Cold wind moved gently through the mountain ranges surrounding them.
The sounds of civilization had completely vanished.
No train whistles.
No city noise.
No voices from merchants.
Only nature remained.
Leaves swayed beneath the wind.
Birds circled high above distant skies.
The sound of flowing water echoed somewhere far below the cliffs.
And before them—
The endless world of Aethelspire stretched beyond imagination.
The giant mountain standing at the center of the world almost looked unreal.
Its peak disappeared above the clouds themselves.
Gigantic rivers flowed down from impossible heights.
Massive forests stretched outward like an ocean of green.
Even the mountains surrounding the central peak looked tiny in comparison.
Ryota stared blankly.
"...How are we even supposed to walk all the way there?"
Rio stepped forward.
"By walking."
"...That's your explanation?!"
Rio ignored him.
She reached into her inventory.
Blue particles gathered around her hand.
Then—
A thick notebook appeared.
Kiraya blinked.
"...You brought that thing?"
Rio nodded.
She opened the notebook.
Page after page after page flipped rapidly.
Sketches.
Drawings.
Notes.
Routes.
Warnings.
Symbols.
Then she stopped at one page.
She placed her hand against it.
A magic circle appeared beneath her feet.
Suddenly—
A massive hand-drawn projection appeared in front of everyone.
"...Woah."
Ryota's eyes widened.
Everyone stared.
Even Sayanaki raised an eyebrow.
A giant map floated before them.
Not a system map.
Not a game-generated one.
This one was hand-made.
Painstakingly hand-made.
Every section had markings.
Routes drawn with colored lines.
Small symbols around rivers.
Trees.
Animal territories.
Mountain paths.
Cave entrances.
Safe zones.
Danger zones.
Several sections had little written notes beside them.
"Avoid at night."
"Poison insects nearby."
"Temporary water source."
"Large predator habitat."
Kiraya stepped closer.
"...You made this?"
Rio nodded casually.
"Mostly."
Kiraya looked speechless.
"...Mostly?"
Even Hinabi stared.
"...This is absurd."
There were details everywhere.
Tiny drawings of trees indicated vegetation density.
There were arrows showing migration paths.
Several circles showed resource gathering locations.
There were even symbols for edible plants.
Ramos slowly looked between Rio and the map.
"...Lady Rio..."
"...How long did this take?"
Rio looked away.
"...Long enough."
Sayanaki smirked.
"...Monster."
Rio ignored her.
Kiraya continued observing until something caught her attention.
"...Hm?"
Near the giant mountain at the center—
Several small triangle symbols had been drawn.
Groups of four.
Groups of five.
Scattered around the forest regions.
Kiraya pointed.
"What are these?"
Rio looked.
"Oh."
She crossed her arms.
"Lynxario."
Silence.
"...Lynxario?"
Rio nodded.
"Special beast-man tribes."
"They live around the central territories."
She pointed toward several locations.
"They specialize in ambushes."
"Most attacks happen from trees."
"Shadows."
"Blind spots."
Silla looked nervous.
"...A-are they dangerous?"
Rio thought for a moment.
"...Mostly harmless."
Ramos nearly collapsed in relief.
Then Rio continued.
"...During normal nights."
Ramos froze.
Rio pointed toward a moon symbol she'd drawn near the map.
"But be careful during full moons."
Her expression became serious.
"They turn into Blood Hybrids."
Silence.
"...Blood..."
"...Hybrids?"
Rio nodded.
"They lose rationality."
"They attack almost anything."
"They become faster."
"Stronger."
"More violent."
Ramos began visibly shaking.
"...WHY DOES EVERYTHING HERE WANT TO KILL US?!"
Ryota awkwardly patted his shoulder.
"There there."
Hinabi looked at Rio.
"...What about daytime?"
Rio pointed toward smaller symbols.
"They still move around."
"But mostly scouts."
"They monitor hunting routes."
"If we don't provoke them..."
"They won't attack."
Kiraya nodded slowly.
"So basically..."
"Leave them alone and they'll leave us alone?"
Rio nodded.
"Exactly."
Sayanaki looked disappointed.
"...Boring."
Rio immediately looked at her.
"No."
Sayanaki looked away.
"...Fine."
Rio closed the map slightly.
"We should start moving."
Everyone looked at her.
Rio pointed toward the distant forests.
"Floor Three becomes more dangerous at night."
"I'd rather have us inside shelter than walking around exposed."
She looked toward the giant mountain.
"We have a long road ahead before reaching the center."
Everyone nodded.
