I could no longer tell whether the cold was coming from the environment or from inside me.
The dungeon had changed completely since the first levels. The walls, once dark and damp stone, were now made of something that resembled solid ice mixed with ancient metal. There were no glowing crystals or exaggerated ritualistic decorations. It was simple. Functional. Military. Every corridor seemed designed to move troops, not adventurers.
Each step echoed like a warning.
The flame inside me was strangely silent. Not dormant. Watchful. As if it were refusing to react before the right moment.
Vespera walked a few steps ahead, bow in hand, taking a deep breath before each corner. I had learned to recognize that pattern. It was when she was trying to focus harder than usual, as if she wanted to prove to herself that she wouldn't miss this time.
"They're too quiet," she murmured.
I knew "they" meant the demonic troops. So far, the encounters had been organized, almost calculated. No chaotic ambushes. No irrational monsters. Each battle felt like a test of attrition.
Elara walked just behind me. I could feel her presence without looking. Her mana had been low for hours, and she rationed every spell as if it were her last. Even so, she stayed there, steady, without complaint.
"If this is a barracks…," she began, then stopped.
"Then we're getting close to the center," I finished.
Liriel walked further back, gripping the symbol of light with excessive force. Her magic was limited, and she knew it. Perhaps that was why she was more tense than ever. Whenever something exceeded her understanding, her reaction was to compensate with heightened attention.
"The silence here isn't natural," she said. "It's not an absence of life. It's containment."
The word hung in the air.
We followed a long corridor that descended at a gentle slope. The cold increased with every meter. My fingers began to tingle, and my breath came out in thick clouds. Even so, there was no loose ice on the ground. Everything was solid. Controlled.
We reached an enormous double door.
It wasn't closed.
That was the worst possible sign.
I pushed the door slowly, and the sound echoed through a hall far too vast to exist underground. The ceiling vanished into darkness, supported by thick columns covered in ancient markings. At the center of the room was a circular elevation, like a stage or a throne.
And behind it… a presence.
I didn't see a complete body. I didn't see a face clearly. But I felt it.
My body froze.
The flame inside me reacted for the first time since we entered. It didn't explode. It didn't burn. It recoiled. As if it stood before something it recognized, but did not dare provoke.
"Takumi…," Elara whispered behind me. "You're feeling this too, aren't you?"
I nodded, unable to answer out loud.
The air grew heavier. Not from physical pressure, but from intent. The sensation was that of being watched by something that didn't need to move to impose authority.
A voice echoed.
It didn't come from a specific point. It came from everywhere at once.
"So you truly exist."
My heart nearly stopped.
The voice was deep, cold, but strangely calm. There was no anger in it. No surprise. Just acknowledgment.
Vespera turned toward me, eyes wide. "Takumi… this isn't normal. This isn't a common commander."
The presence intensified. The figure on the throne seemed to move slightly, and for an instant I saw something that looked like a mantle of living ice, rearranging itself like solid smoke.
"I felt your flame a long time ago," the voice continued. "But you took a long time to arrive."
Each word made my chest tighten.
"Who are you?" I asked, forcing my voice out.
There was a pause.
And then, a faint sound. Almost a laugh.
"A pointless question… for now."
The ground trembled slightly. Not like an attack. Like a warning.
Liriel suddenly dropped to her knees, clutching her head. "It's… it's spiritual pressure. He's doing this without magic."
Elara tried to raise a defensive spell, but her mana simply didn't respond. The air around her seemed to deny any activation.
Vespera drew an arrow, aimed instinctively… and stopped. Her arm trembled.
"It's useless," the voice said. "If I wanted you dead, this place would already be sealed."
I swallowed hard.
"Then why are we here?" I asked.
The figure on the throne leaned slightly forward. For the first time, I saw eyes. White. Empty. Ancient.
"Because it is not yet time," he replied. "And because I wanted to confirm something."
I felt as if something passed through my mind—not like an invasion, but like a touch too fast to block.
The flame inside me pulsed.
The cold in the hall increased abruptly.
"You carry something that should not exist outside a core," he said. "And yet… you survive."
The silence fell like a blade.
I couldn't respond.
"Leave," he continued. "Grow stronger. Gather allies. Make promises you don't know if you can keep."
The presence began to withdraw. The weight gradually lessened, as if the hall itself were allowing us to breathe again.
"When you return," the voice concluded, already distant, "I may need to rise."
The hall returned to absolute silence.
My legs gave out, and I knelt on the cold floor, trying to catch my breath. Elara immediately came to my side, holding my arm. Vespera lowered her bow, pale. Liriel breathed with difficulty, but remained conscious.
No one said anything for long seconds.
Until Vespera broke the silence.
"Takumi… that… that was him, wasn't it?"
I nodded.
"The Sixth Demon General."
The name felt wrong in my mouth. Too small for what we had felt.
I knew, in that instant, that it didn't matter how many missions we accepted after this. Nor how many debts we paid. Nor how many levels we gained.
That wasn't a battle we could win now.
And worst of all…
He knew.