The journey to the Citadel of Whispers was long and perilous, taking Archelius and his three subordinates—Theodore, Raji, and Lisa—most of the day. The terrain grew even more hostile, shifting from volcanic slag to sharp, metallic sands that whistled in the toxic wind.
Archelius, now Level 11 with maximized Rank E skills, led the way, relying heavily on the Map Function. He effortlessly dispatched Level 15 Sand Krakens and Level 17 Acid Spitters, utilizing the overwhelming power of the Divine Edge and the precise, cost-effective War God's Strike.
The students, however, struggled. They used their Rank F gear and basic Sprint Burst movements simply to keep pace. They were constantly winded, terrified, but driven by the absolute certainty that Archelius was their only chance.
"Archelius, how can you fight for so long without rest?" Theodore gasped during a brief water break, clutching his side. "Your energy is endless."
"I am operating on a different system," Archelius replied, offering no further explanation, maintaining the barrier between his power and their comprehension. He knew their fear of his power was essential for their discipline. "Rest when I say rest. We are near the Citadel."
Arrival at the Citadel
As the evening twilight deepened, they reached the valley. The Citadel was not a tower or a city, but a colossal, deep scar in the earth—a spiraling, inverted metropolis built into the rock, radiating a distinct, high-density magical signature. It was immense and silent, shrouded by faint, swirling mists.
[Nexus Detected: Citadel of Whispers. High-Level Energy Source.]
[Local Threats: Level 25+ Entities. Stealth: Critical.]
Level 25 was significantly higher than the Raptor. Archelius knew he couldn't engage a concentration of threats that high alone.
He halted the group outside the swirling mists.
"We stop here," Archelius ordered. "Theodore, set up the perimeter. Use the scale fragments to mask our scent. Raji, Lisa, you are on observation. Note every flicker of movement in those mists. We need information before we step into a Level 25 ambush."
They worked quickly and silently, their terror now replaced by a cold, drilled routine.
As they settled, Lisa, the illusionist, spoke up, her voice surprisingly steady. "Archelius, the mist... it feels like it's trying to trick my sight. Like it's showing things that aren't there."
"That's likely a passive defense mechanism," Archelius acknowledged. He knew Illusion magic was weak here, but Lisa's sensory perception was still intact. "What do you see?"
Lisa frowned, pointing into the swirling vapor. "A person. A young woman, walking toward the Citadel entrance. She looks like... she looks like Bethany."
The Vision of Bethany
Archelius felt a jolt of alarm. Bethany—the intelligent student who had always defended him—was Level 1, if she was lucky. If she was near the Citadel, she was walking into a massacre.
He immediately engaged his Map Function. The map confirmed an anomaly: a small, Level 1 humanoid signature moving slowly into the main nexus zone.
"It is her," Archelius confirmed, his voice tight. "She's heading into the highest threat area."
Raji looked panicked. "We have to rescue her! If Klaus is with her, they'll both be destroyed!"
"We don't know the threat, and a frontal assault would be suicide," Archelius stated, fighting the immediate, human urge to rush in. His logical mind—the one enforced by the System's logic—took over.
"Lisa, focus on the figure. Is she injured? Is she moving naturally?"
Lisa stared intently into the mist. "She's not moving naturally. She's slow. Like she's being led... or guided. Wait, there's another figure, hidden in the shadows, moving behind her."
[Warning: Proximal Level 30 Threat Detected. Entity Classification: Imposter.]
A Level 30 entity! That was a massive gap, even with his Rank E skills.
The Imposter was using Bethany as bait.
"It's a trap," Archelius hissed. "The Imposter is using her familiarity to lure in any survivors. Raji, activate Sprint Burst. We need to get close enough to engage the Imposter without entering the main Citadel zone. Theodore, cover Lisa and watch our backs."
Imposter 1
Archelius, Raji, Theodore, and Lisa moved rapidly but silently, skirting the perimeter of the mists. Raji's speed was essential, moving as a forward scout, while Archelius maintained a silent, deadly pace behind her.
They reached a point where the swirling mist thinned, allowing a clear, terrifying view of the scene.
Bethany was indeed there, standing frozen near a colossal, half-buried doorway. She looked unharmed, but her eyes were glazed and empty.
Behind her, coalescing from the shadows, stood the Level 30 Imposter. It was a tall, lean figure, shrouded in tattered black cloth, but its face was a blank, shifting void. It was holding a wickedly curved dagger against Bethany's throat.
[Threat: Imposter 1 (Level 30). Ability: Fear Manipulation (High). Vulnerability: Focus Disruption.]
