Karsu knew that every logical probability pointed to him remaining within the city.


    His pursuers would assume that his critical wounds would stop him from taking any risk of venturing outside—especially with that deadly forest encircling the area. What no one else knew, however, was that at that very moment the forest was not lethal at all. The mating season of the beasts had rendered it almost deserted, as the predatory creatures were busy battling one another for the right to mate, leaving the ground empty except for a few nonhostile beings.


    His move was a calculated risk—a move that no one would ever consider—and therefore it was perfectly safe. With every step he took into the forest, his body continued to bleed slowly, yet he did not stop. He chose a shadowed spot among the thick trees, a place where he could rest without leaving any obvious trace. Clutched in his hand was a tiny creature, only a few centimeters in length—a creature that should not have been there at all. The Qazz... these strange beings, each with its own unique ability and peculiar dietary requirements: some feed on metals, others on pure energy. But this particular one was the Thread Qazz, which had not eaten since Karsu had entered the city. Now, as he emerged, the opportunity to feed it had finally presented itself—he reintroduced it into his mental sea, allowing it to begin absorbing his Mental Stone.


    (The Mental Stone is a crystal imbued with a vast amount of accumulated energy, used both as currency in transactions and as a means of refining power.)


    ---


    Day 3: The Dark Beginning


    As hunger and pain became almost unbearable, Karsu decided to hunt one of the “Hallucination Qazz” – the kind that is drawn to the scent of toxic mushrooms. Karsu knew that these creatures only manifested by the detection of auras. Thus, he meticulously set his traps using the Thread Qazz along with materials that resonated with his inner energy. After hours of carefully laying the snares—and while he was rubbing the mushroom leaves between his hands—he murmured to himself in grim tones: “Time is not my friend… but they have no idea that the nectar of despair forges my prey.”


    Suddenly, a beast resembling a wolf with a spiked hide burst forth, its roar shattering the silence of the forest. In a flash, Karsu employed the Thread Qazz to transform that very beast—from its classification as a “Half-Skull” creature (a group now reduced to minced meat) into nothing more than a meal. “I’d been wondering what I’d eat today,” he remarked dryly.


    Without delay, Karsu set off in search of a specific cave he had once heard about “before the Return”—a place said to have transformed a pauper into a rich man overnight. At that time, the cave had not yet been explored by him; however, it was close by, and he indeed found it soon after. Inside, he discovered materials for refining and a vast hoard of energy stones


    (stones that store energy and are used both to help refine one’s abilities and, due to their value, sometimes serve as a medium of exchange).


    There he immediately began to refine himself and restore his power.


    ---


    Day 4: The Hunt for the Black Shadow Qazz


    Enveloped in a dense fog that cloaked the forest with its toxic shroud, Karsu advanced toward an area known as the “Grave of Lights,” where it was believed the “Black Shadow Qazz” gathered under the full moon. He carried with him a rare bottle of black liquor, mixed with droplets of his own blood—knowing that this unique bait would lure the type drawn to the scent of alcohol and blood. Concealing himself beneath the leaves of the Lithra plant, he scaled a hollowed tree until the red eyes of the Qazz, like glowing embers emerging from darkness, came into view. As one of them lunged, Karsu hurled a net crafted from the hair of a Hydra beast. In that very moment, he channeled the energy of his mental sea, seized the Qazz, and a beam of light burst forth and steadily intensified until, within seconds, he had absorbed it into his spiritual sea. There, it was refined in mere moments—the process triggered by the fear induced by a Qazz that was only of the second tier within him…


    ... Qranos, a level-six beast!


    (A level-six beast – known as a “Six-Skull” creature – is a catastrophic entity capable of erasing entire civilizations. Humanity had not seen such a monster for seven centuries, a calamity that claimed the lives of over a billion people, and even now no one knows how that beast vanished.)


