When the explosion finally faded—
silence descended upon the volcanic world.
No more roaring.
No more collisions.
No more lightning.
Only smoke.
Ash.
And ruin.
The sky itself had turned dark red beneath the lingering energy of the final clash.
At the center of an enormous crater—
I lay motionless.
Flat on my back.
Smoke rose from my broken body.
Heat distorted the air around me.
The crater stretched across the volcanic world like the scar of a fallen god, swallowing magma seas, shattered mountains, and burning lands alike.
Nothing remained untouched.
The molten oceans had been vaporized.
Entire regions erased.
Only a bottomless abyss remained beneath me.
And surrounding that abyss—
space itself was cracked.
Like shattered glass.
Thin fractures spread through reality, leaking violent spatial distortions into the battlefield.
The world warped around those cracks.
Anything weaker entering this place would be torn apart instantly.
Yet neither of us cared anymore.
Those distortions were merely remnants…
echoes left behind by our final collision.
My right arm slowly regenerated.
Painfully slowly.
Azure flames flickered weakly beneath my skin as I drew lingering elemental energy from the volcanic world to restore my shattered flesh.
Every movement felt heavy.
Distant.
My vision blurred.
My body trembled uncontrollably.
It felt as though thousands of burning needles had been driven into every nerve within me.
Then—
the red smoke nearby swirled.
Condensing slowly.
A massive figure emerged from within it.
VARKHUL.
Or rather—
what remained of him.
His physical body was gone.
Only a fragment of his soul remained, formed entirely from crimson elemental energy and abyssal flames.
Even then—
his presence still felt overwhelming.
The massive warrior walked toward me slowly.
His expression unreadable.
Then he stopped beside me.
"You won."
His deep voice rumbled across the ruined battlefield.
I slowly turned my eyes toward him.
"…Did I?"
A low chuckle escaped him.
"You destroyed my body."
His glowing red eyes narrowed slightly.
"That counts as a victory."
I stared back toward the shattered sky above us.
My breathing rough.
Heavy.
"I lost…"
The words came out quietly.
"For the first time in my life…"
A bitter smile appeared on my lips.
VARKHUL laughed softly.
Not mockingly.
Not cruelly.
But like a warrior remembering something long forgotten.
"How ironic…"
"The undefeated Empire of the Crimson Fang…"
"…losing to a child."
Then his expression shifted.
Serious.
Ancient.
Tired.
"Looks like the new generation truly is destined to surpass the old."
He crouched beside me, blocking my view of the sky.
For the first time since meeting him—
his eyes held no hostility.
Only curiosity.
"…Now I understand why Nyxarion took interest in you."
My eyes narrowed slightly at that name.
Nyxarion.
Again.
VARKHUL noticed.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"You have questions."
"Too many questions."
His expression darkened.
"And unfortunately for you…"
"…the answers place you in danger."
The atmosphere changed instantly.
CRACKLING!!!!!
The sky exploded with crimson lightning.
The volcanic world trembled violently.
The fractured space surrounding us distorted harder.
As if reality itself had sensed something forbidden.
VARKHUL slowly stood back up.
"The Tower…"
His voice became colder.
"…is not your friend."
BOOOOOOOOMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!
The heavens exploded.
Dark clouds formed instantly above us.
Not normal clouds—
but swirling masses of black-red energy covered in ancient runes and chains.
The world screamed.
That was the only way to describe it.
It felt like existence itself was rejecting his words.
Yet VARKHUL continued anyway.
"The Tower is alive."
"It watches."
"It learns."
"It chooses."
CRACK!!!!!
Space tore open behind him.
Black-red chains erupted outward like enraged serpents.
Covered in abyssal flames.
Covered in laws.
Covered in runes older than worlds themselves.
The chains wrapped around his arms.
His neck.
His legs.
His torso.
Trying to drag him backward into the spatial rift.
But VARKHUL remained unmoving.
Like an immovable mountain.
The volcanic world trembled beneath his feet.
"You think the trials exist to help you grow?"
He laughed softly.
"No."
"You are entertainment."
"You are investment."
"You are possibility."
The chains tightened violently.
The sky split apart again.
BOOOOOOOOMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!
A massive tribulation bolt descended from the heavens—
large enough to erase mountains.
VARKHUL swung his fist upward casually.
BAMMMMMMMMM!!!!!
The tribulation shattered.
Half the sky exploded from the impact.
Even I froze slightly at the sight.
