The underground cargo station had fallen into a silence that felt almost unbearable. It was not the silence of safety or rest. It was the silence of something slowly collapsing from the inside. Weak emergency lamps flickered inconsistently along the cracked walls, their unstable light washing the underground chamber in dull shades of orange and gray. Cold wind drifted through the shattered sections of the ceiling far above, carrying ash, dust, and the distant smell of burned flesh deeper into the station. The ruined shelter looked less like a temporary refuge and more like a grave waiting to close. Broken cargo containers lay scattered across damaged train tracks. Rusted support beams groaned occasionally under the weight of fractured concrete overhead. Bloodstains stretched across the floor where wounded hunters had been dragged earlier, and exhausted survivors sat scattered throughout the station in small groups, their faces pale beneath the dim light. The poison was getting w

Shawn turned his attention back toward Alexis and Halmer.“The spider colony should already be moving toward this station by now,” he said casually. “Once they arrive, whatever survivors remain here will disappear along with the evidence.”A faint smile crossed his face again.“And when the Lance family eventually finds your bodies…”His eyes settled directly on Alexis.“…this entire expedition will look like nothing more than another unfortunate outland disaster.”No one spoke afterward.Because everyone inside the station understood the truth now.This was no longer a survival mission.It was a countdown to slaughter.Alexis stared at Shawn as though she were looking at a stranger wearing human skin.The weight of his confession crashed into her harder than any monster attack they had survived since entering the outlands. For several seconds, her mind struggled to process the reality standing in front of her.This expedition had never been about rescue.It had never been an explorat

Alexis stood motionless.It wasn't because Shawn's mercenaries had surrounded her.It wasn't because the poison coursing through her veins was steadily draining the strength from her body.It was because every word Shawn had spoken had struck directly at wounds she had spent years trying to bury.For a brief moment, her grip on her swords loosened.Her breathing became uneven as memories she had fought desperately to suppress resurfaced one after another.She saw her parents.She saw her grandfather, growing weaker with each passing year despite his efforts to hide it from her.She saw the hunters who had died during the expedition.The healer being dragged screaming into the darkness by the spiders.The wounded men scattered throughout the station.Halmer lying in his own blood.So many people.So much loss.So much failure.No matter how desperately she wanted to reject Shawn's words, a small voice deep inside her mind whispered the question she feared the most.What if he was right

The projectile continued across the room before striking something behind him. THUNK! The impact was sickening and violent. For a moment, nobody moved. Shawn slowly turned around. One of his mercenaries stood frozen several meters behind him. The man looked down in confusion. A dagger was buried completely inside his eye socket. The force behind the throw had punched through bone and driven the blade straight through his skull. The tip protruded from the back of his head. Blood streamed down his face. His mouth opened as if trying to speak. No words came out. A second later, his body collapsed lifelessly onto the floor. Silence. Absolute silence. The entire cargo station froze. Even Shawn's smile vanished. For several long seconds, nobody spoke. The only sound was the distant dripping of water somewhere deep within the underground tunnels. Then came footsteps. Each step echoed clearly through the darkness. Everyone instinctively turned toward the tunnel entrance. A l

Miles glanced around the room.His eyes moved across the wounded hunters.Across Alexis.Across Halmer.Across the blood staining the floor.Then he looked back at Shawn."Actually..."The faintest trace of amusement appeared in his eyes."I think taking this job was your real mistake."The moment the words left his mouth, Shawn's patience shattered."Kill him."The command exploded through the cargo station.A mage positioned near the rear immediately reacted.Mana surged violently around his body as several glowing magic circles materialized in front of him.The surrounding air distorted from the sudden rise in temperature."Fire Burst!"Dozens of flaming projectiles erupted forward.The fireballs screamed through the air like miniature meteors, illuminating the cargo station in flashes of orange and gold.The heat alone was enough to force nearby hunters to shield their faces.Alexis' eyes widened.The attack was fast.Far too fast for an ordinary porter.Yet before the flames reac