    ---


    Day 5: Reconstructing the Traps Amidst the Rain


    When the relentless rains turned the ground into a slick, swampy mire, Karsu realized that his old traps had lost their effectiveness. He did not give in; instead, he redesigned them using the sticky leaves of the Kara tree, integrating into them a mixture of fermented honey designed to lure the Buraq Qazz. Later that night, when he heard the footsteps of Krax’s guards drawing near, he whispered coldly, “They won’t be able to see… for the aura is hidden from their eyes.”


    Then, employing the Hallucination Qazz, he unleashed visions around them—phantoms of fire-breathing monsters that melted the soldiers’ courage into pure panic, sending them fleeing in terror.


    ---


    Days 9–10: The First Clash


    On a vast plain beside a hill, the first confrontation unfolded between Karsu and Krax—the fifth commander of the city’s master. On that wide stretch of land, Krax stood rigid like a statue forged of pure incarnate fury, his red eyes ablaze with hatred, his hands clenching a massive sword as if they could shatter the very world. Mere steps away, Karsu stood utterly unruffled, his hands folded behind his back and a slight, almost mocking smile playing on his lips, as if he were a mere spectator to an amusing scene.


    Krax (roaring with a voice that echoed amid the deserted walls): “Return it to me… now!”


    Karsu (raising an eyebrow as though he’d just heard something odd): “How interesting… you said ‘return it to me’ and not ‘to us.’ Do you feel alone in this war?”


    Krax (stepping forward, his eyes blazing): “Don’t try to play games with me, you filthy wretch! You know very well what you’ve done! How many men have died because of you? How many bodies have been torn apart by this chase? There is no place here for your usual tricks!”


    Karsu (calmly, as if discussing a scientific matter): “These are not mere games but hard truths… the difference is subtle, yet fundamental.”


    Krax (screaming, his voice carrying a mix of pain and anger): “You have killed my men! You have destroyed me! And now—because of you—we will all perish!”


    Karsu (tilting his head slightly as if lost in thought): “Then, after all of this, you have finally come to understand the truth.”


    Krax (staring at him furiously, his heart pounding like the beat of war drums): “Return the book to me… or no one shall survive!”


    Karsu (smiling coldly, placing his hand lightly over his chest): “But the question is… why should I?”


    Krax (his anger erupting as his body trembled with hatred): “Because if you do not, you will be buried with me!”


    Karsu (laughing softly as if the threat were a mere jest): “A mistaken assumption… Think for a moment, Krax. Here I am, right in front of you—even though I had every opportunity to escape. Doesn’t that make you wonder?”


    Krax (pausing for a moment, then bellowing): “Stop toying with me!”


    Karsu (lowering his eyes for a moment before meeting Krax’s gaze again, his voice calm yet heavy with inevitability): “If you’re foolish enough to think I haven’t calculated every step, then death is the least you deserve.”


    Krax (stepping back involuntarily, his breathing quickening): “What… have you done?!”


    Karsu (placing his hand on the leather cover of the book hidden beneath his cloak and smiling slightly): “I did not steal the book, Krax… I only took what should never have been in your hands from the start.”


    Krax (trying to rein in himself, his heart racing wildly, his mind screaming late warnings): “You don’t understand… the book is not just an object of possession—it is… it is a curse! Without its seal, we are all doomed! My master will die; the city will be wiped out!”


    Karsu (with absolute calm): “And who said I do not understand?”


    Krax (his eyes widening as the wind howled, as if the universe itself were holding its breath): “Then… why?”


    Karsu (stepping forward, his voice lowering to a deadly whisper): “Because your death… is only the beginning.”


    The roar of the battle, the moments when fate itself is decided…


    Massive rocks crashed onto the earth with tremendous force—obliterating tree trunks and stirring up thick clouds of dust. With movements as fluid as a dancing shadow, Karsu evaded the assault and veered off his path, watching as the ground beneath his feet trembled under the force of the leader who wielded the power of the earth Qazz. The soldiers tried to surround him, well aware that allowing him to escape would mean catastrophe; yet Karsu was not someone who could be easily confined.


