not randomly.
They flowed toward the center of the forest.
Toward the heartbeat.
His Blood Sense activated.
The crimson threads he’d seen before had become clearer.
Every drop of blood.
Every injured beast.
Every dying creature.
Everything in Blackthorn Forest was feeding something.
The Heart.
"So that’s how it regenerates..."
The Heart wasn’t healing the guardians for free.
It was consuming the life of the entire forest.
A grin slowly spread across Noah’s face despite the pain.
"I see your trick now."
The Executioner charged again.
This time Noah didn’t dodge.
He ran straight toward it.
"What the hell are you doing?" he muttered to himself.
The creature raised its massive fist.
It came crashing down.
At the last possible instant—
Noah slid beneath the attack.
The fist slammed into the ground behind him.
The shockwave nearly knocked him over.
Shadowfang flashed.
Instead of attacking the monster...
He slashed the earth.
The blade carved a shallow trench.
Blood flowing across the ground spilled into it.
The crimson stream changed direction.
No longer flowing toward the Heart.
The heartbeat faltered.
Just for an instant.
...BOOM...
It skipped.
The Executioner froze.
Its movements slowed.
Only for a heartbeat.
But Noah saw it.
"It worked."
The System chimed.
Discovery Bonus Awarded
You have identified one of Blackthorn Forest’s regeneration mechanisms.
The Executioner roared in fury.
Its attacks became wild.
Violent.
The forest around them collapsed beneath its rage.
Tree after tree crashed to the ground.
Noah sprinted through the chaos.
Not toward the monster.
Toward the deeper forest.
If cutting off the blood flow weakened the guardian...
Then reaching the Heart wasn’t just the objective.
It was the only way to win.
Branches whipped across his face as he ran.
Behind him, the Executioner gave chase.
Every step it took shook the earth.
Predator’s Instinct screamed.
Noah leaped over a fallen trunk.
A massive claw smashed through it an instant later.
Splinters exploded into the air.
His breathing became ragged.
His injured leg slowed him.
He couldn’t keep this pace forever.
Then...
He saw them.
Ancient stone pillars rose from the mist.
Covered in moss.
Half-buried beneath twisted roots.
Runes glowed faintly across their surfaces.
At the center stood a weathered statue.
A warrior clad in broken armor.
Its face had long since eroded away.
Yet one thing remained intact.
The broken crown engraved upon its chest.
The same symbol as the mark on Noah’s hand.
His heartbeat quickened.
"No way..."
Before he could approach—
The statue’s eyes burst open with crimson light.
A deep voice echoed through the ruins.
"Successor..."
Noah froze.
The Executioner stopped as well.
For the first time...
The monster hesitated.
Then, unbelievably...
It took a step back.
As if it feared whatever had just awakened.