Word count: 2350-------------------------------------------------------------------------------The Whispering Woods lived up to their name, a dense forest where the trees seemed to whisper secrets to one another with every gust of wind.
The air was thick with the scent of damp earth, and the canopy above cast long shadows that danced with the sunlight filtering through the leaves. It was a place of mystery, where danger lurked behind every tree.
Nouflex moved silently through the underbrush, his senses on high alert, and his haki spreading around him constantly. Beside him, Fubuki followed closely, her eyes scanning the surroundings for any signs of the rogue beast.
The forest was eerily quiet, with only the occasional rustle of leaves or distant bird call breaking the silence.
'This place is unsettling, I can't believe that dumbass Felix tried to go through this forest with only five guards, what was he thinking.' Nouflex thought, recalling his encounter with Felix in this forest.
'But it's perfect for a challenge. If I can handle this beast alone, it will show me that I am making some progress.'
Stopping in a small clearing, Nouflex turned to Fubuki. "Listen, Fubuki." He started, his voice low but firm. "When the beast shows up, I want you to stay out of the fight. I need to handle this myself."
Fubuki frowned slightly, her eyes narrowing in concern. "Master, are you sure? This beast is dangerous. You don't have to face it alone."
Nouflex smirked, a glint of excitement in his eyes. "I need the experience. Fighting a powerful opponent like this will help me get stronger. But if, and only if, my life is truly in danger, you can intervene. Understood?"
Fubuki hesitated for a moment but then nodded. 'He's right. It's true that he has almost infinite potential, but... If he doesn't make use of it and make an effort to reach it then it's pointless.' She thought, understanding his desire to grow stronger.
'But still, I'll stay close and be ready to step in if things get out of hand.'
With their plan in place, they continued deeper into the woods, the tension growing with every step, Nouflex suddenly paused, his senses sharpening.
His Haki picked up on two distinct presences. One was unmistakably the rogue mana beast, powerful and ferocious. But the other was human, a young man even younger than himself running for his life, his energy frantic and desperate.
He was about 700 meters away, and from the intensity of his fear, it was clear he was being chased by the beast.
'I finally found it.' Nouflex thought, quickly assessing the situation. Without a word, he teleported, disappearing from Fubuki's side.
When he reappeared, he found himself amid chaos. The young man, dressed in rough adventurer's gear, was sprinting through the trees, glancing back in terror at the massive beast closing in on him.
The creature was a terrifying sight, towering and covered in thick, dark fur, with glowing red eyes and jagged fangs that dripped with blood. Its mana pulsed around it, distorting the air with raw, dark energy.
The young man stumbled and nearly fell as the beast gained on him, but before it could strike, it stopped dead in its tracks. A new presence had appeared, Nouflex, standing calmly in its path, as if he had been waiting for it all along.
The young man, gasping for breath, looked up at Nouflex in shock. 'Who… who is this?' He wondered, trying to comprehend how someone had appeared out of nowhere.
"You dumb ass! What are you doing? get the hell out of here or you will die!" He shouted at the weird man who appeared out of nowhere.
Nouflex was already irritated with this guy from the way he spoke. "Just shut up already, your voice is annoying lil bro." A thick vein mark could easily be seen on the young man's forehead.
Nouflex stood calmly before the rogue mana beast, his mind calculating and sharp. The beast's massive frame loomed over him, its red eyes glowing with primal rage.
The air around them crackled with tension, and the young adventurer, panting and terrified, could only watch from a distance. His heart raced, fear gripping him as he realized the full extent of the danger.
'This beast is a monster... How does he expect to fight it alone? Is he insane?' The adventurer thought, struggling to catch his breath.
He had seen his entire team slaughtered by this creature, and now this mysterious man, wearing a blindfold and seemingly unbothered by the beast's presence, was about to face it alone. 'He'll be ripped apart in seconds.'
But Nouflex had other plans. He needed to understand his abilities more, to push them to their limits. 'This is the perfect opportunity to test everything I have.' He thought, his lips curling into a smirk. 'Let's see how far I can go.'
The manabeast lunged at him with a deafening roar, its claws slashing through the air with deadly intent, but Nouflex dodged the swing feeling the wind on his face then he took a few steps back to create distance.
The mana beast quickly turned its neck to face him as blue mana energy rapidly condensed on its opened mouth and was shot at high speed toward Nouflex.
"Holy shit!" Nouflex was taken by surprise and managed to evade the shot just in time by teleporting out of its way using his instant transmission to appear just behind the beast.
The creature eyed the spot where he had been standing waiting for the dust to settle expecting to see his corpse lying there and feast on it, but it found nothing but empty air making it widen its eyes.
'Damn, I let my guard down... I need to work on perfecting my timing when it comes to teleportation tho.' Nouflex thought.
Without hesitation, he did a series of hand signs, as his shadow started stretching out to connect with the beast's own, locking it in place. It thrashed violently, trying to break free from his shadow control, but it couldn't move.
The adventurer watched in disbelief, his jaw-dropping. 'What… what is this? Who is this guy? Is he controlling shadows?' His arrogance was quickly being replaced by awe and fear.
'Could it be that he is the rising shadow? or is it Shadow Monarch now?' He thought.
Nouflex, however, wasn't done experimenting. He kept the shadow control, making the beast roar in frustration.
This time, he decided to try something different. He focused his energy, channeling his dismantle technique.
'I want to know if I can use two offensive skills at the same time." He swiped his hand through the air while holding back, and a sharp, invisible force cut through the creature's hide, leaving a deep gash across its side.
