No one knew how much time had passed since the chamber had gone silent. Minutes? Hours? It didn't matter. The trembling beneath their feet told them everything they needed to know—another wave was coming.

Noel's grip tightened around Revenant Fang. The faint hum from the blade grew louder, its surface pulsing with dark red veins that matched his heartbeat. The moment the first tremor cracked the ground, both of the weapon's traits flared to life on their own.

[Trait: Harrowed Focus – Activated.]

[Trait: Will of the Forgotten – Activated.]

His breathing slowed, his vision sharpening until every particle of dust, every drop of mana in the air, felt like it moved in slow motion. Heat and frost coiled along his skin as his magic resonated violently inside him.

Selene stood beside him, wand in hand, the air freezing around her like glass ready to shatter. "They're coming again," she said quietly.

Noel nodded once. "Then we finish it."

The tunnel roared to life—hundreds of crimson eyes flaring in the dark as Molten Ravagers and Blightclaws rushed forward, their combined growls forming a storm of death and mana.

Noel lunged first. "Fire Arc!"

A burning crescent carved through the front line, splitting molten flesh and scattering fragments of ash. Selene's response came instantly: "Permafrost Halo!" Rings of frost expanded outward, freezing the charge in mid-motion before cracking them apart.

Steam hissed where flame and ice met, painting the battlefield in red and white.

"Left side!" Selene called.

"I see it!" Noel spun, sliding under a lunging Ravager and cutting upward with Revenant Fang—black fire ignited on impact, splitting the creature in half.

The system flickered faintly at the edge of his vision:

[You have slain Molten Ravager (Ascendant – Rare). +0.20%]

He exhaled, pulse steady, eyes burning green.

'Let's keep going,' he thought, stepping back beside Selene as more shadows gathered ahead.

Flames, frost, and lightning turned the cavern into chaos incarnate. Each swing, each step, each pulse of mana felt like part of a single rhythm—destruction given form.

Noel and Selene moved as one. When he struck, she covered; when she attacked, he cleared the path. Every impact shook the ground, chunks of scorched stone and shattered ice raining across the chamber.

A Blightclaw lunged from the ceiling—its claws glinting black with venom. Noel pivoted, blade igniting in a swirl of fire and electricity. "Ignition Surge." The slash cut upward, leaving only embers behind.

Selene followed with "Zero Point Burst!"—a sphere of gravity imploded midair, crushing a cluster of beasts into dust before releasing a shockwave that scattered the rest.

The system flickered relentlessly in the corner of his vision:

[You have slain Blightclaw (Ascendant – Common). +0.10%]

[You have slain Molten Ravager (Ascendant – Rare). +0.20%]

Sparks danced over Noel's skin, his body reacting faster than thought. The world narrowed to flashes of red and white—Selene's magic locking the field while his sword carved through anything still moving.

A voice brushed his mind mid-strike, soft and familiar.

'Dad, everything's stable outside. Nothing unusual so far.'

Noel sidestepped a charging Ravager, slicing its neck open with a single clean motion. 'Good. And the mansion?'

'Still quiet,' Noir replied, her tone calm but alert. 'Everyone's safe.'

He exhaled, lowering his stance as another pack advanced. "Alright," he muttered, almost to himself.

The tunnel floor cracked beneath the next wave's charge. Noel's mana flared again, lightning crawling along the length of Revenant Fang like veins of pure light.

The fight was far from over—but at least, for now, he knew the world outside was still intact.

The cavern shook harder than before — mana rippling through the ground like a living pulse. The next wave was larger, faster, and stronger. Dozens of Eclipsed Marauders burst from the tunnel walls, their hulking forms glowing with molten veins.

Noel didn't hesitate. Revenant Fang thrummed violently in his hands, the blade nearly screaming from the sheer power coursing through it.

"Stormpiercer!"

He vanished in a blinding streak of lightning. A single line of destruction split the horde apart — monsters collapsing mid-charge, their bodies spasming with residual electricity. The flash illuminated Selene's next spell.

"Frostfall Requiem!"

Her wand flared, and an avalanche of frozen mist surged forward. The entire chamber turned white — wind, ice, and snow swirling into a vortex that devoured everything in front of her. Jagged spears of ice rained down, impaling anything that tried to move.

Noel appeared just beside her, blade burning bright. "Flare Trap!"

Circles of crimson light exploded beneath the remaining beasts, erupting upward into towers of flame. The mix of frost and fire distorted the air — ice hissing, stone melting. The combined explosion sent a shockwave through the tunnel that almost knocked them both back.

The notifications came in rapid bursts, overlapping like static:

[You have slain Molten Ravager (Ascendant – Rare). +0.20%]

[You have slain Blightclaw (Ascendant – Common). +0.10%]

[You have slain Eclipsed Marauder (Ascendant – Elite). +0.50%]

Selene was breathing hard now, her skin pale under the frost-light. "You're overdoing it," she murmured.

