The space within the Seventh Lower Dimension was no longer still.
The battle Kim had fought was not merely a clash with guardians.
It had been an announcement.
The energy he released…
chaos mixed with a strange weight behind it…
had reached the palace suspended in the heights.
The ruler sat upon his throne of bone.
His crimson eyes were half-closed.
He was not angry.
He was… curious.
"Not one of the Keepers…
nor of any known bloodline."
He raised a finger slightly.
The void before him tore open.
From within it stepped a tall figure.
A dull black armor covered his body.
A dark cloak moved without wind.
Two short, sharp horns rose from his head.
And cold silver eyes stared without emotion.
He knelt on one knee.
"My lord."
The ruler spoke calmly:
"There is an intruder killing without permission.
Test him."
A pause.
"If he is merely an insect… end him.
If he is more…"
"Inform me."
The commander lifted his head.
He did not smile.
But he vanished.
Below…
Kim stood among the ruins of a shattered island.
His breathing had returned to a steadier rhythm.
His body was still fragile.
But stable.
The gate in his chest was silent.
Suddenly—
The temperature dropped.
Space itself grew heavier.
Not chaotic pressure.
But a presence.
Organized.
Disciplined.
Footsteps sounded behind him.
He did not turn immediately.
The voice spoke:
"You kill the guardians of the bloodline…
yet you do not belong to it."
The calm in the tone was more dangerous than anger.
Kim slowly turned.
He saw him.
The commander.
He was not enormous.
Nor blazing with excessive power.
He was… solid.
Focused.
As if every ounce of his strength was compressed perfectly within his form.
The System whispered:
"Classification: Elite Commander.
Threat Level: Extremely High.
Current capability: Insufficient for prolonged direct confrontation."
Kim ignored the analysis.
He spoke quietly:
"So the king sent you."
The commander did not answer.
In an instant—
He vanished.
Then appeared directly before him.
A palm strike aimed at Kim's chest.
It was no ordinary blow.
A complex demonic seal burned within it.
Kim barely raised his arm to block.
The collision—
did not explode outward.
It compressed inward.
His body slid dozens of meters across the ground.
The island cracked.
The gate in his chest trembled.
Internal warning.
Dangerous.
Kim stood with difficulty.
The commander did not advance.
He spoke coldly:
"Unstable energy inside your chest.
You are not balanced."
His silver eyes narrowed slightly.
"But… your blood."
A brief silence.
"Your blood is not entirely human."
At that moment—
The commander attacked again.
This time with a black sword emerging from the void.
The strike sliced through the air itself.
Kim bent at the last second.
The edge cut across his shoulder.
Blood fell.
But—
It was not ordinary blood.
The drops burned upon the ground.
Turning into small demonic circles.
The commander stopped.
For the first time—
a subtle change appeared in his eyes.
"This…"
Kim touched his bleeding shoulder.
He looked at the blood.
He felt something moving inside him.
Not the gate.
But inheritance.
Something older than chaos.
The commander spoke quietly:
"Who are you?"
Kim raised his eyes to meet his.
Calm.
Exhausted.
But steady.
"Ask him."
A brief pause.
"Your lord."
Space trembled faintly.
In the upper palace…
The ruler felt a slight shift in the energy of the battle.
This time he rose slowly.
His crimson eyes burned brighter.
He whispered:
"That resonance…"
And for the first time…
he was not sure whether what he felt was a threat—
or something he had been waiting for
for a very long time.
The battle had not ended.
It had transformed.
The commander was no longer fighting a mere intruder.
He had begun to doubt.
And the father…
had begun to feel something unfamiliar in his blood.