The gigantic serpent glided through the thick mist like a living shadow.
Its enormous body slithered silently across the rain-soaked ground, each movement impossibly smooth despite its massive size. Black scales shimmered beneath the faint light, while streaks of golden energy pulsed rhythmically along its body like molten veins.
Its eyes glowed.
Not with the instinct of a wild beast—
but with the unwavering vigilance of something that had stood watch for centuries.
Then it attacked.
SWOOOOSH!
Its colossal body whipped across the ground.
Bimo threw himself sideways just in time.
The serpent's massive tail slammed into the spot where he had been standing barely a second earlier.
BOOOOM!
The muddy earth split apart.
Water from the nearby river erupted into the air as chunks of soil and shattered roots flew in every direction.
Bimo landed in a crouch, wiping mud from his face.
"Okay."
"This is officially worse than the bear."
Sinta had already stepped forward.
Her gaze remained sharp.
Her breathing was perfectly steady.
"Bimo. Dika. Keep it distracted."
"Rani. Nisa. Protect Lila and Farhan."
"The rest of you... find an opening."
Her voice was calm.
Cold.
Controlled.
Everyone knew what that tone meant.
If Sinta sounded like this...
the situation was truly dangerous.
Without another word, the team sprang into action.
Dika dashed to the left.
Bimo sprinted to the right.
Together they drew the serpent's attention.
Its glowing eyes slowly followed them.
Then—
it lunged.
WHOOOOSH!
Dika leaped onto the trunk of a giant tree.
The serpent crashed into it without slowing down.
CRAAACK!
The massive tree split cleanly down the middle.
Dika twisted in midair before rolling across the muddy ground.
"That was close," he muttered.
From another branch overhead, Tono shouted,
"Its head is too tough!"
"The middle of its body is softer!"
Bimo glanced back while running.
"Finally!"
"The first good news I've heard all day!"
Farhan stared at his laptop, his face growing pale.
"The energy readings are becoming unstable."
Lila enlarged the graph.
"If this continues..."
"...it'll completely lose control."
Rani looked over immediately.
"Lose control how?"
Farhan never took his eyes off the screen.
"...Like a living explosion."
Silence followed.
No one liked the sound of that.
Arga stood a few steps behind the front line.
The MBG lunchbox in his hands had grown noticeably hotter.
The fifteen glowing grains of rice pulsed faster and brighter.
But the heat wasn't what tightened his chest.
It was fear.
Not the fear of dying.
Not the fear of losing.
The fear of disappointing everyone.
Everyone else was moving.
Fighting.
Protecting one another.
And every time things fell apart...
every pair of eyes always turned toward him.
Arga looked down at his trembling hands.
Why me?
The question returned once again.
And he hated it.
Kai stood beside him, as though he had heard every thought inside his head.
"You hear that voice again?"
Arga nodded slowly.
"...It's more than just a voice."
"This place..."
"...feels like it's been waiting for me."
Kai watched the serpent before turning back to Arga.
"I used to be afraid too."
Arga looked at him.
Kai rarely spoke about his past.
"I was afraid everything inside me was nothing more than a weapon they created."
A faint golden light flickered in Kai's eyes.
"But I was wrong."
He pointed toward Arga's chest.
"It doesn't matter why we were chosen."
"What matters..."
"...is what we choose after that."
Arga fell silent.
Those words struck deeper than he had expected.
Without warning, the serpent suddenly charged straight toward him.
SSSSHHH!
Sinta moved first.
She grabbed Arga by the arm and pulled him aside before he could even react.
The serpent crashed into the ground where he had been standing.
BOOOOOM!
Mud, rocks, and broken roots exploded into the air.
Arga was still frozen when he realized Sinta had already stepped back in front of him.
Just like always.
Always the first to stand between danger and everyone else.
"Focus, Arga."
She never looked back.
Her voice remained firm.
Yet beneath that firmness...
he heard something else.
Fear.
Not fear of the serpent.
Fear of losing someone she had sworn to protect.
For the first time...
Arga realized something.
Sinta carried a burden she never allowed anyone to see.
She had to stay strong...
so everyone else could keep moving.
And perhaps...
that burden had become unbearably heavy.
Bimo charged from behind and drove a powerful kick into the serpent's side.
THUD!
The enormous body barely moved.
Instead, Bimo was thrown backward several steps.
He stared at his own foot.
"Right."
"That felt like kicking disappointment itself."
Even in the middle of a deadly battle,
Dika let out a short laugh.
It disappeared almost instantly.
"Bimo!"
"Behind you!"
The serpent suddenly coiled its massive body.
Within seconds...
its enormous form completely surrounded them.
The ground trembled.
The mist thickened.
Every possible escape route vanished.
Kai spoke quietly.
"It doesn't want us to leave."
Lila checked the energy readings again.
"We're too close to the Core Zone."
Farhan swallowed hard.
"...This guardian will fight until its last breath."
Then—
slow applause echoed through the mist.
Calm.
Unhurried.
Everyone turned.
A tall figure stepped out from between the ancient trees.
A black suit.
A composed expression.
The Dominion Leader.
Beside him stood the man in the cap, holding a metallic bracelet-like device.
Bimo sighed dramatically.
"Why does he always show up like the final boss?"
The Dominion Leader ignored everyone else.
His eyes locked onto Arga.
"Interesting."
"Every time I search for a Core..."
"...I always find you first."
Arga stiffened.
The man smiled faintly.
"Do you know why this guardian is angry?"
He gestured toward the metallic bracelet in his subordinate's hand.
The Dominion symbol glowed.
"Because..."
"...it remembers us."
Kai immediately stepped forward.
"You tortured this guardian."
"Not tortured," the man corrected calmly.
"We tested it."
His gaze returned to Arga.
"And now..."
"I want to test the new guardian."
The surrounding air suddenly grew colder.
For the first time...
this was no longer simply a battle for the Core.
It had become personal.
It was about Arga.
The giant serpent slowly raised its head.
The surrounding mist twisted violently as golden energy rippled through the forest.
The Dominion Leader spoke in a low, confident voice.
"Show me."
"Did that power truly choose the right person?"
Arga tightened his grip around the lunchbox.
The fifteen glowing grains of rice shone brilliantly.
He was still afraid.
Still uncertain.
But now...
he finally understood something.
Courage wasn't the absence of fear.
Courage was choosing to move forward...
even while fear remained.
He took a step forward.
"Sinta—"
she called instinctively.
Arga gently shook his head.
"This time..."
"...I'll make the choice myself."
As he took another step, a brilliant burst of golden light erupted from the lunchbox, illuminating the mist-covered forest.
For the briefest moment...
even the ancient guardian serpent seemed to hesitate.