He took a first step into the main hall.
Then—the twin energy beams fluctuated violently.
The dark pillar suddenly shot up—a sudden shockwave rippling outward as if the void itself had lashed out. It struck Kazuki in the chest like a battering ram. Air fled his lungs in a gasp as he was flung backward, boots scraping across scorched stone until his back hit a jagged wall.
He gritted his teeth. A second too slow and he would've been impaled on one of the broken support spires still jutting from the floor.
The moment he moved to stand—
Another wave.
Black wisps spiraled out from the center of the hall. They wove through the air with purpose, crashing into him like coiled whips
Kazuki braced—arms up, body low—but it didn't matter.
The moment he crossed the invisible threshold toward the Seal, the air turned solid with resistance. It felt like walking into a storm.
He took a step forward. Then another.
A few steps in, and the resistance doubled. Tripled.
