The rooftop had become something else entirely.
What was once cracked concrete and broken machinery was now a dense garden of twisting vines and blooming flowers. Roots pushed through the rooftop floor like veins of living earth, spreading outward from where Persephone stood.
Kim Dokja looked around slowly.
"…Yep. This building is definitely not surviving the next ten minutes."
Yoo Joonghyuk stood across the garden, his sword glowing faintly with golden stigma energy.
His breathing remained steady.
But the weight in the air had changed.
This was no longer a simple trial.
It had become a clash between two forces the Star Stream could barely categorize.
Above them, the administrator's massive geometric eye pulsed again.
[Administrator Trial: Phase 2]
Dokja frowned.
"Oh great."
Persephone tilted her head slightly.
"Phase two."
Yoo Joonghyuk's gaze hardened.
"That means the system believes the current balance is insufficient."
Dokja nodded.
"In other words… they're about to escalate things."
The administrator's voice echoed across the city.
"Champion has not achieved sufficient progress."
"Narrative reinforcement authorized."
The sky flashed.
A new system window appeared in front of Yoo Joonghyuk.
[Hidden Stigma Released]
Dokja's eyes widened.
"…Wait."
Yoo Joonghyuk stared at the message.
Then his expression darkened slightly.
Golden energy exploded around his body.
The air itself rippled as the stigma fully awakened.
Even the vines across the rooftop recoiled slightly from the sudden surge of power.
Persephone watched with interest.
"You are becoming stronger again."
"Yes."
Yoo Joonghyuk lifted his sword.
The blade hummed with overwhelming energy now.
"This is the system's way of forcing victory."
Dokja sighed.
"They're literally buffing the protagonist."
The constellations erupted in excitement.
[Constellations are thrilled by the escalation!]
[Several constellations are betting heavily on the champion.]
[Constellation 'Demon-like Judge of Fire' is screaming encouragement.]
Persephone glanced at the sky.
"They enjoy this."
"Oh yeah," Dokja said.
"This is premium entertainment."
Yoo Joonghyuk moved again.
But this time—
The ground shattered beneath his step.
The rooftop cracked as he launched forward with far greater force than before.
His sword cut through the garden in a blazing arc.
Vines exploded into fragments.
Roots shattered.
For the first time—
The garden was actually being destroyed.
Dokja blinked.
"…Okay that's serious."
Persephone stepped backward as the sword tore through the air where she had been standing.
The blade struck the rooftop floor instead.
Concrete erupted outward in a violent shockwave.
The building groaned dangerously.
Yoo Joonghyuk pulled the sword free and turned instantly.
"Defend yourself."
Persephone raised one hand.
The garden answered.
Thick roots burst upward like pillars, blocking the next strike.
The blade cut through the first root.
The second.
The third.
But the fourth held.
For half a second.
That was all Persephone needed.
A massive vine erupted from beneath Yoo Joonghyuk's feet.
It wrapped around his waist and launched him across the rooftop.
He twisted in midair and landed cleanly.
But now he was surrounded.
Dozens of vines.
All moving.
All watching.
Dokja muttered under his breath.
"…Yeah this is getting out of control."
Above them, the administrator reacted instantly.
[Probability Distortion Increasing]
[Anomaly continues exceeding narrative limits]
The pressure in the air intensified again.
Persephone stepped forward slowly through the shifting garden.
"You fight very hard."
Yoo Joonghyuk did not lower his sword.
"I must win."
"And if you do?"
"You disappear."
She nodded thoughtfully.
"And if you lose?"
"The district is erased."
Persephone sighed softly.
"That is a very poor system."
Dokja raised a finger.
"Hey, we've been saying that for a while."
The vines shifted again.
Now they weren't just defending.
They were growing.
The garden spread across the rooftop faster.
Roots cracked the building's foundation.
Flowers burst open across the walls.
The entire structure was becoming part of Persephone's domain.
Yoo Joonghyuk noticed immediately.
"You are expanding the battlefield."
"Yes."
"Why?"
She answered calmly.
"Because the story refuses to end."
The constellations exploded with messages again.
[Constellations are stunned by the scale of the anomaly's power!]
[A constellation suspects myth-grade authority.]
Dokja stared at the garden spreading across the building.
"…Okay yeah. That's definitely myth-tier stuff."
Above them, the administrator's eye flared brighter.
"Anomaly continues violating narrative boundaries."
Yoo Joonghyuk's sword rose again.
Golden energy flared along the blade.
But this time—
He hesitated.
Persephone noticed.
"You are thinking."
"Yes."
"About what?"
Yoo Joonghyuk looked around the rooftop garden.
At the vines.
The flowers.
The living world she had created in the middle of a ruined city.
Then he looked at her.
"This fight will not end the way the administrator expects."
Persephone smiled faintly.
"I know."
Dokja sighed loudly.
"Can someone please explain the plan before the building collapses?"
Neither answered him.
Because above them—
The administrator had reached a conclusion.
The eye in the sky burned with cold light.
A new message appeared.
[Administrator Trial: Final Phase Authorized]
Dokja's stomach dropped.
"…Oh no."
The sky began to open.
Because the Star Stream had decided that if the champion could not defeat the goddess—
Then the story itself would intervene. 🌑⚔️🌸📖