Astraia leaned forward, eyes sharp. "Alright, enough buildup. What’s the plan for the 10th Floor? I want details."
I nodded, tapping the holo-panel to pull up the 10th Floor briefing.
"It’s an extermination-type floor. But there’s a catch — it’s designed specifically for team play. We won’t be fighting side by side."
She raised an eyebrow.
"Three players will be placed in three separate arenas, each with their own waves. We have to clear waves 1 through 3 individually."
"Once each of us kills our arena’s final boss, that counts as clearing the floor. We don’t get to regroup or help each other in real ti."
Her eyes narrowed. "So... even though we’re ’teaming up,’ we’re fighting completely solo?"
I nodded. "Exactly. The system wants us to clear it at the sa ti, but alone."
"That ans no revives, no backups. Just pure individual skill — and timing."
Noel looked uneasy. "So if one of us falls, the whole team fails?"
"Yes," I said grimly. "We all have to make it through."
Then, Noel’s brow furrowed as he looked between and Astraia. "How do we know if we’re killing the boss at the right ti? I an, if we don’t sync perfectly, what happens?"
I reached into my bag and pulled out a small, sleek device — a communicator specifically designed for the Labyrinth.
"This," I said, holding it up, "lets us stay connected in real ti inside the Rift. We can track each other’s progress and coordinate our attacks."
Noel nodded slowly, but a shadow crossed his face. "And what if we fail? What if we don’t kill our bosses at the sa ti?"
I looked him in the eye, voice steady and cold.
"Then the three bosses rge into one," I said grimly. "A single, colossal entity — far beyond what any one of us could take down alone."
Noel swallowed hard. "That... sounds like a nightmare."
"It is," I admitted. "That’s why synchronization is everything. We either win together, or we lose together."
Astraia narrowed her eyes, her voice low and sharp.
"Why do you even know all this? The system doesn’t hand out that level of detail. And that communicator—" she gestured at the device in my hand, "—where the hell did you get sothing like that?"
I paused for a beat, then calmly tucked the communicator back into my jacket.
"It’s a secret. For now."
She stepped closer, tension rising behind her composed expression. "You want to fight beside you. Trust you. And yet you keep dodging the simplest questions."
I didn’t flinch. My tone was asured, but firm.
"All you need to do is trust ."
She scoffed lightly, though the weight in her eyes never left. "Trust soone who hides behind a mask?"
There was a beat of silence before I replied.
"I’ll let you see my face... when the ti is right."
The room grew still again. Noel quietly glanced between us but said nothing.
Astraia studied a mont longer, then exhaled through her nose and stepped back.
"Fine. But you better make sure that ti is right."
I gave a small nod. "It will be."
-
The preparation phase was done.
Weapons checked. Armor reinforced. Inventory stocked. Mana stabilized. Strategies finalized.
The tension that had built up inside our apartnt now condensed into a singular, silent understanding between the three of us.
The system tir hovered in the air like a sword waiting to fall.
[Ti Remaining Until 10th Floor Boss Opens: 00:10:00]
Noel looked at and adjusted the strap of his gauntlet. "This is it."
Astraia stood by the glass wall of the penthouse, her eyes locked on the pulsing crimson tear in the distance. "We move now. We won’t make it in ti if we wait."
She flicked her wrist, and a remote beeped.
Monts later, her vehicle — a sleek black armored SUV designed for Rift mobility — pulled up into the private rooftop landing pad. The engine purred like a beast just barely leashed.
The doors hissed open and we moved.
I slid into the passenger side as Noel hopped in back. Astraia took the driver’s seat. As soon as the doors sealed, she shifted the vehicle into high-acceleration mode, and the hum of power surged through the cabin.
Outside, the city blurred past in streaks of gold and red.
-
The vehicle sped through the outskirts of Davao like a bullet wrapped in silence.
No one spoke—not because there was nothing to say, but because the gravity of what was coming pressed down on us, demanding focus.
As we neared the Rift, I leaned forward slightly, watching the massive tear in reality pulse with a heartbeat-like rhythm. The closer we got, the more unstable the air beca—mana particles crackled across the skyline, and faint distortions rippled around the base of the Rift’s entrance gate.
A queue of reporters, guild mbers, Vassals, and onlookers had already ford near the periter, though they kept their distance.
Everyone knew sothing was about to happen.
They just didn’t know what.
Astraia steered the SUV through a restricted route, bypassing the crowd with high-tier access clearance. The guards stationed nearby didn’t even question it—they recognized her imdiately.
We stopped just shy of the Rift’s stabilization gate. The countdown appeared before our eyes.
[00:01:09]
The mont was nearly here.
We stepped out of the SUV in unison. The crowd outside noticed imdiately. Murmurs surged, followed by frantic chatter.
"Is that Astraia? She’s here! She’s actually here!"
"Wait—isn’t that Noel? Wasn’t he seen with Noel?!"
"THREE of them. Don’t tell they’re—"
"They’re going for it. They’re clearing Floor 10."
"Right when the tir hits zero."
The voices blurred together as I activated my Faceless Mask. My form shimred, subtly cloaked from identification. Only Noel and Astraia knew who I was.
The Rift pulsed violently.
The system voice bood louder than ever, echoing through every Vassal’s mind:
[BOSS FLOOR ACCESS UNLOCKED]
[Now Entering: Floor 10 – "The Forsaken Arena"]
[Quest Type: Extermination]
[Objective: Exterminate the Riftbound Liege and his Three Generals]
[Requirents: Minimum 3 Participants]
[Special Rule: Synchronized Extermination]
[Participants will be separated into solo arenas. All enemies must be eliminated within a 10-second sync window, or the Liege will evolve into an Unbound Form.]
[Proceed with Caution.]
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