Hope descended the rough stone stairs, his feet scraping against the cracked surface as he made his way downward.
The towering statue loomed above, casting a long, dark shadow over the ruined landscape.
As he stepped out onto the barren ground—
His eyes landed on the massive boulder.
It sat, half-buried in dust and debris, pinning the mangled corpse of the Dark Wolf beneath its crushing weight.
The air was thick with the scent of blood and dust.
Hope exhaled, stepping closer.
The fiend was dead.
But its soul core—
Was still inside.
And that meant he had work to do.
Hope knelt beside the corpse.
His hands ran over the tough, armored hide, searching for a weak spot.
His expression darkened.
"No weapon."
His dagger had been shattered during the training in the cave.
His artifact sickle—useless here, since artifacts didn't function properly in the Soulrealm. They couldn't be brought along anyway.
That left him with nothing.
Nothing—
Except his teeth.
Hope grimaced.
He didn't waste time thinking about it.
Instead—
He leaned in, biting down on the fiend's thick hide.
The tough, sinewy flesh resisted at first—
But he persisted.
He gnawed at the rough skin, his jaw aching with the effort.
His teeth scraped against the fiend's tough exterior, sending a numbing pain through his skull.
He could taste the faint, metallic tang of blood.
But he kept going.
Minutes passed.
Then—
Finally—
His teeth tore through.
A small gash opened.
Not deep enough.
Not yet.
Hope ignored the pain in his throbbing jaw.
He pressed his fingers against the wound, forcing them inside.
The flesh resisted.
"Damn it—"
He poured his remaining strength into his grip, his muscles burning with strain.
Then—
With a sickening tear, the wound ripped wider.
Warm blood coated his fingers as he reached deeper, searching through the fiend's ruined insides.
His fingers brushed against something smooth.
There.
A core—
Smooth as glass, yet pulsing faintly with a dark, inner glow.
He clenched his fingers around it and yanked.
With a wet, squelching sound, the soul core came free.
Hope pulled his arm back, examining the dark, marble-like sphere in his palm.
It was surprisingly heavy.
The core pulsed with a faint, ethereal hum—
A source of raw power he didn't yet understand.
Hope stared at it for a long moment.
Then—
With a thought, he sent it into his Soul Sea.
The core vanished in a ripple of energy.
Hope exhaled, shaking the blood off his hand.
"One down."
He stood, wiping his mouth with the back of his wrist.
He was about to leave—
When his eyes landed on the creature's claws.
Long.
Curved.
Lethal.
A perfect weapon.
Hope sighed.
"Guess I'm biting again."
He crouched down, gripping one of the Dark Wolf's forelimbs.
The claws were at least twelve inches long, each one a curved, wicked blade.
If he could just pry them loose—
But they were embedded deep in the bone.
Which meant—
More biting.
Hope set his jaw and clamped his teeth down onto the base of the claw.
His gums throbbed in protest.
His teeth scraped against solid bone.
He could feel the vibration through his skull.
Still—
He kept grinding, pulling, twisting with every bit of strength he had left.
The first claw resisted.
Then—
A snap.
Hope almost stumbled back as the claw finally tore free.
He spat out blood, ignoring the dull ache in his teeth.
"One more."
He went back to work.
The second claw took even longer.
By the time he finally wrenched it free, his jaw was numb, his hands trembling from exhaustion.
He exhaled.
Then—
He lifted both bloodied claws, turning them in his hands.
"These will do."
He muttered to himself, flexing his fingers around the makeshift weapons.
They weren't ideal—
But at least now—
He wasn't defenseless.