Chapter 10 — The Test

Morning never truly came to the Dark Forest.

The trees were too dense.

Even when the sun rose above the forest, only thin rays of light managed to reach the ground.

Kael sat inside the cave, staring at his damaged weapons.

His shoulder still hurt.

It wasn't serious, but every time he moved his arm too quickly, a sharp pain reminded him of the encounter from the previous night.

He picked up the Darven MP-01.

A deep crack ran across its frame.

The weapon was unusable.

Kael sighed.

"One gun lost."

He placed it beside him.

At least it wasn't one of his important weapons.

The Darven katana was untouched.

The SR-01 had survived.

His other weapons were still functional.

But something bothered him.

The mysterious creature hadn't actually attacked him.

Not properly.

If it had wanted him dead, Kael was almost certain he wouldn't have survived.

That meant one thing.

It had been testing him.

Kael looked toward the cave entrance.

"Why?"

Rebuilding

Kael placed the damaged MP-01 in front of him.

He activated Metal Control.

Mana flowed through his body.

The broken metal slowly lifted from the ground.

Instead of simply repairing the weapon, Kael decided to improve it.

He separated the damaged sections and examined the metal.

His Metal Control had become significantly more precise since entering the forest.

He could now manipulate dozens of small pieces simultaneously.

[Metal Control activated.]

The metal began moving.

Kael concentrated.

The damaged frame slowly reformed.

But halfway through—

CRACK.

The weapon collapsed.

Kael frowned.

"Again."

He tried once more.

This time, he reinforced the damaged sections with mithril.

The weapon began to glow faintly.

[Mithril detected.]

[Material compatibility: High.]

[Metal Control precision required: Intermediate.]

Kael's expression changed.

"Intermediate?"

His current Metal Control was still listed as Beginner.

He wasn't skilled enough.

He tried anyway.

Mana drained rapidly.

His forehead became covered in sweat.

The metal shook violently.

For several minutes, Kael struggled to maintain control.

Finally—

CLINK.

The weapon settled onto the ground.

Kael picked it up.

The system appeared.

[Darven MP-01 reconstructed.]

[Material enhancement detected.]

[Grade: 3 Mana → Grade 4 Spirit]

[Quality: Good → Fine]

Kael stared at it.

He smiled.

"Not bad."

Then another notification appeared.

[New skill condition fulfilled.]

[Metal Control proficiency increased.]

[Metal Control: Beginner → Intermediate]

Kael's smile disappeared.

He stared at the message.

"Intermediate?"

He immediately checked his status.

Status

Name: Kael Darven

Age: 11

Level: 4

Rank: F-Rank — Initiate

Mana: 22/24

Strength: 11

Agility: 14

Vitality: 12

Intelligence: 14

Metal Control: 45

Bloodline: Darven

System: Awakened

Skills:

• Basic Mana Manipulation — Intermediate
• Metal Control — Intermediate
• Basic Swordsmanship — Beginner
• Basic Weapon Forging — Beginner
• Mana-Infused Weapon Creation — Beginner
• Metal Arsenal — Beginner
• Threat Analysis

Kael stared at his Metal Control.

It had increased from 41 to 45.

"Only four points..."

He looked at the reconstructed weapon.

"But my control feels completely different."

Before, he had treated Metal Control like a weapon.

Now he was beginning to understand that it was something much broader.

He wasn't simply moving metal.

He was understanding it.

Its structure.

Its weight.

Its resistance.

Its reaction to mana.

The deeper his understanding became, the more precise his control could become.

Kael suddenly remembered something his father had said.

The Darven bloodline develops with its user.

Perhaps that was why the family had become famous for weapons.

Not because they knew how to make them.

Because they could understand metal better than ordinary people could.

Kael looked at the MP-01.

Then at his other weapons.

"I need to experiment."

A New Weapon

Kael opened one of the books from his father's inheritance.

Darven Advanced Arsenal — Volume II

He flipped through the pages.

Most of the designs were far beyond his current ability.

Some required rare materials.

Others required enormous amounts of mana.

Then he found something different.

A weapon designed for area suppression.

Not a sniper rifle.

Not an assault rifle.

Not a pistol.

A shotgun.

Kael's eyes brightened.

"A close-range weapon..."

That could be useful.

Especially in the forest.

He began gathering materials.

Iron.

Mithril.

A small amount of magical crystal.

And several pieces of the strange black metal he had discovered earlier.

