Wisp was sick of the forest. 'I have been trudging through this shitty forest for weeks now,' She had bemoaned. 

She had just arrived at the entrance to the battlefield. This was the final push. No one was sure when it was decided that they would all launch a comprehensive assault, but that is what they were doing now.

Hordes of demons flooded the forest floor. Their attack was soundtracked by an orchestra of strange screeching, roars and the creaking of trees being felled to the ground.

Wisp didn't like these types of fights. When there were massive extensive battles like this she was almost useless.

The firepower of her liquid flames was truly outstanding but as a result of the horrific firepower she possessed, she struggled when it came to fine control.

Thus, Wisp was stuck watching the battle unfold from the distance. If she tried to take part, she would end up killing just as many demons as Shrike.

At the forefront of the battlefield, Hyde and Fike were laying waste to hundreds of Shrike with the help of their elemental guardians. And they weren't the only ones. At this point, around half of the demons fighting in this battle had formed elemental guardians.

Thus the battlefield was lit up by the vibrant colours of the elements. Pillars of Ice and balls of fire rained down upon the unsuspecting Shrike.

At this point, the balance had tipped heavily to favour the demons. Once the majority of them managed to form elemental guardians like Fike and Hyde had. It was all she wrote. The Shrike stood little to no chance.

Wisp continued to watch the battle, keeping her eyes peeled for the only demon that actually mattered.

"Where is Drunken Sword hiding," She muttered. "Knowing him, he won't miss this chance to show off his lame sword skills. So he should be here,"

Wisp paused her thoughts there and was reminded of something, "Although, he has been acting strange lately. Ever since he learned about what the prize was... What is recruitment anyway?" She wondered.

Honestly, although she probably wouldn't admit this out loud. The only reason she wanted to keep hold of second place on the leaderboard was to mess with Drunken Sword. She just didn't like that smug look on his face when he was showing off.

Training her eyes on the battlefield, she completely ignored all of the impressive bouts of fighting and searched for Drunken Sword.

"AH-HA! Found you." She exclaimed.

Far off to the side of the fighting, a lone man danced hypnotically between the thrashing limbs of numerous Shrikes.

Although he seemed to be dodging their attacks with veritable ease, he wasn't striking back. In fact, he continued to slink away from the main battle and into the forest.

"Hmm, what is he up to?" Wisp wondered.

She got up from where she had been sitting to watch the fighting and chased after Drunken Sword. When her fellow demons or a Shrike got in her way, she would knock them back with a sticky ball of fire.

Cutting her way across the peripheries of the battlefield like a hot knife through butter, she carved a path through the battlefield. Making a bee-line for the area that Drunken sword had disappeared into.

The demons on the battlefield quickly learned not to get in her way and fled when she approached. 

At the forefront of the battlefield, Fike had already noticed the commotion Wisp was raising. "Hyde, What do you think she is doing?"

"I don't know but... she's in second place, right? When did we meet her again?"

"It was at the market I think, wait a second, didn't she beat you up?"

"Huh?"

"Don't tell me you forgot that happened already, Yeah! I remember now. You tried to scam her when selling something and were caught,"

"Oh yeah, Her. What's that bitch doing over there anyway? Shouldn't she be fighting with us to keep second place?"

"It's suspicious right?"

"Right."

Hyde and Fike nodded to each other and burst into a sprint after Wisp.

Wisp smashed her way through the battlefield, leaving nothing but scorched ground in her wake. She burst out of the side of the battlefield and surged onwards and into the forest.

As she wreaked havoc, crashing through the forest, Wisp hummed a little tune, "Drunken sword... uh... big nose? No that's not it. Drunken Sword, dances like a girl, the only way he wields his sword is with a twirl,"

In front of her, the ground took a sharp downward turn. Wisp ran down the hillside, gracefully hopping from place to place. Her footsteps were light and nimble.

The forest that surrounded her was blanketed in a heavy silence. Thick trees soared towards the heavens, the canopies blocking out the light. On the forest floor, enormous mushrooms grew in the gloom.

Her graceful steps came to a halt in front of an enormous Shrike. It had been torn to shreds by the blade of a sword. Each slash was tens of metres long and carved massive swaths out of the thick bark.

"Holy smokes! I had no idea that Drunken Sword was this strong," Wisp marvelled at the mutilated corpse. "That Shrike had to be at least 300m tall,"

She bypassed the corpse with grace and continued on, into the forest. Then, came to a stop again. "Oi who's following me?"

Just Behind her, Hyde and Fike poked their heads out from behind two trees. They smiled awkwardly and Fike scratched his chin with the tip of his harpoon. "Sorry about this," Fike muttered.

Fike walked out from behind the tree, half dragging Hyde, who seemed reluctant to show his face. Eventually, Hyde sheepishly walked out from behind the tree.

Wisp burst into laughter when she saw him, "Hey it's you! The guy who tried to overcharge the lady who polices the market. I never thought I would see you again. Have you come for round 2?"

Hyde growled in a mixture of annoyance and embarrassment, "If I have?" He asked standoffishly.

"I'm busy," Wisp said coldly, shutting Hyde down.

Fike coughed awkwardly and spoke up, "As are we,"

"Well, be on your way then,"

"Sure thing,"

"..."

"Why aren't you going anywhere?"

"We're waiting on something,"

"That 'something wouldn't be me would it?"

