As they drew closer to the center, Samael and Elizabeth caught sight of the ruins of a temple.
It was vast.Open to the sky.And even in decay, it still carried traces of an ancient majesty.
Broken columns rose like exposed bones, and the ground was stained with dried blood—so much blood that its stench had seeped into the air itself.
It wasn't old.
It was recent.
Whatever dwelled at the center…It had killed enough for the air to learn that smell.
And from the muffled sounds echoing within, it was still killing.
That was no ordinary creature.
It was a killing machine.
Peerless.
At the temple's entrance, ancient symbols were carved into the stone.Runes worn down by time… yet still legible.
Samael stepped closer, activating the translation spell.
The words formed slowly in his mind:
"Praise be to the Lady who rules the skies and the storms."
A prayer.
A temple devoted to the Goddess of Black Skies… Samael thought.
His gaze sharpened.
The Sea of Storms came from the Storm World.That island… it was the residence of a king.
The pieces began to fall into place.
If this is true… his thoughts raced. If this place truly belongs to him…
A name surfaced—heavy, oppressive, too dangerous to speak aloud.
Daeron.
Kings were what they called sovereigns.And in the Storm Realm…
There was only one.
A chill ran down Samael's spine.
Then another thought took shape.
Simpler.
More dangerous.
If this is Daeron's former domain… he thought, eyes glinting. Then there must be treasures.
Many of them.
"What is it?" Elizabeth asked, noticing the shift in his expression. "Did you find something?"
"Nothing," Samael replied automatically.
The word had barely left his lips—
When pain exploded in his core.
It wasn't faint.It wasn't gradual.
It was brutal. A warning.
Samael sucked in a sharp breath, his body stiffening for an instant.
But then—
When he raised his eyes, he saw Elizabeth clutch her temple, her face twisting in pain.
"What was that…?" she murmured, more to herself than to him.
Samael's eyes widened.
"You felt pain?" he asked, stunned.
That made no sense.
The punishment should have been his alone.
"You know something," Elizabeth said, staring at him. It wasn't a question.
His expression had betrayed him.
The silence that followed was heavy.
"My Aspect doesn't allow lies," Samael said at last. "When I lie… I feel pain."
He hesitated.
"But it shouldn't affect other people."
Elizabeth frowned.
"It must be the armor."
The answer came too fast.
And then… Samael understood.
Resonance.
Their souls were connected.
That was the reason.
"So," Elizabeth asked, "what did you lie about?"
If they had both felt pain, then it had been a meaningful lie.
"This island is Daeron's residence," Samael said.
"Who?" Elizabeth asked, clearly unfamiliar with the name.
"Someone from the past of the Dream Realm," he replied. "A figure I know."
It wasn't worth explaining further.That knowledge wouldn't help them survive.
"I see," Elizabeth said, already losing interest.
There were more pressing problems.
The sounds coming from the island's center continued.
Now, they could see.
Giant creatures were colliding ahead, even before they entered the temple.Each impact made the ground tremble.
Samael felt his body shudder.
Fear.
He had promised himself he would face his flaws.That he would accept his weaknesses.
But this…
This wasn't simple.
In truth, he had only created new problems.
Insecurity returned—silent and cruel.
Can I really change?Is it even possible?
"Let's go," Elizabeth said.
She had noticed his fear.
But there was no choice.
They had to cross this place if they wanted to escape.
And though she didn't show it…
Her hands trembled slightly.
She was afraid too.
They advanced slowly, each step measured with extreme care.
The closer they got, the clearer the sounds became—heavy impacts, flesh being torn apart, something slamming into stone with enough force to make the ground quake.
The temple revealed itself little by little.
It was a scene of absolute decay.
Ancient trees, twisted by time, grew where they shouldn't, breaking through the stone floor.Shattered benches lay scattered about—some split cleanly in half, others reduced to rubble.Near the center rested an old well, likely once used for offerings or prayers in another era.
Everything screamed abandonment.
But something was wrong.
Amid the signs of neglect…There were human footprints.
Recent ones.
Samael frowned.
That made no sense.
Unfortunately, with their nerves stretched thin and their focus locked on the sounds ahead, they failed to notice how close they truly were.
They passed a completely destroyed side structure.
And then…
They turned the final corner.
What they saw made Samael hold his breath.
A man stood at the center of the temple.
He had long, disheveled black hair that fell to his waist.He wore strange, ancient clothes—reminiscent of Japanese garments from another era—now torn, soaked in blood and saltwater.
In his hands…
A blade.
A kind of katana.
But it was no ordinary weapon.
The length of the blade changed at the man's will—sometimes short and precise, sometimes impossibly long for a normal human to wield.
And before him…
Four Sea Horrors.
Gigantic.
Each of them made the three fallen ones from before look almost adorable by comparison.
Corrupted creatures.
Rank: Corrupted.
Tentacles, uneven maws, bloated bodies warped by corruption—their mere movements sent the surrounding water exploding into violent waves.
Samael felt his stomach sink.
Four… he thought. Four Corrupted Horrors…
And yet—
The man was winning.
He moved like a living shadow.Every step was precise. Every strike, fatal.
The katana extended at the exact instant of impact, piercing carapace and flesh as if they were soaked paper.In the next moment, it shrank again, allowing movements that were fast—inhuman.
The Horrors roared.
The man did not.
There was no rage in his attacks.
No urgency.
Only cold efficiency.
A chill crawled down Samael's spine.
This…
This was not normal.
Elizabeth clenched her fist, eyes fixed on the scene.
They had arrived expecting to face a monster.
But what they found instead…
Was something far worse.