Ryu’s eyes opened. His body was being pulled across the ground. Drowsiness hung around him like a fog. He was tired. He was… Where was he? He tried to sit up, but his body was limp, refusing to respond to his commands. He gave up. Consciousness left once more. Some time later, a spike of pain woke him up, and whatever was pulling him stopped.

“Break,” a voice called, out of breath. “Let’s take a break.”

“Agreed,” another voice said, this one feminine.

Ryu thrashed around, pulling himself free of his captor’s grip. He stood up, his body falling into a combat stance. A voice, his father’s, spoke into his mind. Left foot forward, right foot back. Bounce on the balls of your feet. Hands up, Ryu, Jinn commanded, the memory bringing back scenes of hours in the practice yard.

The people in front of him, his enemies, came into focus in his vision. They were familiar. His mind cleared of the unnatural fog in moments, and he recognized Marshal, Cynthia, and Keira. They looked at him strangely. Apprehension. They looked at him like he was a wild animal, straining against his leash. He lowered his hands, head bowed in shame. For a moment, they had looked like monsters. The urge to kill them still raged within him, tensing his body. Dangerous, that.

His memory of Willow, the dryad queen, returned, rekindling the anger in him. His hate was not for her abduction of Tam, he was forced to admit. It was for making him feel weak. The pounding in his temples threatened to spike, bringing back the animalistic emotions of his fights with the banshees, but he suppressed it with a grimace.

“Ryu, glad to see you’re up,” Marshal said, a strained smile on his lips. Marshal. He was a good man, far nobler than Ryu himself. He alone had stood before the dryad. Envy blossomed in the pit of Ryu’s stomach. It was just a seed, a small hint of jealousy, yet it was there all the same.

“Where are we?” Ryu asked. He didn’t fake a smile. He couldn’t. He felt hollow. It was one thing to know a good man. It was another to know that good man measured up to your own dreams in a way that you never would.

“About an hour from the Willow’s tree.”

Ryu met Marshal’s eyes. “So we’re doing what she wants.”

“Yes. Look Ryu, Tam’s life-”

Ryu cut him off. “Good,” he said. He walked past the flustered man, sitting against a tree. He wanted to be done with this place. The Trial, the group, his mission to be the Sword of House Ishida, all of it. He just wanted to be done.

The group sat in front of the tree, passing around dried rations. Ryu ate his in silence. The others talked of small things. Tam’s absence was like a void in the group, consuming all joy and levity. Nobody cracked jokes. Smiles were few and far between. Instead, a quiet purpose filled the group’s movements. Ryu did not share it. Now more than ever, he was lost, torn between what he was and what he’d hoped to be. The group’s faces taking on the nightmarish gazes of the banshees did not help.

“Ryu, after you passed out, Willow told us of the Tyrants, the Bosses of the last layer. There are three: Arun of Beasts, Leif the Green, and Cloud. Each represents an aspect of nature, specifically animals, vegetation, and weather. In a normal Trial, one of the three would be assigned to fight our group, but to accomplish Willow’s goal, we will have to fight the assigned Tyrant last,” Marshal explained. His voice tense and clipped, the familiarity in it strained. Ryu didn’t blame the man; in some ways, he was no longer familiar to himself, either.

“Now that there’s only four of us, the Trial will be returned to normal. The Tyrants won’t be able to act out of the norm.” This was from Cynthia. She looked at Ryu as she spoke, but he sensed her words were more for the others. It was a reality check, telling them they couldn’t dwell on Tam’s absence. Ryu nodded at the blonde woman. She had helped him stand in front of Willow. Now, she was trying to help the others.

“Still, we’re handicapped with only four people. At least, with our composition. We have no ranged attack. It should’ve been me the Dryad took,” Keira said. Ryu held back a snort. She wanted justification. She wanted someone to say that she should not blame herself, that she was useful and valued. He did not intend to give that to her. Her Class did not balance well with a team of four. She wasn’t strong enough yet to offer much use on her own. Her role was supplementary to the team, but not critical. Tam would have been better.

“Does it matter? She took Tam. We have to find a way to beat the Tyrants with our numbers and get him back,” Cynthia said, casting a glance at Marshal. It was his turn to fill his role. To bring the group together. To give them a plan. To make everything alright. A part of Ryu wished he was the one to get that look, but it was not to be.

