Noctis didn't move an inch. His calm expression didn't waver as he watched Nara and Gylani run off.
'Are they fools?'
Gylani and Nara sprinted downhill, heading straight for the fleeing group.
There were dozens of meters between them and the pursuing statues. They descended the slope quickly, not stopping until they reached the others.
When Gylani got close enough to see one of the awakened, his eyes widened. It was Carlius — his golden hair shimmered under the red haze of the sun, but his face was tense and desperate.
Gylani raised his voice.
"We came to help you!"
Carlius didn't even look at him — he just kept running.
"That thing's Second Tier! You should've gone for the instructors!"
Gylani glanced back, his expression collapsing as he saw how close the statues were.
"There wasn't time… We'll create an opening and run!"
Nara had caught up with two other awakened at the front. When she looked back, the rest were closing in behind them. Carlius reached out and grabbed one of his teammates by the shoulder.
"You — go now! Warn every awakened and instructor nearby!"
The awakened nodded and sprinted ahead, vanishing over the hill in seconds.
The remaining five ran side by side. Gylani glanced at Carlius and shouted:
"You and your group take the Second Tier!"
Carlius frowned briefly, then barked an order to his team. They slowed down and shifted direction. Gylani also reduced his pace and turned to Nara.
"Nara, support us from the back!"
He summoned his sword and gripped it tightly.
Nara drew her bow and hid behind a slanted rock. From a high ridge, Noctis watched everything unfold with a calm, unreadable face.
Carlius and his group split the monsters' attention — the Broken Soul statue and another one followed them, leaving only one in front of Gylani. He took his stance and charged forward, his boots scraping the ground with quick, deliberate steps.
The statue advanced without pause, producing a series of sharp, clattering sounds. Having fought several of them before, Gylani had started to understand their movements.
'It speeds up every time it makes that noise.'
The statue suddenly lunged. Gylani twisted his body to the side, barely evading the blow.
Nara anticipated the creature's path and released several arrows. One missed completely, but another struck where its ribs should have been.
The statue halted for a brief second.
Gylani seized the moment, leaping forward to strike — but as his sword cut through the air, the statue abruptly shifted direction, taking a long step and slamming into his shoulder.
Gylani was thrown to the ground.
A sharp, burning pain tore through him, freezing him in place for a second. His sword slipped from his grip. Without hesitation, the statue charged again, leaping toward him.
Gylani rolled aside, dismissed his sword, then re-summoned it in his remaining hand.
His left arm was completely numb — he'd have to fight one-handed. Nara fired a rapid volley of arrows, but most of them hit useless spots, barely slowing the creature.
Meanwhile, Carlius and his group were dealing with the Broken Soul statue and another one. Carlius stopped running, summoning his blade. The others followed suit, drawing their weapons with shaky hands. When he glanced at them, their faces were pale and full of fear.
The spear wielder's hand trembled violently.
Carlius frowned and opened his mouth to shout — but a piercing sound cut through the air. The Broken Soul was already upon him, sprinting at impossible speed.
Panic flickered across Carlius's face for a moment, but he forced himself to stand firm and raised his sword upright.
From the hilltop, Noctis's eyes followed Gylani.
'If he dies… what am I supposed to tell Uncle Sylen?'
Noctis stood with his arms crossed, quietly watching the chaos unfold. He had no intention of joining them. He'd known Gylani for years, got along well with him — but he'd never truly seen him as a friend. The thought of Nara dying didn't stir him at all.
'Do they think they're heroes or something?'
The Second-Tier Broken Statue slammed into Carlius with brutal force. Even through his expensive armor, Carlius's breath caught; pain exploded through his body, and he collapsed to the ground. The awakened beside him were fighting another statue, struggling to keep their footing.
Carlius tried to rise but stumbled again and again. The Broken slowed slightly, stepping toward him with deliberate weight.
Carlius forced himself to inhale deeply, his gaze fixed on the faceless giant.
Thick, root-like tendrils burst from the ground beneath the statue, wrapping around its legs.
The spell Carlius had cast allowed him a moment to breathe — the roots tightened, crawling up its torso. The statue thrashed violently, tearing through several of them, but for every root it destroyed, two more burst from the ground to take its place.
Carlius gasped for air, then turned to the spear-wielder.
"Now!" he shouted.
The awakened hurled his weapon with all his strength. Its iron shaft gleamed; its tip was made of some strange, dull metal.