He ignored the collapsing heavens completely.
"The Pure Ones…"
"…disrupt balance."
"Most Administrators hate that."
His crimson eyes slowly turned toward me.
"Because the Tower favors your kind."
"The better rewards."
"The greater opportunities."
"The hidden paths."
"You take control away from them."
The chains burned hotter.
Reality distorted harder.
And still—
he continued speaking.
"So they interfere."
"They sabotage."
"They manipulate trials."
"They bet on outcomes."
"They decide which geniuses live…"
"…and which die."
My pupils shrank.
Kragar's words echoed in my mind.
> "Someone wants you dead."
Not a mistake.
Not coincidence.
Intentional.
VARKHUL's eyes narrowed.
"Yes."
"That was intentional."
"We wanted you dead."
Thunder exploded across the heavens.
The world shook violently.
Yet his voice remained calm.
"Not all Administrators choose the same side."
"Some support the Pure Ones."
"Some fear them."
"Some simply enjoy watching monsters fight."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"And some…"
"…simply love chaos."
The chains around his neck tightened harder.
Crushing reality itself around him.
But he still spoke.
"Do not mistake Nyxarion for your ally."
"Do not mistake me for your ally either."
"We are not your friends."
The air froze.
His next words felt heavier than the battlefield itself.
"Until you stand on our level…"
"…you are merely a piece on the board."
The heavens roared again.
This time—
the tribulation became violent.
The clouds twisted unnaturally.
Massive eyes formed within the storms.
Watching.
Judging.
Ancient.
The Tower had become angry.
Very angry.
Yet VARKHUL smiled.
"If the Tower truly wished you dead…"
"…you would already be gone."
My eyes narrowed slightly.
"What… does it want then?"
VARKHUL looked toward the sky silently.
Then answered quietly.
"It doesn't know yet."
Silence.
Even the storms above seemed to pause for a moment.
"It observes."
"It studies possibilities."
"It waits to see what you become."
His expression hardened.
"But the moment it decides…"
"…everything changes."
CRACK!!!!!
The chains suddenly multiplied.
Hundreds.
Thousands.
Covering the sky itself.
The entire world distorted violently.
A giant hand erupted from space itself—
formed from black laws and crimson lightning.
It descended toward VARKHUL.
Trying to crush him completely.
BOOOOOOOOMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!
The impact shattered continents.
Yet VARKHUL roared defiantly.
ABYSSAL FLAMES erupted from his soul fragment, forcing the giant hand backward momentarily.
Then—
he looked at me one last time.
"One does not need to stand alone to be alone."
My eyes widened slightly.
"Choose your allies carefully."
"Trust your instincts."
"But never forget…"
"Even enemies may one day stand beside you."
His gaze sharpened.
"And friends…"
"…may sell you to the heavens."
The giant hand clenched harder.
The chains dragged him toward the collapsing rift.
Then VARKHUL raised one hand toward me.
BOOOOOOOOMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!
A massive pillar of abyssal flame descended from the heavens and engulfed my body.
Warmth spread through me instantly.
My shattered flesh regenerated rapidly.
Bones restored.
Organs healed.
Energy recovered.
Even my exhausted soul stabilized.
"You earned this much at least."
Then—
something appeared behind him.
A figure.
I couldn't see clearly.
Only a silhouette hidden within distorted space.
But the pressure…
My instincts screamed instantly.
DANGER!!!!!
Before I could react—
BAMMMMMMMMM!!!!!
A fist struck VARKHUL across the face.
The impact shattered space completely.
His soul fragment exploded backward into the collapsing rift.
And just before the portal sealed—
his final voice echoed into my mind.
> "The game has already begun, little Sovereign…"
> "Survive long enough to flip the board."
CRACK!!!!!
The rift closed.
The chains vanished.
The tribulation disappeared.
Silence returned once more.
Only the pillar of abyssal flame remained around me.
Slowly fading.
I stood there silently.
Mind racing.
Heart cold.
The Tower…
The Administrators…
Nyxarion…
The Pure Ones…
The game behind the game…
For the first time—
the Tower no longer felt like training.
It felt like a cage.
Then—
a familiar notification appeared before my eyes.
> [ FLOOR 4 CLEARED ]
> [ Hidden Narrative Path Unlocked ]
> [ Administrator Attention Increased ]
> [ WARNING: Multiple Entities Are Now Observing You ]
And for the very first time since entering the Tower—
I felt truly watched.