At the foot of Helian Mountain, several teams of treasure hunters continued to move deeper into the forest despite the growing unease in the air.
"Hey… do you think we'll really find it? The legendary Sky Gem?" a bearded man asked, his tone filled with barely concealed greed.
"What nonsense are you talking about?" another scoffed. "I'll be satisfied if we just pick up some gold ornaments or burial items. No need to dream that big."
"Still…" a younger member muttered nervously, glancing around. "This mountain's gotten strange lately. People are turning into mummies. What if the rumors about Princess Anna are true?"
The leader of the group snorted.
"That's because those idiots went too deep without knowing their limits," he said dismissively. "We're staying on the outer edge. No risks, no problems."
They had seen strange things before people with "superpowers," users of mysterious energy. In a world where Nen existed, the idea of spirits or curses didn't sound so impossible.
But greed always outweighed caution.
After all fortune favored the bold.
"Didn't you hear? John's group found a pearl necklace just yesterday," the only woman in the team added. "We just need a bit of luck."
"Wait."
The oldest man in the group Hank suddenly raised his hand, his expression tightening.
Everyone froze.
"What is it?" the leader asked quietly.
Hank's experience had saved them more than once. If he was uneasy, something was wrong.
"The ground…" Hank muttered. "It's vibrating. Something's "
" GUH!!"
Before he could finish
A black shadow burst from the earth.
"Pshh !"
It pierced straight through his chest.
"W-What…?!"
The others barely had time to react before more shadows erupted fast, precise, merciless.
One.
Two.
Three.
Like skewers
They were all pierced through in an instant.
The black roots twisted slightly
And then began to drain.
"Ugh… ah… how… this is… just the… outer area…"
The leader's voice faded.
Their bodies shriveled rapidly.
Skin tightened.
Eyes sank.
Within seconds
They became dry, lifeless husks.
Mummified.
The same scene played out across the mountain.
Not just the outer perimeter
Even halfway up the slope, where only trained Nen users dared to venture, chaos erupted.
"What the hell is going on today?!"
The young man named Locke the same one who had mocked the camouflage team earlier slashed down a root with his blade, his aura flaring faintly around it.
"This is way more than before!"
"Enough!" a man in a black robe shouted, blasting away another root with a Nen-enhanced strike. "Something's changed. We need to retreat!"
"Retreat?" Locke's eyes burned with greed. "Are you stupid?! This is exactly when the Sky Gem is most likely to appear!"
"If we leave now, we'll regret it for the rest of our lives!"
The black-robed man hesitated.
Just for a moment.
And that
Was enough.
"SHHH !"
More than twenty roots burst from every direction.
Surrounding them.
Trapping them.
"…We're dead."
That was the last thought they had
Before the roots struck.
Deep within the forest
Rimo and Biscuit moved rapidly through the trees.
"Om !"
Another wave of roots twisted violently under Rimo's [Unlimited Technique], their trajectories distorted until they collided and tangled together.
Rimo glanced at Biscuit.
"Well?"
Biscuit's expression was serious now.
"…Almost."
She listened carefully.
The forest was filled with screams earlier
Now?
Silence.
"…It's speeding up," she said. "It's gathering energy."
"It realized it can't deal with us separately."
"It's concentrating."
Rimo narrowed his eyes slightly.
Then
"BOOM !!"
The ground beneath them cracked violently.
The mountain trembled.
"Here it comes!"
Biscuit shouted.
The earth split open
And countless black roots surged out like a tidal wave.
This time
Different.
Heavier.
Denser.
Alive.
"Tear !"
Biscuit's body suddenly expanded.
Muscles swelled.
Her delicate frame transformed instantly into her true combat form.
Power radiated from her.
Raw.
Refined.
Overwhelming.
Rimo's expression twitched slightly.
"…You really weren't exaggerating."
"Shut up!" Biscuit snapped. "Focus!"
Her aura surged.
She gathered it into her fist
A perfect application of Ko.
Then
She struck.
"BOOM !!!"
The ground exploded.
The shockwave tore through the earth like a missile.
Compared to the brute force of someone like Uvogin, Biscuit's attack was more condensed but no less devastating.
"SCREEEEE !!"
A shrill, inhuman scream echoed from beneath the ground.
Biscuit's eyes lit up.
"Found it!"
Meanwhile
Rimo became the center of attention.
Thousands of roots surged toward him like a black ocean.
"Master !"
Nion clung tightly to him.
"Don't worry."
Rimo smiled faintly.
"They can't touch me."
"Buzz "
Space warped.
The invisible barrier of the [Unlimited Technique] expanded around him.
Every root that approached
Slowed.
Stopped.
Hung in midair.
No matter how violently they pushed
They could not cross that final distance.
Frustration.
Instinct.
Hunger.
The roots wrapped around him
Layer after layer.
Trying to trap him.
Consume him.
"…"
Rimo sighed.
"Annoying."
He flicked his fingers.
" Reverse."
"BOOM!!"
All the roots surrounding him exploded outward instantly.
Fragments scattered like black fireworks.
Yet
More came.
Endless.
"Hey! Are you done yet?" Rimo called out.
"Almost!" Biscuit shouted back.
"Two more!"
She struck again.
"BOOM !!"
The ground collapsed further.
Another scream echoed.
"SCREEEEE !!"
"One more!"
The roots hesitated.
Then
Shifted.
They abandoned Rimo
And surged toward Biscuit.
"Too late."
Rimo smirked.
"You don't get to leave."
With a twist of his will
The space around the roots distorted.
Their movement reversed.
They were dragged back
Forced
Compressed.
"Now!"
"Got it!"
Biscuit's final punch descended.
"BOOM !!!"
The ground shattered completely.
A massive cavity opened beneath them.
"…Yes!"
Biscuit's eyes gleamed.
"The core's exposed!"
At that moment
The roots trembled violently.
They tried to retreat.
To protect the core.
But Rimo held them in place.
"You're not going anywhere."
Biscuit leapt down into the opening.
Inside
She saw it.
A withered female corpse.
Preserved
But wrong.
From her body, countless black roots extended outward, spreading through the mountain like veins.
This
Was the source.
The center of the curse.
The remains of Princess Anna.
Her eyes
Suddenly opened.
And locked onto Biscuit.
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