The sun was beginning its descent toward the horizon when Akhil spotted them returning. Four figures approaching the settlement gates, moving with a confidence that hadn't been there two days ago.

"They're back," Akhil said, nudging Seth and Nibo. The three of them had been waiting near the gates, taking a break from organizing the final preparations.

As Nyla, Aria, Ryan, and James drew closer, Akhil felt something shift in the air around him.

It was subtle at first—just a vague sense of difference. But as they approached, it became undeniable.

Even from several feet away, standing near Nyla made the air feel colder. Not the active, aggressive cold of her ice abilities being used, but something more fundamental. As if the temperature itself recognized her presence and bowed to it. Frost didn't form, but Akhil could feel the chill radiating from her like heat from a forge—constant, powerful, barely contained.

His eyes moved to Ryan, and he did a double-take.

The massive warrior had always been large—broad-shouldered, thick with muscle, imposing in sheer physical presence. But now... he looked smaller. Not weak, not diminished, but compressed. As if all that size had been condensed, compacted into a denser form.

And the aura around him had changed completely.

Where before Ryan had radiated raw strength—the kind that came from pure physical power—now there was something else. Something that made the hair on Akhil's neck stand up. A sense of barely-restrained violence, of explosive force held in check by sheer willpower.

For just a moment, looking at Ryan's intense expression and feeling that overwhelming pressure, Akhil had the unsettling thought that the Titan of Wrath had somehow reincarnated into his friend's body.

James appeared unchanged at first glance. Same build, same quiet demeanor, same measured way of moving. But then Akhil's perception—honed by constant combat and survival—caught something.

The chains.

They rattled at James's side, but not from movement. They were perfectly still, hanging from his belt. Yet Akhil could feel them. A presence, almost like they were alive, watching, waiting. The metal itself seemed to hum with barely perceptible power.

'When did his chains become that dangerous?' Akhil thought, his eyes narrowing slightly.

And Aria...

Akhil watched her approach, and something about her movement made him focus intently. Her footsteps were light—impossibly light. Each step seemed to barely touch the ground, as if gravity itself had loosened its grip on her.

It almost seemed as though she was walking on air.

Even with his enhanced perception, with his ability to track fast-moving enemies and sense subtle changes in his environment, Akhil found himself struggling to tell if her feet were actually making contact with the ground. If he wasn't watching directly, if he relied only on sound or sensing her weight distribution, he might have thought she was floating.

'Assassin class,' he thought immediately. 'She's developed the kind of presence—or lack of presence—that assassins spend years trying to achieve.'

All of these observations happened in the span of seconds, his perception allowing him to process the changes in each of them with just a glance.

The hunt hadn't just helped them gather cores. It had made them fundamentally stronger.

"Woah!" Seth's voice broke the moment of assessment. His eyes were wide as he looked at the returning group. "What kind of beasts did you guys go out killing? You all look... different."

"Different good or different bad?" Aria asked with a small smile, though even her voice seemed lighter somehow.

"Different powerful," Nibo rumbled. "I can feel it from here."

Nyla laughed, a sound filled with pride and satisfaction. "We had a little competition. Didn't even hunt together." Her chest rose with visible pride. "I asked who could get more cores, push themselves harder, really test their limits. So we all went our separate ways to hunt beasts."

"You WHAT?!" Akhil's voice rose sharply. He stepped forward, concern and anger mixing on his face. "That's dangerous! What if any of you encountered a powerful beast that you couldn't handle alone? What if someone got seriously hurt or—" He turned specifically to Nyla, his tone becoming more pointed. "What were you thinking?"

Nyla raised an eyebrow at her brother's reaction but didn't seem particularly concerned by his reprimand.

"Calm down," Aria interjected, stepping between them with a placating gesture. "We weren't reckless. We used the teleportation device from the dwarves—you know, the one they mentioned? It let us cover distance quickly and, more importantly, respond if anyone encountered danger."

"We all kept the devices ready," Ryan added, his voice deeper than Akhil remembered, resonating with that new dangerous quality. "Set to teleport to each other's locations if the emergency signal was triggered. Anyone got in real trouble, the rest of us would appear within seconds."

"Which never happened," James said quietly. "We were careful. Just pushed our individual limits."

Akhil wanted to argue further, wanted to express his frustration at them taking such risks, but then Nyla hefted a large bag and dropped it at his feet with a heavy thunk.

"We also brought these back," she said simply.

Akhil knelt and opened the bag. Inside, cores glowed with various intensities—dozens of regular beast cores, and among them...

His eyes widened.

Four advanced cores. Not as powerful as the Serpent core he'd obtained, but strong nonetheless. Level 30 to 35, if he had to guess. Each one worth ten or more regular cores in terms of potential.

