The pack of twelve dire wolves lunged together, their claws tearing at the dirt, red eyes fixed on Arios like glowing embers. Arios raised his wooden sword in both hands, his stance tightening, his entire being coiled for the defense.

The first wolf leapt. Arios shifted his body slightly, angling his shoulder, a calculated risk, letting its claws scrape the surface of his jacket instead of biting into flesh. His sword cracked against the side of its head, sending it skidding across the dirt before dissolving instantly into mist.

The second wolf followed instantly, a flash of red eyes and black fur. Arios twisted, his blade whipping across its chest, cutting through the illusion and leaving it to vanish in mist.

The others closed in, a tide of snarling predators. Arios moved with precision, each motion economical, never wasted. He ducked under a snapping jaw, slammed his elbow into a ribcage, the solid impact echoing unnaturally, then finished with a hard strike downward. He pivoted, blocked a claw with the flat of his sword, then rammed the beast backward before delivering the finishing blow.

The clearing filled with movement, growls, and the sharp sounds of impact. Arios's breathing stayed even, his expression calm, but his body began to move faster, forced to respond to multiple attacks at once. It was a chaotic dance, but Arios was the choreographer of his own survival.

He stepped back into the center of the circle, turning steadily to keep all the wolves in his view, managing the space like a seasoned general. He deflected, countered, and pressed forward with each strike. His wooden sword moved like an extension of his arm, precise and relentless.

After several minutes, the last of the wolves dissolved into mist. The air quieted again. Arios straightened, his chest rising and falling more noticeably now, a controlled effort. Sweat ran down the side of his face, but he wiped it away with the back of his hand, unbothered by the discomfort.

"They're scaling higher and higher. The difficulty is exponential. If this continues, I'll be buried in numbers. It's a test of attrition."

He adjusted his grip on the sword and looked around. The forest had shifted again. The trees were darker, their trunks warped unnaturally, twisting into bizarre, nightmarish shapes. The air felt heavier, almost choking.

"This is the second stage," Arios confirmed quietly. "Wolves aren't the only things waiting here. Garron is getting serious."

---

Arios began walking forward, deeper into the false forest. The dirt beneath his boots felt damp, soft, as though water had soaked into the soil, clinging to the soles of his boots. He crouched briefly, touching the ground. His fingers came back wet and slightly sticky.

A faint smell drifted through the air. Not the stench of wolves. Something sharper, metallic, like iron.

He exhaled slowly. "Blood. The illusion is incorporating new sensory details to increase the pressure."

The sound of wings followed, a heavy, leathery flapping. From above, a shadow passed over him, briefly plunging the clearing into darkness. Arios's head lifted, eyes narrowing, tracking the movement.

Three large shapes descended from the canopy. They landed with a thud, crouching low before standing tall. They weren't wolves this time. These creatures had leathery wings folded against their backs, their limbs stretched long, claws sharper than the wolves'. Their heads were wolf-like but thinner, more gaunt, with glowing yellow eyes and teeth lined in jagged rows. They were aerial predators, a new tactical problem.

Arios's grip on the sword tightened. "New type. Flying creatures. He's adding complexity to my movement."

The first creature spread its wings and screeched, a high-pitched, grating sound that rattled the air and made his ears ache. It lunged forward with unnatural speed, closing the distance in a heartbeat. Arios braced, meeting its claws with his blade. The impact shook his arm, a painful vibration running up to his shoulder, but he pushed back, twisting the sword and countering with a strike to its side. The beast staggered, then lunged again, wings flapping furiously for stability.

Arios stepped under it, avoiding the wingspan, slammed the hilt of his sword into its ribs, then swept upward in a clean strike that sliced through its illusory form. The beast dissolved into mist.

The second was already on him, relentless and fast. It slashed with claws that cut deeper into the dirt than the wolves ever did, kicking up gouts of soil. Arios leaned back, avoiding the strike by a hair, then brought his sword down across its shoulder. The creature shrieked and tried to bite, snapping its jagged teeth, but Arios twisted, slamming his knee upward into its jaw before finishing with a second strike that broke its concentration and form.

The third flew upward, circling above, clearly looking for a dive-bomb attack. Arios tracked it with his eyes, keeping his feet moving subtly. When it dove, a silent, deadly projectile, he waited calmly, then sidestepped at the last second. Its claws dug deep into the dirt where he stood moments ago, leaving massive trenches. Arios countered instantly, swinging his sword across its back. The creature screamed before dissolving like the others.

Silence returned. The only evidence of the fight was the churned-up dirt and the lingering mist.

Arios looked at the mist fading from the clearing. "Not just wolves. They're escalating variety too. This means the core of the illusion is more flexible than I thought."

---

He walked again, deeper still. The forest thickened unnaturally. The trees bent inward, their branches tangled like claws reaching out to grasp him. The light above dimmed further, the air pressing heavy against his skin, a suffocating blanket.

His breathing slowed deliberately, a conscious act of control. His grip on the sword remained firm, an anchor in the false reality.

