The night had ended. But the light did not bring peace — only silence and decision.

Prometheus and his team had already departed. Alongside the Silver Claw, they walked toward the Shadow Gorge. No words were spoken. None were needed. The mission had been accepted.

Above Krystallfaos, the sky darkened. The bells of Aethercrystal rang out — sharp, sudden, ancient. Something… demonic had awakened.

Citizens froze. Guards ran. An old mechanism activated — a warning of dark energy. The kingdom did not yet understand. But the world was shifting.

On the path, the team moved in silence.

The first blow came without sound — like lightning in stillness. The next moment? Blood soaking into the earth.

“Hope you enjoyed your drinks…” The voice echoed from behind. “Not everyone who enters the Gorge returns the same. If they return at all.”

Noctua stopped. “Prometheus,” she whispered. “We’re not alone.”

The wind shifted. The ground trembled. The Gorge… was calling.

I woke up on the battlefield.

The air reeked of scorched flesh and blood. Trees burned around me, clawing at the sky, while ash fell like snow. Every breath seared my throat — as if I were swallowing fire.

I couldn’t move. My body screamed. My head rang. My team? Shattered. Me? A healer… collapsed, helpless.

“Hitomi! Where are you?!”

The cry tore from my chest — and with it, blood. My breath faltered. My vision dimmed. Somewhere nearby, Hitomi’s voice pierced the chaos. Steel clashed. Orcs roared. Bones cracked.

Was this the end?

Then… everything shifted.

A force pulled me elsewhere. Six towering figures emerged from light and shadow. Their silhouettes stretched like claws. Their voices weren’t words—they were whispers that shattered thought.

They chanted something ancient. The language carved itself into my mind.

The sky split open. A beam of light descended. And within it… the seventh figure.

Its sword, forged from pure energy, touched my forehead.

“You cannot escape your fate.”

A surge of heat tore through me. Not pain—transformation. Time unraveled. My soul floated in the void.

And then… I saw.

My hand held the pendant. Four elemental crystals—fire, water, air, and earth—glowed. Inside them… screams. They weren’t tools. They were alive. Bound. Suffering.

The vision twisted.

My father. Torn apart. A black mass loomed over him. His body swallowed by shadow.

“Was this real? Or a trap meant to break me?”

Reality slammed back. My body sank into the earth. My heart pounded like a war drum.

I was back. Alive. But something inside me… had changed.