Chapter 48 – To Enter as a Blade
Part 1: The Trial That Kills Names
The Hollowwind Trial Grounds weren't on any map.
Even on the Bloodmoon Continent—where things that walked upright still howled like beasts—they were treated like a scar. Mentioned in whispers. Avoided in travel routes. A place where monsters bled to prove they could become worse.
No signs marked the way.
Just the feeling.
And Ariz followed it.
He walked through twisted valleys and ironwood thickets, where the wind hissed instead of howled and the air carried the weight of memory. The sky above never brightened—not once.
Because here, the sun had no place.
Only the blood moon, massive and swollen, hung unmoving in the sky, casting everything in a dreamless red pallor. It painted the world in quiet threat.
This wasn't night.
This was always.
And this was home now.
[System Log: Border Passed – Hollowwind Trial Grounds]
Region Status: Active Trial ZoneEntry Type: Solo – Non-Native
"Light does not reach here.Because nothing here ever begged for it."
Eventually, he reached them—seven broken pillars, rising from the black moss like snapped teeth. They weren't a gate.
They were a grave marker.
For names the Trial never let out.
Ariz passed between them without slowing.
The fog thickened immediately—dark and dense, clinging to his legs like memory.
[Trial Initiated – Hollowwind Path]
Objective: Reach the Shard AltarRestrictions:– No healing items– No outside assistance– No retreat
"Pain teaches faster than teachers.Bleed, or be forgotten."
The forest didn't speak.
It watched.
Figures formed in the mist—not creatures, but shapes. One looked like a priest with no eyes. Another wore his grandfather's cloak, burnt at the hem. They didn't move. Just watched.
Waiting.
The first corpse came an hour in.
A beast-kin initiate, jaw torn out, badge still pinned to what was left of his tunic.
Bloodmoon Academy – Rejected.
Ariz stepped over it without slowing.
The fog pulsed.
Then the Trial moved.
It didn't charge—it assembled. From bark, bone, and hatred. A mass of limbs, stitched shadows, and teeth that didn't match. It lunged like it wanted to return him to memory.
But Ariz had none left to spare.
He didn't summon his blades with sound.
They arrived on command.
Two violet-edged shadow blades swirled to his side and struck like breath through silk.
One clean slice.
The Trial-beast fell apart—not cut, but undone.
[System Notice: Trial Threat Neutralized]
Progress: AdvancingThreat Level Increasing
"Strength isn't enough.Memory kills faster."
He passed more corpses—two, then four.
Some still clutched books. Others had runes burned into their backs like warnings.
But Ariz walked on.
Eyes glowing.
No fear.
No prayer.
And then the altar appeared.
Not golden.
Not holy.
Just stone—twisted, cracked, and glowing faintly with violet light. It pulsed with a rhythm that didn't match his heartbeat.
Surrounded by jagged stones, and hung above it… were bodies.
Dozens of them.
Examinees who made it this far—but never stepped forward.
Ariz didn't pause.
Because the Trial wasn't over.
Something else waited.
And it had been waiting for him.