The forest changed the moment they crossed the border.
Theon felt it immediately. The air grew heavier, as if something invisible was pressing against his chest. The cold here was not ordinary winter cold. It carried an ancient feeling underneath it, something old and patient, the kind of cold that made his instincts scream at him to turn back while he still could.
Lyra moved closer to him, her shoulder almost brushing his arm.
"The voice is clearer now," she whispered.
Fen’s ears stayed flat against his skull.
"Stay alert," he warned.
They walked deeper into the Ancient Forest, one careful step after another.
The trees here were enormous, far larger than anything in Frostfang. Their trunks were wider than palace towers, and their branches locked together so tightly overhead that most of the moonlight never reached the ground. A strange blue mist drifted between the trunks, glowing faintly, curling like smoke that had forgotten how to rise.
No animals could be heard.
No insects hummed in the cold air.
No wind moved through the branches.
There was only silence, thick and total, pressing against Theon’s ears until he could hear his own pulse.
He tightened his grip on his shadow sword.
"This place feels wrong."
Fen nodded slowly. "Because it is."
A few minutes later, they found another clue. Black feathers lay scattered across the untouched snow, and beside them were deep footprints. Human footprints sunk deep as though the person walking them had not cared who saw.
Theon crouched down and pressed his fingers against the frozen ground.
"He came this way."
Lyra suddenly stopped walking. Her eyes had gone wide and fixed on something ahead.
"Theon."
He followed her gaze.
Far in the distance, between the giant trees, a black raven stood on a stone covered in frost, its feathers so dark they seemed to drink in what little light remained. It stared directly at them without blinking. Then it turned and flew away, vanishing into the mist.
Theon stood up slowly.
"It wants us to follow."
Fen growled low in his throat.
"Or it wants to lead us into a trap."
Theon looked into the darkness where the raven had disappeared, weighing the thought for only a moment.
"Either way, we’re already too far to turn back now."
They kept walking. The deeper they went, the colder the air became, until even their breath froze into small white crystals that hung in front of their faces before drifting away. Lyra wrapped her arms tightly around herself, shivering hard enough that her teeth clicked together.
Theon noticed and pulled off his own cloak, draping it gently over her shoulders.
"You’ll freeze," she said, surprised.
"I’ll manage." Theon replied.
A small, tired smile broke through her fear. "Thank you."
Fen suddenly went still, his whole body tensing like a drawn bow.
Theon raised his sword at once. "What is it?"
Fen stared into the darkness ahead. "Something is watching us."
A low rumble rolled through the forest, deep enough that Theon felt it in his chest before he heard it. The ground trembled once. Then again.
A massive shadow shifted between the trees, and Theon’s eyes went wide as a creature larger than a house stepped fully into the moonlight.
It was a wolf.
But unlike the Frost Wolves they had fought earlier, this one was sheathed entirely in black ice, and frost spread outward across the snow with every heavy step it took. Its crimson eyes burned like frozen fire, glowing with a light that felt far too aware, far too intelligent for a beast.
Fen took a slow step backward. "Master. That is not an ordinary beast."
Theon felt his heart slam against his ribs. The pressure rolling off the creature was suffocating, pressing down on him like a physical weight.
The wolf opened its mouth, and a growl shook the entire forest floor.
Lyra grabbed his arm, her fingers digging in. "It’s terrifying."
Fen’s voice echoed inside Theon’s mind, calm but urgent. "Do not underestimate it."
The giant wolf lowered its body, muscles coiling beneath the black ice.
Then it charged.
Theon reacted instantly. "Shadow Leap!"
He vanished and reappeared six meters to the side, just as the beast crashed through the exact spot where he had been standing, shattering the frozen ground beneath its claws.
Theon swung his shadow sword. Clang! The blade struck the black ice on the wolf’s shoulder and bounced away, doing nothing at all.
His eyes widened. "It didn’t work?"
Fen rushed forward, claws sharpened with frost. "Ice Claws!"
Sparks of ice exploded where his claws struck the beast’s side, but the giant wolf barely flinched. It swung one massive paw almost lazily.