Marshal looked into the faces of his friends. Ryu tried to ignore the fangs that seemed to grow out of the man’s mouth, blinking away his visions with fear. Something was off with him. “Things aren’t so grim yet. Ryu and I will hold the front and weaken our enemies, and Cynthia will keep us standing. Keira, you can finish the fight. Your Hexes can pile on damage using the wounds left by our swords. Don’t you see? We can make this work.”

As always, he performed well. I wonder, does he believe the shit he spews? Her curses are useful, but they are not a deciding factor in a fight. They’re just clean up, Ryu thought. His thoughts were negative, maybe overly so, but he let them continue. For just this once, he wanted to be toxic and vile to someone other than himself. He would let himself indulge in these negative feelings and let them push away his visions and fears.

The three original members of the group continued to throw around strategies, and Ryu let himself poke holes in each one. At first, it was contained within his own thoughts, but as the discussion continued and the “break” dragged on, he started voicing his doubts. The others loved it. They took his criticism as a reason to refine their plans and to build better ones. None of them seemed to notice his mocking tone. They didn’t seem to care about his pessimistic outlook. To them, he was just doing his best to help. It only pushed him further away. He did not want them to be hopeful. He wanted them to hurt. Like he did.

They never did resume their walking that day, choosing instead to continue to discuss their plans. None of them wanted to risk losing their positive momentum. That night, Ryu laid in his bedroll, soft shudders passing through his body. He was crying. He hid it from the others, his back turned towards the group. This was man’s perceived burden. It was okay for him, a young man of seventeen, to shed blood, but to shed tears? That was not allowed. So he hid his pain, the inner turmoil that plagued him. He hid it, hoping that if he acted like it didn’t exist, it would go away. What a fool he was.

Hope was blinding. The next morning, none of the others noticed the dark bags under Ryu’s eyes. If they saw the way he clutched the hilt of his sword and the way he stomped forward, they didn’t realize why he did these things. It was odd, really. Loneliness was commonly defined as sadness from the absence of people, yet Ryu was surrounded by others and felt lonelier than he ever had before.

After some time, the pale trees with their leaves of crimson faded as they walked. Huge trees of natural colors took their place, their gnarled roots dug into the ground like the toes of a giant. They were so tall that Ryu could not see where they ended by looking up. Some part of him believed they pierced the clouds with their height, but he dismissed this as foolishness. Such thoughts had no place here. The unnatural quiet of the dryad’s domain was missing here. The pleasant song of birds and chitter of cicadas returned in a trickle, reminding the group of a loved one they’d taken for granted. Everything seemed to be right in this forest. Then the spear hit the ground in front of Marshal.

Ryu located the source of the attack in moments. It was similar to a monkey but with wider, more human features and pointed ears. Its fur was a chestnut color, and it wore armor of lacquered wood that left its feet bare. It had stepped out from behind a tree, snarl on its face.

“King Arun challenges you! Will you come with me and do battle, or will he have to chase you down to end your insignificant li-” The beast cut off, turning to run as Ryu charged at it. It didn’t make it. He tackled the monster to the ground and pressed a knife to its throat. The group surrounded them with strange looks.

“I have questions that need answering. Will you comply, or do I need to ruin your insignificant life?” Ryu mocked. In truth, any answers won through torture would be suspect, but he wasn’t in the mood to dance around.

The monster swallowed, bobbing his head nervously. “Ask away, human,” it croaked.

“What are you?”

“We are known as Kongs. More specifically, I am a-”

Ryu grunted. “Don’t care. Where are the Tyrants located?”

“Filth! Do not dare call them Tyrants. The Kings are generous, benevolent rulers,” the Kong screeched. Ryu hit it in the face.

“I asked where they are, not what they’re called,” he said. As he spoke, he grabbed the monster’s hair, forcing it to meet his eyes.

“Each inhabits their own palace, far away from the Kong townships. Arun’s is north,” it said, pointing in a direction. “Cloud’s is west, and Leif is based in the east.”

“Thanks for the help,” Ryu said. Hope filled the Kong’s eyes. It didn’t even realize Ryu’s dagger had not moved away from its neck. Not until it was too late, at least. “We’ll have to move until we find another one of these Kongs. This one undoubtedly lied to us about the directions.”

