Morning in the Forest of Echoes was a strange thing.

  There was no sunrise, no birdsong. Just a slow, aching glow leaking through the endless canopy. It was a light that didn’t warm, only revealed. As if the forest wanted you to see... but not to hope.

  Arjun woke early, long before the others. A strange unease tugged at him. Not fear exactly, but a feeling that something unseen was watching—and waiting.

  He checked his Status Window.

  > [Status Update]

  Karmic Energy: +250 (Soul Released)

  Title Gained: Listener of the Forgotten (+10% Karmic Resonance)

  Next Fractured Soul Location: 0.7 miles east.

  Arjun stood and dusted off his cloak. His journey had shifted. This wasn’t just about building strength or claiming thrones anymore. This was about healing the broken fabric of a world long torn apart by ambition, betrayal, and forgotten promises.

  He stirred the others awake.

  “We move east,” he said simply.

  Raaka groaned. “Can’t we eat first? Maybe... fight something less depressing?”

  Yumi rolled her eyes. “Souls first. Breakfast later.”

  Ayra was already tightening the straps on her boots, her face unreadable. “Lead the way, Arjun.”

  And so they marched again into the unknown.

  The trees grew taller here.

  Their bark had veins of silver running through it, pulsing faintly like heartbeats. Vines hung down like curtains, whispering as they brushed against the travelers.

  Whispering names.

  Arjun’s name.

  They came upon a clearing marked by nine ancient stones, arranged in a perfect circle. Each stone bore a carved symbol—glyphs older than any language Arjun had ever seen.

  At the center floated a figure.

  Unlike Kalyara, this one was armored—clad in golden plates tarnished by time and sorrow. His helmet hid his face, but his voice rumbled through the clearing like thunder muted by centuries of regret.

  Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

  “Another heir. Another fool.”

  Arjun stepped forward. “I’m not here to enslave you.”

  “No,” the armored figure said bitterly. “You’re here to judge. To decide if my sins are worth forgiveness.”

  He unsheathed a massive spectral blade, and the air around him crackled.

  “I was Vasrik, General of the Lost War. I broke oaths. I betrayed kings. I crushed cities to dust because I thought it would bring peace. I failed.”

  The ground trembled as Vasrik pointed the blade at Arjun.

  “If you would hear my truth—you must withstand my wrath!”

  > [Challenge Initiated: Trial of the Fallen General]

  Survive Vasrik’s onslaught for ten minutes to unlock his story.

  Ayra immediately moved to stand beside Arjun, blades drawn. Raaka pulled out a pair of wicked-looking daggers. Yumi began muttering under her breath, glyphs forming in the air around her.

  Arjun raised a hand.

  “No. This is my trial.”

  The others hesitated, but stepped back.

  The wind died.

  Then Vasrik charged.

  The first blow nearly shattered Arjun’s bones.

  He barely raised his spear in time to deflect it, stumbling back as the earth split open where Vasrik’s sword struck. Each swing wasn’t just force—it was history itself slamming into him. Centuries of rage, sorrow, failure.

  Boom.

  Crash.

  Clang.

  Arjun’s muscles screamed. His lungs burned. His mind wavered.

  But he held on.

  He remembered every child he’d seen starve in Bharava’s slums.

  Every cry for help he’d been too weak to answer.

  Every hope he now carried for the nine tribes.

  I will not break, he thought.

  Vasrik howled, a sound that was part man, part memory.

  “You do not understand the burden!”

  Arjun slammed the butt of his spear into the ground, steadying himself. “Maybe not. But I will carry it anyway.”

  Time blurred.

  Blood trickled from Arjun’s lip. His knees shook.

  But when the tenth minute came, Vasrik lowered his blade.

  Silence fell.

  “You... endure,” the spirit said quietly. “Perhaps that is enough.”

  > [Trial Completed]

  You have withstood the Wrath of Vasrik. His truth is now revealed.

  The golden armor cracked and fell away, revealing a man beneath—a man with tired eyes and scars that went deeper than skin.

  Vasrik knelt.

  “I destroyed in the name of unity. I thought if I crushed dissent, peace would bloom. But peace built on fear is a corpse garden.”

  He looked up at Arjun.

  “You have the chance to build something better. Remember this—strength alone is not leadership. It is compassion that binds empires.”

  Arjun stepped forward and placed his hand on Vasrik’s shoulder.

  “I accept your truth.”

  Light engulfed the clearing once again. When it faded, a simple golden band remained where Vasrik had knelt.

  Arjun picked it up.

  > [Artifact Gained: The Oathbinder’s Ring]

  Grants +15% Leadership Effectiveness. Allies are more likely to follow your commands during battles and crises.

  He turned to his companions.

  Raaka let out a low whistle. “Not bad for a guy who almost got pancaked.”

  Yumi smiled. “You’re stronger than you know.”

  Ayra simply nodded, a glint of something almost like respect in her eyes.

  As they moved deeper into the Forest of Echoes, Arjun couldn’t help but wonder:

  How many more sins must I unearth?

  And when it’s over…

  Will there be anything left of me?

  The wind whispered no answer.

  But Arjun marched forward anyway.

  Toward destiny.

  Toward the Karmic Throne.

  Toward a future he would forge with blood, sacrifice, and hope.