The beast howled in pain, staggering back, but Nouflex didn't follow up with a finishing blow. He let the beast recover, wanting to see how it would react. 'Good… I'm getting a feel for it. But I need more control, more precision,' he thought looking at his hand.
The adventurer couldn't believe what he was witnessing. 'He's toying with it… He's actually toying with that monster!'
Nouflex released the monster from the shadow technique and continued to test his abilities, teleporting around the battlefield, dodging the beast's attacks, and delivering dismantle slashes variating in potency to get better control over his technique and to see how it responded.
The creature grew more and more enraged, its movements becoming erratic as it struggled to land a hit on its elusive opponent.
Finally, the beast, in a desperate attempt, lunged at Nouflex with all its strength. But Nouflex had anticipated this. Using his observation haki, he sensed the beast's intentions even before it moved. He waited for the perfect moment, then teleported out of the way and used his shadow control to bind the beast once more.
This time, he decided to end the fight. With a swift motion, he activated his dismantle technique again, but this time with more force letting loose slightly.
The air around his hand shimmered as the invisible force slashed through the space reaching the beast, severing it in two halfs and ending its life in an instant.
The creature collapsed to the ground.
Nouflex stood over the fallen beast, his heart steady, his breathing calm. 'That's rather a good start, I'm doing well for now.'
The adventurer could only stare, his mind racing. 'Who is this man? He's not just strong—he's terrifying.'
After the intense battle with the rogue mana beast, Fubuki landed gracefully beside Nouflex. Her usually calm demeanor was replaced by a slight pout, her arms crossed under her big chest as she glared up at him.
"Master." She began, her tone tinged with frustration. "You just disappeared without saying anything. You know my job is to protect you, right? How am I supposed to do that if you keep vanishing on me?"
Nouflex chuckled softly, wiping some of the beast's blood off his cheek. "I could handle it. Besides, you saw how it turned out."
Fubuki huffed, clearly not satisfied with his nonchalant attitude, but she let it slide for now. Her job was to be his shield, and she needed to be near him to fulfill that duty. 'He could at least give me a heads-up before doing something reckless like that.' She thought.
Before Fubuki could retort, the adventurer who had been running for his life approached them. His chin lifted as if he were addressing people with lower value.
"I suppose I should thank you for stepping in, though it's not as if I needed your help." He started, his voice dripping with a sense of superiority. "My party was caught off guard, nothing more. And these woods? They're not exactly challenging for someone of my caliber."
Nouflex raised an eyebrow, amused by the adventurer's attitude. 'This guy thinks he's better than everyone else. How entertaining,' He thought. "Oh really? Looked to me like you were running for your life."
The adventurer scoffed, brushing his messy hair out of his face. "I was simply regrouping. My teammates... well, they weren't as capable as I am. But you wouldn't understand. It takes a certain level of skill to navigate such dangers."
"Skill, huh?" Nouflex chuckled, leaning in slightly. "If that's what you call running away with your tail between your legs, then sure, you've got plenty of skill."
The adventurer narrowed his eyes, his pride wounded. "And what about you? Just because you handled that beast doesn't mean you're invincible. You should watch your mouth."
"Invincible?" Nouflex smirked, crossing his arms. "Maybe I'm not invincible, but I definitely don't like the way you speak kid, is this how you address someone older than you."
The young adventurer scoffed, pointing his finger at Nouflex. "What are you on? You're probably only two or three years older. Do you think I should respect you only for that?"
"I guess you're right, but don't go around looking to die like that lil bro." Nouflex tried to end the conversation, but it seemed the other party still was not over with it.
The adventurer clenched his fists, clearly irritated but trying to maintain his composure. "I don't need your approval. I've got my own path, and I'm sure it's far more important than anything you're doing out here."
"Oh, I'm sure." Nouflex replied with a mocking grin. "But whatever path you're on, make sure it doesn't lead you back here. You might not be so lucky next time."
The adventurer, trying to salvage some dignity, offered a half-hearted invitation. "Well, anyways. You are better than my old good-for-nothing team so if you ever want to join a real team, you can find me. We could use someone... competent."
"Haha! Is that how you deal with teammates? Just discard them when their dead and find new ones? Hilarious, you're quite the interesting one!" Nouflex couldn't help but let out a wholehearted laugh.
"Tch, who are you to judge me, what matters is my life, and making sure that I survive. Everything else is worthless." The adventurer crossed his arms while looking the other way.
"Don't get me wrong here, I approve of your ways, I mean, I would've done the same thing. When I've got no more of someone I simply discard him and find a more efficient one, as simple as that." Nouflex's smile is one that would make anyone uncomfortable.
"Y-yeah right... So what do you think of my offer?" He asked again.
"Hmmm, I might consider it. I mean, to be honest, I already like you, you're a funny one. If you want we can meet at the adventurer's Guild bar tonight and let's talk about it there. Anyways, I got better things to do now so, see ya later lil bro." Nouflex waved his hand as he walked to cut the beast's ear to provide it to the guild as evidence.
With that, the adventurer huffed and turned on his heel, his ego bruised but intact. As he walked away, Fubuki, who had been watching the exchange silently, finally spoke up. "That guy was... something else, you seem to get along with him. Do you seriously consider letting him join you?"
Nouflex chuckled, shaking his head. "Yeah, something else. I can smell an opportunity a mile away, he definitely is an interesting one."
Nouflex finished his mission and tested what he needed to test. So he was in a good mood, and with a satisfied smile he headed back to the guild.
TO BE CONTINUED --->
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