Yamino groaned, his vision slowly clearing as sunlight poured through the canopy above. His arms ached, his body sore. When he tried to move, he realized—he was tied up against a thick tree trunk. Thick vines bound his wrists and ankles, and his shirt was soaked from the river.
Before him stood the girl—the one from earlier. Beautiful beyond reason, with sharp, angry eyes now glaring straight into his soul.
Beside her stood the Terax—a massive, prehistoric monster with crimson scales and amber eyes that shimmered with unsettling intelligence. The ground rumbled every time it moved.
Yamino's heart pounded. The sight should've broken his sanity, but something inside him stirred instead—an instinctual urge to roar back, to challenge, to dominate. But he held it in.
Not now.
"Hey, who are you?" the girl snapped, stepping closer. "Who sent you to kill me?"
Yamino blinked, confused. "Kill… you?"
He didn't reply. His mind raced, trying to piece everything together. What did she mean by kill? Why would she think he was an assassin?
His silence only irritated her further.
"If you don't start speaking," she hissed, eyes narrowing, "I'll let my Terax eat you alive. Immediately."
Yamino swallowed hard. He knew she wasn't bluffing. The Terax let out a deep growl, its jagged teeth glinting in the sunlight.
Desperate, Yamino tried to feign ignorance. "I don't know what you're talking about. I don't even see anything there. A dinosaur? Don't be ridiculous. Those things went extinct—"
> "Stop faking, you idiot!" she shouted, voice sharp enough to cut steel. "I know you can see it! Don't mess with me."
Yamino flinched. He couldn't tell if she was insane or if he was. But then again, after falling into a river, entering a realm of spirits, and creating a half-beast knight, maybe insanity was the new normal.
He met her gaze and shot back, "Hah! How can I see a Terax right now? They died out millions of years ago!"
Her face twitched with frustration. She stormed up to him and pointed a finger in his face.
"Then explain this," she growled. "You saw my Terax. You ran like hell and fell into that river. Then you caused an explosion. I saw it. A light shot you out of the water like a goddamn cannonball. You were unconscious when I dragged you back. If you weren't, I would've had to chase your sorry ass down."
Yamino's breath caught. She had seen it? The explosion… the light? No, something wasn't right.
She stared hard into his eyes.
"I know you saw him," she said, voice lower now, almost curious. "You felt him. That fear was real. So quit pretending. Who. Sent. You?"
Yamino frowned. The truth was: no one sent him. But from her perspective, this all looked like an attack.
He took a deep breath. "Listen… I think we're both confused here. I didn't come to kill anyone. I don't even know where here is."
She narrowed her eyes but didn't speak.
For the first time, the Terax let out a soft huff… as if sensing something had shifted.
The girl's frustration reached its peak. She gritted her teeth and shouted, "Whatever, kill him."
The words barely left her mouth before the Terax lunged forward, the ground shaking with each thunderous step. Yamino's pulse quickened, his body tensing in preparation. There was no escaping this. His mind screamed at him to act.
The Terax was huge—far larger than anything he'd seen in his life, its claws scraping the earth as it closed in, maw open, ready to crush him in one bite. The monster's presence was suffocating, its immense power making the air feel thick and heavy.
Yamino's mind raced. He couldn't escape. He couldn't outrun it. But he had something else, something more. His power.
"Hah! If you really want a fight, then—" Yamino gritted his teeth, his words cutting through the tension like a blade. "Then Toms Zano, come out."
A shadow seemed to materialize from the air itself, a dark silhouette moving in the corner of his vision. The world around Yamino blurred momentarily, the shadow twisting into a solid form. In a flash, Toms Zano stood beside him, a towering figure—a half-beast, half-human warrior who radiated power. His muscular body rippled with strength, his six arms each wielding a deadly weapon, while his single wing unfolded with a roar of primal energy. His eyes glowed, recognizing his new pact.
Toms Zano let out a growl, his weapons shimmering as he flexed, ready to fight. Yamino's chest tightened, feeling the weight of the pact settle within him. This would be his first real test as the Solo King, but now he had a partner—an unstoppable force.
The Terax halted in its tracks, its amber eyes narrowing as it faced the new challenger. The girl took a cautious step back, her fingers twitching near her weapon.
But it was the Terax who made the first move.
With a roar that split the air, it charged at Yamino, its massive jaws snapping open. The beast's speed was terrifying, and it was only a moment before it was upon him.
"Toms Zano, attack!" Yamino shouted, the command clear.
Without hesitation, Zano lunged forward, his weapons slashing through the air. One of his swords met the Terax's massive claws, and sparks flew as the two powers collided. Zano's strength was unmatched, but the Terax wasn't just any beast—it was ancient and powerful, its instincts honed over countless millennia.
Yamino's heart pounded, his mind fully engaged. This wasn't just about power—it was about strategy, about using the environment, the monsters, and the abilities at his disposal to win. He couldn't just rely on brute force.
The Terax struck again, its tail whipping toward Zano with an earth-shaking force. But Zano was quick, his agility belying his size. With a graceful twist, he dodged the tail strike, countering with a vicious slash to the Terax's side. The blow landed, and the beast howled in pain, recoiling.
The girl watched from behind, her eyes narrowing as she assessed the situation. Yamino didn't have time to worry about her, though. His focus was entirely on the battle.
The Terax howled once more, fury and pain mixing in its voice. It wasn't going down so easily. But neither was Yamino.
The fight raged on, a clash of power and will. Yamino's thoughts raced, but his confidence grew. He had Toms Zano, and with his new abilities, he was more than capable of handling this.
He wasn't going to die today.