The Greataxe slammed into the stone floor where Kaelen had been standing a millisecond before.
BOOM.
Shards of granite exploded outward like shrapnel. The force of the blow shook the entire labyrinth, causing the iron cage suspended over the acid pit to sway violently.
Toby screamed, clinging to the rusty bars.
"Run, little rat!" The Executioner roared, his voice muffled by a black hood. He didn't lift the axe; he dragged it, carving a furrow in the ground as he charged again.
Kaelen didn't run away. He ran deeper into the labyrinth.
'He's slow,' Kaelen analyzed, vaulting over a spike pit. 'But his reach is massive. And that axe... Rank C enchanted steel. Even with Null-Breaker, I can't parry a direct hit. My arms would shatter.'
The timer in the sky ticked down. 04:45.
The acid bubbled below, sending plumes of yellow, acrid smoke into the air. The Chimera—a nightmare mashup of lion and snake—circled the pit, waiting for the cage to drop.
Kaelen turned a corner and hit a dead end. A solid stone wall blocked his path to the center.
Behind him, the heavy scraping of the axe grew louder.
"Trapped!" Rian's voice echoed from the commentary box, glee dripping from every syllable. "It seems the Sin Eater has nowhere left to hide!"
Kaelen turned around. He sheathed his sword. He stood with his back to the wall, waiting.
The Executioner rounded the corner. Seeing his prey cornered, the giant man laughed—a wet, gurgling sound.
"Execution time."
He raised the Greataxe high. The blade glowed crimson. [Skill: Decapitate].
Kaelen waited. He watched the muscles in the Executioner's arms bunch up. He watched the swing begin.
'Now.'
[Shadow Step.]
Kaelen dissolved into a blur of darkness. He didn't step back; he stepped forward, passing directly under the arc of the axe.
The axe descended. There was no Kaelen to hit.
CRASH!
The Rank C weapon slammed into the stone wall with the force of a wrecking ball. The wall didn't just crack; it exploded.
Kaelen reappeared behind the Executioner, dusting off his shoulder.
"Thanks for opening the door," Kaelen deadpanned.
He kicked the Executioner in the back of the knee. The giant stumbled but didn't fall. Kaelen didn't wait. He sprinted through the hole the axe had made, straight toward the central acid pit.
He reached the edge.
The cage hung five meters out, suspended by a single thick chain. The mechanism to lower it was on the far side. The Chimera was prowling on a narrow ledge below.
"Kaelen!" Toby sobbed, seeing him. "Help me!"
"Hold on, Toby," Kaelen whispered.
But before he could jump, a massive hand grabbed his ankle.
The Executioner had recovered faster than expected.
"You go nowhere!" the giant roared. He yanked Kaelen back, throwing him onto the stone floor. The impact knocked the wind out of him.
[-50 HP]
The Executioner loomed over him, raising the axe again.
"You die first. Then the boy melts."
Kaelen looked at the timer. 02:30.
He looked at the cage. Then he looked at the Executioner's axe.
An idea formed. A cold, ruthless calculation.
"You want to kill the boy?" Kaelen asked, coughing blood.
He rolled to the side, dodging the downward chop. He scrambled to his feet, but instead of attacking the Executioner, Kaelen jumped onto the narrow stone bridge that led to the central mechanism.
He didn't run to the controls. He stopped in the middle of the bridge, directly over the acid.
"Come and get me," Kaelen taunted.
The Executioner charged onto the bridge. "I will chop you into pieces!"
He swung horizontally. A wide, sweeping slash meant to cut Kaelen in half.
Kaelen ducked.
The axe sailed over his head.
And struck the chain holding the cage.
CLANG.
The chain snapped.
The crowd screamed.
"No!" Seraphina shouted from the stands.
The heavy iron cage plummeted. Toby shrieked as he fell toward the boiling green acid and the waiting Chimera.
Rian jumped out of his seat in the VIP box. "He killed him! He tricked the Executioner into killing the hostage!"
The Executioner froze, realizing what he had done. He looked down at the falling cage.
In that split second of distraction, Kaelen moved.
He didn't attack the Executioner.
He jumped off the bridge.
He dove after the cage.
Gravity took hold. Kaelen fell faster than the cage, his body streamlined. He caught up to the iron box in mid-air.
He grabbed the bars with one hand.
