The Broodmother moved like a shadow obeying pain, and the world tilted.
She slammed into me—all weight and noise—and for a heartbeat, I couldn't tell which way was up. My ribs screamed. The sword flew from my hand and clanged somewhere across the courtyard. The System flashed red warnings that burned across my retinas.
> [Critical Impact: -32 HP]
[Stamina: 12%]
[Status: Disoriented]
Elira shouted something—my name, maybe—but her voice was distant, distorted by ringing ears and the wet slap of claws against stone.
The Broodmother loomed, her torso splitting down the center like a grin. Smoke poured out. Her limbs folded inward, reshaping her into a spear of rage.
I didn't think—thinking was too slow. I dove for the sword, fingers brushing metal.
She was already there.
Her claws missed my spine by a breath, grazing my shoulder and painting the flagstones red. My arm went numb.
"Son of a—" I couldn't finish. Even breathing felt optional.
Elira appeared beside me, blade drawn, the fire in her eyes bright enough to burn through fear.
"Get up, Carl!"
"Working on it!"
She lunged before I could stop her. The Princess wasn't delicate; she was desperation wrapped in silk and stubbornness. Her strike hit the creature's chest—and for a moment, it looked like it mattered.
Then the Broodmother's shriek tore the air open. A blast of corrupted wind sent Elira sprawling, her back slamming hard into the ground.
Something inside me snapped. Not a bone. Not my sanity. Just that paper-thin patience I'd been pretending was bravery.
I lunged. My hand closed around the sword, my shoulder flared with fire, and I swung.
Once. Twice. Every muscle screamed treason, but the blade sang louder. Sparks. Smoke. The thing howled.
> [Pulse Laceration ready: 00:00:01]
[Execute Skill? Y/N]
"Yes!"
Light and sound tore out of me in a single movement. The blade pulsed—a heartbeat amplified into violence. The wave hit the Broodmother dead center, ripping smoke and sinew apart like rotten cloth.
The courtyard shook.
When the light died, the creature was on her knees, torso half gone, ichor dripping into the nest slit.
The timer still ticked behind my eyes.
> [Decision Window: 00:00:07]
Elira struggled to her feet, eyes locking on mine.
"Do it," she whispered. "End it."
I looked at the larva. It blinked—slow and dumb—as if unaware of the world it had been born into.
"Sorry, kid," I muttered. "Wrong parents."
The sword came down.
A single sound—like a candle going out—filled the courtyard. The larva burst; no gore, just a puff of black smoke curling upward. The Broodmother followed, screaming as her form disintegrated into ash.
> [Major Quest: Complete.]
[+500 EXP]
[Skill Unlocked: "Pulse Laceration (Permanent)"]
[Affinity Update: Princess Elira — +120]
[Reputation: +10 (Royal Court)]
[Hidden Trait Progression: "Void's Chosen" — 17%]
The System's words came like a lullaby written by psychopaths.
Then came silence.
The courtyard lay in ruins. Torches flickered weakly, and the air stank of ozone and dying magic.
Elira stood shakily, her hand clutching my sleeve—not because the System told her to, but because she needed to.
"You did it," she whispered, as if she didn't believe it.
"Yeah," I breathed, half laughing. "Guess I'm a full-time exterminator now. Should put that on a résumé."
She stared at me for a heartbeat too long, her expression unreadable in the flickering light.
"Carl… if you hadn't been here…"
I cut her off before the gratitude could get sticky.
"Then you'd be haunting me, and I don't do ghosts."
For a second, she just stared at me—eyes shining with exhaustion and something softer. Then, before I could come up with another terrible joke, she threw her arms around me.
The impact knocked the breath right out of my lungs. She was trembling, royal silk scraping against armour, and for once, it wasn't from fear—it was from everything she'd been holding back.
I froze, caught somewhere between surprise and pain. I hadn't exactly pegged her as the hugging type.
"Umm… Princess," I managed, voice strained. "Little tight. I kind of need those ribs to keep existing."
That earned a laugh—a small, cracked thing—but it cut through the silence like sunlight through smoke.
She loosened her grip, just enough to breathe again, but didn't let go entirely. Her head rested briefly against my shoulder, her voice low enough that the System couldn't hear it, even if it tried.
The System wasn't done being an ass.
> [New Passive Condition: "Residual Bond" detected.]
[Effect: Maintaining proximity to Princess Elira enhances combat efficiency by +10%.]
[Warning: Extended separation may cause debuff — "Perceptual Drift."]
I groaned. "So now I've got a princess leash?"
Elira tilted her head. "What?"
"Nothing. Just… cosmic harassment. Don't worry about it."
Her hand lingered on my arm before she pulled away.
"We should regroup. The others—Kaela—must be fighting their own battles."
I nodded, though my knees threatened mutiny. The adrenaline drained away, leaving exhaustion and that strange, hungry echo—the same dark pulse I'd felt in the void.
It whispered to me.
More.
More strength. More fight. More control.
I shook it off and forced a grin. "Lead the way, Your Highness. Just try not to trip into another nightmare, yeah?"
As we stepped through the broken archway, the System's last message flickered behind my eyes like a warning on a dying monitor:
> [Realm Signature Detected.]
[New Quest Chain Available: "Echoes of the First Realm."]
[Recommended Level: 15+]
The words sent a chill down my spine. Because this wasn't the System assigning a task—this was the System remembering me.