It flew straight toward the statue, struck its shoulder — and fell uselessly to the dirt.
Carlius's face went pale.
The spear hadn't even left a scratch.
The statue slowly began tearing itself free of the roots.
Meanwhile, Gylani was locked in his own desperate fight. His left arm barely responded, forcing him to dodge rather than block. Nara's quiver was nearly empty — only a few arrows remained. She loosed several more, then stared at the last one.
She drew the bowstring back to its limit, eyes narrowing. Tracking the statue's erratic movements, she exhaled slowly and released. Just as the creature leapt at Gylani, the arrow flew — and pierced straight through its back.
The statue crashed to the ground.
Gylani pounced, gripping his sword tightly.
His face twisted in grim determination as he stabbed again and again, until the creature stopped moving.
Breathing heavily, he dropped his blade and straightened. After a few seconds, he called out to Nara, then began running toward the other awakened. Noctis still stood on the ridge, watching everything with that same calm expression — yet something inside him felt strange.
'If Gylani dies… what would Uncle Sylen do?'
He wavered between conflicting thoughts.
Ever since the battle began, something within him had been stirring — a quiet unease.
He didn't want the others to die… but his own life mattered more.
'Even if I went now, what difference would it make?'
Nara and the half-injured Gylani ran as fast as they could toward the others.
While they rushed forward, Nara glanced at him.
"Gylani, are you sure about this?"
He opened his mouth to respond — but then both of them froze. They could feel something behind them.
When they turned, a black statue stood there — thin, faceless, and utterly terrifying.
"If he wasn't sure, would he do something this stupid?"
A voice spoke calmly from behind them.
Noctis approached, lowering his tone.
"Don't let them recognize me."
Then he turned away and took another path, distancing himself from the group.
Nara and Gylani stared after him, bewildered.
Gylani's lips curved into a faint smile.
From the opposite side, Noctis sprinted toward the awakened. His hand gripped the rusted chain tightly. The crimson light of the sun never touched him — he moved like a shadow.
Ahead, the statue still struggled against the root-like tendrils. It stood over two meters tall — lean, broad-shouldered, humanoid yet inhuman. Its body was made of alabaster-white stone, but deep cracks ran across its surface, glowing faintly from within. A dim yellow light seeped through the fractures, pulsing like a dying heartbeat.
Noctis felt an unexpected chill crawl up his spine as he stood before the statue.
Its presence alone was overwhelming — but the aura it gave off made his instincts scream.
As he stepped forward, the other awakened finally noticed him. Panic spread instantly.
"Another statue! A black one this time!"
Before they could react further, Noctis dashed toward the bound creature with frightening speed. He swung his rusted chain with full force — the strike landed cleanly, but the statue's stone body didn't even crack.
Noctis froze for a fraction of a second, disbelief flashing across his face. The statue's arm shot forward, slamming into his chest.
The impact sent him flying backward several meters. He hit the ground hard, clutching his ribs as his breath caught in sharp, broken gasps.
'This thing… it's nothing like the others.'
Gritting his teeth, Noctis pushed himself up.
Carlius stood nearby, watching with narrowed eyes. He raised his sword, but Noctis ignored him completely — his focus locked on the cracked, glowing statue.
He rushed forward again, chain in hand, aiming for the creature's shadow.
But before the strike connected, the statue shattered the roots holding it down and broke free. It swung at him again, but this time the hit was weaker — nothing compared to before.
Then it charged.
Noctis dodged left and right, his movements sharp and erratic, but the statue was fast — easily twice as quick and far tougher than any he had fought before.
Noctis gritted his teeth.
He'd been saving the Severed Chain spell for emergencies, but he had no choice now.
He activated the enchantment.
Power flooded through him, his body feeling lighter, stronger. As the statue lunged, he met it head-on, swinging his weapon with renewed speed — but the creature twisted away at the last instant. Noctis tried to dive toward its shadow, but the statue grabbed him mid-motion and hurled him aside like a rag doll.
The other awakened stared, stunned.
The spear-wielder turned toward Carlius.
"Is that black statue helping us, or is it another enemy!?"
Carlius shook his head.
"I don't know… but we should support it. Either we kill that big one, or at least buy time for the instructors to arrive!"
The spearman hesitated.
"And if the black one turns on us? Do we attack it too?"
Carlius didn't answer — he just moved.
The others followed his lead.
Nara and Gylani joined them, charging wordlessly toward the massive creature.