    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    The commander stood among his men, surrounded by walls of stone that seemed to form and shift as though they were extensions of his very body. His eyes tracked every minute move Karsu made. Suddenly, Krax’s fingers dug into the earth, and the ground trembled before it split open, sending forth sharp columns of rock that tried to tear Karsu from below. But just as the rocks surged upward, Karsu leapt back, leaving behind nothing more than a blurred impression.


    Yet fate had another plan.


    A resounding roar cut through the clamor, followed by a violent shaking of the earth that was not the work of the commander. Everyone turned to see a herd of creatures charging out from between the trees—their massive bodies moving like mountains in a terrifying rush, their red eyes glowing beneath the slanting rays of sunlight.


    The soldiers screamed as they scrambled to reform their defensive lines, but the primates granted them no chance. Armor shattered under grips as massive as boulders, and some were crushed beneath colossal feet. The commander attempted to utilize the earth Qazz to erect barriers protecting his men, yet the speed of the onslaught rendered every effort a desperate measure doomed to delay the inevitable.


    Karsu—who, until that moment, had remained in the very heart of the battlefield—needed only a few seconds to realize that this was his opportunity. With a swift motion, he darted toward the trees, using the chaos as cover, while the primates tore apart the soldiers who were unfortunate enough not to escape.


    Even though the commander found himself in a desperate situation, he noticed Karsu’s withdrawal and, rather than pursue him, he planted his feet firmly, fully aware that the forest would never allow one who ventured deep within it to exit easily. With a grim expression, he ordered the remaining soldiers to retreat, leaving behind a scene of utter chaos as Karsu’s shadow melted away among the dense trees.


    Elsewhere in the forest, Karsu faced yet another challenge with the “Healing Qazz” from the book—a creature that required honey to be fed. With his own supply nearly exhausted, he resorted to trading three energy stones, even though they provided only 70% of the basic nourishment needed by the Qazz.


    Every step he took through the forest weighed on him—not physically, but psychologically. The trees arched overhead, intertwined as though deliberately blocking his path, and the light from outside had dwindled to mere pale strands seeping through the thick canopy. The heavy humidity clung to his skin, and the air was saturated with scents that even an untrained nose would recognize as a mixture of life and death.


    Yet what caught his attention most was not the environment but the aura.


    The place pulsed with a strange energy—not only savage but ancient, as if the forest were not merely a habitat for monsters but a legacy of something older than humanity itself.


    Karsu was not a naive man who would enter such a place without careful planning. In truth, this forest had been his objective from the very beginning.


    But now… the hunt had become his obsession.


    At first, the sounds were faint—a distant murmur among the branches—but gradually, they grew louder…


    In the darkness, among the dense trees, small lights began to appear. Eyes peered at him without revealing themselves. Some glowed red, some yellow, but what made Karsu reassess the situation was the appearance of cold, steady green eyes—as if they belonged not to mere beasts, but to thinking beings.


    He did not need to fight to know that the place was teeming with monsters whose classification went beyond even “two-skulls.”


    Fortune Favors the Prepared


    Karsu was not one to leave matters to chance. He understood that confronting these creatures would mean certain death, yet he had not entered the forest to engage in battle but rather to seek its hidden treasures.


    He knew that everything growing there was a weapon in itself. The herbs that others might dismiss as wild plants were, in fact, precious substances—some poisonous, some bestowing extraordinary energy, and some capable of paralyzing a mountain-sized beast.


    The real challenge, however, was accessing them without alerting the predators lurking in ambush.


    He held his breath, slowed his heartbeat, and allowed his aura to gradually vanish into the shadows until he became one with them. This was his true skill—not merely fighting, but surviving in a place from which none had ever emerged.


    Slowly, in the darkness that swallowed him, he began to move… not like a fleeing man, but like a hunter treading cautiously through the lair of monsters.