But just as Rio was about to move—
"...Lady Rio?"
Silla suddenly raised her hand.
Rio blinked.
"Hm?"
Silla pointed toward the top-left section of the map.
"...What's that?"
Everyone looked.
There—
Near a large jungle area—
Was a strange symbol.
A skull.
With a cross above it.
And beside it—
A question mark.
The atmosphere suddenly changed.
Even Sayanaki looked toward Rio.
Rio stared at it quietly.
Then sighed.
"...That."
Her voice became unusually serious.
"...is Floor Three's Hidden Boss."
Silence.
Everyone stared.
Rio slowly looked toward them.
"The Old Hunter of the Jungle."
The wind suddenly felt colder.
Ramos swallowed.
"...T-that sounds terrifying already."
Rio crossed her arms.
"It only hunts at night."
Everyone froze.
"If it's a moonless night..."
Rio's eyes narrowed.
"...You do not go outside."
No one laughed.
No one spoke.
Even Ryota looked serious.
"...That dangerous?"
Rio nodded.
"Even the Lynxario avoid it."
Everyone widened their eyes.
"What?!"
Rio looked toward the forest.
"It isn't normal."
"It doesn't behave like a boss."
"It behaves like a predator."
Kiraya slowly crossed her arms.
"...What kind of creature is it?"
Rio stared quietly.
Then answered.
"...A giant black-haired sasquatch."
"Red eyes."
Silence.
Ramos looked confused.
"...Sas..."
"...Squatch?"
Rio continued.
"It was designed by the developers specifically for one thing."
She looked toward everyone.
"...To hunt players."
A cold feeling ran through everyone's spine.
Ryota blinked.
"...Okay."
"...That isn't funny anymore."
Rio continued.
"It has no HP bar."
Everyone froze.
"...What?"
"You can't kill it."
"You can't trap it."
"You can't defeat it."
Silence.
Rio's eyes narrowed slightly.
"...If it decides you're prey..."
"...run."
No one spoke.
No one moved.
The forest before them suddenly felt much darker than before.
Much larger.
Much quieter.
Then—
Far away—
Deep inside the forest—
GRRRRROOOOOOOOHHHHHH—
A strange roar echoed through the mountains.
Everyone froze.
Ramos slowly turned toward Rio.
"...L-Lady Rio..."
Rio stared into the distance.
Then casually closed her notebook.
"...Good news."
Ramos looked hopeful.
"...What?"
Rio looked at him.
"...That wasn't it."
Silence.
"..."
"..."
"...THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO MAKE ME FEEL BETTER?!"
The distant roar still echoed through the mountain forest.
It rolled across the trees like thunder trapped beneath the earth itself.
The sound had been deep.
Heavy.
Ancient.
And judging by the expressions around Rio, nobody seemed eager to discover where it came from.
The massive projection map hovering in front of them cast a pale blue light over everyone's faces while the wind of Floor Three drifted through the trees. Leaves rustled above them. Somewhere deeper within the jungle, birds abruptly flew into the sky.
The atmosphere had changed.
The excitement from arriving at a new floor had slowly been replaced with unease.
Rio folded her arms while looking at everyone.
"Let me explain something before we continue."
Nobody interrupted.
Even Sayanaki had stopped playing with her dagger.
Rio pointed toward the top left section of the map where the skull symbol still remained.
The symbol felt strangely uncomfortable to look at.
"The Old Hunter isn't something you fight."
Her voice became serious.
"You survive it."
Silence.
Ramos immediately raised his hand.
"W-What's the difference?!"
Rio looked at him.
"The difference is that bosses usually have weaknesses."
Her finger tapped the skull symbol.
"This thing doesn't."
A cold breeze passed through the jungle.
Silla instinctively moved closer beside Ramos.
Rio continued.
"It stalks prey during the night."
"It doesn't rush."
"It doesn't roar."
"It doesn't chase you immediately."
She looked toward the dark forest ahead.
"It watches."
Ryota frowned.
"Watches?"
Rio nodded slowly.
"If you suddenly notice the forest becoming quiet…"
Everyone looked around.
Only then did they realize how loud the forest currently was.
Birds chirping.
Leaves moving.
Small creatures rustling.
Insects making strange noises.
The entire jungle felt alive.
Rio's eyes narrowed.
"If all of that suddenly disappears…"
"Run."
Ramos gulped.
"W-What if we don't notice?"
Rio looked at him.
"You will."
Ramos suddenly felt even more afraid.
Rio pointed at the map again.
"The Old Hunter has habits."
