The boss didn't fall.
It exploded.
Not in light.
In sound.
The room didn't shake. It dropped.
Like the weight changed.
Flint raised both blades.
Dion didn't move.
Merlin just watched.
The bones from every skeleton, every fight, every wave rose.
Lifted off the ground like puppets cut from strings.
They spun.
Twisted.
Merged.
Not pretty. Not perfect.
Ugly. Crude. Too many arms. Too many skulls.
A ribcage that spanned half the room.
It formed a face.
Sort of.
Half-melted. Jawless. Dozens of eyes in rows.
The system didn't call it a boss.
It didn't call it anything.
Just one ping.
[FINAL ENTITY — ERROR IN CLASSIFICATION]
[Magic Signature: Corrupted Arcana - Forbidden Domain]
[Objective: Survive.]
Merlin didn't move.
Not yet.
'Survive. Not kill. Cute.'
The thing lifted one arm.
The fingers weren't fingers. They were blades.
Magic formed in its chest. Dark. Coiling.
Not elemental.
Cursed.
Merlin felt it in his spine.
