The silence after the Abyssborn's destruction felt unnatural, almost oppressive. The cavern's atmosphere had fundamentally changed.
The crushing pressure that had weighed on them was gone, but in its place lingered a strange stillness as if the dungeon itself was holding its breath.
Reiner straightened, eyes scanning the chamber. "That rift wasn't random." His voice was tight. "This dungeon has begun its evolution to a higher rank. But a lot faster than it should."
Mira remained kneeling by the fading runes, brushing dust from her hands. The golden light had dimmed to barely visible traces. "Whatever was sealed here wasn't supposed to awaken now. Not for centuries, maybe never." She looked up. "We got lucky."
"Luck had nothing to do with it." Sera's gaze fixed hard on Kael, but she said nothing more. The suspicion hung unspoken in the air.
Luthen grunted, still rolling his aching shoulder where the wraith had grabbed him. "Standing around talking won't help. We need to keep moving."
Kael was already a step ahead. He'd sensed it the moment the rift collapsed that the cavern was no longer a dead end.
At the far side, where the Abyssborn had first emerged, a new passage had opened. Stone that had been solid wall now revealed a darkened tunnel leading deeper. He started walking without a word, and after a brief hesitation, the others followed.
---
The tunnel beyond the sealed chamber turned out to be shorter than expected. Within minutes, the narrow passage widened dramatically, opening into something completely different.
They emerged onto the actual third floor.
A vast, barren wasteland stretched before them, cratered rock and fractured earth as far as the eye could see. Dim light filtered down from some unknown source high above, casting everything in shades of gray and pale blue.
Towering stone pillars, their surfaces scarred by age and battle, stood scattered across the landscape like ancient sentinels.
But they weren't alone.
Dozens of other adventurers were scattered across the terrain. Some stood in small clusters, talking amongst themselves. Others remained isolated, watching from a distance with suspicious eyes. The tension was palpable, thick enough to choke on.
Kael's eyes swept across the crowd with practiced efficiency. There were stragglers, mercenaries, nobles in fine armor. They were all here for the same reason, to advance past the third-floor trial.
But one presence stood out more than the others.
Dorian Valthorne.
He occupied the center of a well-organized elite formation. Tall, sharp-featured, with an air of absolute confidence bordering on arrogance. His polished armor gleamed even in the dungeon's poor light, marking him as someone of significant status.
Around him, his squad formed an impenetrable wall with powerful knights from major houses, a high-tier mage whose staff crackled with suppressed energy, and at least two artifact users whose equipment practically hummed with enchantments.
Kael's gaze lingered on him for only a moment before moving on. No point drawing attention yet.
Reiner muttered under his breath, "Looks like we're late to the party."
Before anyone could respond, the ground trembled.
A deep, resonant sound rolled across the wasteland like the toll of a massive bell struck deep underground. The vibration traveled through their bones.
Then something materialized in the center of the expanse.
A figure. Massive and utterly motionless. A guardian clad in ancient, battle-worn armor.
It had a humanoid shape, but something about it felt fundamentally different. Its movements were too precise, too mechanical. Its presence carried weight that pressed against their senses like a physical force.
The armor covering its entire body was unlike anything from Valoria, darker metal etched with markings older than any known kingdom. Runes that predated their civilization.
A massive spear rested against its shoulder, the weapon pulsing with dim, spectral light that seemed to draw in surrounding shadows.
When it spoke, the voice was neither fully human nor inhuman. Something in between, ancient and hollow.
"The Trial Begins."
The words reverberated across the wasteland, piercing through every challenger's awareness. "Your path forward is determined not by individual strength alone. Not by combined power. But by choice."
The gathered adventurers stirred uneasily. Glances were exchanged. A few shifted into combat-ready stances out of pure instinct. Others froze, uncertain of what to do.
The guardian's head turned slowly, surveying the crowd with empty eyes that somehow still managed to see everything. "Lone challengers, step forward."
After a moment's hesitation, several adventurers without established groups moved forward cautiously. Mercenaries without contracts. Rogue nobles who either couldn't or wouldn't serve under someone like Dorian. A handful of others whose stories Kael didn't know and didn't care to learn.
Kael remained where he stood.
The guardian's gaze settled on him, those empty eyes somehow focusing despite having no visible pupils. "You stand alone?"
Several pairs of eyes shifted toward him. He ignored them all.
The guardian's spear lifted slightly, a subtle gesture that drew every eye. "Alone, you will not progress. Join a group, or risk being excluded from the trial."
Kael's fingers twitched at his side, but his expression remained neutral.
"Convenient," Sera muttered, voice low but carrying. "Forcing people into teams."
Mira's expression was thoughtful. "It's a trial of character, not just combat. Cooperation is likely part of the test itself."
Kael said nothing, but his mind was working.
Reiner glanced at him sidelong. "You sticking with us or not?"
Kael met his gaze and gave a brief nod. Better the group he knew than strangers who might turn on him the moment things got difficult.
The guardian continued, its voice echoing across the wasteland. "Now, hear this well. The trial is not fought here. It is not fought in this wasteland."
Beneath their feet, the earth pulsed with sudden energy. Kael felt the shift before it fully manifested, reality itself beginning to warp. The air distorted, rippling like heat waves. A burst of light erupted from the ground beneath them.
Then the wasteland disappeared.
---
A brief sensation of falling, of weightlessness enveloped them...
Then solid ground returned beneath their feet.
The world had changed completely.
Kael now stood on a massive battlefield beneath a sky choked with smoke and burning red. The acrid smell of blood and ash filled his lungs.
In the distance, a city's once-proud walls crumbled under sustained assault. War machines hurled flaming projectiles over the ramparts. Screams echoed faintly across the distance.
They were no longer in the dungeon. Or rather, the dungeon had become something else entirely.
Kael quickly scanned his surroundings. Reiner's group materialized nearby, shaken but unharmed. Across the battlefield, other adventurers solidified into existence, confusion and alarm evident on their faces.
But this wasn't just an empty arena.
Real soldiers, or projections of real soldiers from some ancient time rushed across the field engaged in brutal combat. Their armor was archaic, styles from civilizations long dead. Their weapons were crude but deadly. Blood stained the scorched earth.
This didn't look like a simulation. It felt too real.
The guardian's voice boomed from above, coming from everywhere and nowhere at once. "You stand within the War of Fallen Kingdoms, a conflict from an age long past. Your trial is this: rescue the captured royals of the Earth Kingdom before they are executed by the Fire Kingdom's forces."
Kael's eyes narrowed. A rescue mission. In the middle of an active battlefield.
"The royals are held in the fortress to the east," the voice continued. "You may choose to intervene. Or you may let fate take its natural course." A pause, heavy with implication. "Your choice will determine your worth."
Around them, the battlefield roared to life with renewed intensity. Soldiers clashed in desperate melees. War machines rumbled forward, crushing anything in their path.
From the distant fortress, a dark structure of stone and iron, came the faint sounds of prisoners crying out.
Kael understood immediately. This wasn't just a combat trial. It was a test of character. Of morality. Who would risk themselves for strangers? Who would stand aside and prioritize their own survival?