In the shadows of the S Ranked Main character-Chapter 33: Prism(7)

The moment Kai's feet touched down inside the Prism's space, the world tightened around him.

It wasn't physical.

It wasn't pain

It was like walking into a memory that didn't belong to him a sensation crawling under his skin, slipping behind his eyes, tugging faintly at the back of his mind.

He exhaled slowly, grounding himself.

Alright. So this was it.

He looked up.

Kathlyn stood just ahead, still, her shoulders squared, her head turning carefully left, then right. She was taking in the changes, sharp-eyed and tense.

The field had transformed.

The endless meadow of blue flowers was no longer endless or at least, it didn't look like it. Purple flowers now threaded through the landscape, spreading in spirals and clusters, sharp-petaled and dense They changed the feel of the place entirely: where before it had looked dreamlike, soft, almost wistful, now it felt a kind of waiting tension Kai could feel but not place.

He took a slow breath, forcing his hands to unclench

Okay Stay focused

A rumble underfoot drew his attention.

From the ground smooth, seamless, without cracking the earth the strange altar rose. The one Kathlyn had told him about. The one that had given her the cruel, unfinished story last time.

The stone tablet shifted, gleaming faintly, its surface blank only for a second. Then words.

They scrawled across the tablet's surface, not carved, not glowing, just... appearing, as if they'd always been there and were only now choosing to be seen.

Kai squinted slightly, stepping closer. He could read them. Somehow.

> She wandered the world with no name.

She found no welcome, no refuge.

Her face marked her, her pain shadowed her, her words carried no weight.

And then they came.

Kai's brow furrowed.

He felt, more than saw, Kathlyn stiffen beside him.

Kai's heart beat a little faster.

He returned his eyes to the tablet.

> They led her.

They brought her to the place of seeing.

And there, they showed her not the world — but herself.

Every fracture. Every shame.

Every worst moment, pulled from bone and breath.

To gain their trust, she had to survive her own reflection.

A long silence stretched.

Kai ran a hand through his hair.

"Oh, fantastic," he muttered, dry. "This is going to be a depressing level, isn't it?"

Kathlyn said nothing.

Her jaw was tight, her fists clenched, her weight shifting forward like she was ready to sprint

Kai watched her carefully.

"Kathlyn," he said, voice even, "I know you want to charge ahead. But remember, you're not alone this time."

She didn't look at him.

But she gave the tiniest nod.

Kai and Kathlyn moved through the strange Prism landscape side by side, their steps careful, their eyes sharp.

Kai felt the difference immediately.

The flowers once calm and dreamlike now felt wrong.

Not just the added purple blooms threading through the blue, but the air itself. Heavy Not physically, not like a spell or pressure but mentally

His thoughts moved sluggishly, his chest was tight, and old, irrelevant feelings kept brushing against his mind.

Kathlyn kept glancing left and right. She was tense, but trying not to show it. Her fists opened and closed, her eyes darting over the field with restless energy.

Finally, Kai broke the silence.

"You feel it too, right?"

Kathlyn gave a small, curt nod.

"It's stronger than before. Amplifying everything."

But still better than it was on the outside

Kai exhaled slowly. "Yeah. Feels like I'm walking through a soup of old regrets." He glanced at her sideways. "You holding up?"

She didn't look at him.

"I'm fine."

Which, of course, meant: I'm not fine, but don't ask.

They crested a low hill.

And froze.

Down in the shallow valley ahead, the flowers were bent and trampled, crushed in wide, ragged tracks. The air smelled faintly metallic. There were deep gouges in the soil, as though something had dug in massive hooves.

Kai felt his pulse quicken.

"...Tell me you see that," he murmured.

Kathlyn stepped forward slowly, squinting.

"...Something big " She crouched to run her fingers along the torn-up earth "It's fresh."

Kai scanned the horizon and then stiffened.

There.

At the far end of the trampled field, a shadow moved

Massive.

A boar.

Not just any beast.

A Guardian.

Its tusks gleamed under the fake light, thick and curved like ivory blades. Its hide looked armored, layered with cracked, scarred skin. Its shoulders rolled with raw muscle, each step sending faint tremors through the ground.

It was grazing, snorting occasionally, tearing up patches of the flowers but even from this distance, Kai could feel the wrongness radiating off it.

Level 10, easily.

Maybe higher.

Kathlyn straightened.

Her jaw was tight.

"We have to take it down."

Kai glanced at her, brow raised. "You sure you want to rush in? Last time you fought a guardian, you didn't have backup."

She gave him a sharp look.

"I'm not rushing. I'm deciding."

"...Fair."

Kai cracked his knuckles, rolling his shoulders. His pulse was picking up partly nerves, partly the Prism's amplified emotional field making him jittery. His mind flitted briefly to the novel's notes: this stage was supposed to test patience, coordination, emotional control.

And here they were, about to brawl with a warthog the size of a carriage.

Kathlyn took a slow breath.

"We take it from both sides. You distract, I hit it hard. We don't let it line us up for a charge."

Kai gave a crooked grin. "Wow. That almost sounds like trust."

"Don't make me regret it," she muttered.

They moved.

Kai peeled off to the left, circling wide. Kathlyn mirrored right, her steps light, her fists already glowing faintly with suppressed fire.

The boar snorted once, head jerking up.

Its yellow eyes locked onto Kai immediately.

"Of course," Kai muttered. "I'm the smaller target."

It bellowed, pawed at the dirt — and charged.

Kai dashed sideways, heart hammering, barely dodging as the beast thundered past him. Dirt exploded under its hooves, flowers flattened in its wake.

Kathlyn sprang in from the side, her fists igniting mid-swing

WHAM.

Her blow slammed into its flank, flames bursting across its hide.

The boar shrieked, twisting hard, nearly flinging her back but she gritted her teeth, stayed close, landing another strike.

Kai darted in, aiming for its blind side. He sent a lightless blade into its rear leg, just enough to stagger it, to shift its balance

CRACK.

The boar's tusk swung around wildly, catching Kai across the ribs. Pain shot through him, white-hot and sharp.

Thankfully his wings spouted fast enough to absorb the impact partially

He stumbled back, gasping.

Okay. That's strong.

Kathlyn cursed under her breath, unleashing a burst of flame that seared across the boar's snout. The beast howled, shaking its massive head, trying to clear the burning sensation.

Kai forced himself upright, wiping blood from his lip.

Focus. Keep moving. Don't let it lock on.

Together, they danced around the monster strikes, dodges, feints, retaliations.

The Prism's emotional weight pressed harder, feeding adrenaline, sparking flashes of anger, frustration, doubt but Kai shoved it down, focusing on the rhythm of the fight.

And slowly, inch by inch, they wore the beast down.

Its movements slowed. Its bellows weakened.

Its hide began to crack under the repeated strikes.

Kai darted in one last time, slamming his palm into the boar's side

Kathlyn roared, leaping forward, her fist blazing like a comet

WHAM.

The final blow knocked the beast onto its side.

It thrashed once.

Twice

Then collapsed, still.

Kai stood panting, hands on his knees, sweat dripping down his face.

Kathlyn wiped her forehead, chest heaving, eyes still bright with tension.

They exchanged a glance.

Neither spoke.

But the look said enough.

One down.

And whatever the Prism threw next...

They'd face it Together