Peace didn't last.
It never does.
I had barely finished processing the fact that we made it to Floor 40 alive when my system blinked in front of me.
[FIONA: We need to talk. Now.]
A second message followed before I could even think of replying.
[FIONA: Floor 20. Office. It's urgent.]
I stared at it for a moment, then shifted my focus to the leaderboard still faintly hovering in my vision.
Floor 40.
Owner: Zethara.
The words didn't feel real yet. They sat there like something I'd understand later, when everything stopped moving so fast.
"Let me guess," I muttered, rubbing my temple as the headache started creeping in, "everyone's losing their minds."
"Correct," Zeref answered without missing a beat.
Kael let out a quiet chuckle behind me. "And here I thought we'd get a full hour before chaos started."
Of course. Five minutes was already generous.
•••••••
Floor 20 felt different when we stepped into it.