He stood, cleaning the blood off of his dagger. He looked to Cynthia. She wouldn’t meet his eyes, but he knew. She was disgusted. It was in the stiff way she stood and the crinkle of her nose. He dismissed her, looking to Keira instead. The witch did meet his eyes, and she gripped her staff with white knuckles. He sighed, finally turning to Marshal. The man nodded at Ryu. There was understanding there. The warrior didn’t agree with Ryu’s actions, but at the same time, he was glad someone was willing to take them. It seems not everything can be won with nice words, Marshal. You will have to dirty your hands one day, too, Ryu thought.

They moved on, heading in a random direction. It was clear they’d been discovered, but this was not an issue. If anything, it was what Ryu wanted. Before long, another Kong stepped into their field of view. He opened his mouth to issue his challenge, but Ryu was already moving.

“Where are the kings?” Ryu said, holding the thrashing Kong down. This one had more fight in it than the last.

“I won’t tell,” the beast growled, bucking like a mad bull. Ryu’s strength was not to be denied, however, and a few well placed blows sapped the fight from his captive in moments.

“Now, where are the kings?”

“Arun is that way.” It pointed in the opposite direction as the first one had.

“Lie,” Ryu said in a cold tone. He hit the Kong in the face once more, leaving a bloody smear. Its face morphed into that of Willow’s.

“Please! I’m telling the truth.”

“Lie.” Another hit. The illusion disappeared.

“Cloud is north,” it pleaded.

“Lie.” The pronouncement was accompanied by another thud. This one elicited a cry of pain.

“I promise. Lief is west past the town of Grove, and Cloud is-”

“Lies.” The skin on Ryu’s knuckles was split this time. How unfortunate. He hit it again. And again. He ignored the cries. After all, they would soon stop. His fists made mincemeat of the poor beast, and before he knew it, he was crying too. Nobody pulled him away.

When he finally stopped, he stood. Nobody spoke. “We go west,” he said, voice hoarse. He stumbled away, leaving the ruined corpse behind him. The others followed, but he recognized their looks. It was the look one gave to a rabid dog.

Ryu wished someone would criticize him. Or even talk at all. Something. The silence was worse than any comment could be. His mind replayed the scenes over and over again every time he closed his eyes. No other Kongs approached them, but they were there. They watched from the trees. He felt their eyes on his back, damning him. He had just wanted to be useful, yet the strange bloodthirstiness and visions that assaulted him were overwhelming. He felt as though his mind had cracked under Willow’s kiss, but in reality, he was just as much of a monster as the dryads and banshees, maybe even worse. They at least had the decency to look monstrous. Ryu, on the other hand, was a stained soul in a boy’s body.

Lost amidst his thoughts, Ryu almost failed to recognize the peculiar light that fell upon them from the trees above. He glanced up. It was a sort of city, one that crossed between and through the giant trees around like a spiderweb of wooden bridges. The lanterns and lamps that hung in the Kong city casted the ground in their warm orange light. A part of him begged to stop and gaze at the beautiful city, but the eyes of Kongs behind them seared into his back.

The Kong Bosses were limited in their actions now that Ryu’s group numbered only four. Arun- the Kong lord they had been assigned to fight- could not pursue them if they chose not to find him. His people were a different story, however. The other Kong forces were relatively unrestricted in their challenge of his group, although he imagined they could not muster a large portion of their society just to kill them.

As if to mock his thoughts, several Kongs in sleek, form-fitting armor of lacquered wood and bronze dropped from the limbs above, the green accents on their armor marking them as a different force than Arun’s scouts. Their faces were obscured by the pointed bronze helms they wore, and he noticed their weapons- primarily spears- were of quality make.

“Humans? I suppose you’re going to King Cloud’s domain? Where is your guide? You are not allowed to roam freely in our forest. You must make your challenge to your assigned King,” one of the Kongs said. From the voice, Ryu guessed it was a female, but she looked strong, far stronger than the scouts from before. She pointed a hefty spear with a barbed tip at them.

Ryu opened his mouth to respond, but Marshal put a hand on his shoulder, stepping in front of the group. Right. The chained dog did not speak for his betters. He would have to get used to that. Trying not to look awkward, he clutched his sword. He flattened his expression, levelling his steely eyes at the guards surrounding the woman.

Marshal lifted his hands, standing in front of the female guard. “Cloud’s domain is past this town, correct? Since we don’t have a guide, maybe you could arrange us one?”

The woman’s eyes narrowed. “Why don’t you have a guide? Each group is assigned one upon entering our forest.”

