Wu Hei's hand hovered in the air, his fingers inches from the fallen Yī Wò Kè's paw. The creature's round, glassy eyes locked onto his, and for a fleeting moment, Wu Hei saw something flicker in those depths—something far too sharp, too calculating for a simple swamp dweller.
Then the Yī Wò Kè flinched.
A fraction of a second too late.
Wu Hei's instincts screamed. His fingers snapped shut around the creature's furry wrist—and instead of soft fur, he felt the rigid press of something hard beneath. The Yī Wò Kè's pupils dilated in panic.
"This one's fake," Wu Hei said, his voice low and dangerous.
The creature—no, the imposter—let out a strangled yelp and wrenched itself free with surprising strength. In its desperation, it stumbled backward, the oversized head of its disguise lolling to the side, revealing a sliver of sweaty, bearded skin beneath.
"Shit!" the dwarf hissed, his voice muffled but unmistakably not that of a Yī Wò Kè. He scrambled to his feet, the fursuit's stitching straining as he bolted into the mist.
The real Yī Wò Kè shrieked in alarm, their tiny forms scattering like leaves in a storm, vanishing into the swamp's labyrinth of reeds and mushrooms.
"After him!" Yuna snarled, already lunging forward, her feline agility carrying her over the uneven ground with ease.
Wu Hei didn't need the command. He was already moving, his boots splashing through the muck as he chased the dwarf's fleeing silhouette. The dwarf was fast for his size, but the cumbersome fursuit slowed him down. Within seconds, Wu Hei saw him trip over a submerged root and crash face-first into the mud with a wet thud.
Kael reached him first, planting a foot on the dwarf's back to keep him pinned. "Nice try, friend," he drawled, flipping the dwarf onto his back. The fursuit's head had twisted sideways, revealing a red-faced, wide-eyed man with a braided beard and a wild look of terror.
"Don't kill me!" the dwarf yelped, raising his hands. "I'm not—I wasn't—augh, this thing is hot—" He clawed at the fursuit's neckline, peeling it back like a second skin until his head popped free, his hair plastered to his forehead with sweat.
Wu Hei crouched beside him, his expression unreadable. "Start talking. Who are you? Why were you disguised?"
The dwarf gulped, his chest heaving. "Name's Róng Róng. And I wasn't trying to trick you—I was just surviving!"
"By dressing like a swamp raccoon?" Kael raised an eyebrow.
"It's a Yī Wò Kè, you uncultured—" Róng Róng cut himself off at Kael's warning glare. "Look, I got separated from my group. We dropped into this nightmare biome—some kind of frozen tundra—and there was nothing there. No loot, no shards, just ice and wind. Then I found this." He patted the half-shed fursuit. "Shard lets me mimic any creature I see. Figured it'd help me stay hidden."
Wu Hei's eyes narrowed. "And your group?"
Róng Róng's bravado faltered. His fingers tightened around the fursuit's fabric. "Dead. Or close to it. The darkness came faster there. Brought these… things with it. Like living shadows with too many teeth. We tried to run, but—" He shuddered. "I only got away because I put this on and played dead."
Yuna's ears twitched. "So you fled here."
"Yeah. Saw the Yī Wò Kè and thought, 'Hey, safety in numbers.' Then I saw another participant—some guy in armor—get dragged under by these worm-like monsters. So I stuck with the fluffballs." He grimaced. "Didn't expect you three to show up."
Wu Hei exchanged glances with Kael and Yuna. The dwarf's story lined up with the warnings the Yī Wò Kè had given them—others had come to this swamp, and they hadn't left alive.
"You said the darkness came faster in the tundra," Wu Hei said slowly. "Does that mean it moves at different speeds in different biomes?"
Róng Róng nodded vigorously. "Seems like it. The tundra was smaller too. Felt like the arena was… squeezing us."
A cold realization settled over Wu Hei. Kami's game wasn't just about fighting—it was about pacing. The arena itself was herding them, forcing encounters, rewarding those who moved fast and punished those who lingered.
A distant rustle in the reeds made them all tense. The Yī Wò Kè were gone. And if Róng Róng was telling the truth, that meant—
"We need to move," Yuna whispered, her tail bristling. "Now."
The swamp had gone eerily quiet. No croaks, no splashes. Just the oppressive weight of the mist, clinging to their skin like a warning.
Róng Róng scrambled to his feet, shedding the rest of the fursuit with frantic haste. "I'm coming with you."
Kael scoffed. "Like hell—"
"You're really gonna leave me here?" Róng Róng's voice cracked. "After what I just told you?"
Wu Hei made the decision before the others could argue. "He comes. But one wrong move," he added, locking eyes with the dwarf, "and you're worm food."
Róng Róng swallowed hard but nodded.
The group moved swiftly, following the path the Yī Wò Kè had indicated earlier. The mist thickened, reducing visibility to mere feet. Every shadow seemed to twitch, every ripple in the water a potential threat.
Then the ground shuddered.
A guttural, wet sound echoed through the swamp, like something massive dragging itself through the muck. Wu Hei's hand flew to his shard, the aero energy humming beneath his fingertips.
"What was that?" Róng Róng squeaked.
Yuna's ears flattened. "The thing that killed the others."
Wu Hei didn't wait for confirmation. "Run."
The swamp erupted around them.