"Ronan!"
"Yes, Ela. What happened?"
Ela stood near the doorway, her hands trembling slightly.
"I want to see Limbo."
Ronan's expression changed.
"Why? What happened?"
"I don't know..."
Ela lowered her gaze, one hand pressing against her chest.
"I'm feeling restless."
She took a shaky breath.
"I want to be there with him."
"Right now."
Ronan stared at her.
"Right now? But how's that possible?"
Ela's eyes suddenly filled with tears.
"Please..."
Her voice broke.
"I'm..."
She struggled to continue.
"I don't have a good feeling."
Ronan immediately panicked.
"Wait. Let me think."
He looked around helplessly.
"What do I do... what do I do?"
Then his expression suddenly changed.
"Ahh, yeah."
"I'll go to Elder Chaya. She might help."
As he was about to step outside, several figures approached the house.
Elder Chaya had arrived, accompanied by Elder Caya and Rin's mother.
Chaya immediately noticed Ela's tearful face.
"What happened?"
She looked toward Ronan.
"Why are you going out in such a hurry?"
Then her gaze returned to Ela.
"And why is Ela crying?"
Ronan quickly explained.
"I don't know."
"She suddenly said she wants to see Limbo."
"She said she's feeling restless."
Rin's mother looked at Ela for a moment before speaking softly.
"I know that feeling."
Everyone looked toward her.
"When children are away from home..."
She gave a faint, understanding smile.
"...a mother's heart is always restless."
Ela wiped her tears.
"It's not that..."
"I know I'm worried because he's far away."
"But this feels different."
Her voice trembled again.
"I just..."
"I want to see him."
"Please."
Chaya watched her carefully.
"Have you felt anything?"
Ela shook her head.
"No."
"Nothing that I can explain."
"Then why..."
She pressed her hand against her chest again.
"...why does it feel like something is wrong?"
Silence settled over the room.
Ronan looked toward Chaya.
"Can we contact the Guardian?"
Ela immediately looked up.
"Maybe he knows where Limbo is."
Chaya's expression remained calm.
"Unfortunately, no."
Ela froze.
"No?"
"He hasn't contacted us."
"Not now."
Chaya paused.
"And I don't know why."
Ronan clenched his hand.
The answer didn't reassure him.
It only made the strange feeling worse.
Ela lowered her head.
"Then..."
She whispered,
"How can I see him?"
Nobody answered.
Because none of them had an answer.
And somewhere far away...
Something had already happened.
The battlefield had changed.
Completely.
The ground was torn apart.
Broken trees lay scattered across the corrupted earth.
The transparent barrier still stood...
But barely.
Almost half of its surface had been damaged.
Cracks spread across it like a web, glowing faintly before disappearing and forming again.
Corrupted corpses covered the ground.
Some were burned.
Some were crushed.
Others had been torn apart by the earlier attacks.
A fresh, rotten smell of corrupted blood filled the air.
The battlefield that had once been filled with movement...
Was strangely quiet.
Too quiet.
What happened?
What had gone wrong?
Limbo...
Was lying on the ground.
His clothes were torn.
Blood stained his lips.
He coughed weakly.
"Kh..."
More blood escaped from his mouth.
His fingers moved slightly against the dirt.
He tried to push himself up.
His arm trembled.
But his body refused.
For several seconds, he remained there.
Breathing.
Barely.
Was he unconscious?
Was he dead?
No one could tell.
Not from where Mora stood.
The little girl was frozen.
Tears covered her face.
She didn't scream.
She didn't run.
She didn't even move.
Her eyes were fixed on something in front of her.
As if she had lost her will...
Or perhaps even her soul had stopped responding to what her eyes were seeing.
"Granny..."
Her voice was almost inaudible.
Adri stood between her and the battlefield.
But she wasn't looking at Limbo.
She was facing someone else.
Someone...
She had never expected to appear here.
Adri's expression remained calm.
Yet her stance had changed.
Her body was tense.
Her eyes were sharp.
And for the first time...
There was something unusual hidden beneath her calmness.
She was struggling.
Not simply because her opponent was strong.
It was something else.
Adri was holding back.
Why?
That question remained unanswered.
The figure standing before her didn't give her the chance to explain.
A heavy pressure spread through the battlefield.
Dark.
Oppressive.
Ancient.
Even the corrupted creatures around them seemed to react to the presence.
Traka watched from the shadows.
Then...
He laughed.
"Hahahaha..."
His laughter echoed through the corrupted forest.
"This..."
He looked across the battlefield with fascination.
"...is truly fascinating."
Another laugh escaped him.
"Delightful."
His eyes shone with excitement.
"I loved this..."
The corrupted creatures surrounding him remained silent.
None dared interrupt.
Traka's gaze moved across the battlefield.
The broken barrier.
The corpses.
The blood.
Adri.
Mora.
And finally...
Limbo.
"How wonderful..."
He whispered.
The situation had developed far beyond an ordinary assault.
This was no longer simply about breaking a barrier.
Something had appeared.
Something even Traka seemed delighted to witness.
Adri tightened her grip.
Her opponent took one step forward.
The ground cracked beneath the pressure.
Adri's eyes narrowed.
She could fight.
She knew she could.
But...
Not freely.
Something prevented her from using everything she possessed.
Her gaze briefly shifted toward Mora.
The child was still crying.
Still frozen.
Still staring.
Adri's expression hardened.
She couldn't let the battle reach her.
Not now.
Not like this.
Another movement came from the enemy.
Adri raised her hand.
Energy surged around her.
The collision between the two forces shook the surrounding forest.
BOOM!
The damaged barrier trembled violently.
Mora flinched.
Her tears continued falling.
"Granny..."
Adri didn't look back.
"Stay behind me."
Her voice remained gentle.
Even now.
Even in this situation.
"Don't move."
Mora couldn't answer.
Her lips trembled.
Her eyes returned to Limbo.
He was still on the ground.
Still breathing.
Barely.
The questions remained.
What happened to him?
Why was he down?
Who was the opponent standing before Adri?
And why...
Why did Mora look as though something inside her had been shattered?
Far away, in Naval Village...
Ela suddenly stopped crying.
Her eyes widened.
She grabbed her chest.
"Limbo..."
Ronan immediately turned toward her.
"Ela?"
She didn't answer.
A tear rolled down her cheek.
"I..."
Her voice trembled.
"I don't know why..."
"But..."
She looked toward the distant horizon.
"I feel like something happened to my son."
And beyond the horizon...
The battle continued.
Neither side had given an answer.
Not yet.