The moment the black metal came near the other materials—

WHOOOM.

Kael's mana surged.

He immediately dropped it.

"What the—"

The black fragment vibrated.

The system appeared.

[Unknown material detected.]

[Analysis incomplete.]

[Warning.]

[Material possesses an unidentified connection to the host's bloodline.]

Kael stared at the message.

Again.

His bloodline.

He carefully picked up the fragment.

Nothing happened.

Then he touched it with his bare hand.

A vision flashed before his eyes.

A massive battlefield.

Thousands of bodies.

Black-armored warriors.

Weapons made of strange metal.

And at the center—

A Darven warrior stood beside an enormous beast.

Not the Shadow Lion.

Not the Verdant Serpent.

Not the Bone Sovereign.

Something else.

A gigantic metallic creature.

Its body looked like living steel.

Its eyes were crimson.

The Darven warrior placed his hand against its head.

Then—

The vision changed.

The metallic beast was chained.

Three enormous chains wrapped around its body.

And standing in front of it was a figure wearing a black mask.

The masked figure said something.

Kael couldn't hear the words.

Then the vision shattered.

Kael dropped the fragment.

He gasped.

His heart was pounding.

"What was that?"

The system remained silent.

For several seconds.

Then—

[Memory fragment detected.]

[Source: Unknown.]

[Warning: Information may be incomplete.]

Kael frowned.

"Even the System doesn't know?"

That was becoming a problem.

The Nightfang Returns

A few hours later, Kael finished the new weapon.

The Darven SG-01.

Type: Magical Shotgun

Grade: Grade 3 Mana

Quality: Good

It wasn't his strongest weapon.

But it was designed for close-range combat.

Kael placed it beside his other weapons.

Then he heard footsteps.

The Golden-Eyed Nightfang appeared outside the cave.

Kael immediately reached for his katana.

The monster raised a paw.

"Relax."

"You keep appearing without warning."

"You keep surviving things you shouldn't."

Kael narrowed his eyes.

"What was that creature?"

The Nightfang remained silent.

"You know something."

"I know very little."

"Then tell me what you know."

The monster stared at him.

"The creature wasn't hunting you."

Kael's expression hardened.

"I figured that out."

"No."

The Nightfang shook its head.

"You don't understand."

It stepped closer.

"It wasn't testing your strength."

Kael froze.

"Then what was it testing?"

The Nightfang looked directly into his eyes.

"Your blood."

Silence.

Kael's hand slowly tightened around the katana.

"What does that mean?"

"I don't know."

"You keep saying you don't know."

"Because I don't."

The Nightfang's expression became serious.

"But I know one thing."

"What?"

"The creature could have killed you."

Kael nodded.

"I know."

"No."

The Nightfang shook its head again.

"You don't."

It looked toward the depths of the forest.

"If that creature had wanted to kill you..."

Its golden eyes narrowed.

"...you would never have known it was there."

Kael felt a chill.

"So why did it let me live?"

The Nightfang didn't answer immediately.

Then it said:

"Because you passed."

Kael's eyes widened.

"Passed what?"

The Nightfang turned around.

"That's what you need to find out."

It began walking away.

Kael followed.

"Where are you going?"

"Somewhere you shouldn't go."

Kael stopped.

The Nightfang looked back.

"And somewhere you will eventually go."

Then it disappeared between the trees.

Kael stood alone.

He looked at his new shotgun.

Then at the strange black metal fragment.

Then toward the dark forest.

The deeper he went, the more questions appeared.

His father had left him an inheritance.

But perhaps the inheritance wasn't simply a collection of weapons, books, artifacts, and legendary beasts.

Perhaps it was the beginning of something.

Something his father had been preparing him for.

Kael picked up his weapons.

"I'll find out."

He stepped into the forest.

Far beneath his feet—

Something ancient moved.

Three enormous chains trembled.

And somewhere in the darkness, a pair of crimson eyes opened.

[Unknown presence detected.]

[Threat Analysis unavailable.]

[Warning: Do not descend.]

Kael stopped.

He stared at the System message.

Then looked at the ground.

For a moment, he considered turning back.

Then he smiled slightly.

"Not yet."

He turned around.

He wasn't going down there.

Not today.

He wasn't strong enough.

And for once—

Kael understood that knowing when to run was part of becoming stronger.

He walked deeper into the forest instead.

Behind him, something watched.

And this time...

It smiled.