After a few hours of rest, the trio was finally ready to descend into the next floor. Their wounds were healed, their minds steadied, and the resolve in their eyes clear.
The third floor greeted them not with a grand hall or ominous monument—but a dimly lit tunnel that stretched out before them like a throat leading deeper into the unknown. The air was heavier here, as though the dungeon itself grew more aware of their presence.
As they stepped forward, space twisted once again. The familiar figure of the spirit emerged from flickering motes of light.
- "Adventurers, congratulations for completing the Path of Discipline," the spirit announced, its voice echoing like a whisper in a cathedral. "Here begins the third trial: the Path of Comraderie. Only by understanding and adapting to one another can you proceed. Survive as a team—or fail as individuals. I will await you at the next floor."
It vanished.
- "So, it really was it". - Serenya's eyes widened. "It really feels like this place was designed to train us. Like… it's testing us on purpose."
- "Good… Lyr feel stronger. But still… we must all get strong together." - Lyr grunted in agreement.
Jin gave both of them a look, quietly activating his Appraisal.
Status
Name Kazama Jin
Gender Male
Age 17
Race High Human
Level 61
Status Healthy
HP 11425/11425 (+15000)
MP 7575/7575 (+10000)
Strength 147 (+200)
Agility 157 (+200)
Dexterity 160 (+200)
Endurance 162 (+200)
Vitality 148 (+200)
Magic Power 152 (+200)
Perception 151 (+200)
Status
Name Lyrderu Numshi
Gender Male
Age 45
Race Lizardman
Level 68
Status Healthy
HP 11025 / 11025
MP 5125 / 5125
Strength 168
Agility 162
Dexterity 160
Endurance 119
Vitality 114
Magic Power 81
Perception 104
Status
Name Serenya Lysveil
Gender Female
Age 23
Race Human
Level 45
Status Healthy
HP 7650 /7650
MP 7750 / 7750
Strength 100
Agility 101
Dexterity 103
Endurance 100
Vitality 106
Magic Power 157
Perception 153
- "We've all grown," Jin murmured. "Stronger than when we first entered. Maybe this dungeon really is a blessing in disguise."
- "To think this dungeon appeared right when we needed it most," Serenya murmured. "Perhaps the gods really are guiding us."
- "Then let's not waste the blessing," Jin said. "Let's grow even stronger."
- "Ooh." - Lyr smirked.
They moved carefully down the passage. Soon, the tunnel opened into a large square chamber. Two gates stood ahead, sealed with iron bars. As the trio entered, the gate behind them slammed shut with a metallic clang.
A low rumble echoed from the sealed gates. With a hiss of grinding metal, both gates rose, revealing two towering ogres—hulking creatures with jagged tusks, crude axes, and red eyes that locked onto their prey. The room pulsed with danger.
Jin glanced over his shoulder.
- "Stay behind us, Serenya. Lyr, you on the right!"
With a roar, the two charged. Jin dashed left while Lyr veered right. Their blades met flesh, dodging heavy swings and countering with precision. Serenya stood at the back, chanting support spells weaving golden threads between them.
For a moment, the formation held. But just as they gained the upper hand—
BAM!
A hidden gate burst open behind Serenya, and a third ogre charged in.
The third ogre roared and lunged, slamming into her with full force. Her barrier cracked on impact, and she was thrown against the stone wall with a cry.
- "Serenya!" Jin yelled, spinning around.
Lyr, now outnumbered two to one, roared as a club slammed into his chest. He staggered, parried another blow, but blood streaked down his temple as he rolled back to regroup.
The ogres didn't follow through with their charge. Instead, they began to circle—snarling, slow, like predators waiting for another mistake.
Jin rushed to Serenya's side, helping her to her feet. Her breath was ragged, her staff trembling in her hands.
- "Are you hurt?" he asked, eyes scanning her for damage.
- "I-I'm fine. Nothing's broken," she said, though her voice trembled. "But we were wide open… I didn't even see it coming."
Jin's face darkened as he looked back toward Lyrderu.
- "…This was my fault," he muttered.
Both of them turned toward him.
- "I charged in—left you exposed. I was thinking like a lone fighter, not part of a team." He clenched his fists, frustration in his voice. "In a real battle, that could've gotten you both killed."
Lyr approached, panting, his hand pressing the wound on his side.
- "No one's dead," he said, voice low. "But yes… it was a mistake. A big one. Still, it's not your fault alone. It's ours. This team—we stand or fall together."
Jin gave a slow nod, the guilt not fully gone from his eyes, but steadied by Lyr's words.
Serenya looked between the two of them, then down at her hands.
- "I should've seen it, too. I can't just keep healing after the damage is done. I have to be stronger before the next strike hits."