    The forest welcomed him… but at what cost?


    As deep darkness fell, the forest seemed to close in on Karsu from every side. Every whisper of the wind and every creak of a breaking branch carried within it the promise of imminent danger. With every step he took, he felt death looming behind every shadow and every sound, as if peril were constantly brushing against his body, relentlessly pursuing him.


    The gnarled, twisting trees above swayed like ominous fingers, trying in every way to hide the secrets of this ancient land—a land that bore witness to untold stories. Suddenly, a branch snapped behind him, and his heart stuttered for a moment before he quickly turned to see whether it was merely the echo of nature or something else lying in wait in the darkness.


    A few minutes later:


    Karsu found himself in a quiet nook deep within the forest after having completed the process of refining the Qazz. He knew that his aura had not been honed in a very long time. He then began preparing to refine himself—a process undertaken in slow, deliberate steps as though practicing an exquisite martial art.


    He settled onto a smooth rock—or assumed a stable posture (not necessarily sitting on the ground, but choosing a position that allowed him to harmonize with the nature surrounding him). He closed his eyes deeply to separate the clamor of the outside world from the whispers of his mind.


    His first step in this fundamental process was to breathe slowly through his nose, feeling the cold air as it filled his lungs. Then he exhaled slowly through his mouth, as if expelling all accumulated impurities and tension, focusing intently on synchronizing each inhalation and exhalation with the steady beat of his heart.


    With his breath deepening and his mind concentrated, he gently raised his hands upward, then slowly lowered them again, tapping on parts of his inner chest as if to summon his buried powers. These movements were not random at all but perfectly coordinated—like the measured steps of a masterful martial art—his arms moving in harmony with the flow of his breath and every pulse of his heart.


    Karsu slowly lifted one foot, carefully placing it on the ground with each step, feeling the pulse of the earth that accompanied him like the sound of the oldest tales. Every movement was an expression of his desire to re-sharpen his aura and reorganize his inner energy.


    He entered a state of profound meditation, focusing solely on honing that aura—his invisible shield for as long as it had protected him. Through intense mental focus, he began to reclaim the lost energy and gradually reforge the outlines of his inner strength, much like one would sharpen a sword before a great battle. Every motion and every breath served as a keystone, restoring his balance and illuminating his aura with a new light.


    After hours of this meticulous process, Karsu felt the energy beginning to flow through his veins once again, and his warrior spirit reclaimed a part of its former brilliance. At last, he had finished refining himself.


    As these moments—blending meditation, movement, and alertness—came to a close, Karsu noticed from afar the faint glow emanating from the entrance of a mysterious cave. That cave seemed to silently beckon him toward a new adventure. Taking a deep breath and gathering his strength, he moved toward it with confidence and caution, ready to embark on yet another chapter of his journey full of mystery and challenges.


    The cave itself was dark—an antithesis of the light outside when Karsu had first arrived! Its walls were adorned with strange writings and faded carvings. The odor of mold and iron permeated the space, and there, among the remains of an unknown hunter, lay the pages of an ancient book bearing warnings about Qazz hunters who lost their minds after attempting to tame a fourth-level Qazz.


    Karsu let out a hoarse laugh and said,


    “Humans flock to power like flies… yet they do not realize that Qazz do not simply get refined—they refine you.”


    In that moment as he stepped into the dark cave, he felt as though we—myself and I—were walking together in the darkness of time and its secrets. He paused for a moment and drew a deep breath; every step he took was like a pulse from his heart whispering that we were destined to uncover a hidden secret.


    He walked slowly, with the gentle breeze caressing his weary features, extending his hands to touch the cold cave walls, feeling the texture of the stones as if they were preserving ancient memories. “Every stone here carries a story,” he murmured softly to himself while observing his deliberate movements—how his feet slid in the darkness and how his fingers trembled upon touching the faded carvings that decorated the walls.


