The antidote worked faster than Elion expected.

  Jordan, who had been moments away from looking like a corpse, was already regaining his color. He started to breathe normally again, and the stinging sensation from the poison finally stopped.

  "I didn’t think getting poisoned would hurt this much," Jordan grumbled.

  Elion could say nothing other than being grateful. It was nothing short of miraculous.

  Still, as Ronan calmly wrapped the last of Jordan’s wounds with clean bandages, Elion couldn’t shake one thought.

  Why didn’t he help sooner?

  Elion sat next to Jordan as the cowboy finished tying a bandage with a secure knot. The fire crackled between them, casting shadows on Ronan’s sharp features.

  Finally, Elion said, "...You could have helped him sooner."

  It was not an accusation; it was just a comment. A quiet confusion in his voice.

  Ronan paused before answering. He leaned back, stretched his arms, and then relaxed. He let out a short laugh.

  “That’s a good lesson for everyone,” he said, a hint of amusement in his golden eyes.

  Elion frowned. “A… lesson?”

  Ronan nodded. “Three, actually.”

  He held up a single finger. “First lesson—Jordan learns the hard way not to get too excited about fighting beast-men without knowing what they’re really like.”

  Jordan sat up and rolled his shoulder to test how stiff it was. “Yeah, I get it,” he said. He winced. “Poison claws suck.”

  Ronan smirked. “They do.”

  He raised a second finger. “Second lesson—Jordan understands that the pain inflicted by beast-men isn’t just for show. You feel it. It stays with you. You don’t forget it.”

  Jordan exhaled sharply but nodded. His cocky grin from earlier was long gone.

  Ronan’s third finger went up. “And the last lesson?” He turned his gaze to Elion, his expression unreadable.

  Elion swallowed. He felt that this was going to be directed at him.

  “If Jordan wasn’t in a life-or-death situation, you wouldn’t have jumped in,” Ronan said. “You would keep on thinking and waiting."

  He paused and said, "I understand this is your first time. But if you keep hesitating, it might be your last."

  Elion’s hands turned into fists.

  “You’re wrong,” he said.

  "Are you sure?" Ronan tilted his head and waited.

  Elion took a breath. Then, he exhaled. “No… you’re right.”

  Because the truth was—Ronan had seen right through him.

  Elion had spent his whole life doubting himself. Hesitating. Overthinking. And even now, after everything, he still struggled to believe that he could stand toe-to-toe with beats.

  But when Jordan was in danger—when there was no other option—he hadn’t thought.

  He had acted because he did not want anything bad to happen to Jordan.

  Elion looked down at his legs. The same legs that had delivered a kick strong enough to make a beast-man stagger.

  Had that really been him? Would he do it if Jordan was not in danger?

  He believed he would always love being the bait. It was the safest role for him because of his speed and wisdom. He could outsmart the beasts before leaving them behind.

  That was his thought. That was what he believed.

  "You're right," Elion said. "I'll never attack. I was too afraid."

  Jordan, always positive, gave him a hard pat on the back. “At least we’re both learning something tonight, right?”

  Elion scoffed, rubbing his shoulder. “Yeah. Great lesson.”

  But Ronan wasn’t done. As he finished tending to Jordan’s wound, he glanced at both of them, his voice turning quieter.

  “This?” he gestured at Jordan’s injury. “This is nothing.”

  Elion raised an eyebrow.

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “One day,” Ronan continued, “you’ll watch a comrade die in front of you. And you’ll be powerless to stop it.”

  A heavy silence fell between them.

  Jordan’s usual carefree expression faded.

  Elion’s stomach twisted.

  Ronan’s tone wasn’t cruel. It wasn’t cold. But there was a weight behind his words—like he was speaking from experience. Like he had been there before.

  “Being a Slayer,” Ronan murmured, “is more than just fighting monsters. It’s surviving when others don’t.”

  Elion had no response.

  Because what could he even say?

  He had never been so focused on getting stronger—on learning how to fight—that he hadn’t even thought about what it really meant to be a Slayer.

  He never wanted to be part of all of this. But now? Did he have a choice?

  Would he be able to handle that?

  Would he be able to keep going when the worst happened?

  He didn’t know.

  And that scared him.

  Ronan stood, brushing off his cloak. “One more lesson,” he said.

  Jordan groaned. “Man, how many lessons are we gonna get in one night?”

  Ronan ignored him. “Always retrieve the rings as fast as possible.”

  Elion frowned, grateful for the change in topic. “Why?”

  Ronan threw the empty vial from the antidote into the fire. The flames danced as the glass broke and melted.

  “When a host dies, the ring looks for a new host,” Ronan said simply. “If we don’t contain it fast enough, it’ll find another body.”

  Elion then was reminded of the scene where hundreds of rings shot to the sky before. He shuddered. He really didn’t like the sound of that.

  “So… what happens if someone else touches or finds it?” he asked hesitantly.

  Ronan met his gaze. “Depends.”

  “Depends?” Jordan repeated.

