The tunnel stretched before them, silent and suffocating.
Leon's steps were light, his instincts on high alert. The flicker he had seen moments ago wasn't just a trick of the light—something was here with them.
Kaelen moved like a shadow, his twin daggers glinting faintly in the dim light. Rhun walked at a measured pace, his beastman senses sharp. Jarek... well, he stayed close behind, muttering about his inevitable death.
The deeper they went, the stronger the wrongness in the air became.
Then, the tunnel opened.
A massive underground chamber stretched before them, its walls lined with ancient carvings. The space was vast, the ceiling lost to darkness. And at the very center stood a massive stone pedestal, its surface cracked with time.
Leon exhaled. "This is it. The trial grounds."
But something was wrong.
There should have been a guardian here.
Every beastman trial had one—a powerful spirit, an ancient beast, or a test of willpower. But this chamber was empty.
Except for the lingering presence watching them from the shadows.
---
A Corrupted Trial
Rhun stepped forward, his gaze on the pedestal. "This place should be sacred. But it feels... tainted."
Leon walked toward the pedestal, scanning the carvings on its sides. The script was old, but he recognized some of it.
"'Prove your strength, and the ancestors shall bless your path.'"
Kaelen's eyes narrowed. "Then why is there no trial here?"
Leon had a sinking suspicion.
The corruption had already consumed it.
As if to confirm his thoughts, the darkness around them shifted.
A low whisper echoed through the chamber.
Not a voice. Not words.
Something... hungry.
Jarek stiffened. "Okay, nope. We are officially in horror story territory."
Leon turned, his gaze scanning the darkness. "Be ready."
And then—
The ground trembled.
A deep, guttural growl rumbled from the far end of the chamber. A figure emerged from the shadows.
At first, it looked like a beastman—tall, broad-shouldered, with powerful limbs. But its eyes were wrong.
Black pits, leaking tendrils of dark mist.
Its fur was matted, its claws elongated and twisted.
Leon's breath hitched.
This wasn't a guardian.
This was a beastman consumed by corruption.
And as it bared its teeth, the whispering darkness surged toward them—
The trial had begun.
---