ch 29

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Chapter 29: When the Fog Claws Back

The fog didn't leave.

By the second day, the sky was grey even at noon. Animals stayed silent. The well water turned a strange copper shade for an hour before clearing up again. The fields just beyond the village border began to rot in patches.

Something was wrong — and every villager felt it in their bones.

But Elric? Elric felt it deeper.

He felt it in his soul.

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At the edge of the fields, the wheat stood still, yet shifted without wind. Elric stood just beyond the last wooden fence, his cloak barely swaying.

Boneclaw loomed beside him, clutching a crude halberd made from fused stone and iron. Pebble Jr. peeked from Elric's pocket, eyes glowing faintly.

"I don't see anything," Elric muttered. "But I know they're watching."

He crouched beside a dead crow. No wounds. Just… hollowed out. Its body had crumpled inward, as if its spirit had been sucked away.

There were three more like it nearby.

Elric's fingers touched the soil beneath them.

It was cold. Too cold.

And something else — a faint vibration, like the land was humming through the soles of his feet.

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Back home, the village had started to change.

Feli clung to Yui all day. Kain sharpened wood stakes and left them by the barn. The chickens refused to come out of their coop. A few villagers mentioned "beast shadows" in the fog. The Elder said it was nonsense — but his hands were shaking when he lit his pipe.

Grandpa Riven remained quiet. Watching. Listening.

"Elric," he said that evening, "Don't go near the old root tree tonight."

Elric tilted his head. "Why?"

Riven didn't answer.

He just added more logs to the fire and looked out the window for a long, long time.

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But Elric didn't listen.

That night, under a pale moon, he crept toward the old root tree.

It sat alone on a rise of land, branches twisted like claws, roots half-exposed like a skeleton trying to crawl out of the earth.

Boneclaw followed without question.

The moment they crossed into its shadow, everything changed.

A sudden drop in temperature. A metallic scent in the air. No sound — not even insects.

Then… a noise.

Rustle. Snap. Wet breath.

Elric turned fast, hand ready to summon his beasts.

But what emerged wasn't just a beast.

It was wrong.

Too tall. Too many legs. A jaw that didn't close right. Half fur, half smooth bone. Its eyes were… hollow.

And worst of all — it laughed.

Not like a person. Like something pretending to be a person.

Boneclaw growled and raised his weapon.

The creature lunged — fast.

Elric ducked low, rolling to the side as Boneclaw slammed his weapon into the thing's shoulder. It shrieked — not in pain, but delight.

It twisted, claws raking across Boneclaw's ribcage, leaving dark scorch marks instead of blood.

Pebble Jr. burst from Elric's pocket, spitting small blue fireballs.

"Elric," it squeaked, "This is not from here!"

"I noticed!"

He focused — summoning a new ally.

The earth behind him cracked open slightly, and a skeletal hound, stitched with vines and roots, emerged. One of Elric's newest creations — still weak, but loyal.

"Gravebark, now!"

The hound lunged with a snarl, its wooden claws sinking into the monster's leg.

That gave Boneclaw the moment he needed.

With a roar, he twisted his halberd and drove it into the beast's core. Black ichor sprayed out, hissing as it touched the soil.

The creature screamed — the air shook — then it exploded into black mist.

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Silence returned.

Elric stood there, chest heaving.

Gravebark whimpered and limped back to his side.

Pebble Jr. landed on his shoulder, singed but proud.

Boneclaw grunted, then nodded.

Then, in the silence, something new appeared before Elric's eyes.

> Main Menu Opened

[Beast Companions: 4 Active | 6 Dormant]

[Territory Influence: Expanding…]

[Dungeon Link — Fragmented Core Located | Sync: 6%]

[Sub-Class Route Detected: Necro-Shepherd | Passive Tree Expanding]

[Dungeon Authority Locked | Requires Key of Echoes]

Elric stared at it.

"…Okay. Now it's serious."

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By dawn, the fog was retreating slightly — but only near Elric's home.

The villagers had no idea what had happened. But the land knew.

The grave tree roots glowed faintly beneath the soil.

Something ancient was waking up — in the forest, in the beasts, in Elric's blood.

And far, far away… something was watching.

Smiling.

Waiting.

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