Bang!
Fen went flying through three trees before landing in a heap.
"Fen!"
Theon raised his hand. "Shadow Strike!"
Six spears of shadow shot toward the beast, and this time, the moment the black weapons touched its body, thin cracks spread across the ice.
The wolf roared in pain, the sound shaking snow loose from every branch nearby.
Theon’s eyes narrowed with sudden understanding. "Shadow attacks can hurt it."
The beast turned its head toward him.
And for the first time, Theon felt real danger, not the kind that came from losing a fight, but the kind that came from knowing he might die here in the snow.
The giant wolf’s crimson eyes locked onto him.
Then it vanished.
Theon’s heart nearly stopped. Too fast. It moved far too fast.
"Master, behind you!" Fen shouted through their bond.
Theon spun around just as a massive black claw came crashing toward his head.
"Ice Shield!"
A wall of icy energy snapped into place in front of him.
BOOM!
The impact sent him flying backward across the snow, and the shield cracked instantly under the force. Theon rolled several times before slamming into a frozen tree, pain shooting through both arms and his ears ringing so loudly he could barely hear his own thoughts.
If that shield had not appeared even a second later, he would have been torn apart.
The wolf gave him no time to recover. It charged again, faster than before.
Fen burst through the shattered trees and slammed into the beast from the side.
Bang!
The two wolves crashed together, the collision shaking the ground hard enough that snow fell from every branch around them.
"Run, Master!" Fen growled.
Theon forced himself back onto his feet, legs shaking. "No. We must fight it together."
He raised his hand. "Shadow Strike!"
More black weapons formed and shot toward the beast, striking directly into the cracks already spreading across its icy hide.
Crack. Crack.
The wolf roared in fury.
Theon’s eyes widened. "The cracks are spreading!"
Fen sank his teeth into the beast’s shoulder, freezing part of its leg solid. For one brief moment, the giant wolf slowed.
Then it exploded with power, and a storm of black frost burst outward from its body.
BOOM!
Fen was thrown backward again, skidding across the snow. Theon raised his shield in time, but the freezing shockwave still shoved him several meters across the ground. His breath came out in thick white gas, and his fingers were already going numb.
"This thing is a monster," he muttered.
Fen landed heavily beside him, chest heaving. "Master. Ordinary attacks won’t kill it."
Theon clenched his teeth. "Then what will?"
Fen looked at the black cracks spreading slowly across the beast’s neck. "Shadow mana."
Theon froze. "What?"
"It fears the shadows. Your shadow attacks are the only thing truly hurting it."
The giant wolf began walking toward them again, slow and confident, as if it already knew they had nowhere left to run.
Fen lowered his body. "I have an idea."
Theon looked at him. "Tell me."
"I’ll distract it."
Theon’s eyes widened. "Fen, that thing is stronger than you."
"I know." Fen’s crimson eyes stayed calm despite everything. "But you can kill it."
Theon stared at him for a long second.
Fen continued quickly. "Condense all your shadow mana into a single dagger. Make it as dense as you possibly can. Aim for the neck."
The wolf let out another growl, and the ground trembled beneath their feet.
"We don’t have much time," Fen said.
Theon took a deep breath. "Alright."
He closed his eyes, and dark mana began gathering around his right hand, not spreading out into spears or blades this time, but pulling inward, tightening into a single point. The shadow grew thicker. Heavier. His arm began to tremble under the weight of it, and sweat ran down his face despite the freezing air around him.
The mana kept compressing further.
Fen turned to face the giant wolf. "Keep your focus, Master."
Then he charged forward, howling into the night. "Awooooo!"
The ancient wolf rushed to meet him, and the forest exploded into chaos. Claws collided. Ice shattered into glittering dust. Trees splintered and collapsed under the force of the impact.
Fen moved with incredible speed, twisting and dodging one strike after another, but the difference in raw power was clear to Lyra who’s watching. A black claw tore across his side, and blood stained his white fur dark and wet.
"Fen!" Lyra cried out.