"It likes observing prey before attacking."
"It follows from shadows."
"It studies movement."
"And sometimes…"
She paused.
"…it deliberately lets players know it's there."
Silla's eyes widened.
"W-Why?"
Rio looked toward her.
"Fear."
"The developers made it specifically to terrify players."
Her words made even Kiraya tense slightly.
"It likes fear."
"If prey panics…"
"It attacks faster."
Ramos slowly looked down.
"…Wonderful."
"Absolutely wonderful."
"I am definitely enjoying Floor Three."
Sayanaki smirked.
"You're already dying mentally and we've barely started."
"I hate you."
"Fair."
Rio ignored them and continued.
"There's another sign."
"If you smell something horrible…"
"A smell like rotten meat mixed with a skunk…"
Everyone immediately looked disturbed.
Rio nodded.
"That means it's closer."
"Much closer."
"How close?" Hinabi asked.
Rio stared at her.
"Close enough that it's probably looking at you."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Even Sayanaki's smile disappeared.
Ryota slowly raised his hand.
"…Hypothetically."
Rio looked at him.
"If I accidentally smell something weird and panic…"
Rio pointed toward his bag.
"The torches."
Everyone immediately remembered the emergency items from Nendu.
Rio pulled one from her inventory.
The wooden torch appeared in her hand.
"The moment you realize it's near…"
"Light one."
She held the torch up.
"Fire is one of the only things it dislikes."
"It raises your survival chance."
Kiraya blinked.
"…Raises?"
Rio nodded.
"Twenty-three percent."
...
Nobody spoke.
Nobody moved.
Ramos stared at her.
"TWENTY-THREE?!"
"That isn't survival!"
"That is gambling!"
Rio shrugged.
"Better than zero."
Ramos nearly collapsed.
"WHY ARE YOU SAYING THAT SO CALMLY?!"
Ryota patted his shoulder.
"Look at the positive side."
"There is a positive side?!"
"Twenty-three is bigger than zero."
"THAT DOESN'T HELP!"
Silla covered her mouth trying not to laugh.
Even Hinabi looked away while holding back a smile.
Rio rolled up the map.
"Anyway."
Everyone stared at her.
"Let's move."
"…YOU SAID ANYWAY?!"
Nobody listened.
Rio began walking toward the jungle.
The others quickly followed.
The forest of Casakola slowly swallowed them.
Massive trees towered above like ancient pillars supporting the sky itself. Roots thicker than houses stretched along the ground. Strange vines hung between branches while glowing blue insects drifted through the air.
The deeper they walked—
The darker it became.
Despite it being daytime.
Sunlight struggled to pierce through the enormous canopy above.
Silla looked around in amazement.
"It's beautiful…"
And it really was.
Rivers flowed through moss-covered stone.
Small waterfalls ran between cliff walls.
Colorful birds flew overhead.
Strange flowers larger than people bloomed near giant roots.
Floor Three felt less like a game map—
and more like an entirely separate world.
Kiraya looked around.
"…I think I understand now."
Rio glanced back.
"Hmm?"
Kiraya smiled.
"Why players call this place the most beautiful floor."
Rio nodded.
"But beauty here kills people."
As if proving her point—
ROOOOOOOOOAAAAARRR!!
A massive roar suddenly erupted somewhere above.
Everyone froze.
Trees shook violently.
Birds exploded out of the canopy.
Ramos nearly screamed.
"IT'S HERE!"
Rio immediately looked upward.
"No."
Her eyes narrowed.
"Wrong direction."
Everyone slowly followed her gaze.
Something moved.
Far above.
Massive branches.
Gigantic shadows.
Then—
they saw it.
Two glowing yellow eyes.
Watching them.
Attached to an enormous reptilian face peeking between trees.
Its body moved along the branches impossibly fast despite its size.
Its claws dug into bark.
Its tail wrapped around trunks.
Its mouth slowly opened—
revealing rows of sharp teeth.
Silla's face turned pale.
"…W-what is that...?"
Rio stared at it.
Her voice remained calm.
"Tyranus."
The creature tilted its head.
Watching them.
Watching every movement.
Rio slowly drew her sword.
Everyone followed.
"Tyranus hunts during the day."
"Unlike the Old Hunter…"
"…this one enjoys playing with prey."
The creature suddenly vanished into the trees.
Everyone froze.
Ramos looked around frantically.
"W-WHERE DID IT GO?!"
Rio's eyes widened slightly.
"…Don't move."
The forest suddenly felt very very quiet.
And then above them branches cracked.