“One of your kind appeared, but he only pointed us this way,” Marshal said apologetically. The man had the smooth and assured tone of a practiced liar. Ryu was surprised.

Another Kong dropped from the limbs. This one was a man, and his wooden armor was both accented in red and heavier than Cloud’s forces. He bared his teeth at Ryu. “They are lying, commander. The one with dark hair is a murderer. He killed both of their guides after interrogation and torture,” the Kong said, levelling a finger at Ryu.

“So they’re Arun’s then?” the commander asked, giving a hand signal to the guards behind her. They readied their weapons.

“Yes, we’ve been following them since they left our king’s territory.”

“So you’ve violated the treaty then,” she said in a weary voice. Her narrowed gaze turned to the scout.

The scout backed up in shock. “We were doing our duty and following our orders. He murdered an innocent! Deal with them first.”

“You are part of Arun’s forces. You are not allowed in Cloud’s territory by the treaty. Do you realize what you’ve done in your stupid anger? Of course, he’s a murderer. He’s a human. That’s what they do to our kind,” the Kong female said with a growl. She turned towards one of her subordinates. “Request reinforcements from the guardhouse. Get word to the commander.”

“You can’t be serious,” the scout cried.

“I have my own orders. I can’t allow you to be so close to the city as a possible risk,” she said with a sigh.

“And I can’t let a murderer go after brutalizing my brother,” the scout said, anger coloring his voice. He made a hand gesture. Arrows shot from the trees above. The guard commander activated a Skill, and a shield of wood burst from the ground beneath her, blocking the arrows.

“They’re in the trees!” she shouted. “Hold them off until reinforcements arrive.”

Marshal was already running back to the group, waving for them to run. Ryu had other plans. He did run, but he headed towards the fight, not away from it. His sword was already drawn, his cultivation enhanced steps eating up the distance between him and the scout leader. No visions influenced him, only logic. He had killed the scout’s brother, and the debt between them would not be repaired. Better to kill him than wait for his revenge.

He closed distance with the scout in moments, the Kong pulling away from the guards to face him. The scout’s comrades had already dropped to the forest floor, and they were fighting the guards in a close back and forth. The scout said a word, causing a glow to surround his body. His armor warped as he grew in size. With malice in his eyes, the gorilla-sized Kong roared.

The battlefield quieted around Ryu as he drew his dagger in his opposite hand. He had no Skills except for [Karuta Armor], and it was useless with his decreased Class connection. His only advantage was a superior reach and a more balanced physique. The scout was all strength. Ryu’s cultivation was specialized for more.

The transformed scout’s fist tore through the air above him as he ducked. His sprint carried him forward into the Kong’s body, and he plunged his dagger into the monster’s side. It wasn’t a killing blow. It didn’t have to be. It was made to hamper the Kong. To slow it down. Ryu did not have many advantages in this fight, but he had the most important one: his group would be joining him soon. The scout’s men were tied up in the fight with the guards. Ryu didn’t have to win; he just had to stall.

His dagger remained in the beast’s side. The Kong snarled, and his fist caught Ryu just after his blade plunged into the gap in the plating on the monster’s thigh. Ryu was forced back, but his enemy stumbled. The scout glared at him. Then Marshal’s sword ran him through with a red glow. The scout’s body shrunk down to normal, his bloodied lips curled into a snarl. He fell off of Marshal’s blade, limp.

“Can we run now?” Marshal asked in a sarcastic tone. Although his words were light, his gaze was anything but. Ryu froze. Marshal's face twisted, morphing into that of a devilish monster. His skin wrinkled. His teeth grew into large fangs. His eyes... They stayed human. Too human.

Ryu's hand tightened on his blade. A quick swipe, and the monster would be gone. Hadn't he just learned that? Strike first and-

Ryu bit his lip, the pain chasing away the illusions of Willow's poison. He glanced around. The battle between Arun’s forces and the guards was turning, the scout leader’s death causing a shift in momentum. If they wanted to escape, now was the time. He nodded at Marshal.

They ran away from the city in a mad dash, and Ryu’s heart was filled with acceptance. He had killed a pair of brothers. Perhaps they were innocent, good people. Perhaps they weren’t. He would never know. His feelings on the matter were cool. It was not that he believed the Kong were just monsters to be slaughtered. Rather, it was that he knew it took such deeds to become powerful. And he wanted to be powerful. Willow had shown him that much.