The moment Lucifer crossed the sanctum's archway, the air changed.
It wasn't just colder.
It was older.
The corridor stretched forward like a mouth—stone walls pulsing faintly with veins of black-red energy, alive with something ancient and forgotten. His boots touched obsidian tiles, smooth and silent. With each step, runes flickered dimly beneath his feet, whispering in languages long dead.
This was the Trial Tower.
Not a temple. Not a dungeon.
A place for monsters.
A place for him.
He didn't pause. Didn't look back.
He walked straight into the dark.
Then the light disappeared.
Total silence.
Not even his heartbeat.
A shift—like falling without motion—and suddenly, his body dropped straight down.
No wind. No gravity.
Just descent.
Then—
Impact.
He landed hard, knees slightly bent, boots cracking the stone. Dust exploded around him.
