The silence in the purified Cathedral was heavy, but it was no longer oppressive. It was the silence of a tomb that had finally been sanctified. The smell of rot and old blood was fading, replaced by the crisp, sterile scent of the holy light that Alvian had unleashed from the vessel.

Alvian stood by the shattered altar, the [Sanctified Soul Vessel] glowing warmly in his hand. He didn't absorb the experience points immediately. It was a dense, concentrated source of power, and he needed to be in a secure location to process it without risking a mana overload. He stowed the item in his inventory.

"Secure the perimeter," Alvian ordered, his voice echoing in the vast, white hall. "Seraphina, check the Vicar's private chambers. A man who skins people for a suit usually keeps detailed records. I want to know who his contacts were."

"On it," Seraphina said, vanishing into the shadows of the sacristy.

Valeria walked up the steps of the dais, her boots crunching on the bone dust that littered the floor. She looked around at the devastation, her expression a mix of relief and lingering disgust.

"The civilians are safe," she reported, sheathing her claymore. "They're shaken, and most are suffering from severe mana exhaustion, but they're alive. I've sent a runner to Kincaid to send transport wagons. We can't leave them here."

"Good," Alvian said. "This valley is a strategic asset. The soil is rich in mana. Once we purge the necrotic residue, it will be the breadbasket of the Void Sanctum."

Valeria looked at him, a strange glint in her eyes. "You're already planning the logistics of a kingdom you haven't finished conquering."

"Inefficient to conquer without a plan for occupation," Alvian replied flatly. "Kincaid controls the water. The Vicar controlled the food. That leaves one."

He pulled up the holographic map of the Chaos Zone. Three red markers had originally marred the landscape. Kincaid was neutralized, his marker turning a subservient green. The Vicar was deleted. Only one red marker remained, pulsating in the deep, dense jungle to the south.

[Target: The Beast King]

"Goreth," Valeria read the name from the map data. "The intelligence reports say he controls the mutant beasts of the region. He's not interested in trade or religion. He hunts."

"He's a variable," Alvian corrected. "Wild beasts are unpredictable. Organized beasts are an army. If we settle the refugees here without dealing with him, his pack will view this valley as a buffet."

"So we hunt the hunter," Valeria said, her hand resting on the pommel of her sword. "I'm ready. My mana is recharging."

"Not yet," Alvian said. "We need bait."

Before Valeria could protest about being used as bait again, the heavy oak doors of the cathedral creaked open. Kincaid walked in. The Golden Tyrant looked different without his massive, invincible armor. He wore a heavy breastplate of steel and leather, looking more like a bandit king than a golden god, but his presence was still imposing. Behind him were a dozen of his men, carrying crates of supplies.

Kincaid looked at the bone floor, then at the pile of dust that used to be Harvey. He let out a low whistle.

"You actually did it," Kincaid grunted, walking toward the altar. "Harvey was a spook. Gave me the creeps. I thought he'd turn you into a zombie."

"He tried," Alvian said calmly. "He failed. Where are the wagons?"

"Outside," Kincaid gestured with a thumb. "My boys are loading the civilians now. But we have a problem, Boss."

Alvian narrowed his eyes. "Report."

"The southern road," Kincaid said, his face darkening. "My scouts tried to flank around the jungle to secure a route back to the crater. They didn't report back. We found their mounts an hour ago. Eaten. Clean to the bone."

"Goreth," Alvian stated.

"The Beast King knows the balance of power has shifted," Kincaid nodded grimly. "He isn't waiting for you to come to him. He's expanding his territory. If we try to move this many people across the open plains, his pack will slaughter us."

Alvian looked at the map again. The Beast King's territory was a dense tangle of mutated flora called the Razorleaf Jungle. It sat directly between the fertile valley and the safety of the Void Sanctum's crater.

"He's cutting off our supply lines," Alvian mused. "Smart animal."

"He's not just an animal," Kincaid warned. "He's a shapeshifter. A Druid who fell to the corruption. He fuses with the beasts. He gets stronger with every kill."

"Inefficient biology," Alvian muttered. "Fusing with lesser lifeforms dilutes the purity of the soul."

He turned to his team. Seraphina had returned, holding a leather-bound journal.

"You were right," she said, tossing the book to Alvian. "The Vicar was sending tribute to the Syndicate, but he was also bribing Goreth. He was feeding him the 'failures'—the civilians who didn't have enough vitality to be batteries. Goreth has a taste for human flesh."

Alvian caught the book. His expression didn't change, but the temperature in the room dropped a few degrees. The [Frost Heart] passive was reacting to his intent.

"We aren't waiting," Alvian announced. "Kincaid, fortify the Cathedral. Keep the civilians inside. Set up a defensive perimeter with your best men. If anything comes out of the woods, kill it."

"And you?" Kincaid asked.

"Valeria, Seraphina, and I are going for a walk in the woods," Alvian said, equipping the [Lance of the Void Winter]. The black metal hummed, eager.

"We're going to clear the road."