With the other, he drew his Mithril Sword.
Below them, the Chimera roared, leaping up from the ledge to catch the falling snacks. Its snake-tail lashed out, fangs dripping with venom.
"Not today," Kaelen growled.
He activated [Null-Breaker: Mana Sever].
He didn't strike the monster. He struck the air in front of it. He vibrated the sword at such a high frequency that it created a sonic boom.
BOOM.
The shockwave slammed into the mid-air Chimera, stunning it. The beast faltered, its jump trajectory ruined.
It fell back into the acid.
HISS.
The Chimera screamed as it dissolved instantly.
But the cage was still falling.
Kaelen looked at the acid surface rushing up to meet them.
"Toby!" Kaelen roared. "Center of the cage! Now!"
He swung himself on top of the cage.
He sheathed his sword. He channeled every ounce of his stamina into his legs.
[Skill: Impact Absorption (Passive - Abyssal Vestige).]
Just as the cage hit the surface of the acid—or rather, the dissolving body of the Chimera floating on top of it—Kaelen stomped.
He kicked the cage down.
Action and Reaction.
By kicking the cage down into the Chimera's corpse, Kaelen launched himself up.
At the same time, the force of his kick pushed the cage deep into the burning sludge, but the Chimera's massive body acted as a momentary raft, protecting the iron from melting instantly.
Kaelen flew through the air, grabbing the dangling remnants of the broken chain five meters above.
He swung like a pendulum.
"Gotcha."
He wrapped his legs around the chain. He reached down.
The cage bobbed back up to the surface, the metal sizzling. The acid was eating through the floor. Toby was scrambling up the bars to escape the rising liquid.
Kaelen extended his hand.
"Jump!"
Toby didn't hesitate. He leaped from the melting cage.
Kaelen caught his wrist.
The strain tore at Kaelen's shoulder socket. [-10 HP].
But he held on.
He hung there, suspended over the deadly fumes, holding his childhood friend with one hand and the chain with the other.
The cage below them finally dissolved and sank.
The crowd was dead silent. They had just watched a man dive into acid and cheat death with physics and madness.
High above on the bridge, the Executioner stared down.
"You..." the giant rumbled. "You are insane."
Kaelen looked up. His eyes were burning violet, visible even from the distance.
"I'm efficient," Kaelen rasped.
He began to climb the chain, one-handed, hauling Toby up with him.
The Executioner raised his axe to cut the chain at the anchor point.
"Don't do it!" Vex shouted from the stands.
But before the Executioner could strike, a gong sounded.
GONG.
The timer in the sky froze. 00:00.
[System Announcement.]
[Match End.]
[Reason: Hostage Secured. Time Elapsed.]
The Executioner froze. The System's rules were absolute. If he attacked now, he would be obliterated by the arena's failsafe wards.
Kaelen climbed over the railing of the bridge, pulling Toby to safety. The boy was sobbing, shaking uncontrollably, but he was alive. Unharmed.
Kaelen stood up. He looked at the Executioner, who was lowering his axe in frustration.
Kaelen walked up to the giant.
"You swung at a child," Kaelen whispered.
The Executioner sneered. "I was following or—"
SMACK.
Kaelen didn't use a sword. He slapped the Executioner. Hard.
It was the ultimate disrespect.
"Get out of my sight," Kaelen ordered. "Before I decide the match isn't over."
The Executioner looked at the small boy, then at the monster who had just dived into acid to save him. He felt a chill that had nothing to do with the wind.
He turned and walked away.
[Ding!]
[Quest Complete: The Butcher's Dilemma.]
[Objective: Win Match (Check).]
[Secondary Objective: Save Hostage (Check).]
[Rating: S.]
[Reward: Access to Floor 3 of Pocket Dungeon unlocked.]
[Bonus Reward: 10,000 SC (Performance Bonus).]
Kaelen knelt down next to Toby. He touched the boy's shoulder.
"Are you hurt?"
"K-Kaelen?" Toby wiped his eyes, looking at his friend. Kaelen looked terrifying—burn marks on his clothes, eyes cold as ice. But his hand was warm. "You came back."
"I always come back," Kaelen said softly.
He stood up, lifting Toby into his arms.
He looked at the VIP box. Rian was gripping the railing so hard the metal was bending.
Kaelen didn't smile. He didn't taunt.
He simply nodded. Your move.