The synchronization pulsed.
Once.
Twice.
Then the entire prison shook.
Dominic froze.
Not because of the corrupted anchors advancing toward him.
Not because of the abyss tearing itself free beneath the realm.
Not even because of the impossible shapes moving beyond reality itself.
Something else had happened.
Something deeper.
A hidden layer of the prison had awakened.
The moment it stirred, every force in existence reacted.
The abyss roared.
The corrupted anchors stopped moving.
The stranger's calm expression vanished for the first time.
Even the Sovereign's eyes widened slightly.
Marcus immediately noticed.
"…Okay."
He pointed at everyone.
"Whatever just happened, literally nobody looks happy about it."
The prison pulsed again.
This time harder.
Deep beneath the synchronization, Dominic felt ancient mechanisms moving.
Not physical structures.
Concepts.
Protections older than worlds.
Older than the current balance.
Older than the Sovereign.
And suddenly—
He understood something terrifying.
The prison they knew…
Wasn't the original prison.
It was only the outer layer.
Leila felt the realization through their bond.
Her face went pale.
"…No."
The old man stared at the core.
His hands trembled.
"The records…"
A pause.
"The missing sections…"
The Sovereign slowly looked toward Dominic.
And for the first time—
There was genuine uncertainty in his eyes.
"You activated it."
The stranger above the realm immediately stepped forward.
"Impossible."
His calm voice finally cracked.
"The First Layer was destroyed."
The synchronization responded instantly.
A wave of silver-black energy exploded across the prison.
BOOM!
Every fracture in the sky illuminated simultaneously.
Every seal throughout the realm activated.
Every ancient marking hidden beneath reality came alive.
The abyss screamed.
Not rage.
Fear.
Marcus stared downward.
"…Did the giant apocalypse monster just panic?"
Nobody answered.
Because it had.
For the first time since awakening—
The thing beneath the realm was afraid.
The countless eyes below widened.
The claw gripping the prison walls loosened slightly.
And the ancient voice returned.
No…
The realm trembled violently.
It should not exist.
Dominic's gaze sharpened.
"What's it talking about?"
The Sovereign answered quietly.
"The First Warden."
Silence fell.
The title alone seemed to carry weight.
Reality itself reacted to the words.
Leila frowned.
"…The first anchor?"
The Sovereign slowly shook his head.
"No."
A pause.
"The creator."
The battlefield froze.
Even the corrupted anchors stared.
Marcus blinked.
"…The creator of the prison?"
"Yes."
The old man looked shaken.
"That's impossible."
The Sovereign's voice lowered.
"The First Warden existed before the prison."
Below them, the abyss began struggling violently.
The darkness churned.
The countless eyes shifted erratically.
Like something trapped in a nightmare.
Dominic felt the hidden layer opening further.
Ancient memories flooded through the synchronization.
Not his memories.
Not Leila's.
Not even the prison's.
Someone else's.
A lone figure standing at the edge of nothingness.
Watching worlds form.
Watching realities grow.
Watching impossible horrors emerge from beyond existence.
Then building a prison.
Not to contain one creature.
Not to contain an army.
To contain an entire category of existence.
The things beyond reality.
Dominic's eyes widened.
The abyss.
The creatures outside existence.
The entities moving beyond the fractures.
They were all connected.
They belonged to the same origin.
The same invasion.
The stranger above the realm realized it too.
His face darkened.
"No."
The synchronization pulsed harder.
The hidden layer continued opening.
And suddenly—
A voice echoed through the prison.
Not from the abyss.
Not from the sky.
Not from the core.
Everywhere.
Calm.
Ancient.
Endless.
"Authorization recognized."
The entire realm froze.
"Dual Anchor synchronization confirmed."
The abyss screamed.
The corrupted anchors staggered backward.
The stranger's expression finally showed fear.
"Access granted."
The core exploded with light.
Dominic and Leila were lifted into the air as countless streams of silver-black energy converged around them.
The prison was responding directly to them now.
Not as anchors.
Not as components.
As heirs.
Marcus stared upward.
"…Heirs?"
The old man looked completely stunned.
"The First Warden left successors."
The Sovereign remained silent.
Because he knew something they didn't.
And it terrified him.
The ancient voice spoke again.
"Final Protocol awakening."
Every layer of the prison lit up.
The abyss below began retreating.
Not voluntarily.
Forced.
The claw was dragged downward.
The darkness convulsed violently.
The countless eyes filled with panic.
Because whatever was awakening—
The abyss remembered it.
And feared it more than anything else.
Far beyond the fractured sky, the colossal shapes between worlds suddenly stopped moving.
Watching.
Waiting.
As if they too recognized the ancient authority now returning.
The stranger clenched his fists.
For the first time since arriving—
He looked desperate.
"Stop it!"
His voice thundered across the realm.
"You don't understand what you're awakening!"
Dominic's eyes met his.
And through the synchronization—
He finally saw the truth hidden behind the stranger's fear.
The First Warden hadn't disappeared.
The First Warden had sealed something away willingly.
Something so dangerous that even the prison itself had hidden the knowledge.
And the final layer was about to reveal it.