"..."

"I see how it is."

"..."

"Ugh fine, just don't slow me down," Wisp sighed in exasperation. 'These guys are really shameless.'

Eventually, Hyde and Fike joined her and the group of three ran off into the forest. Hot on the heels of drunken Sword.

Deeper in the forest, A handsome young man stood at the mouth of a gaping tunnel. He was of average height and looked very approachable. He was the kind of young man that your parents might approve of if you brought him home.

He a deep blue eyes and blonde windswept hair. And, unlike all of the other demons here, his appearance was completely normal. Or depending on your definition of normal, he was at the very least completely human.

At that moment, His kind face was being lit up with a bright smile. "Found you," He whispered before jumping down into the tunnel.

Not too far off in the forest, A man stepped out from behind a tree. Despite the darkness of the forest, He wore black sunglasses and carried a sword in his right hand. If any teacher saw him walking about in the dark holding a sword, they would surely throw a fit. And yet, this man didn't look like he was in any danger of tripping and stabbing himself. He carried the sword with grace and purposeful poise.

Picking his way through the forest, Drunken Sword arrived at the entrance to the tunnel. Although he couldn't see anything, he could sense that the tunnel was roughly a few hundred metres deep. His hearing was sharp enough to pick up flowing water moving at the bottom.

"An underground river," He muttered. "What is Titan after?"

Just as Drunken Sword was about to follow Titan's lead and jump into the tunnel. A shout came from the forest behind him.

He didn't turn around to face the shout. He didn't need to. Just from the vibrations travelling through the ground, he could tell that three people were running towards him. 

The only reason he didn't immediately draw his sword was that he recognised one of the people chasing him, 

"Fancy Sword! It's me, Wisp. How has the weather been down there in third place?" She shouted.

Drunken sword titled his head in confusion 'What does she mean by the 'Weather'?' He wondered. He was a very literal person that took everything at face value. Perhaps this stemmed from the very exact and strange ways he saw the world.

"What are you doing here? And who are these guys you are with? They both seem pretty strong," Drunken sword asked.

A brown otter materialised on his shoulder and looked down at them warily. Its eyes were an ocean green colour and flickered with intelligence.

"I'm following you of course."

"Then who are those guys with you?"

"They are following me."

"I see.

"By the way, what are you doing?"

"I'm following Titan."

"I...I see."

Fike interrupted their back and forth by asking Drunken Sword a question, "What is Titan doing?"

"He appears to be following something..."

Fike couldn't find a proper reply, "I see... It seems like everyone is following someone,"

"How profound Fike," Hyde chirped mockingly.

An awkward silence settled on the group. This was all very strange. In the end, Hyde spoke up because he was the most impatient of the lot. "Well, shall we continue in our efforts to follow Titan, But this time as a group?"

Drunken Sword looked confused, "Why would we team up with you?"

"Yeah, why would we?" Wisp echoed

"Traitor..." Hyde hissed.

Thankfully, Fike wasn't new to the art of the deal. He had trained hard in the market with stall owners for this day. Every single extra gold piece he earned was the result of many hours of violent disagreements and debates.

"I assume that whatever your plan is, involves Titan,"

"Yes," Drunken Sword affirmed.

"Fighting will probably be involved. Most likely between you and him."

Drunken Sword simply nodded. From his perspective, it was inevitable that he and Titan would fight. The only way for him to get the first place reward at this point was to kill the person in first.

"Although we may not necessarily be of help against Titan, we can hold off Shrike and stop them interfering with the fight." Fike offered.

Drunken Sword didn't think about it long and simply nodded in agreement. Then, with Hyde glaring venomously at Wisp, they all jumped down into the depths of the tunnel.

After falling for a couple of seconds, the group landed with a splash, sending water flying everywhere. While Hyde, Fike and Wisp were drenched by the river, Drunken Sword remained bone dry.

On top of his shoulder, his otter looked proud as she released the water droplets she had caught in midair, allowing them to drop to the ground.

Hyde turned to look at the lazy dragon that was on his shoulder. Or she should have been anyway, "Sol, Where are you?"

"Up here," Came Sol's voice from a few metres above Fike's head. She was flying in place, completely dry. Instead of protecting Hyde, she had jumped ship and saved herself.

"Despicable," Hyde cursed.

Unlike the cowardly Sol, Locus had joined Fike when he plunged into the water. Right now, she was staring disdainfully at Sol, her fur was matted and wet.

After collecting themselves, The group quickly set off in pursuit of Titan. Their path ahead was lit up by the flame Sol produced. The flame cast eery shadows on the side of the tunnel. 

Each step they took would produce a splash of water that echoed endlessly along the tunnel walls that stretched out into infinity.

Their journey was seemingly endless and Hyde and Wisp passed the time by playing rock paper scissors. The catch is that if you lose. The other person's elemental guardian got to bite your hand.

Wisp's guardian was just as eager as Sol appeared. Her guardian was a proud phoenix that had glowing red feathers and a deep, royal blue crown of feathers on top of his head. His personality appeared to be just as fiery as Sol and they both eagerly waited for the chance to bite someone.

Further along the tunnel, Titan casually walked on top of the water's surface. His leather boots were spotless, not a drop of water had touched them.

His thoughts were full of what he would do when he finally killed the progenitor and completed his trial. 'Hopefully I can finally escape those crazy Amazons,' He prayed.