Jaden woke later in Lisa's apartment.
She sat beside him, exhaustion written on every part of her posture, but she hadn't slept. She was watching him with an intensity that made his chest hurt.
"Lisa…" His voice was barely a whisper.
She leaned closer. "Are you okay? Can you breathe? Can you stand?"
He nodded weakly. "I… think so."
She hesitated. Then:
"You're changing."
The words struck him harder than any Shadow attack.
"Changing… how?"
Lisa looked away. "You speak languages no one taught you. You fight like something is guiding your arm. You hear voices. The dungeon reacts to you."
Jaden squeezed his eyes shut.
"And you're scared of me."
Lisa's head snapped up. "No. Not scared of you. Scared for you."
Jaden looked at her.
She wasn't lying.
Lisa took his hand.
"You're still you. As long as you're here… as long as you come back to me… I don't care who you were."
Jaden swallowed hard.
"Thank you."
A soft pulse of heat flickered in his chest. Not violent. Not painful. Gentle.
A warmth that felt almost like gratitude.
Lisa's eyes widened a little. "Your ember… it feels different."
Jaden frowned. "Different how?"
Lisa hesitated.
"It feels… alive."
Before Jaden could respond—
A shockwave ripped through the building.
Both of them jerked up. The air trembled, lights flickering as if a storm was passing through the walls themselves.
Lisa whispered, terrified, "Is it another Shadow?"
Jaden clutched his chest.
"No. It's… something else."
The ember pulsed faster.
Faster.
Faster.
A prelude to something inevitable.
Kane's voice echoed from the hall.
"Jaden. It's time."
Lisa stepped in front of Jaden. "No. He just came back. He needs rest."
Kane answered calmly.
"He needs to survive."
Jaden pushed himself up, legs unsteady but resolute.
Lisa grabbed his arm. "Jaden… please… don't go."
He met her eyes.
"I can't keep running."
She stared at him, heart breaking in silence.
The ember pulsed again, brighter.
Kane opened the door fully, eyes gleaming.
"Your flame awakens. Harrowing 0.1 will escalate. And before Chapter 100…"
He paused.
"You will face the first Shadow that kills you meaningfully."
Jaden felt his chest tighten.
"Why… meaningfully?"
Kane smiled.
"Because that is the death that makes kings."
Jaden's blood ran cold.
Lisa held his hand until she couldn't anymore.
And the ember inside him whispered its second name again.
Aethon.