It started with the light.
Not lightning.
Not magic.
Something… wrong.
The clouds above the Guild Headquarters didn't just shift—
they split.
A thin line at first.
Barely noticeable.
Then wider.
And wider.
Like something behind them was pushing through.
Inside—
no one noticed immediately.
Not until—
The creature moved.
Not violently.
Not suddenly.
But sharply.
Its head lifted.
Chains tensed.
Silver eyes fixed upward—
through stone.
Through ceilings.
Through everything.
"…It comes."
Silence snapped.
Mika's head turned instantly.
"What."
The creature didn't look at him.
"It will not wait anymore."
Kuro's chest tightened.
"…The sky…"
The creature answered.
"Yes."
The ground trembled.
Not from below this time—
From above.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
Lucien looked up slowly.
"…I don't like that direction."
[We've officially run out of safe directions.]
A deafening crack echoed through the building.
Not nearby—
Not distant—
Everywhere.
Like the sky itself had broken.
Outside—
The clouds tore open.
Not parted.
Not cleared.
Torn.
A massive shape pressed through the rift—
Too large.
Too wrong.
Not fully visible—
But enough.
Enough for every living thing below to feel it.
Inside the Guild—
people screamed.
Not from sight—
From instinct.
From something older than fear.
Kuro staggered.
The pull returned.
Stronger than before.
Not calling—
Demanding.
His breath hitched.
"…It's—"
Mika grabbed him instantly.
"I've got you."
The moment their hands connected—
The pull weakened.
But didn't disappear.
Not this time.
[That's new. I hate that.]
Kuro's voice shook.
"…It's not asking anymore."
The creature's chains tightened violently.
"It will take."
The ceiling above them cracked.
Light—no—
absence—spilled through the fracture.
A long, black shape pressed against the opening.
Watching.
Searching.
Lucien screamed.
"WHY IS IT LOOKING THROUGH THE CEILING?!"
[Because doors are for normal problems.]
Mika stepped forward—
placing himself directly between Kuro and the ceiling.
Sword drawn.
Eyes sharp.
"Back."
Kuro didn't move.
Couldn't.
The pressure in his chest—
It was unbearable.
Like something inside him was trying to answer.
Trying to rise.
The creature moved again—
This time stepping forward.
Chains dragging.
Positioning itself between Kuro and the ceiling.
Not attacking.
Protecting.
"My king… step back."
Kuro shook his head weakly.
"…I can't…"
The voice came again.
Not outside.
Not above.
Inside him.
You belong to me.
Kuro's vision blurred.
"No…"
Mika tightened his grip.
"Kuro. Look at me."
Kuro tried.
Tried to focus.
Tried to stay.
But the pull—
It was tearing at something deeper now.
Not his body.
His identity.
The ceiling shattered.
Stone exploded outward.
And for the first time—
They saw it clearly.
An eye.
Massive.
Endless.
Filling the sky beyond the broken roof.
Locked directly onto Kuro.
Everything stopped.
No sound.
No breath.
Just that gaze.
Then—
It spoke.
Not in words.
In knowing.
Return.
Kuro's body moved.
One step forward.
Mika's grip snapped tighter.
"No."
Another step.
"Kuro—stop!"
Lucien grabbed his other arm.
"HEY—HEY—NO WALKING INTO SKY MONSTERS—BAD IDEA—"
[He's losing it.]
Kuro's voice cracked.
"…I can't stop…"
The creature roared.
Chains shattered outward—
Not breaking—
Expanding.
Wrapping.
A barrier.
Between Kuro—
And the eye.
The pull weakened.
For a second.
Just one.
Mika used it.
He pulled Kuro back—
hard.
Forcing him to his knees.
"Kuro—listen to me."
Kuro's breathing was uneven.
Shaking.
"Stay here."
"I'm trying—"
"Then try harder."
Blunt.
Harsh.
Real.
Kuro clenched his hands.
Above—
The eye narrowed.
The air warped.
The building groaned.
The creature stepped forward fully now.
Chains rising behind it like wings of metal.
Its voice thundered—
"No further."
The sky answered.
The rift widened.
And something began to descend.
Lucien whispered,
"…That's not good, right?"
[Lucien. If you ever ask that question again, I'm leaving.]
Mika didn't look away.
Didn't move.
Didn't hesitate.
"If it comes down here—"
His grip on Kuro tightened.
"…we end it here."
Kuro looked up.
At the eye.
At the tear in the sky.
At the thing that wanted him.
At the thing that felt like him.
And for the first time—
He understood something clearly.
It wasn't just trying to take him.
It was trying to become whole.
Kuro's voice came out quiet.
Shaking.
"…I won't go back."
The eye didn't blink.
Didn't move.
But the world did.
Because the moment Kuro refused—
The sky broke wider.
As if—
Something inside it—
Had just lost patience.