"Come out, whoever you are," a smooth, chilling voice echoed from the Imposter, though its mouth did not move. "I sense a strong energy signature—stronger than this pathetic Core Zero you seem to care for."
Archelius stepped out from behind a rock, the Divine Edge springing to life, humming with violet Rank E energy.
"Let her go," Archelius commanded, his voice tight with controlled anger.
The Imposter chuckled, the sound like dry leaves scraping stone. "A Level 11 hero? How quaint. You have power, little mortal. I can sense the System energy. You are a threat to my masters, but you are still just a child."
The Imposter shifted its attention entirely to Archelius. "I will let the girl go, if you surrender that magnificent blade and the power that feeds it."
Archelius knew the Imposter wasn't bargaining; it was probing his weaknesses.
"My answer is no," Archelius stated, activating his Sprint Burst for immediate engagement.
The Imposter didn't move the dagger. Instead, it focused its mind, and a torrent of psychological, suffocating terror flooded Archelius's consciousness.
[Ability Activated: Fear Manipulation.]
Archelius was instantly slammed by the memory of his past failures: Klaus's sneering face, Sensei Kai's disappointment, the crushing feeling of being a Core Zero—all magnified a thousand times, screaming his worthlessness into his mind.
He stumbled, the overwhelming psychological attack shaking his focus. The Divine Edge flickered.
The Imposter saw its chance. It dropped Bethany—who fell unconscious—and lunged toward Archelius with frightening speed, the curved dagger aimed at his neck.
Countering Fear
The Imposter was Level 30, and the fear was crippling. Archelius, however, was no longer the boy who ran from Klaus. The System had replaced his weakness with cold, hard logic.
Fear is an illusion. My current reality is Rank E power. The Imposter must be defeated.
Archelius fought through the crushing psychological assault, focusing only on the single, absolute goal of survival. He channeled the full force of his Core Power into his will.
[System Warning: User is resisting Fear Manipulation. Core Power is being rapidly consumed.]
[Core Power: 80/100.]
He regained his focus just in time. The Imposter's dagger was inches from his face.
Archelius used a desperate Sprint Burst to pull back, dodging the lethal strike. The moment the Imposter was committed, Archelius moved.
He lunged forward, not with the powerful War God's Fist, but with the rapid, continuous slash of the War God's Strike and the Divine Edge.
The Rank E blade, empowered by pure System energy, met the Imposter's physical form. The Imposter shrieked—a sound of raw pain—as the strike hit.
The blade didn't pierce its body; it ripped through the Imposter's shadowy cloak, exposing a shifting, unstable mass of dark energy beneath.
"You pierce my shroud, little mortal!" the Imposter shrieked, its voice furious. "But your power is too small!"
The Imposter raised its hand, preparing a massive counter-attack—a projected bolt of solidified fear.
Archelius realized he couldn't win by attrition. He needed to hit harder than his Level 11 Rank E power allowed. He needed to exceed his limits.
He gripped the Divine Edge with both hands and channeled the absolute last reserves of his Core Power into a single, overwhelming surge, pushing the limit of the War God's Strike beyond its F+ threshold.
"Then take my power!" Archelius roared, his voice ringing with pure, unyielding will.
The Divine Edge blazed, not with violet, but with a pure, concentrated SILVER light—the color of the System's true core power.
He drove the massively overloaded Rank E blade straight into the center of the Imposter's unstable body mass.
SHRAAACK!
The Imposter screamed a final, agonizing shriek as the overwhelming, destabilizing System energy ripped through its being. It didn't just die; it disintegrated into a puff of black smoke and a single, heavy, shimmering black orb that clattered onto the stone.
[Imposter 1 (Level 30) Defeated. Dominance Kill Achieved!]
[XP Gained: 3000. Total XP: 3500/6400.]
[Core Power: 10/100 (Critical).]
Archelius stood over the defeated entity, the Divine Edge smoking, his body trembling from the critical Core Power drain. He had used ten times the recommended energy, but he had survived.
He immediately retrieved the black orb.
[New Resource Acquired: Imposter Core (High Grade) x 1.]
He rushed to Bethany, who was still unconscious but breathing. Theodore and Raji, emerging from their hiding spots, stared at the power display with speechless awe.
"We need to get her inside," Archelius commanded, his voice raw. "Theodore, carry her. Lisa, Raji, stay alert. The Citadel is active."
He had defeated a Level 30 entity at Level 11. His power was no longer just his skills; it was his sheer, unyielding will to push the System's limits. His next goal was clear: get to Level 15 and synthesize the Imposter Core.