The curse Sam had been struck with dug far deeper than he expected.
His body felt heavy, his soul burned, and even breathing made him feel like shards of glass were stuck inside his chest.
The judge monarch loomed before him, grinning with a twisted delight.
"It's funny," the monarch said, its rotating head turning until the side that spoke faced him directly.
"Every primordial believes they are untouchable. Every one of them thinks their strength is beyond our reach."
The head rotated again, and another face continued without pause.
"But in the end, they all fall into the same trap. They always absorb our core, and when they do, the curse eats them alive. It is nothing less than a death sentence."
Sam ignored the words.
He had no time to waste listening to their gloating.
If he stopped to think too much about what the curse meant, he would collapse here and now.
He forced all his focus inward, pulling his strength together, forcing his body to keep moving.
