The moment the massive gate fully opened, a chilling gust of wind swept through the group, carrying with it the faint scent of decay.
Termina lay ahead, a sprawling, ruined city with crumbling buildings and eerie, silent streets.
Stark and Sora, along with the other participants, cautiously stepped into the city, knowing full well that the real trial had only just begun.
As soon as all their feet crossed the threshold, the gate behind them closed, trapping them in.
"Hm," CEO smirked.
A panel appeared in front of each of them, hovering in mid-air.
[You have entered Termina.]
[Map of Termina unlocked.]
The map that unfolded in front of them was vast, divided into distinct sections.
Each area had its own set of challenges, and in the distance, looming over the city like a grim reminder of their end goal, stood the Hollow Tower.
It pierced the sky like a massive black needle, radiating a dark, oppressive energy.
The map sections were labeled: Outskirts, Temple District, Shopping District, Mayor's Manor, Business District, Train Station, Museum, Orphanage, and, of course, the Hollow Tower itself.
Though it was clear that the tower was where they needed to go eventually, it was far away, and the path to get there was filled with obstacles.
More information quickly filled the panel:
[Trial conditions to open the Hollow Tower:]
[1. Eliminate all other participants except yourself.]
[2. Complete at least 5 tasks (5 tasks per participant, not as a group).]
[3. Defeat all Moonscorched Commanders, if the two conditionsare fulfilled, but the commanders are alive, you'll need to eliminate them.]
[All these need to be fullfilled to open the tower.]
"Tasks?"
"Moonscorched Commanders, huh," the participants mumbled.
A list of tasks appeared in front of all of them, the same across the board.
There were [100 Tasks] you could do in [Termina].
Here are some of them:
[Steal the "Power Ruby" from the museum.]
[Defeat Father Hugo in the Orphanage.]
[Kill The Heartless One and The Tormented One, and take their heads.]
[Defeat the Moonscorched Commander: Mayor of Termina.]
[Bring the heads of two participants to the fountain altar.]
...
[Once a task is complete, it is impossible to complete it again, the difficulty is not stated, but some are obviously than others.]
[Every reward for these tasks is kept a secret as to not rush the participants.]
The enormity of what they were up against hit everyone at once.
This was no simple trial of strength.
It was a slaughterhouse with a long checklist.
Complete five tasks. Kill everyone else. Defeat the commanders.
Only one could stand at the top by the end.
And the sheer amount of tasks truly showed how big that city was.
It could take them months to get all of it.
Everyone looked at one another, the uneasy atmopshere that had formed before the gate now crumbling as they processed what this trial demanded of them.
"Well, this is insane," Claire muttered, her eyes scanning the map. "They're not making this easy at all."
Dave nodded grimly, adjusting the grip on his sword. "We'll need to pick our targets wisely. We can't just rush into these tasks."
"Or we could start eliminating competition right here," Shock sneered, his eyes darting toward Stark. "Let's face it, some of us won't survive if we all stick together."
"Yeah, come on Chosen, with your skill you can eliminate at least half of us, select them and deal with it," Clever, the old man, smiled.
Stark, ignoring the bubbling tension, was focused on the distant Hollow Tower.
His mind was already racing, strategizing.
Dark tendrils of flesh shot out from its body, trying to bind him in place.
Stark reacted quickly, summoning his [Crimson Spears] and launching a barrage of spears at the creature.
Several of them pierced its body, but the beast didn't stop.
It charged forward, its massive body barreling toward Stark.
"Damn it," Stark cursed, rolling out of the way just in time.
Even if he had the [Crimson Barrier], tanking damage didn't mean that he wouldn't feel pain, wouldn't be sent flying and wouldn't get infected by the moonscorch.
The beast slammed into the ground where Stark had been, its claws digging deep into the stone.
Before it could recover, Stark unleashed 3 of his [Aura Smash] fists, aiming for its heads.
This time, the attack seemed to do more damage.
-137192! -144821! -140283!
One of the creature's heads exploded in a spray of blood and gore, but the other two continued to screech, their eyes filled with rage.
"Regenerating," Stark muttered, watching as the beast's flesh began to knit itself back together.
+300,000!
This thing wasn't going down easily.
Sora rejoined the fight, her vineform already healing from the earlier hit.
Though she was now infected by [Moonscorch] too.
Together, they pressed their assault, dodging the beast's attacks and striking whenever they saw an opening.
But it was a brutal fight.
Every time they landed a blow, the beast would regenerate.
Every time they thought they had it cornered, it would unleash another powerful attack.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the beast staggered, its body riddled with wounds from Stark's spears and Sora's claws.
With one final screech, it collapsed to the ground, its massive form twitching before finally going still.
[You have defeated a Three-Headed Beast and gained 1,500,000 experience points.]
Stark let out a breath, wiping the blood from his face. "That... was rough."
Sora shifted back to her human form, panting heavily. "Yeah... and there's bound to be more of those things."
This thing was actually the most common monster in Termina, so yeah, by the end of the trial they're gonna have to be able to fight these things easily.
Before they could catch their breath, the ground trembled slightly, and a familiar, ominous presence filled the air.
Stark's eyes narrowed as he looked down the street.
Standing there, cloaked in the shadows of a crumbling building, was another figure—a Moonscorched Commander: Chaugnar
This one was different from the beasts.
It was humanoid, dressed in tattered robes, one of its hands was cut off, and in the other it carried nothing but a bell.
Its face was covered by a mask, and the aura it emitted was far more dangerous than anything they had faced so far.
Though you could see its mouth.
And it was smiling.
[The Moonscorched Inquisitor.]
"Looks like we've found the second commander," Stark said, his voice tense.
Sora tensed up, preparing for the fight.
[Task #1: Defeat the Moonscorcher Sniper - Completed]
[Reward: Cooldown Gem.]
...
[Task #24: Defeat the Moonscorched Inquisitor]
[Reward: ???]
But before they could make their move, two more figures emerged from different streets.
Shock and Artist, two participants.
Both of them had evidently been drawn by the commotion and had arrived just in time to witness the beginning of a battle that could decide their fates.
"Well," Shock grinned, electricity crackling around him, "this just got interesting."
Stark tightened his grip, knowing that this fight was about to become a lot more complicated.