With the colossal monster left behind in the hands of Grand Duchess Amane, Melissa, and Bruce, Kyle walked away from the battlefield without looking back.
He could hear distant battle cries, the crack of steel against chitin, and the pulse of mortal will pushing back against impossible odds. He didn't interfere.
He trusted them.
The path ahead led deeper into the forest—toward the heart of divine corruption.
Black mist hung in the air like poison, and the trees had twisted into warped shadows of their former selves. The sky above seemed to darken with every step he took.
As Kyle reached the final ridge, the world fell eerily silent.
The mana here was heavy.
It wasn't simply dense. It warned him.
Every step forward made his body feel like it was walking into a wall of pressure. Whispers of divine warning brushed against his mind—ancient, emotionless.
"Turn back."
"This place is not for mortals."
"Do not touch what belongs to the gods."
But Kyle ignored it all.