Carlius spread his hands, summoning sharp, wooden spikes from the ground — they erupted upward and slammed against the statue's legs and torso.
Meanwhile, Nara and one of the remaining awakened focused on a smaller statue whose leg had already been damaged. Its speed was reduced, making it an easier target.
Nara summoned her sword and rushed in.
The other fighter engaged beside her while a third awakened provided cover fire from a distance, loosing arrow after arrow. Within seconds, they brought the weakened statue down, shattering it into fragments before turning back toward the larger threat.
Another awakened stood still, raising both hands toward the giant. A chill spread through the air. Beside the larger statue, three long, icy spikes materialized. The creature grabbed one effortlessly and hurled it toward Noctis.
Two struck the statue's body — leaving no visible damage. The third barely grazed past him, freezing a patch of ground on impact.
The rest regrouped near Carlius, lending him their strength. The spear-wielder spread his stance, gripping his weapon tight. Its tip began to glow — first crimson, then gold. He drew back his arm, veins bulging with effort, and hurled it with all his might.
Noctis caught sight of the incoming spear and instantly focused on holding the statue in place. The weapon tore through the air, blazing with golden light—then struck the statue square in the shoulder. Stone shattered. The creature's arm split apart, scattering fragments as a deep yellow glow poured from the wound like molten sunlight.
For a moment, the statue froze.
Carlius slammed his hands into the ground, summoning thick, twisting roots that shot upward and bound the creature's limbs.
Gylani, gripping his sword with his good hand, charged in. Nara summoned her own blade and followed right behind him.
Noctis gathered a portion of his essence in his palm, feeling the heat coil through his arm.
He launched himself toward the statue.
Arrows streaked through the air from the other awakened, and Gylani tried to disrupt its perception—but the statue's fractured soul made its mind nearly impossible to shake.
Noctis's grip tightened around the rusted chain as he closed the distance. Gylani and Nara slashed at its legs, chipping away at the alabaster-like stone until cracks spread wide. The creature staggered as its lower half began to crumble.
Noctis swung the chain again and again against the statue's chest—each impact ringing out like metal on marble. But no matter how hard he struck, the blows barely scratched it. Then, with one violent motion, the statue broke free. The roots shattered; the shockwave flung everyone backward.
Noctis hit the ground but rolled to his feet immediately. Without hesitation, he lunged toward the creature's shadow.
The statue turned to stop him—but Carlius, on one knee and breathing heavily, intercepted it with a clean strike from his glowing sword.
Noctis didn't waste the chance.
He dove straight into the shadow, tracing the line of its neck. Reaching into the inky silhouette, he grabbed hold of it—his fingers sinking into cold, liquid darkness—and yanked hard.
The shadow pulsed in his grip.
He swung his chain across its neck, slicing cleanly through the dark shape—
But nothing happened.
The shadow simply flowed back together, reforming as though mocking him.
'What… how?'
Noctis didn't hesitate. He refused to let it escape. Turning his back to the others, he dismissed the helmet of his statue-like armor. With a harsh, guttural breath, he pressed the shadow's neck to his mouth— and bit down.
A bestial sound tore from his throat as he ripped chunks of shadow away, devouring them one after another.
Only then did the statue finally go still.
The cracks along its body pulsed once, then faded. The yellow glow died out.
A deep, resonant voice echoed in his soul:
[ You have slain Suara's statue. ]
[ The shadow is being consumed. ]
[ Your soul has strengthened. ]
[ Your soul has strengthened. ]
[ Your soul has strengthened. ]
Noctis pulled the faceless helm of his armor back over his head. The statue's remaining shadow seeped into his own, flowing like black water until it vanished completely. He could feel it—his body thrummed with newfound strength, but there was something twisted beneath it.
He turned to leave immediately.
Before he could take a step, Carlius appeared, sword raised and pointed straight at him. Noctis stopped and slowly lifted his head. With his face hidden by the blank, faceless mask, he looked less like a human—and more like one of the statues they'd just fought.
Carlius glared, tense and uncertain.
For a few seconds, neither moved.
Then Noctis simply turned and walked away.
By the time Carlius blinked, the black figure had vanished from sight.
Noctis slipped behind a large boulder, pressing his back to the cold stone as he caught his breath. He dismissed his armor; his bare skin felt the chill of the fading day. Looking back toward the battlefield, he saw teachers and several dozen awakened rushing toward the scene.
His expression darkened.
'How did so many of them take this long to arrive?'