She hesitated, then added under her breath,
- "…If I'm going to keep up with you."
- "What?" - Jin turned; brow furrowed.
- "Nothing!" she said quickly, turning her face away and faking a cough. "I just meant… you're fast. Hard to follow. That's all."
Jin blinked, not quite convinced, but let it go with a short breath.
- "Right. We'll adjust our formation. I'll focus more on protecting the rear and timing our charges together."
- "You lead. We follow. But this time—we stay close." - Lyr nodded.
Jin gave them both a firm nod.
- "No loner wolf moves. We move as one."
He turned to Lyr.
- "Remember the chimera fight? I need you to tank them. Serenya, focus on buffing and healing. I'll watch your back and take shots when they're open."
- "Good plan. Lyr approve." - Lyr grinned, blood still on his fangs.
- "I'm ready." - Serenya tightened her grip on her staff.
With renewed focus, they took formation. Lyr charged first, drawing the ogres' attention. Serenya chanted rapidly, casting barriers and regenerative auras. Jin, bow in hand, loosed arrow after arrow into vital spots—eyes, knees, necks.
When one ogre roared and charged Serenya again, Jin was already there, intercepting with a sweep of his blade and a wave of blazing fire. The monster fell moments later.
The final blow came from Lyr, slamming his spear through the last ogre's chest.
Silence fell.
The barred gates slid open.
They stood panting, bruised—but victorious.
More chambers followed—each demanding deeper coordination. Sometimes it was two ogres, sometimes a wave of kobolds mixed with traps. But each time, their unity improved. Serenya learned to predict Lyr's movements. Jin and Lyr fell into seamless rhythm. Serenya's healing grew faster, more efficient.
By the time they reached the final gate on the third floor, they were no longer three individuals—they were a team.
The stairs to the fourth floor opened before them.
- "We've come a long way." - Jin looked back at the others, a smile curling at the edge of his lips.
- "Still more to go," Lyr said.
Serenya wiped sweat from her brow.
- "Let's make it count."
They stepped down, shadows and light dancing across their path.
The trio stepped through the doorway to the fourth floor with quiet determination, unaware of the deeply personal trials that lay ahead. The tunnels here were wider, the air cleaner, and the walls no longer cracked and decayed but instead polished smooth—carved with radiant motifs of stars, open palms, and rings of light. The glow was brighter, soft and steady, like moonlight filtering through stained glass.
They had barely taken ten steps before the familiar shimmer distorted the air ahead. The spirit appeared again.
- "Once again, congratulation. You have passed all the Paths above. Now, you will walk the Path of Reflection. Here, strength alone will not prevail. Each of you must confront the echo of what you carry inside. The fears, the doubts, the longings... and the truths you tried to hide, even from yourselves."
As it spoke, a gentle hum resonated through the floor. Behind the spirit, a chamber opened—a circular room with three identical doors spaced equidistantly around its edge. Each bore the same carved sigil: a closed eye framed by wings.
- "You cannot pass through the same door. Each of you must choose one. Only by accepting yourself will you be allowed forward."
The spirit vanished.
A heavy silence lingered.
Before any of them could respond, the floor beneath them split—just gently, like parting mist. Three doors slowly emerged from the ground. Each bore the same symbol: a mirrored eye, surrounded by a ring of light.
Lyr stepped forward first.
- "Three doors. But they won't open together."
Jin tried one. Locked.
- "Separate paths?" Serenya asked, frowning.
- "No other way," Jin murmured. "Let's go through. One each. And when we're done... we meet again. Together."
They nodded.
Lyrderu's Path
The moment Lyrderu stepped through, a surge of warmth surrounded him. His vision blurred.
Then—
Sunlight comes with dusty wind.
Roars and smell of steel.
He was young again. His scales unscarred, his spear still bearing the gleam of fresh forging. Before him lay the battlefield—the fallen forms of his old comrades strewn across bloodied grass. Screams filled the air.
Then, a man's voice echoed.
- "Lyrderu! Stand up! Don't let them die in vain!"
- "...wha...what?!?...I..Igrit?" - Lyr mumbled
A massive figure loomed—an Orc Lord. Towering and brutal.
Three of Lyr's companions were already down. The fourth—his leader, Igrit—was between him and the Orc Lord, shielding him from a blow that should have aimed at him.
- "You damn fool!" Prigith shouted, smacking Lyr's shoulder. "We're not done yet! Give him hell!"
Something in Lyr snapped back into motion. He gripped his spear and charged.
Together, the three of them fought.
It was a blur of fury and grief. They won. But the price...
Igrit fell to his knees, blood pouring from a wound too deep, too cruel.
- "Sorry," he rasped. "I was never a good leader. I let our party fall apart... Let you both carry the weight I couldn't."
