The dimensional portal swallowed Kael whole.
One step forward, and the world around him twisted. The sky changed. Gravity felt off. Trees with crimson leaves loomed over stone paths that pulsed faintly with energy. Strange runes floated in the air like dust caught in moonlight.
This realm was not like any dungeon or zone Kael had ever trained in.
His instincts were on fire.This place... it breathed. It was alive. Watching him.
He landed softly in a dark forest, the air heavier than back home. He looked up and saw three moons in the sky, one split in half like a cracked egg. A chill ran through him.
Then, he heard it—growling.
Something big was nearby.
Kael gripped his sword, his body tense. From the shadows emerged a beast: twelve feet tall, covered in black fur laced with bone armor. Crimson eyes glared down at him. The monster's Will was thick—heavier than anything he'd faced, even the Four Elites.
"One of the guardians," Kael muttered. "Just like Kyoushiro said."
The beast lunged.
Kael's new power surged through him—his aura crackled, responding to his fury, his pain, his purpose.
The fight exploded.
Back at the academy, the atmosphere was still grim in the infirmary.
Ryuu and Kaede stood at the window, both silent. Eri sat near Hana and Tetsu's beds, gently adjusting the blanket on her sister's still chest. Her fingers trembled.
A knock came at the door. Kaede opened it to find Kyoushiro, his face calm but his eyes stormy.
"He's in," Kaede said quietly.
Kyoushiro nodded. "I felt it."
Ryuu looked over. "How long does he have?"
Kyoushiro glanced out the window toward the strange skies shifting above the sealed grounds. "Three days. After that, the portal closes. He either returns with the medicine... or not at all."
Eri stood, wiping her eyes. "He'll come back. With them."
No one argued. But the weight in the room said otherwise.
Back in the dark realm, Kael's battle dragged on.
Blood. Roars. Flashes of light.
He struck with everything he had—but the beast wasn't falling. Not yet.
Still, Kael didn't stop.
Tetsu… Hana… wait for me.
And with a roar of his own, Kael's power erupted once more, lighting the forest in a storm of rage and determination.