Chapter 3 — The Nightmare Cave
Cold.
That was the first thing Kelvin felt.
Cold seeping into his skin, crawling along his spine like something alive.
The second thing was pain.
A dull ache throbbed behind his eyes, and when he tried to move, a sharp pressure bit into his wrists and ankles.
"…Tch…"
Kelvin's eyes snapped open.
Darkness filled his vision.
No—
not darkness.
Stone.
Jagged gray stone stretched above and below him. He was hanging upside down, bound tightly by thick, rough ropes tied around his legs and arms. Blood rushed to his head, making the world feel heavy and slow.
"Great…" he muttered. "This again."
He twisted slightly, testing the ropes. They didn't give.
The air was damp and cold, smelling of dust and something worse—something rotten.
Then he heard it.
Drip… drip…
Somewhere below him, water fell slowly onto stone. The sound echoed through the cavern, distant and hollow.
Kelvin turned his head.
Below him was a massive open space, a deep hollow in the cave floor. Thick stone pillars rose up from the darkness like broken teeth.
And moving between them…
…were monsters.
Eight tall figures of living sandstone shuffled slowly across the cavern floor. Their bodies were rough and cracked, glowing faintly from within with a dull amber light. Each step they took made the ground vibrate slightly.
Sandstone Wardens.
Kelvin's breath caught in his throat.
They had no eyes.
No mouths.
Just massive, armored shapes that moved with eerie precision, as if the cave itself was guiding them.
"Blind…" Kelvin whispered. "But they can feel vibrations."
If he fell…
He wouldn't even hit the ground before they tore him apart.
"Yeah. That's how they get you."
A calm voice spoke from nearby.
Kelvin's eyes snapped to the side.
Another figure hung from the stone ceiling, only a few meters away from him.
A girl.
She was suspended the same way he was, bound upside down by rope, long silver hair hanging freely toward the floor. Despite the situation, her expression was strangely composed.
Sharp emerald eyes studied him with interest.
"Nice to meet you," she said casually. "You're awake earlier than most."
"…Who are you?" Kelvin asked.
"Silvia."
She tilted her head slightly.
"And you?"
"Kelvin. Professional bad-luck magnet."
Silvia almost smiled.
"You picked a bad place to nap, Kelvin. This is a feeding cave."
"Figures."
Below them, one of the sandstone creatures paused, its body tilting slightly, as if sensing something.
Silvia lowered her voice.
"They feel movement. Sound. Even breathing, if it's loud enough."
Kelvin went still.
"…How long have you been here?"
"Long enough to watch three people die."
His jaw tightened.
"Trying to struggle?"
"Trying to pray. Same result."
A low scraping sound echoed through the cave.
Another captive—someone Kelvin hadn't noticed—was tied a few meters away, shaking violently.
"Hey!" Silvia hissed. "Don't—!"
Too late.
The ropes snapped.
The man fell.
His scream didn't even finish.
The moment his body hit the stone floor—
BOOM.
The cavern erupted.
The Sandstone Wardens lunged at once, massive limbs crashing down where he had fallen. Stone shattered. Dust exploded into the air.
When it cleared…
There was nothing left.
Silvia closed her eyes.
"…Told him."
Kelvin swallowed hard.
His heart hammered in his chest.
"Yeah," he muttered. "Not my idea of a good death."
Silvia looked at him.
"So. What now, hero?"
Kelvin stared at the ropes holding him.
At the monsters below.
At the long drop beneath his head.
He exhaled slowly.
"I didn't survive Transvine," he said quietly, "just to die hanging from a ceiling."
Silvia blinked.
"…What are you planning?"
Kelvin shifted his weight slightly.
"Something stupid."
The ropes creaked.
Silvia's eyes widened.
"Kelvin, don't—"
He started swinging.
Back.
Forward.
Back.
Each motion sent tiny vibrations through the rope and stone.
Below, the Wardens paused.
"Are you insane?!" Silvia whispered urgently.
"Probably!"
He swung harder.
The rope stretched.
The stone above cracked.
"Kelvin—!"
With one final violent motion, the knot gave way.
He dropped.
For a split second, he was falling straight toward the monsters.
Then—
BOOM.
Kelvin slammed into the ground, rolling as the impact sent a shockwave through the cavern.
Every Sandstone Warden turned toward him.
"Thousand—" Kelvin coughed, pushing himself up, "—Falling Death Blades!"
Energy flared.
Blades of condensed force erupted into the air above him, forming a deadly rain of shining weapons.
They fell.
Like judgment.
The blades crashed down into the Wardens, piercing stone, shattering bodies, ripping through their massive forms. Dust and fragments exploded everywhere as one by one, the creatures collapsed into rubble.
Silence returned.
Kelvin stood there, breathing hard, dust settling around him.
He looked up.
Silvia was still hanging upside down, staring at him in disbelief.
"…You're insane."
Kelvin wiped blood from his lip.
"Yeah. But I'm alive."
He flicked a small blade of energy upward, slicing through her rope.
Silvia dropped.
"Hey—!"
Thud.
"Ow! My head!" she groaned. "You couldn't aim a little better?!"
"You're alive. Be grateful."
She pushed herself up, rubbing her head.
"You're the worst kind of hero."
Kelvin smirked faintly.
"Never said I was one."
They stood there for a moment, surrounded by shattered stone monsters.
"…Thanks," Silvia said quietly. "Most people would've run."
"I don't run anymore."
A heavy step echoed through the cavern.
Both of them froze.
Boom.
Another.
The air itself seemed to grow heavier.
Silvia's face drained of color.
"No… no no no…"
Kelvin turned to her.
"What?"
"That wasn't the real threat."
From the darkness beyond the broken pillars, something massive began to move.
A towering shape stepped into the light—its body clad in black, obsidian-like armor, glowing red cracks pulsing beneath the surface. One arm was a jagged blade, larger than Kelvin's entire body.
Its eyes burned like dying stars.
A Sword Servant.
Its voice was deep, grinding, filled with rage.
"You…"
It looked at the shattered Wardens.
"My slaves.
My food."
It raised its blade.
"Gone?"
Silvia backed away in terror.
Kelvin stepped forward.
The monster lunged.
CLANG!
Kelvin blocked the strike, barely, sliding backward across the stone.
Silvia stared at his back.
"W-what just…?"
Kelvin grinned, eyes sharp and unafraid.
"Stay behind me."
The Sword Servant growled.
"Human… you will kneel."
Kelvin lifted his blade.
"Heh…"
"Try me." 🔥