  “Yeah.” Ronan tilted his head, thinking. “If they’re weak, they die instantly. If they’re just strong enough…” He smirked. “Well. They become a problem. A new beast-man.”

  Elion and Jordan exchanged a look.

  Jordan whistled. “Glad you told us now. Would’ve been nice to know before we started dealing with literal beast rings.”

  Ronan chuckled. “Better late than never.”

  Elion exhaled. His head was spinning. There was so much he didn’t know—so much he still had to learn.

  One thing was for sure.

  This journey was only beginning.

  Now, Elion had too many questions.

  The rings, the beast-men, the insane fights—none of it made sense yet. But there was one thing that had been bothering him since the fight.

  He looked at Ronan, still casually sitting across the fire, his golden-black ring glinting faintly in the low light.

  “You used a beast ring back there,” Elion said. “I saw it. But… you didn’t fully transform like the others.”

  Ronan tilted his head and looked at him with mild amusement.

  “Yeah?” he said. “And?”

  Elion frowned. “Well, the ape-men turned into straight-up monsters, but you? You only changed your arm. Why?”

  Jordan perked up at that. “Oh, yeah. I was wondering the same thing.”

  Ronan smirked. “Smart question.”

  He spun the ring between his fingers before putting it back on his hand. As soon as it touched his skin, a faint golden-black glow appeared around it.

  “My grade’s different,” he said simply.

  Elion blinked. “Grade?”

  Ronan nodded. “The rings you saw on those creatures were lower-tier white rings. However, they were corrupted, which is why they appeared black.”

  He then added, "Corrupted rings force their hosts into full transformation. They take over completely.”

  Elion narrowed his eyes. “So, what makes yours different?”

  Ronan flexed his fingers, watching the firelight dance over his knuckles. “My ring lets me control my transformation. I don’t have to fully change—I can shift only what I need.”

  Jordan whistled. “Damn. That’s kinda sick.”

  Elion was still stuck on one part. “Wait. So, you’re saying full transformation isn’t… necessary?”

  Ronan chuckled. “Not always. Honestly? Transformation is way cooler than what you saw.”

  Elion raised an eyebrow. “Cooler?”

  “Oh, yeah,” Ronan smirked. “Some forms don’t even change your appearance too much. Some don’t make you look ugly or beast-like at all. In fact, if you do it right—you’ll look way cooler.”

  Jordan grinned. “Now we’re talking.”

  “But,” Ronan added, stretching his arms behind his head, “Earth doesn’t have enough energy to support a proper transformation.”

  Elion frowned. “What do you mean?”

  “I mean,” Ronan said lazily, “the world itself doesn’t have enough energy. Back home, in the Beast World? Full transformations are easy. But here?” He shook his head. “Not happening. The energy here is too weak.”

  Elion thought back to Ronan’s earlier fight. “So, you’re forced to use… what? A weaker transformation?”

  “Not exactly weaker,” Ronan corrected. “More like efficient. If I fully transformed here, I’d burn through my energy too fast. Would take way longer to recover.” He tapped the ring. “This form? I can sustain it longer and recover my strength faster.”

  Elion absorbed that. The idea that a place existed where full transformations were normal—where this wasn’t even considered strong—was insane.

  And concerning.

  Then, something else clicked in his mind.

  He pointed at Ronan’s ring. “Your ring isn’t normal either, is it?”

  Ronan held up his hand, letting the fire reflect off the golden-black metal.

  “Nope,” he said. “This one’s special.”

  Jordan leaned in. “Special, how?”

  Ronan grinned. “See the black streaks running through the gold?”

  Elion and Jordan both nodded.

  “This ring is designed to capture Corruption.” Ronan’s voice was casual, but there was something sharp beneath it. “The black smoke you saw when the beast-men died? That was Corrupted Essence. Normally, it spreads, infecting whatever’s nearby.”

  Elion felt a chill. “But… your ring absorbs it?”

  “Bingo.” Ronan twirled the ring again. “That’s why it’s golden-black. It’s designed to trap and contain Corruption instead of letting it run wild.”

  Jordan made a face. “That’s kinda nasty.”

  “It is,” Ronan agreed. “But it’s necessary.”

  Elion studied him carefully. Something still wasn’t adding up. “So… this is your main ring?”

  Ronan let out a laugh. “Hell no.”

  Jordan stiffened. “Wait—what?”

  “This isn’t my main beast ring,” Ronan clarified, slipping his hands into his pockets. “I’m only using this one for this mission.”

  Jordan’s jaw dropped. “Dude. You’re telling me you have an even stronger ring?”

  Ronan grinned. “Oh, absolutely.”

  Elion wasn’t sure if he felt better or worse after learning all of that.

  Jordan sighed and rubbed his face. “Man, I thought we were getting close to understanding this, and now you tell us that?”

  Ronan chuckled. “Get used to it.”

  Elion exhaled, running a hand through his hair. His mind was spinning. Different tiers, different colors, different rules… and now, the fact that this wasn’t even Ronan’s full strength?

  Yeah. This journey was only getting crazier.