---
The forest had grown quiet, as if acknowledging the end of the battle.
The air grew heavier, and the scent of damp soil mixed with the remnants of scattered magic.
Arthur and Elyara sat facing each other, trying to catch their breaths after the fight that nearly took their lives.
---
Elyara was the first to break the silence.
— "Arthur…"
She lifted her eyes toward him, and in them was a gleam of gratitude—yet mixed with something else… worry?
— "Are you alright? You took so many hits."
He let out a faint, broken laugh shaped by exhaustion:
— "I'm fine… I think my body got used to pain over the past few minutes."
The system immediately commented, voice loud inside his head:
[Used to it? No, my dear, that's not adaptation… that's progressive muscular collapse. Congratulations!]
Arthur raised an eyebrow:
— "Please… not now."
Elyara looked around nervously:
— "That place… the cave… the monsters… none of it is natural. What power in this world could gather three monsters together in this area?"
— "The cave…" Arthur replied, thinking for a moment, "That place that trapped you… was it really connected to the Abyss?"
Her shoulders trembled involuntarily, as if the word itself carried a heavy darkness for her.
— "Yes… that dungeon wasn't an ordinary place. The cave was gripping my soul… as if it was waiting for the moment I chose to surrender."
She paused, then added:
— "I think I would have died there… or something worse."
Arthur placed his hand on the ground beside her—not touching her, but close enough for her to feel she wasn't alone—and said in a rough, quiet tone:
— "You're not going back in there."
— "And do you have the power to stop me?" she said with a sad smile.
— "No."
Then he added, "But I'll stop you anyway."
His answer was instinctive… almost emotional, if not for the coldness in his voice and the stiffness in his face.
Yet it made her fall silent for a long moment, as if the words touched something deeper than she expected.
---
Arthur stood up with difficulty, then extended his hand to her:
— "We should head back before another group of monsters shows up."
She took his hand without hesitation, but suddenly said:
— "Wait."
— "What?"
— "Your knees are shaking… are you sure you can stand?"
— "Yes."
And the moment he said it… he almost fell.
The system laughed:
[What a heroic lie. Should I tell her you lost 6% of your stamina? You know you only have 7% left, right?]
— "Your provocation is unnecessary."
— [I'm just trying to decorate the moment.]
---
The two began walking slowly out of the forest, but only minutes passed before Elyara suddenly stopped.
— "Arthur… did you hear that?"
He tightened his empty fist, ready to run as usual, while a notification box appeared in front of him.
[Detecting unstable mana vibrations… unknown entity approaching.]
— "This isn't the time for surprises!"
But Elyara murmured as she stared into the shadows between the trees:
— "No… I know that sound… I've heard it before."
— "Another monster?"
— "Worse…"
A massive figure emerged from the darkness—not quite a monster, and not entirely human.
It was covered in black lines resembling cracks, and dark mana leaked from it like mist.
Arthur asked with a coldness that suggested he had gotten used to hardship:
— "What is that?"
Elyara swallowed and said:
— "This… is a remnant of the Abyss. One of the beings that drove me out of the cave."
Then she added quietly:
— "It's stronger than the three monsters combined."
Arthur turned to the system:
— "Do you have a solution?"
— [Available solution: run. Run fast. Run without dignity.]
— "I'm serious!"
— [And so am I! You don't have the strength to fight it, and Elyara can barely recover her mana. If you fight it… survival chances are 3%.]
Arthur froze.
So did Elyara.
(She doesn't know about the system, but because of her power and sensitivity to mana, she can sense almost any danger.)
The creature began approaching… its heavy steps shaking the ground.
Then… suddenly, it stepped back.
Then again.
Then it disappeared into the shadows.
Arthur couldn't comprehend it:
— "What… just happened?"
But the system spoke in a deep voice for the first time:
[It didn't run away… it received a call.]
— "A call? From what?"
[From the Abyss itself.]
Arthur and Elyara exchanged silent looks… but a single feeling rooted itself in both their hearts:
What happened today…
was only the beginning.
---