"Stay back!" Theon shouted without opening his eyes, forcing himself to hold his focus.
The dagger in his hand kept growing smaller. Darker. More dangerous with every passing second. The pressure around it grew so heavy that the snow beneath his feet began to sink under its weight.
Fen leaped onto the giant wolf’s back and sank his teeth into its neck. The beast roared and threw him off with a violent twist.
Bang!
Fen crashed into a boulder, shattering it into pieces. He staggered back to his feet, breathing hard, blood dripping steadily from his side.
"Master. Now!"
Theon opened his eyes.
The dagger in his hand was no longer black. It was darker than black, a piece of pure shadow condensed into something almost solid.
"Fen!" he shouted. "Bring it to me!"
Fen understood at once. He turned and ran straight toward Theon with everything he had left.
The giant wolf gave chase, faster, faster, faster, the ground shaking harder with every stride it took.
Lyra held her breath, unable to look away.
Fen was almost on top of Theon when the giant wolf opened its jaws wide enough to crush them both.
At the very last second, Theon whispered, "Shadow Leap."
He vanished.
And reappeared beside the beast’s neck.
For a split second, time seemed to stop completely. The crimson eye turned toward him, wide with sudden understanding.
Theon drove the condensed shadow dagger forward with everything he had left.
Stab!
The blade pierced through the cracked black ice, then through flesh, then through bone.
The giant wolf froze in place.
A shockwave of dark energy burst outward from the wound.
Crack!
The black ice covering its entire body shattered like glass falling from a great height. The beast let out one final roar that shook snow from every tree in sight.
Then its enormous body collapsed onto the snow and did not move again.
Silence returned to the forest, heavy and complete.
Theon dropped to one knee, breathing hard, his whole body trembling with exhaustion. The shadow dagger in his hand slowly dissolved into mist.
Fen walked back to him slowly, wounded but alive, and Lyra rushed over to check them both, her hands shaking as badly as theirs.
A blue screen suddenly flared to life before Theon’s eyes.
Shared Growth Activated
SSS Ancient Fenrir defeated
Massive EXP Gained
The notifications kept pouring in, one after another.
Fen. Level 50 to 70. New Skill Acquired: Shadow Attack.
Theon. Level 17 to 20. New Skill Acquired: Shadow Shield.
Theon stared at the glowing screen in disbelief. "Three levels."
Another notification appeared. Skill Points Available.
Theon looked at the newly unlocked skill, thinking it over for only a moment before making his choice.
"Invest all remaining points into Shadow Shield."
The system responded at once.
Shadow Shield. Level 1 to Level 5.
A wave of dark energy spread through his body, and the shield around him felt far more stable than before, steady in a way it had never been.
Theon let out a slow breath, some of the tension finally leaving his shoulders.
"I’ll need this for whatever is waiting ahead."
Lyra helped him to his feet, still shaking slightly. Fen settled down beside them, exhausted but clearly proud.
"You did well, Master."
Theon managed a weak smile. "We did well."
After resting for a few quiet minutes, gathering what strength they could, they continued forward together. The black raven had long since disappeared, but the path ahead somehow felt clearer now, as if the forest itself had decided to guide them the rest of the way.
Soon they reached a narrow opening between two frozen cliffs, cold air pouring steadily out from within like breath from some vast sleeping thing.
Theon stepped inside first, the others close behind him.
The passage stretched deep underground, its walls covered in blue ice. Ancient runes glowed faintly beneath the frost, pulsing with a light that seemed to follow their footsteps.
At the end of the tunnel, the space suddenly opened wide.
Theon stopped in his tracks.
Lyra gasped softly beside him.
Fen went completely silent.
Before them lay a vast frozen underground lake, its surface a sheet of solid ice. Beneath that ice, the water looked black as ink, swallowing what little light reached it. And at the very center of the lake stood a throne carved from dark crystal, rising alone out of the frozen water.
The throne was empty.
But the moment Theon’s eyes settled on it, a cold feeling crawled slowly up his spine, colder even than the forest around them.
As if someone had been sitting there only moments before.