"Four advanced beasts?" Seth breathed, kneeling beside Akhil to look. "In one day? How—"

"Competition brings out the best in people," Nyla said with a satisfied smirk. "Or in this case, makes them hunt more efficiently."

Nibo let out a low whistle. "And I thought our Serpent was impressive."

"Serpent?" Ryan's eyebrows rose. "You guys found a River Serpent?"

"Level 40," Akhil confirmed, still staring at the four cores. "It was... eventful."

"He got eaten," Seth supplied helpfully.

"I did not—" Akhil started, then sighed. "Okay, yes, technically I got eaten. But I killed it from the inside, so it counts as a victory."

Aria snorted. "Of course you did."

Akhil let out a long, defeated sigh. He looked up at Nyla, seeing that familiar competitive glint in her eyes—the one that had driven both of them since childhood to push harder, go further, be better.

He'd always known his sister had a habit of creating competitions. Turning everything into a challenge, a test, a way to measure improvement. It had been annoying when they were younger, constantly comparing who could do things faster or better.

But now... now he could see the value in it.

Looking at the four of them—at how much they'd grown in just two days of intense, focused hunting—he had to admit that her competitive nature had brought out the best in all of them. And considering what they'd be facing tomorrow, that growth might mean the difference between survival and death.

"Alright," Akhil said, standing and brushing off his knees. "You were reckless, but I can't argue with results. And honestly..." He looked at each of them in turn. "You all seem significantly stronger. The constant combat must have pushed you past some threshold."

"Felt like it," Ryan agreed. "Halfway through the day, something just... clicked. Like my body suddenly understood how to use power more efficiently."

"Same," Aria nodded. "My movements became lighter, faster. Things that would have required effort before started feeling natural."

"The cores probably helped too," James added quietly. "Absorbing their essence while fighting, feeling that power flow through us..."

"It's like we evolved," Nyla finished. "And if we can do it, others can too. Which means—"

"Which means the whole settlement's fighting force has probably grown stronger," Akhil completed the thought. "Everyone who went hunting, everyone who pushed themselves... they're all more powerful than they were two days ago."

It was a small comfort. A tiny edge against the overwhelming threat of Jeren and his Centurions.

But edges mattered in fights like these.

"We didn't have any competitions like yours," Akhil admitted. "Just solid, systematic hunting. But we managed to kill plenty of beasts as well. Between all of us, we've probably gathered more cores than any other group in the settlement."

He gestured to the bag at his feet. "You should give those four cores to the dwarves. Have them craft powerful weapons for you. With cores that strong, they could make something really impressive."

Ryan shook his head immediately. "I don't need mine."

Everyone turned to look at him.

"You don't want a weapon from an advanced core?" Seth asked incredulously. "Why not?"

Ryan held up his fists, that dangerous aura intensifying slightly around them. "Because my body is my weapon. Always has been. A sword or axe would just get in my way." He flexed his fingers, and Akhil could see faint red energy crackling between them. "Whatever changed in me today... I can feel it. I'm stronger like this. More focused. Adding a weapon would dilute that."

"You sure?" Akhil pressed. "Tomorrow's fights—"

"I'm sure," Ryan said firmly. "Give my core to someone else. Someone who'll use it better than I would."

James cleared his throat quietly. "I'm declining as well."

"James—" Aria started.

"My chains are enough," he interrupted gently. "I've been using them for years. Know their weight, their reach, their limitations. Learning a new weapon now, with only one day left?" He shook his head. "That's more dangerous than going in with what I know."

He patted the chains at his side, and that presence Akhil had felt earlier intensified briefly.

"Besides," James added with a slight smile, "something happened to these during the hunts. Don't know what exactly, but they feel... different now. Stronger. Like they absorbed power from all the beasts I killed with them."

Akhil frowned thoughtfully. Weapons evolving from repeated use and victory wasn't unheard of in the game, but it was rare. The fact that James's chains had undergone that transformation spoke to both his skill and the intensity of the combat he'd experienced.

"Alright," Akhil accepted. "If you're both certain, then we'll redistribute those cores. Aria, Nyla—you two should definitely get weapons forged."

"Already planning on it," Nyla said. "I want something that complements my ice abilities. Maybe a spear or—"

"A staff," Aria suggested. "Would let you channel ice through it, create frozen projectiles, control the battlefield at range."

Nyla's eyes lit up. "Yes. Exactly that."

"And I want dual daggers," Aria continued. "Something light, fast, that won't slow me down. With how my movement's evolved, I need weapons that can keep up."

The group started walking toward the forges, discussing weapon possibilities and fighting styles. The sun continued its descent, painting the sky in shades of orange and red.

One day left.

But they were stronger now. All of them. Changed by two days of constant combat, pushed to their limits and beyond.

It still might not be enough.

But it was something.

And sometimes, something was all you needed to survive.

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