The wolves attacked again, this time in coordinated waves.

Three from the north. Two from the east. One from directly behind us that had somehow circled our entire position.

My Wave Motion fired twice, obliterating the northern pair mid-charge. Jordan caught the eastern wolves in shadow nets. The one behind us got through and went straight for Belle.

I launched myself backward using Wave Motion as propulsion, covering ten feet in a split second. My spear caught the wolf in the throat before its jaws reached Belle’s leg.

She spun and shot it through the eye while it was still dying on my blade.

"Thanks."

"Don’t mention it."

"I mean it. Don’t. I had that handled."

I laughed despite the situation. Belle hated being saved even when she absolutely needed saving.

The last three wolves broke and ran.

Misato didn’t pursue. "Let them go. Forest hunts mean reinforcements. We clear what we can and extract before the scenario escalates."

Belle’s detection pinged again. "Loot signature. Big one. Twenty meters northeast."

"Show me."

We moved as a unit, formation tight. The forest opened into a small clearing where a chest sat nestled against a fallen log, its surface covered in glowing runes.

"That’s a Silver cache," Belle breathed. "Worth at least ten thousand credits if the contents match the grade."

"Can you confirm?"

"Not without opening it."

"Then we open it." Misato approached the chest carefully. "Jordan, perimeter watch. Monroe, cover our six. Naomi, be ready to blast anything that moves."

Belle knelt beside the chest and examined the locking mechanism. "It’s warded. I need... maybe two minutes to bypass."

"You have ninety seconds. Move."

Belle’s fingers worked quickly, her face set in concentration. I kept my spear ready, scanning the shadows for movement.

My Treasure Sense was going haywire. Whatever was in that chest registered as extremely valuable.

Sixty seconds.

Jordan’s shadows spread wider, covering more ground.

Forty-five seconds.

A howl echoed through the trees. Distant but getting closer.

Thirty seconds.

"Belle," Misato warned.

"Almost... got it!"

The chest clicked open. Belle lifted the lid to reveal three glowing cores nestled in velvet. Silver-tier. Pristine quality.

Worth fifteen thousand credits minimum.

"Grab them and—" Misato stopped mid-sentence. "Belle. Detection. Now."

Belle went pale. "Twelve signatures. No, fifteen. Twenty. They’re coming from all directions." 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

"Pack reinforcements," Naomi whispered.

The simulation had just become exponentially more dangerous.

Misato’s jaw tightened. "We extract. Now. Monroe, can you carry the chest?"

I grabbed it. Heavy, but manageable with my upgraded strength. "Yeah."

"Belle, lead us back to entry point. Fastest route."

"That’s straight through where the wolves are gathering."

"I know. Jordan, I need continuous shadow coverage. Naomi, blast anything that gets close. Monroe, don’t drop that chest or I’ll personally throw you to the wolves."

"Understood."

We ran.

The forest blurred past in streaks of green and brown. Behind us, howls multiplied. The pack was hunting now, fully committed.

Belle called out obstacles—fallen logs, dense thickets, a ravine that required jumping. We cleared each one without breaking stride.

My stamina held steady at sixty percent. The chest weighed maybe forty pounds, and with C-rank strength, I barely noticed the burden.

Jordan’s breathing was already labored. "How much farther?"

"Three hundred meters!" Belle shouted back.

A wolf burst from the undergrowth directly at Naomi. She pivoted and brought her staff around in a perfect arc, the impact caving in the creature’s skull.

Two more came from the right. I fired without thinking, the Wave Motion blast catching both mid-leap and sending them tumbling.

"Contact rear!" Jordan warned. "Five of them!"

I glanced back. Five massive wolves closing fast, their yellow eyes locked onto us with single-minded focus.

"I’ve got it!" I set the chest down and turned fully. "Keep moving!"

"Monroe—"

"Go!"

Misato hesitated for exactly half a second. Then she grabbed Belle and Naomi and pulled them forward. "Jordan, cover him!"

The wolves spread into attack formation. Left, right, center, high, low. They’d learned from watching their packmates die.

I planted my feet and gathered Wave Motion energy in both palms. The golden light built to blinding intensity, far more power than I’d used before.

The wolves charged in perfect synchronization.

I released both blasts simultaneously. The spirals screamed through the air and detonated among the pack like grenades. Three wolves vaporized instantly. The fourth took a glancing hit that sheared off its front leg. The fifth dodged with impossible agility and kept coming.

My stamina dropped to twenty percent. Fuck.

The wolf leaped for my throat.

Jordan’s shadow whip caught it mid-air and slammed it into the ground so hard the earth cratered. I drove my spear through its skull before it could recover.

"Satisfied?" Jordan panted. "Can we leave now?"

"Yeah." I grabbed the chest again. "Let’s go."

We sprinted the final stretch. The entry portal shimmered ahead, a tear in reality that promised safety.

More howls behind us. The entire pack had mobilized.

"They’re gaining!" Belle called. "Forty meters and closing!"

Naomi spun and fired a sustained beam that carved a wall of blue-white fire across the forest floor. Trees ignited. Wolves screamed. The beam cut a line of destruction that bought us maybe ten seconds.

It was enough.

We crashed through the portal and tumbled onto the concrete staging area, gasping and soaked with sweat.

The simulation dissolved behind us. No more forest. No more wolves. Just cold grey walls and fluorescent lights.

Sato’s voice came through the speakers. "Clear time: fourteen minutes, thirty-two seconds. Twenty-five kills. One Silver cache recovered. Performance rating: A."

Jordan lay flat on the ground. "I’m never running again."

"You say that every time," Belle pointed out.

"This time I mean it!"

Misato stood and offered me a hand up. "Good instinct on the rear guard."

I took her hand. "Seemed like the right call."

"It was." She pulled me to my feet easily. "You held them long enough for us to create distance. That’s what center rear does."

Coming from Misato, that was practically a love letter.

I caught Belle watching the interaction with calculating eyes. She knew exactly what Misato’s approval meant and how rare it was.

"Showers," Misato announced. "Then debrief in thirty."