Mist clung low to the ground as Haruto’s eyes slowly opened.
The first thing he noticed was the floor.
Smooth.
Too smooth.
Not the rough, uneven stone of the labyrinth he had grown used to. This surface felt polished, almost deliberate.
“What the…”
His vision swam as he forced himself upright, steadying his breathing. The disorientation faded gradually, allowing his senses to stretch outward.
Behind him stood a massive gate.
Not the same monumental door from before, but something similar in scale. Heavy. Ancient. Sealed.
In front of him extended a tunnel that disappeared into darkness. He couldn’t see its end. The air inside it felt deeper somehow, heavier.
The walls were smooth stone overgrown with thin veins of moss. Ancient carvings ran along their length, scripts older than anything he could recognize. Symbols twisted over one another like a language carved by something that no longer existed.
Two torches burned beside him, their flames steady and unnatural. Farther ahead, more torches lined the walls at even intervals.
Unlit.
Waiting.
The darkness beyond them felt patient.
Haruto grabbed his head as clarity struck him all at once.
Hana.
He spun around.
Haruna.
Nothing.
They weren’t there.
Panic flared hot in his chest.
“No…”
His eyes darted around the chamber again as if they might suddenly appear from thin air.
They didn’t.
“HANA! HARUNA! CAN YOU HEAR ME?!”
His voice tore through the tunnel, echoing violently down the corridor.
Only his own voice answered him.
The realization settled in.
They had been separated.
And this—
Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.
This was deliberate.
As that thought formed, the air shifted.
<
<
The cold, emotionless voice reverberated through the tunnel, mechanical and absolute.
<
<
<
<
<
The voice faded without echo.
Without warmth.
Without mercy.
Haruto exhaled slowly.
“So Haruna was right… It shifted early.”
He didn’t like this.
The timing felt wrong. Too convenient. Too clean.
His eyes moved to the carvings along the walls. The scripts pulsed faintly, almost breathing. The two torches beside him flickered calmly, casting long shadows across the floor.
“I have to find them.”
He stepped forward.
Immediately, the next pair of torches farther down the tunnel ignited with a low hiss.
Guiding him.
Convenient.
He didn’t hesitate.
Wind burst from his legs as he propelled himself forward, covering distance in an instant. As he moved, torch after torch flared to life ahead of him, illuminating the path in sequence.
His goal was simple.
Move fast.
Find an opening.
Find another corridor.
Find them.
The tunnel stretched on.
Then—
His instincts screamed.
His skill activated instantly.
The world slowed.
Air thickened.
Dust froze mid-fall.
In that suspended moment, he saw it.
A massive stone axe swinging toward his neck.
Without hesitation, he enhanced his muscles, reinforcing his chest, legs, neck. He ducked smoothly, the blade slicing through the space where his head had been a fraction of a second earlier.
The impact shattered the floor behind him.
He barely regained his footing when a colossal stone sword descended from above.
He looked up.
Demonic blue eyes sharpened.
Another enhancement.
He pivoted sideways, narrowly avoiding the crushing cleave. The blade slammed into the ground with a thunderous crash.
Stone dust filled the air.
Haruto inhaled once.
Calm.
Wind burst beneath his feet again, launching him upward and backward in a controlled arc. He landed behind his attackers, sliding several meters before stabilizing.
Only then did he truly see them.
Stone figures.
Towering.
Encased in medieval knight armor carved from the same stone as the tunnel itself. Their bodies were sleek but massive, each wielding oversized weapons forged from solid rock.
Their eyes glowed red.
Unblinking.
Alive.
“Golems…?”
He wasn’t entirely sure. But they weren’t simple constructs.
More shapes stirred in the darkness ahead.
One pair of red eyes became two.
Two became five.
Then more.
The tunnel seemed to breathe as additional torches ignited deeper within, revealing silhouettes waiting patiently in formation.
“There are quite a few…” he muttered.
Rough count?
Close to twenty.
Maybe more.
His jaw tightened.
It wasn’t ideal.
But—
It was efficient.
His only concern was the others.
Haruna would manage. She was experienced, capable.
Hana… she learned fast. Adapted quickly. Her logic mirrored his own.
But Haruki—
His expression darkened slightly.
If Haruki had been counted together with Haruna as equipment, then she’d be fine.
If not…
He forced the thought aside.
The probability of them being paired was high.
Haruna and Hana were strong enough to fight, and smart enough to retreat.
They would survive.
Confidence flickered faintly in his chest.
“They’ll handle it…”
He brought his hand to his mouth and bit down on his finger.
A thin line of blood spilled from the wound.
He grinned.
“Now…”
Blood gushed from the cut, coiling and shaping instantly into his scissor claws. His sclera turned jet black. His irises and pupils burned an intense, unnatural blue.
The golems began advancing in unison.
“Let’s get this party started.”
The torches flared brighter.
And the tunnel filled with the sound of stone grinding against stone.
…