Noel smirked faintly, dragging his blade across the floor, the edge sizzling with residual heat. "I could say the same to you."

She gave a tired smile. "Fair."

The ground beneath them cracked again — a tremor deeper, heavier than before.

The quake deepened, the air vibrating with a heavy hum.

From the darkness ahead, more figures emerged — larger than before. Ascendant Elites, their skin coated in magma-like armor, molten eyes staring with hunger. The heat distorted everything, but one thing cut through it all — the gleam of Albrecht Thorne's blade.

He moved before Noel could. A single step, and the ground split beneath him as his sword cleaved through two beasts at once, the impact blasting fire and flesh outward in a circular shockwave. Flames followed his swing.

"Keep your right side clear!" Albrecht barked, his tone sharp, commanding.

Noel nodded instinctively. "Got it!"

They moved in sync, blades flashing. Revenant Fang sang in black flame, while Albrecht's long black sword roared with gold. Each clash of steel and mana filled the chamber with blinding light — fire meeting lightning, precision meeting brute power.

Selene stood back, wand still glowing, the cold barrier she'd erected shimmering around them. For a moment, she simply watched — the impossible sight of the two Thornes fighting as one.

Her thoughts slipped unbidden.

'So this is what they'd look like… as a real family.'

She immediately bit her lip, pushing the thought away.

'No. I know what kind of man his father is. Noel doesn't want this.

Still, she couldn't deny it — their rhythm was seamless. Father and son, blades moving as though they shared the same pulse. Every opening Noel left, Albrecht covered. Every heavy swing from Albrecht, Noel followed up with a precise, burning strike.

"Voltage Needle!" Noel's blade flashed, piercing through a Ravager's skull.

"Severing Flame." Albrecht's sword followed, slicing the creature cleanly in half before the fire consumed it.

The system flickered again:

[You have slain Molten Ravager (Ascendant – Rare). +0.20%]

[You have slain Eclipsed Marauder (Ascendant – Elite). +0.50%]

The air smelled of ash and ozone.

When the last monster fell, Noel exhaled — shoulders tense, heartbeat still racing.

Across from him, Albrecht lowered his sword, expression unreadable under the flickering light.

For a fleeting instant, neither spoke — but Selene saw it.

A mirrored stance. The same way they held their blades.

And though they'd never admit it — for those few seconds, they truly looked like father and son.

For a moment, there was only silence. The roar of monsters had faded, replaced by the slow hiss of cooling magma and the faint drip of molten stone. Steam curled upward from the cracked ground, painting the chamber in misty red and gold.

Albrecht sheathed his sword with a steady motion. "It's over," he said, voice even, but his breathing betrayed the strain. "This month's horde is done. Easier than most, thanks to the two of you."

Selene leaned against a wall of ice she had conjured earlier, her wand dimming as she dispelled the spell. "Easier?" she muttered with a faint laugh. "You call this easy?"

Noel gave a short breath of amusement, wiping soot from his cheek. "You heard him. Apparently, this was the easy part."

But even as he joked, his instincts wouldn't rest. Something felt off. His mana sense tingled — faintly, irregularly — like a whisper brushing past the edge of his perception.

He looked around. Nothing moved. Nothing breathed.

'It's too quiet…'

Albrecht took a step toward the exit tunnel, boots echoing softly. "Come. We'll rest outside and report to the others."

As they made their way toward the tunnel, silence stretched — only the echo of their boots and the faint hiss of cooling stone filled the air.

Then Noir's voice cut through Noel's mind, sharp and urgent.

'Dad… something's heading your way.'

Noel halted mid-step. 'What is it?'

'That same presence… the one who attacked me before. It's him — the Fourth Pillar. But I can't sense the other one. He's alone this time.'

Noel's jaw tightened. 'Good work, Noir.'

He exhaled slowly, keeping his tone steady. 'Listen — go back to the mansion. Stay with Elyra, Charlotte, and Elena. Make sure everything's fine there.'

'But you're exhausted, all of you!' Noir protested, her voice trembling faintly.

'We'll be fine,' Noel replied firmly. 'Just do as I say.'

A faint pause — then, 'Understood… be careful, Dad.' Her presence faded from his mind.

Noel lifted his gaze to Selene and Albrecht. "Something's coming," he said aloud, voice low but certain. "Remember what I told you about being attacked a few days ago, Father?"

Albrecht's expression darkened immediately. "Yes."

"Well," Noel continued, drawing Revenant Fang from his back, the blade glinting under the crimson light. "Now you'll have to believe me — because it's coming straight for us."

Selene's wand flared with blue-white frost. Albrecht's sword ignited in a swirl of golden flame.

The distant tunnel rumbled once more.

And from deep within the darkness, a single pair of scarlet eyes opened.

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