The Wyndhams had found a building.
It wasn't particularly impressive, nor did it look especially durable. Still, compared to most of the damaged structures around it, it was the best option they had.
The building stood among a strange lineup of warehouses.
After a quick inspection, they had chosen one.
The large metallic door had already been pulled down completely.
To secure it, Zephyr had used a metal pipe to wedge the door against the padlock hook fixed into the ground.
It wasn't a perfect barricade.
But it would do.
Just like most places in the area, the inside was a mess.
The warehouse looked as though it had been abandoned in a hurry.
Several long counters that once held goods had already toppled over.
Some lay on their sides.
Others had broken apart completely.
Fortunately, the warehouse was mostly empty.
There was enough space for everyone to rest.
The Wyndhams didn't seem to mind the condition of the place.
After everything they had been through, a roof over their heads was good enough.
That was when Alex suddenly spoke.
"What was that thing?"
The question immediately drew attention toward him.
"And why were we running?" he continued.
The others stared at him.
Several of them looked genuinely confused.
The expression on their faces was the same one people gave someone who had just asked why water was wet.
"Why are you asking such an obvious question?" Lennox said.
His brows furrowed.
"Didn't you get the message?"
The moment those words were spoken, Alex rubbed the back of his neck.
His expression became slightly awkward.
Before he could answer, Clifford suddenly spoke.
"Wait..."
Everyone turned toward him.
Clifford raised a hand and pointed directly at Alex.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"Where is your wristband?" Clifford asked.
At that moment, everyone's gaze shifted toward Alex's wrist.
They looked carefully.
There was no tournament wristband.
The realization spread through the group almost instantly.
"I..." Alex stammered.
He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
"I kind of lost it in a fight," he said.
"Ohh..." Clifford said as understanding flashed across his face.
A few things suddenly started making sense.
"No wonder he hasn't quit the tournament already," Isla muttered.
Alex glanced toward him but said nothing.
"You are really in big trouble," Clifford said.
His tone wasn't mocking.
If anything, it sounded more like a statement of fact.
"How did you lose it?" he asked.
The question made Alex hesitate.
For a moment, he wasn't sure how much he should reveal.
His eyes briefly moved across the group.
At this point, he was skeptical about answering.
Still, after a short pause, he spoke.
"I lost it while fighting one of the Synapse Circle members," Alex said.
The warehouse suddenly became quiet.
No one spoke.
No one moved.
Everyone simply stared at him.
The silence lasted for several seconds.
Then, suddenly, Zephyr giggled.
The giggle quickly turned into a laugh.
"Out of all the lies you could have cooked up, you decided to go with that?" Zephyr said.
He shook his head.
"Do you just want to make it sound like you fought a strong opponent and lost your wristband during the fight?"
"Yeah!" Lennox immediately added.
"Who do you think you're talking to?"
He folded his arms.
"Do you think we're foolish enough to believe you fought a Synapse Circle member and survived?"
Several others looked equally doubtful.
After all, the Synapse Circle's strength was something they had personally witnessed.
Alex could only sigh when he heard their responses.
He had expected this reaction.
Honestly, he couldn't even blame them.
'I knew I should have just kept it to myself,' Alex thought.
"By the way, how are you even still alive? I saw what that Anakim did to you," Isla suddenly said.
Alex turned and looked at him.
"You saw it?" he asked.
"Yes, I did," Isla replied.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"How did you survive that punch?"
Alex stared at him for a moment.
"You saw it?"
Then a faint smile appeared on his face.
"You were hiding when you saw it, right?" Alex asked.
Isla immediately fell silent.
His expression stiffened ever so slightly.
That was all the answer Alex needed.
The smile on Alex's face widened a little.
"How I survived that attack is none of your business," Alex said.
His tone was calm but firm.
"And whether I truly fought against a Synapse Circle member or not, I'm not going to explain myself any further."
The room grew quiet.
Alex glanced around at the others.
"What I really want to know is what's going on in the tournament."
"How far have we gotten already?" he asked.
No one answered immediately.
A strange silence settled over the warehouse.
Unknown to Alex, as he spoke, a faint aura of authority was leaking from him.
It wasn't intentional.
He wasn't even aware of it.
Yet the pressure in his voice made everyone instinctively quiet down.
The atmosphere became noticeably heavier.
Several people straightened unconsciously.
Others simply listened.
A few moments later, Gavalich finally spoke.
"Mid Level."
Alex turned toward him.
Gavalich was seated on the floor with his legs crossed.
His posture was relaxed compared to everyone else.
"We've reached the Mid Level."
"That's why things changed."
"That was the notification all of us received," he explained.
Understanding flashed across Alex's face.
"Thank God."
He let out a small breath of relief.