----

The Razorleaf Jungle lived up to its name. The foliage wasn't green; it was a deep, bruised purple, and the leaves were serrated edges of chitin and plant matter that could slice through leather armor. The air was hot, humid, and thick with the smell of musk and ozone.

Alvian moved through the undergrowth, his [Vestments of the Void Monarch] phasing through the sharp leaves like smoke. He didn't cut a path; he simply existed where the plants were not. Behind him, Valeria used her [Titan's Aura] to push the vegetation back, creating a golden bubble of safety, while Seraphina moved through the canopy above, a silent shadow monitoring the perimeter.

"System. Analysis," Alvian commanded internally.

[Zone: Razorleaf Jungle]

[Environmental Hazard: Mana Poisoning (Low)]

[Hostile Density: Extreme]

"They're watching us," Seraphina's voice whispered in his earpiece. "I count forty heat signatures in the trees. Dire Apes. Level 38."

"Let them watch," Alvian said. "They're waiting for the Alpha's signal."

He stopped in a small clearing. The ground was soft, covered in a moss that pulsed like a living organ.

"Here," Alvian said.

"This is a kill box," Valeria noted, scanning the high branches. "They have the high ground. We're exposed."

"Exactly," Alvian said. "I'm inviting them to dinner."

He raised his hand. A ball of pure, condensed mana gathered in his palm. It wasn't a spell; it was raw energy. It shone like a beacon in the twilight of the jungle.

"SCREEEE!"

The signal was immediate. The canopy exploded with motion. Dozens of massive, four-armed apes dropped from the trees. They were covered in bone plates, their eyes glowing red with the same corruption Alvian had seen in the Syndicate's labs.

[Monster Identified: Bone-Plated Dire Ape]

[Level: 38]

[Status: Frenzied]

"Contact!" Valeria shouted. She didn't wait for them to land. She swung her claymore in a wide upward arc. "Titan's Upheaval!"

A wave of golden force shot upward, slamming into the descending apes. Bones cracked, and three of the monsters were sent spinning back into the trees. But more landed. They surrounded the duo, their movements uncharacteristically coordinated.

"They're flanking," Alvian noted. "Goreth is controlling them directly."

An ape lunged at Alvian from behind, its claws coated in a paralytic toxin. Alvian didn't turn. He activated [Runic Aegis +2].

"Orbit: Sawblade."

The fourteen runes didn't just block; they spun rapidly around him, their edges sharpening into mana blades. The ape hit the spinning shield and was shredded instantly.

[-8,000! Shred Damage!]

"Don't kill them one by one," Alvian ordered. "It takes too long. Group them up."

"Kind of busy here!" Valeria grunted, catching two apes on her shield. The impact drove her boots into the mud. She pushed back, her strength stat of 200 allowing her to shove the massive beasts away.

Alvian sighed. "Fine. I'll group them."

He activated [Klaus's Upgrade].

[Blessing Active.]

"Gravity Well."

He cast the S-Rank skill he had looted from Voice One. A singularity formed in the center of the clearing, five meters above the ground. The gravitational pull was immense. The apes shrieked as they were dragged across the mud, their claws carving furrows in the earth. They were pulled into a crushing ball of fur and bone in the air.

"Now," Alvian said.

He pointed his Lance.

"[Frost Descent +2]: Flash Freeze."

Because of the blessing, the area of effect was doubled, but Alvian focused it entirely on the gravity well. The ball of monsters was instantly encased in a sphere of absolute zero ice. The gravity crushed them, and the ice shattered them.

"CRACK-BOOM!"

The sphere of ice exploded, raining frozen gore down on the clearing.

[You have slain Bone-Plated Dire Ape x25!]

[Experience Gained: 300,000!]

The jungle went silent.

"That... was effective," Valeria said, wiping slime off her pauldron.

"It was a message," Alvian said. He looked deeper into the jungle, toward a massive, hollowed-out tree that dominated the skyline. "I killed your pack, Goreth. Come out and play."

A roar answered him. It wasn't the shriek of an ape. It was a primal, earth-shaking bellow that made the trees tremble. The ground vibrated.

"He's coming," Seraphina said, dropping down from the canopy. "And he's big."

Trees snapped like twigs as something massive plowed through the jungle toward them. It wasn't just walking; it was terraforming the path as it moved.

"Formation," Alvian ordered. "Valeria, front. Seraphina, flank. I'll take the head."

The trees at the edge of the clearing burst apart. The Beast King stepped into the light.

He wasn't a man anymore. He was a hulking fusion of bear, tiger, and treant. He stood fifteen feet tall, his skin a bark-like armor covered in moss and glowing red runes. One arm was a massive claw, the other a tangle of thorny vines. His face was a human visage stretched over a wolf's skull.

[Target Identified: Goreth the Beast King]

[Level: 47]

[Class: Corrupted Druid Lord]

[Status: Apex Predator]

"YOU... KILLED... MY... CHILDREN..." Goreth's voice was like grinding stones.

"They were pests," Alvian said, leveling his lance. "And you are the infestation."

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