"This illusion is meant to grind me down. Exhaustion, repetition, endless waves. It's a battle of stamina. But all illusions rely on a core. If I find it, I end this. I can stop the source, not just the symptoms."

He pressed forward, each step steady, his boots crunching against the dirt, the only sound of his forward momentum.

After several minutes, the growls returned. But this time, they weren't the desperate snarls of common beasts.

The sound was deeper. Heavy. A subterranean rumble.

The ground shook faintly. Arios slowed, his eyes narrowing, his senses on high alert.

From the shadows, a larger shape emerged. Its body was massive, three times the size of the wolves. Its fur was darker, almost black, its eyes glowing crimson with malevolent energy. Its teeth were longer, sharper, and its claws dug furrows into the ground with terrifying ease.

Behind it, two smaller wolves followed, but even they were bigger and more powerfully built than the ones Arios had fought earlier.

Arios exhaled once, a thin plume of air in the heavy atmosphere. "Alpha. A boss fight. Garron is testing my ability to manage multiple threats while facing a heavy-hitter."

The two smaller wolves rushed in first, a distraction tactic. Arios moved smoothly, sidestepping one's lunge and striking it across the back. He twisted, avoiding the other's snap, then slammed his sword into its skull. Both dissolved in mist almost instantly.

The alpha growled, a chest-deep sound, stepping forward slowly. Its presence filled the clearing, heavier than anything Arios had faced yet. It was pure, distilled intimidation.

It lunged suddenly, faster than expected for its size. Arios braced, raising his sword to block. The impact shook his arms violently, the wooden blade groaning, forcing him back a full step. The alpha's claws raked across the dirt where he had stood a second earlier, sending up a shower of earth.

Arios countered quickly, striking its shoulder. The beast roared, a sound of frustration and pain, snapping back with its massive jaws. Arios twisted, avoiding the bite by an inch, then struck again at its ribs. The alpha staggered slightly, but its immense illusory strength kept it standing.

It lunged again, jaws wide, trying to swallow him whole. Arios dropped low, sliding under it with a practiced move, then struck upward into its chest. The impact echoed. The alpha roared and staggered, but still didn't dissolve.

"Durable. More mana focused into it than the others," Arios noted, tightening his grip.

The alpha charged once more. Arios sidestepped, letting the momentum carry the beast past, then pivoted sharply, slamming his sword down onto its skull with all his weight behind it. The beast collapsed forward, growling weakly before dissolving into mist, leaving behind a brief, heavy cloud.

Arios exhaled slowly, his shoulders lowering slightly, letting the tension drain away.

"They're layering bosses now. The stages are merging. I need to get out of this before he manifests something truly dangerous that I can't defeat with a wooden sword."

---

The forest shifted again. The air grew thicker, almost suffocating, pulling at his lungs. Arios pressed forward still, his steps steady, driven by pure will. His body was tired now, sweat running down his forehead, his muscles aching, but his eyes remained sharp, focused on the deeper forest.

He walked for several minutes without interruption. He was actively searching, looking for a break in the pattern. Then the sound of rushing water reached his ears, a loud, unnatural roar. He followed it until he found a river cutting through the forest. The water was dark, almost black, its surface rippling unnaturally, a pool of corrupted energy.

Arios crouched at the edge, staring. "This isn't natural. The illusion is showing signs of instability, using dark elements."

The water rippled suddenly. From its surface, shapes rose, dragging themselves from the inky blackness.

Four creatures emerged, dripping with black water. Their bodies were twisted, their limbs long and clawed. Their heads resembled wolves but were grotesquely stretched, their eyes glowing faintly with an eerie, pallid light. They were water elementals mixed with the wolf form, another unique challenge.

Arios stood, sword raised. He was beyond surprise now.

The first rushed him immediately, claws swinging. Arios blocked, twisted, and countered with a clean strike. It dissolved, black water splashing across the dirt, which sizzled and evaporated quickly.

The others closed in, moving with an unnatural, liquid grace. Arios moved between them, deflecting, striking, moving sharply. His breathing grew heavier with each motion, a labored inhale and exhale, but his strikes stayed precise, driven by experience.

When the last dissolved, Arios stood still, breathing deep. His body was covered in sweat, his arms heavier than before.

He wiped his forehead with the back of his hand, a tired gesture. "Endurance. That's all this is. A test of pure staying power. But I can last longer than he thinks."

He stepped away from the river, moving deeper again. He knew he was close. The illusion felt thin here, strained by the effort of sustaining the endless waves of enemies.

---

The forest darkened further. The air grew colder, the illusion pushing its final, desperate psychological gambit. Arios's breath came out faintly visible in the dim light.

The growls returned.

This time, twenty wolves appeared. Their eyes glowed crimson, their bodies massive, their forms more real and less misty than any before. They filled the clearing, a wall of teeth and claws.

Arios tightened his grip on the sword, his stance lowering. His strength was fading, but his resolve was not.

"Then let's continue. He will run out of mana before I run out of will."

The wolves lunged together.

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