We camped out for the night at an elevated area with a cliff behind us—a natural advantage, limiting our blind spots. The mist curled around us, thick and unnatural, making it feel like we were sleeping on the edge of a cliff. Just reaching this point was enough to deter most people.

  Doug mentioned signs of bandits in the area but couldn’t pinpoint where. That meant they were either long gone or still watching. Either way, we set up a rotation system for night watch.

  As we gathered around the fire, Ciara gave us insight into what we were about to face in the Veilwood.

  “The primary beast that guards the Veilwood was once auctioned off at an underground event,” she said, poking the fire with a stick. “Only one of these creatures is ever sold because of its ability.”

  I frowned. “An ability? What, some kind of enhanced predator?”

  “Their base form is a medium-sized primate, but they can do much more than that.” Ciara leaned forward, eyes reflecting the firelight. “They don’t just mimic people, they become

  them. And they don’t stop there. They can create mirror images, doubles that move just as fluidly as the real thing.”

  “So it can make a few clones. Sounds annoying, but nothing crazy.”

  Doug and Ciara stayed silent. That should have been my first warning.

  “We’re not dealing with one,” Ciara continued after a pause. “We’re dealing with a group. Twenty-five, maybe thirty. And if each one of them can create multiple doubles...”

  I swallowed hard. The terrain alone was a nightmare to navigate—add dozens of mirror beasts, and suddenly the Veilwood wasn’t just dangerous—it was a death trap.

  Before Ciara could continue, Doug suddenly turned his head toward the mist.

  “You can come out now,” he called, his voice casual but edged with warning. “Or are you planning to skulk around all night?”

  A pause. Then, a figure emerged from the mist—not a bandit or a rogue adventurer, but a well-dressed noble. His posture was confident, his expression neutral, but his eyes flicked between us, assessing.

  “I didn’t mean to intrude,” he said smoothly. “I was simply curious—I’ve never heard anyone speak in such detail about the creatures of the Veilwood.”

  Ciara stood, cracking her knuckles. “What’s a pretty boy like you doing all the way out here?” She rested a hand on her hammer, though I knew she wouldn’t swing first. Not yet.

  The stranger met her gaze without flinching. “The same as your green-haired friend—an artifact for my Eid.”

  That caught me off guard. “You’re an Eid user?”

  “My name is Lloyd D. Blazeborn of House Blazeborn,” he said. “I know you have a lot of questions, but I’d rather discuss them on the move. I’d like to join your party for this mission.”

  A noble. An Eid user. And he wanted to travel with us?

  From what Ciara told us, we’d need all the help we could get. Plus, if he was from a famous flame-wielding house, that meant he was powerful, right?

  Doug tilted his head slightly. “So you’re a flame user, then? Blazeborns always are.”

  Lloyd hesitated. “Steam,” he corrected. “My Eid’s power is steam, and I can barely use it. I’m a swordsman.”

  That was the first time I saw an Eid user hesitate to talk about their abilities. Most nobles were proud of their bloodline's powers, but Lloyd wasn’t flaunting anything.

  Doug later explained why. A Blazeborn born with steam instead of fire? He was probably seen as a disgrace, a second-rate version of his family’s legacy. No wonder he wasn’t bragging.

  I’d never considered where my own ability fit in the grand hierarchy of Eidolons. Not until then.

  Still, I found myself a bit captivated by this stranger. I’d

  only ever seen a handful of merchants from outside the village. But an Eidolon user, and one from the capital at hat—was something else entirely. He carried himself with an effortless poise, a quiet yet undeniable confidence that felt almost regal. How had I found myself in such unique company so quickly?

  I shook the thought away. I needed to focus. This preparation was too important to let distractions creep in.

  We devised a strategy that gave us the best chance of survival. Lloyd would create a mist veil to give us cover and stealth. I would inject my vines into the ground, using them to sense movement and track where the mirror beasts were coming from. Doug had the most important role—he’d be tracking their leader. If we took out the head of the group, their structure would collapse, and we’d have a chance of getting out alive.

  We decided to strike at dawn, while we still had the advantage.

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  The morning was misty, eerily silent, only the melodies of

  distant chirping birds.

  We approached the mirror beast den, a large clearing surrounded by trees.

  A kill zone. Perfect for an ambush from all directions.

  We moved from the south, where the wind wouldn’t carry our scent.

  Doug initiated the assault, a barrage of fire arrows tore through the morning mist. The embers streaking like falling stars.

  From within the clearing, dozens of mirror beasts awoke in an instant, screeching in fury.

  Then, silence.

  The mist thickened, curling unnaturally through the air, and the sounds of movement... shifted.

  I pressed my hand against the earth, sending vines burrowing

  through the ground to track them.

  Too many. Moving everywhere. No clear pattern.

  Then I heard it.

  A whisper.

  Right behind me.

  My own voice.

  “Ciara.” We were all back to back, I had roots summoned ready for defense. Doug was picking them off one by one while searching for the leader. During our preparations, Doug explained that he could track the beasts by sensing their vibrations. No matter how perfectly they mimicked appearances, their innate rhythms never changed—and that was our key advantage. It also rendered their sound mimicry useless, stripping them of one of their most troublesome tricks. Suddenly, two beasts that looked like Ciara rushed the group.

