The citadel screamed its final breath.
Stone fractured violently, ancient walls collapsing inward as the structure reached the end of its existence. Dark sigils flickered erratically across the captain's body as the Psyche Lord staggered.
Then the vessel began to disintegrate.
Cracks spread across the captain's skin like shattered porcelain. Flesh turned to ash, bones glowing briefly before crumbling away. The Psyche Lord hissed in irritation as his borrowed body failed completely.
""Tch… useless," the Psyche Lord muttered, irritation cutting through his fading arrogance. "This body can no longer contain me."
Sylas felt it instantly.
The pull.
The pressure of an external soul searching for purchase.
[Alert]
{External Soul destabilizing
Vessel Integrity: Critical}
Blood streamed down Sylas's arms and legs. His body was already breaking—ribs cracked, muscles torn, vision blurred. Every breath burned. He could barely stand.
Yet his mind remained cold.
Clear.
Information surfaced effortlessly.
{Dual-Soul crystal (Prototype)
Core Function: Soul Binding & Transfer
Limitation: Upon entering a new vessel, the crystal becomes the sole anchor
Destruction of the crystal results in annihilation of the bound external soul}
Sylas understood.
Perfectly.
The Psyche Lord was powerful—but bound.
Bound to the crystal.
Bound to rules he believed no one else could see.
And now, desperate.
Two potential vessels stood nearby.
Sylas.
And the princess.
The Psyche Lord reached out—
And Sylas moved.
He screamed—not in fear, but in timing—and stumbled forward, deliberately colliding with the princess asanother violent tremor shook the tunnel. The crystal tore free from the collapsing chamber, skidding across the stone between them.
The Psyche Lord lunged.
But Sylas had already acted.
He shoved the princess forward, directly into the path of the drifting soul. At the same time, he twisted his body away, crushing the crystal beneath his heel with every ounce of strength he had left.
The sound was sharp.
Final.
The crystal shattered.
Light erupted.
The Psyche Lord's soul screamed as it was torn apart mid-transfer—half embedded in the princess, half unraveling into nothingness. Her body stiffened, eyes wide with terror she never had time to voice.
Then—
Silence.
Her soul collapsed inward, unable to withstand the intrusion. Two incompatible existences annihilated each other in a flash of pale light.
The princess fell.
Lifeless.
The Psyche Lord was gone.
[External Soul: Psyche Lord — Erased]
Sylas stood over the remains, chest heaving, heart steady.
He felt no triumph.
No guilt.
Only confirmation.
The tunnel shook violently as the last of the citadel collapsed behind them, sealing the chamber forever. Dust filled the air, choking and thick, but Sylas did not move until the echoes faded.
He looked at the princess's body once.
You were never my shield, he thought calmly. You were my solution.
Survival demanded sacrifice.
And he had chosen correctly.
Sylas stood over the remains, chest heaving, heart steady.
He felt no triumph.
No guilt.
Only confirmation.
The tunnel shook violently as the last of the citadel collapsed behind them, sealing the chamber forever. Dust filled the air, choking and thick, but Sylas did not move until the echoes faded.
He looked at the princess's body once.
You were never my shield, he thought calmly. You were my solution.
Survival demanded sacrifice.
And he had chosen correctly.
Sylas fell to one knee.
Blood poured freely now—from his mouth, his nose, countless wounds he hadn't even felt yet. His vision darkened at the edges, consciousness slipping like sand through his fingers.
The citadel finally collapsed completely.
The thunder faded.
Silence followed.
Sylas lay on the cold stone floor, body barely holding together, breath shallow and uneven. His limbs refused to move. Pain dulled into something distant, almost irrelevant.
Then—
Light enveloped him.
A familiar presence returned.
Cold. Neutral. Absolute.
[Trial Complete]
[Result :Survival
Talent Status: Awakening in progess ]
His vision blured
Sylas's consciousness slipped into darkness, a single thought passed through his fading mind—
I survived