    It wasn’t only the echo of his footsteps that filled the space; there was also a voice rising from deep within him—a voice that spoke directly: “I am Karsu, and I have experienced both pain and joy in equal measure. I breathe in the air of truth with you, and I walk with you along the path of inner refinement.” He spoke to himself as though his very presence alleviated the weight of solitude, as if every word from his lips carried a message from a heart that knew that true strength is not merely external, but a journey of self-discovery.


    As he continued his measured progress through that narrow corridor, every detail of movement revealed itself—the graceful flow of his body despite the heaviness of the past, the way his eyes absorbed every symbolic detail of those ancient carvings. He slowly raised his hand, feeling his heartbeats surge as if heralding the birth of a new dawn within him. “Look,” he said in a voice mingling longing with determination, “every movement I make here writes a story of hope and suffering, reminding me that despite all my scars, I still search for light amid the darkness of time.”


    He suddenly stopped before a carving that spoke with ancient wisdom: “Qazz do not refine; they refine you.” In that moment, he felt the sound of that revelation merge with his own heartbeat, as if pulsating in unison to remind him that every experience leaves its mark, and that we are here to live every detail—even the smallest—as part of our shared journey. He looked around as if attempting to weave from the shadows and symbols a narrative that would revive the soul’s yearning for freedom and understanding.


    “You are with me, my soul,” he seemed to say, sharing this intimate moment where there is no distinction between past and present; where every movement, every whisper of the heart, serves as evidence that true refinement springs from within. And as he continued his journey with confident steps despite the weariness of the road, he promised that his inner self would always remain his partner in every journey, in every tale told from a heart that has been scarred by pain yet still sees the dawn of understanding and generosity.


    This is my journey—a journey in which we together explore the intricacies of the self and the cosmos, to redefine the meaning of strength and freedom in every pulse and every step toward the future.


    (Karsu addressed Qranos with these words, using his own self-styled epithet.)


    ---


    Day 11: The Buraq Qazz


    Before dawn, Karsu felt a strange vibration in his aura, as if the forest itself were calling him. He emerged from the cave and followed that sensation until he reached an enormous tree whose tangled roots resembled a network of halos. There, amid the glistening branches, the “Buraq Qazz” appeared like a captured shard of the sun.


    He recalled the words of an ancient inscription:


    “Do not hunt it until it hunts you.”


    In that moment, Karsu pressed his aura to its utmost limit, enabling him to generate a visible light that attracted the Buraq Qazz like iron to a magnet. In a single instant, his energy merged with his body—and then a beam emanated from Qranos, subduing the Qazz within seconds and refining it.


    The Qazz Refinement System:


    Refining Qazz was not an ordinary process; it was an art, a science, and a mental discipline that required balancing one’s aura with the resources needed for the Qazz.


    Over the course of eleven days, Karsu waged an existential battle within the forest. From his first grim encounter with the forest’s monsters to the clash with Krax’s forces, from the hunt for the Black Shadow Qazz amidst the mists of death to the climax of his confrontation with the Buraq Qazz, every experience coalesced into a tale of transformation. Karsu was no longer an ordinary hunter; his skills gradually returned to tell the story of a triumph of will and reconciliation with hidden power. At the end of his journey, he emerged from the depths of the forest carrying in his heart a longing for Qranos.


    Sitting before a dying fire inside the cave, Karsu held between his fingers a blue Mental Stone that emitted a faint glow. He whispered as he pressed it until it crumbled:


    “Mental Stones (energy stones)… a cheap solution for those unwilling to pay the price in blood.”


    The process of “refining the Qazz” demanded immense concentration; it involved stirring the aura within the mind to tame the Qazz, akin to caressing a poisoned blade. If control were lost for even a few seconds, the Qazz would turn against him and melt his mind from the inside.


    But Karsu was unlike the others—for Qranos, the legendary Qazz that clung to his form like a dark shadow, sent out calm vibrations that steadied his aura, instilling fear in the lesser Qazz and refining them effortlessly without resistance.