  They could mimic everything about her but her terrifying strength. Still, it was a problem and we were not speaking to avoid confusion. This continued with different illusions messing with the group. I noticed others beginning to be affected by the illusions. Lloyd in particular was affected, and understandably so. The beasts mimicking him were utilizing his steam in ways none of us had anticipated. From propelling themselves, or multiple copies using a heated blade, his abilities were becoming a nuisance. “This isn’t the time to daydream royal boy!” Ciara yelled for Lloyd to regain focus. Finally Doug yelled to the group “I’ve found him! You all focus on defense, they’re going to get a lot more desperate!” Doug advanced into the mist going after their leader. I was beginning to feel exhausted using the large roots consecutively while forming new weapons at will. This is dangerous, when I’ve fatigued in training my control waivers. I can’t put my teammates in danger. Doug was right, the mirror beasts started to attack in waves of three and four. Mixes of illusions amongst those enemies was wearing down the team. One of the roots almost whipped Ciara while her back was turned. Luckily, Lloyd slashed through it in an instant. I was

  relieved as he sternly said, “C’mon, don’t lose focus now that we’re close!”

  Ciara slammed her hammer into the ground, sending a tremor through the battlefield. She became the center of our defense, holding her ground as the illusions swarmed.

  Multiple copies of Doug fired arrows in perfect unison, a relentless rain of projectiles cutting through the chaos. My roots coiled and lashed out, shielding my comrades from incoming attacks. I sliced through another mirrored Ciara, its movements eerily precise, until a sharp explosion erupted nearby.

  Doug’s ignition arrows had detonated.

  Lloyd immediately turned, eyes narrowing. “Should one of us go—”

  “No!” Ciara cut him off before he could finish. “Stick to the plan. He can handle himself.”

  Some of the mirror beasts shifted back to their base-forms, their illusions fading, but the waves kept coming.

  The relentless onslaught showed no signs of stopping.

  Doug sprinted across the battlefield, seamlessly nocking multiple arrows in fluid succession. The leader of the mirror beasts was different—sharper, faster, more ruthless

  than the rest. It had already caught one of his arrows mid-flight, a silent display of its cunning.

  But Doug had planned for that.

  He unleashed a layered assault, each arrow part of a calculated sequence. First, a flash arrow detonated in a burst of blinding light, forcing the beast into a momentary daze.

  Before it could recover, a paste arrow struck, exploding into a thick, resinous substance that clamped its limbs together, trapping it in place.

  Doug didn’t hesitate.

  He loosed a barrage of ignition arrows, each one embedding into the beasts’ struggling form before

  igniting in a fiery chain reaction.

  Then—

  A sharp whistle cut through the air.

  BOOM.

  A massive explosion erupted from Doug’s position, shaking the battlefield. Flames tore through the mist, and suddenly, the tide shifted. The remaining mirror beasts staggered, some dissolved into the fog, others turned and fled in panic as the haze began to dissipate.

  Doug exhaled, lowering his bow.

  The fight was over.

  Ciara crushed the last of them, exhaling as she lowered her hammer.

  Then Doug returned covered in blood, grinning.

  “That wasn’t so bad, was it?”

  Ciara and I let out a simultaneous sigh, tension draining from our shoulders.

  Lloyd, however, looked frustrated, even though he had fought flawlessly.

  “Sorry, everyone. Even I didn’t know about those moves,” he admitted, his voice tight.

  We regrouped, gathering ourselves as the battlefield fell silent.

  Doug tossed a stone to both Lloyd and me.

  At first glance, they seemed ordinary. But when taking a closer look, I noticed strange runes on mine. “Twin stones, this is the artifact the mirror beasts were protecting.” Doug stated. “From what I’m told, you must pour your

  eidolon’s energy into it for activation. ”As vines encapsulated the stone I heard that voice in my head again from the cave. “So you can hear me clearly now” The stone had glowing energy that was surging through my body. It spoke again. “Keep proving yourself and I will always aid your growth ”I was gasping for breath, I felt as if Ciara had knocked me in the stomach. I was on my knees as I was gathering myself. My head spun, and the world around me blurred. It would take more than a few moments before I could even think about standing again. Doug spoke again “So you can finally hear your Eid, you’ll have a much greater energy reserve now.” He explained that human spirits naturally struggle to mesh with Eidolons. Even in the best cases. Unlike animals, which Eidolons use as guardians to protect certain areas. My head was still ringing when Ciara strongly urged us to return to to Tarnath. I knew she just wanted to sell her mirror beast trophies immediately. After Doug had finished collecting the rare herbs he’d setout for, we were ready to depart. As we used the route we came from, we noticed the

  animals moving sporadically. Even more so than our departure. Flocks of birds were fleeing past us and some falling dead out of the sky. Bells started to ring in my head, “Doug do you sense anything unusual?” He was kneeled trying to get a sense of what the ruckus was.

  “Something huge, coming from the west. No way, it can’t be.” Doug said shakily. “Tell us what it is already, you’re scaring the rich kid. ”Ciara said anxiously. “The only thing that big- no it’s impossible.” A distant crack split the air. Then another. Closer this time. A tree groaned, then snapped like a twig. Then, the ground trembled. He was interrupted before large trees began to fall from the north where animals were fleeing. “A forest guardian has awakened, and it’s pissed off.”