They didn't stop running until their lungs burned and the world behind them faded into noise.
The ruins of the school gave way to something that had never existed before—a fractured valley where concrete roads bled into moss-covered stone, where streetlights stood beside rune-carved obelisks humming with mana. The sky above churned slowly, clouds folding into one another as if reality itself was still deciding what shape it wanted to be.
Only when the ground finally stopped trembling did Lucas raise a fist.
"Here," he said. "This is far enough. For now."
They collapsed behind the twisted remains of a bus half-fused with the roots of a massive tree. The bark glowed faintly blue, pulsing like a heartbeat.
For several seconds, no one spoke.
Then Elena's knees gave out.
Leon caught her again before she hit the ground. This time, she didn't even try to pretend she wasn't shaking. She buried her face into his chest, fingers clenched tightly in his shirt.
"I couldn't breathe," she whispered. "When that thing screamed… I thought my heart was going to stop."
Leon felt it then.
Not fear.
Weight.
Her fear. Her trust. Her belief that as long as she held onto him, she might live.
Something deep inside him twisted painfully.
"It's okay," he murmured, voice gentler than he remembered ever sounding. "I won't let anything happen to you."
Lucas looked away.
He had heard those words before.
In another life, Leon had said them while standing on a mountain of corpses.
The System chimed.
Not loud.
Not dramatic.
Almost… apologetic.
[Combat Resolution Detected]
[Threat Survived: Gate Warden Encounter (Indirect)]
[Performance Evaluation: Abnormal]
Golden light wrapped around Leon first.
It wasn't explosive like before. It seeped into him slowly, like molten metal filling cracks he hadn't known were there.
[Level Up!]
[Leon – Level 1 → Level 7]
[Stat Gains Adjusted by Emperor Authority]
[All Attributes: +15]
[New Passive Unlocked: Sovereign's Presence (Sealed)]
[Condition: Administrator Attention Detected]
Leon stiffened.
"…Sealed?" he muttered.
Lucas's screen lit up next.
[Level Up!]
[Lucas – Level 1 → Level 4]
[Unique Class Effect: Vanguard of the Forgotten]
[Bonus EXP Gained from Ignored Conflicts]
[New Skill Unlocked: Last Stand (Dormant)]
Lucas exhaled slowly.
So that's how it works now.
Ignored conflicts. Forgotten battles. The scraps left behind when the Gods looked elsewhere.
That's where I grow.
Elena gasped as her own screen appeared.
[Level Up!]
[Elena – Level 1 → Level 3]
[Class Confirmed: Bastion Warden]
[Trait Unlocked: Unyielding Guard]
She blinked through her tears. "I… I leveled up?"
Leon nodded slowly, eyes still fixed on his own notifications. "So did we."
But something was wrong.
The power settling into Leon didn't feel right.
It wasn't burning. It wasn't overwhelming.
It was… restrained.
Like a crown forced onto a bowed head.
Leon clenched his fists.
"Lucas," he said quietly. "Why does it feel like the System is… holding me back?"
Lucas's jaw tightened.
Because you're not part of the show right now.
Because the Architect hasn't decided what to do with you yet.
Because being ignored is safer—but it's also a cage.
"Because," Lucas said instead, choosing his words carefully, "you're too noticeable when you shine. So the System is dimming you until the Gods decide they want you again."
Elena looked up sharply. "That's horrible."
Leon let out a small, humorless laugh. "So I'm… benched."
"No," Lucas said. "You're hidden."
Leon stared at the warped horizon. Far away, pillars of light stabbed into the sky—zones where Gates had fully opened, where monsters rampaged freely under divine observation.
He could feel it.
If he stepped into one of those lights…
The seal would break.
The System would notice.
And so would the Architect.
Leon swallowed.
"…I don't like being small," he admitted.
Elena tightened her grip on his sleeve. "I don't care how strong you are. Just don't disappear."
Those words hit harder than any monster.
Leon nodded slowly. "I won't."
Lucas turned back toward them, eyes burning with quiet resolve.
"This is the price," he said. "We grow in the shadows. We level where no one's watching. We survive the parts of the apocalypse that aren't worth broadcasting."
Leon met his gaze.
"And when they finally look back?" Leon asked.
Lucas's smile was thin and dangerous.
"Then they'll realize they let something grow where they weren't paying attention."
Above them, the sky thundered as another Gate opened somewhere far away.
The Gods cheered.
They had no idea what they had missed.