- "No!" Prigith's voice cracked. "You saved us! You brought us together. We lived because of you!"
- "You kept us alive. You taught us everything. You saved us more times than we deserved." - Lyr shook his head, eyes wet.
- "Then please, promise me one thing" - Igrit smiled faintly. "If you ever find another party…protect them… treasure them... which I… could not."
His eyes closed. His breath stopped.
The battlefield faded into light.
Lyr opened his eyes. A white room. Empty.
He stared at his hands, just now it was still clutched Igrit hands with promises. Then he closed them into fists.
- "Jin. Serenya."
He looked toward the door in front of him. Just before he stepped through, he turned back, glancing once at the space behind him—as if expecting Igrit to be there, watching. Then he whispered:
- "I will protect them. I promise."
And stepped through.
Jin's Path
The world beyond the door was blinding white.
Jin blinked, instinctively raising his arm to shield his eyes. For a few seconds, there was nothing but light—a vast, empty canvas of pure white that stretched endlessly in every direction. Then the light shifted. Shapes began to form. The endless white gave way to soft beige. A bed. A ceiling. Monitors. The steady beep of a heart rate monitor.
Jin sat up with a jolt, heart thundering. The sterile scent of antiseptic filled his nose. A hospital room. His hands trembled.
- "What... what is all this?"
And there she was, laying soundlessly beside his bed…
His wife. Looking exactly as he remembered. Her hair pulled into a loose bun. He slowly and gently choked her hair, like he scared that he would hurt her in the process. She awoke and looked up at him, then as realization sinked in, her soft eyes brimming with tears. She rushed to his side, hugged him, sobbing.
- "You're awake! Oh, thank God... You've been in a coma for a year!"
The door opened again. A flood of motion and noise. Children rushed in. His children. Their smiles. Their laughter.
- "Dad? You're awake? Dad's awake!"
Their arms wrapped around him. Warm. Real. He could feel their weight. Jin's breath hitched.
- "Is... is this real?"
His wife nodded, brushing his cheek.
- "Yes. This is real. You had been sleeping all this time. A long one. You kept muttering names... Lyrderu. Serenya. Solaria. We were so scared. But now you're awake. You're here. Home."
He stared at them. Their names. He knew them. And yet...
[Appraisal (EX) Active]
Name: ?????
Race: ?????
His wife's name. His children. Faint overlays hovered above their heads. But something was off. Blurry. Distorted. As if the system itself doubted their presence.
The door creaked again. A nurse pushing a tray entered, said something about medication.
But Jin's eyes widened. He stared not at the nurse but the vision behind her.
In the hallway, just past the turning corner, he saw them.
A Lizardman with a spear. A silver-haired priestess in pale robes.
Lyr. Serenya.
Walking away.
His heart clenched.
He stood up. The IV yanked from his arm. Alarms screamed. His wife shouted his name. The children cried out.
But he ran.
- "Wait! Wait!"
He sprinted into the hallway. Turned the corner.
Nothing.
Only silence.
Jin stopped. Chest heaving.
Then the world shimmered. Flickered. Like paint peeling off a canvas. The hospital faded. The warmth vanished.
He was alone. Standing in the white space once more.
- "So, it was an illusion...after all" he murmured, heart heavy.
But then he heard it. Footsteps from behind.
He turned around to see his wife stood there again. Not too far from his reach but it feels so…distant. A soft smile appeard on her face, tears in her eyes.
- "You knew, didn't you?" he asked.
She nodded.
- "I did. But I wanted just one more time. To be able to hold your hand. To see your eyes. To hear you talk about those silly fantasy story of yours."
Jin's throat tightened.
He stepped forward. Took her hand in his.
- "I missed you," he whispered. "Every day."
- "I missed you too," she said, voice trembling. "And I'm proud of you, for moving forward"
He wanted to stay. Just a moment longer. But he knew.
This wasn't real, though he also did not want to release of her hand.
- "Thank you," he said. "For everything. For loving me and giving me our children. For patiently listening to my silly stories."
She nodded, smiling through tears.
- "Go. Keep walking. And when the time is right, I'll find you again in those worlds"
Her form began to fade, dissolving into the white.
- "I always know you can find me, wherever I am" Jin whispered…."I love you"
And her voice, almost inaudible, echoed:
- "I love you too."
Then she was gone. Jin stood there in a white room again, but this time he's not alone, not empty anymore. A door appeared in front of him. Simple. Wooden. Familiar.
He stepped toward it. Paused. And looked back.
- "I'll wait for you," he said to the white void. "No matter how long it takes."
He opened the door.
And walked forward.
