Below them, the glass-stone floor began to melt under the pressure again. Erwin's fingers started to slip. "No, no, no," Erwin growled, pulling harder. However, the glass-stone didn't budge. [Ability Preparing To Its Max 1/3] His free hand scrabbled at his belt, finding nothing useful. Just broken rocks and— Wait. One of the rocks from the third floor's temple. Smooth, about the size of his fist. [Ability Converging 2/3] Erwin grabbed it, focused every bit of remaining focus into his Pattern Reading, calculated the angle, the trajectory, the exact point of impact needed. [Ability Finalized 3/3] Then he threw. The rock struck Terrax's outstretched hand at the exact moment the gravity field activated. The double impact of the rock's momentum plus Terrax's own gravitational force drove the fingers backward wi

Celestial Chamber—Governor's Clone Domain The projection flickered and died, leaving the throne room in relative darkness. Only the glow from the crystallized essence thrones provided illumination, casting strange shadows across marble floors. Xyrros, the four-armed silver-skinned clone, leaned back in his throne and steepled the fingers of all four hands. "Thoughts?" he asked the empty chamber. He knew he wasn't alone. "He shouldn't have won." Obsidian's voice came from the shadows before his form materialized beside his own throne. The God of Shadows had a habit of dramatic entrances, so it was no surprise. "Terrax was calibrated for a minimum team of three Mortal C-rank participants or one ascendant ranked. But despite being a C-rank mortal, and being alone, he won." "You skipped something very vital—he displaced his hand through space?" Auros pointed out, his golden form shimmering into si

They sat in a loose triangle on the white crystal platform, each positioned roughly equidistant from the others and from the two glowing crystals that represented life and death. For several minutes, nobody spoke... But then, finally, Erwin broke the silence. "I'll start," he said quietly. "Since I suggested we talk, it's only fair." "You don't have to—" Vex began. "Yes, I do." Erwin cut him off gently. "If we're going to make an impossible choice, we deserve to know what we're choosing between." He took a deep breath, gathering memories before he began. "I come from a small village with maybe three hundred people, situated at the edge of a dead zone. The land's been dying for years, in fact, it had been dead for years." Herria and Vex listened in silence as Erwin continued. "My parents are farmers. Or they were, before the green rain catastrophe eight years ago that made the village and the world I am from die. Now they're... survivors, I guess, we all are. "Above all else,

The explosion wasn't loud. That was the part Erwin couldn't make sense of, even after the ringing faded from his ears and the white cleared from his vision. Vex had detonated himself right there on the platform. And then, the force of it hit them—a rolling wave of heat and pressure that lifted both of them off the platform floor and flung them in opposite directions. Erwin's shoulder caught the edge of the crystal pedestal on his way down, before he skidded across the white surface and stopped only when his back met the low platform rim. For a moment, he just lay there, staring. The silence that followed the explosion was the worst sound he'd ever heard. "Vex." He pushed himself upright, his arm already stiffening around the shoulder, but he ignored it. Across the platform, Herria had landed in a heap against the opposite rim. She was already sitting up with one hand pressed flat against the glass-stone floor. Her hair had come loose and there was a burn mark across the back o

The training chamber vanished mid-punch.Herria's fist had been aimed at a Terrax replica's throat, but suddenly it was swinging through empty air instead.She stumbled but caught herself immediately, dropping into a defensive stance even though she had no idea what she was defending against yet, because Master Ryomen had taught her that when your environment changes without warning, you assume hostile intent until proven otherwise.The celestial chamber materialized around her, vast and impossible and beautiful in a way that made looking directly at it feel like her mortal eyes weren't designed for it.Seven figures sat before her, two of which she recognized from the briefing before floor 1. Xyrros and Autos. And the last one, Verdania."Herria Moonwhisper, the Lunar Elf," Xyrros was the first to speak. "We have observed you with great interest."She didn't respond immediately or lower her guard even slightly, even though her eyes fell on Verdania who she was personally familiar pos