"Now I really need to get to my exit point," Alex said.
He turned and started walking away from the others.
"Where are you going?" Gavalich asked.
Alex stopped and turned around.
Without saying anything at first, he raised his bare wrist for everyone to see.
The missing wristband was obvious.
"Unlike you guys, who can quit the tournament at any point using your wristbands, I need to get to an old exit gate before I can leave this tournament," Alex said.
A few people exchanged glances.
Some of them had nearly forgotten he no longer had a wristband.
"Wait... it's going to be dangerous outside," Gavalich called out.
Alex paused.
At the same time, everyone else turned to look at Gavalich.
The warning immediately caught their attention.
"What do you mean?" Zephyr asked.
Gavalich took a deep breath before answering.
His expression had become serious.
Very serious.
He looked around at everyone gathered inside the warehouse.
"This tournament has changed."
"We are no longer at the starting stage."
"We've entered the Mid Stage."
"As a result, the difficulty is going to change as well," Gavalich said.
Isla immediately scoffed.
"If you ask me, it should be easier now."
He folded his arms.
"There are fewer clans left in the tournament."
"Most of the survivors are either too weak to fight properly or injured enough for someone else to take advantage of in a battle."
Several people nodded.
The logic made sense.
At least on the surface.
"You are right," Gavalich admitted.
That response caught Isla slightly off guard.
"But you're forgetting something."
Gavalich raised a finger.
"Actually, two things."
He raised a second finger.
"The first is that the clans that survived this long won't be weak clans."
His gaze swept across the room.
"Most of them are likely high-level clans."
"Clans like the Pyre-Fang Clan."
"Clans as strong as the Synapse Circle."
The warehouse became noticeably quieter after those words.
Everyone present had already experienced what the Synapse Circle was capable of.
Just thinking about facing more clans at that level was enough to make people tense up.
"I don't even think we could beat those people when they're injured," Gavalich said.
The memory of the Synapse Circle's strength was still fresh in everyone's mind.
After saying that, he lowered one finger, leaving the other raised.
"The second thing is that when we leveled up, it seems the tournament challenges leveled up as well," Gavalich said.
He paused briefly.
"I've been thinking about it."
"Why did the Synapse Circle ignore us the moment we leveled up?"
The warehouse fell silent.
No one answered.
Everyone remembered it.
One moment, the Synapse Circle had been focused on them.
The next, they had completely lost interest.
Gavalich looked around before continuing.
"It's because clan-versus-clan fights aren't the main challenge anymore."
His voice grew more serious.
"Not at the Mid Level."
Alex frowned.
"What is the goal?" he asked.
"Beasts," Gavalich replied immediately.
"The tournament clearly stated that the challenge name is Endless Beast."
The words alone sounded unpleasant.
Gavalich continued.
"It's not a coincidence that more werewolves suddenly started appearing right after that notification."
He shook his head.
"The tournament changed."
"The challenge changed."
"And now the beasts are the problem."
He looked directly at Alex.
"That's why you can't go outside."
"It will be far more dangerous than you think."
Alex listened to everything Gavalich said.
The explanation made sense.
Too much sense.
The Synapse Circle's sudden retreat.
The appearance of more werewolves.
The tournament's new challenge.
All of it fit together.
Alex lowered his head slightly as he thought about it.
'But at the end of the day, I still have to get to the exit gate if I want to leave this tournament,' Alex thought.
After a few moments, he looked back at the group.
"Unfortunately, I still have to get to the exit."
His voice was calm.
Firm.
"And if I were you guys, I would start leaving the tournament right now."
The suggestion was immediately met with resistance.
"We aren't cowards."
Zephyr stepped forward.
"We can still fight."
He turned toward the others.
His eyes swept across the room.
"No one is quitting this tournament unless the tournament exits you."
The statement sounded less like motivation and more like a warning.
The others remained silent.
Listening.
"While we can still fight, we should do our best to climb higher."
"No matter what happens."
"All we need is one member."
"Just one."
"If a single member reaches a high level, our clan will be recognized as a high-stage clan."
Determination filled his voice.
"We have to take that step."
"We have to push harder."
He looked around at everyone.
"We can't stop now."
Alex simply shrugged.
He wasn't interested in arguing.
"Have it your way."
"I'm getting out of this tournament as soon as I can."
With that, he turned and started walking toward the exit.
His destination hadn't changed.
He still intended to find the exit gate.
Then—
Bang!
A loud impact echoed through the warehouse.
Everyone froze.
The sound had come from the front.
Instinctively, every head turned toward the large metal door.
What they saw made their expressions change.
A large claw had punched through the metal and was now stuck in the door.
The sharp talons protruded through the steel.
At that moment, nobody needed an explanation.
One of the werewolves had found them.