Serenya's Path
Light faded the moment Serenya stepped through the stone-carved archway. The warmth of Jin and Lyrderu's presence vanished behind her, and the silence swallowed her whole. The door shut with a quiet thud, and she found herself standing alone on what seemed like a battlefield frozen in time.
The sky was gray, cloudless. Ash drifted like snow. She stood in the middle of a ruined clearing littered with shattered weapons, broken staves, and splintered shields. In the distance, indistinct figures clashed—flashes of magic, clangs of steel. Screams echoed from every direction.
- "Serenya!" a voice called.
She turned instinctively. Jin.
He was further down the bloodied slope, armor scorched and torn. He pointed with urgency.
- "Heal Lyr! He's falling!"
Her heart skipped. Lyrderu was a few meters to Jin's right, his spear shattered, his massive frame buckling under the weight of a monstrous orc's blade.
- "Ultra Heal!" she cried, raising her staff—but nothing happened.
Her staff flickered. The magic fizzled like a spark drowned in rain.
- "No... no no no...!" she gasped, trying again. "Ultra Heal!"
Still, nothing.
The wounded around her groaned, reached for her robes. Their pain seeped into the very air.
- "Help... please..."
- "My leg... it hurts... I can't feel it..."
- "Seren... please..."
Their voices clawed at her. The battlefield cried for salvation, and she was frozen, powerless.
Tears stung her eyes as she took a shaky step forward.
- "I…I'm sorry," she whispered to them. "But I have to... I have to save them..."
She ran.
Through corpses. Through mud and blood and broken dreams.
She reached Lyrderu just as the orc's blade came crashing down. Too late.
His form hit the ground with a sickening crack. Still. Silent.
- "Lyr!" she cried, dropping to her knees. "Lyr, please! Please hold on!"
Behind her, Jin screamed.
She turned to see him impaled on a jagged spear.
Time slowed.
- "No...no… not you too...!"
She stumbled toward him, sobbing, dragging herself across the broken ground.
Jin collapsed to one knee, then fell onto his back. Blood pooled beneath him, dark and spreading.
- "Seren... run..." he whispered.
- "No! Don't talk! Don't move! Just let me... let me fix this!"
She reached him, her trembling hands pressing against his wound. Her staff fell from her grasp as she poured mana into her palms, desperate.
- "Heal! Please! Heal!"
Nothing happened.
Her mana was gone. Or blocked. Or... something. She screamed.
Despair clawed at her throat.
Then—a light. Soft and golden, descended like a feather from the sky and settled beside her. A warmth radiated from it; unlike any divine magic she'd ever known.
The light flowed into her hands; her mana surged. Then, before she can uttered anything, a warm voice echoed insider her mind:
- "Anybody, any life is precious and a Priestess's task is not only healing life…"
- "…but also healing soul" – somehow her own voice escaped and matching with the warm voice "Ultra Heal!"
Magic erupted from her palms, wrapping around Jin's body. No, it wrapped her whole vision. Serenya turned, blinking tears. There was no one here. Only white.
Endless white.
She was kneeling in a white room; Jin was no longer beneath her.
Her staff rested across her knees. Her robes were untouched by dirt nor blood. Her hands glowed faintly with a soft aura.
- "Not just the body..." she whispered. "But the soul, too."
She rose slowly, breath steadying.
- "If I'm to follow this path... then I need to be strong enough to carry it. Not just heal wounds... but help heal hearts. His heart."
A door shimmered into being at the far end of the white expanse.
She stepped toward it.
Before entering, she turned back one last time, as if expecting to see the battlefield or the ghost of her resolve.
There was only silence.
She bowed slightly. "Thank you."
Then she walked through the door.
The white chamber dissolved into soft golden light.
One by one, they emerged - First was Lyrderu, then came Jin and finally Serenya.
No words were spoken at first.
Jin stood still, his eyes not yet adjusting, heart still racing from the echo of his wife's smile.
Lyr's arms were crossed, his face unreadable—but his gaze flicked to each of them like counting survivors after a storm.
Serenya walked quietly toward them. Her eyes were red, but not from fear. Her staff trembled slightly in her grip. And yet, she smiled.
- "…You're both here," she whispered.
- "You too." - Jin nodded.
They stood in silence. And in that silence, something unspoken was exchanged.
Lyr looked down at his spear, then back at them. "We made it."
- "We did," Jin replied. Then, softly, "And not as we were before."
- "Whatever's down there… we'll face it together." - Serenya stepped closer.
- "Yeah." - Jin's voice was steady.
Together, they turned toward the staircase descending into the next floor.
Three souls. Forged in battle. Hardened by memory. United by choice.
And as they disappeared into the light below, the door behind them closed—not with a slam, but with a soft hum.
Like a heartbeat.