The cave didn't change.
Only him.
Elios walked deeper than before.
Past the point where he had stopped yesterday.
Past the places that still smelled faintly of blood.
The black flow around him was weaker now.
Not gone.
But thinner.
Like it was waiting for him to force it again.
Elios didn't rush it.
Not immediately.
His steps were steady.
His breathing controlled—
or at least—
more controlled than before.
"…Again."
The word came out low.
Not impatient.
Focused.
He stopped.
Closed his eyes halfway.
And reached for it.
Not blindly this time.
He remembered the feeling.
The pressure.
The alignment.
He didn't force it all at once.
He pulled at it.
Slowly.
The response came.
Weak at first—
then stronger.
The black flow returned.
Thicker.
Closer.
But still unstable.
Elios exhaled.
"…Stay."
The flow trembled—
but didn't break.
A sound echoed ahead.
Movement.
Multiple.
Elios opened his eyes.
Seven.
Too many for clean movement.
Good.
He stepped forward.
The goblins noticed him instantly.
They rushed.
Fast.
Wild.
Elios didn't step back.
He moved into them.
The first fell.
Clean.
The second—
blocked—
countered—
cut down.
The third hit him.
A shallow cut.
Ignored.
Elios pushed through.
The black flow flickered—
but held.
"…Not yet…"
He needed more.
Not just this.
That other thing.
The pressure shifted again.
Inside him.
Building.
Elios felt it.
"…Now…"
He raised his hand.
Focused.
Not fully—
but more than before.
The black flow pulled inward.
Condensing.
Slower this time.
Rough.
Unstable.
But forming.
His arm trembled.
Pain followed.
Sharper than before.
"…Ghh—!"
The pressure increased—
too fast.
A goblin lunged.
Elios twisted—
barely—
the attack grazed him.
But he didn't drop it.
Didn't release it.
"…Hold…"
The word came out strained.
The pressure tightened.
Compressed further.
A shape—
not visible—
but felt.
Dense.
Heavy.
Elios' breathing broke.
"…Now—!"
He released it.
The burst shot forward.
Faster than before.
Not clean—
but directed.
It struck two goblins.
One dropped instantly.
The other was thrown back—
slamming into stone.
Silence broke—
then returned.
Elios stood still.
His arm dropped slightly.
"…Better…"
But not enough.
His vision blurred.
Just slightly.
His breathing uneven again.
That cost more.
Too much.
The black flow thinned.
Rapidly.
"…Damn it…"
It was fading.
He forced it again.
The response came—
but weaker.
Slower.
Not enough.
The remaining goblins rushed.
Elios stepped forward.
No hesitation.
No distance.
The fight collapsed into close combat.
Messy.
Brutal.
The first fell.
The second—
blocked—
struck back—
Elios took the hit.
Didn't stop.
Cut it down.
The last one hesitated.
Elios didn't.
He ended it.
Silence.
Heavy.
Elios stood there.
His breathing rough.
His body strained.
The black flow barely visible now.
"…So…"
He exhaled slowly.
"…That's the cost…"
Not just effort.
Not just pain.
Something deeper.
That pressure—
didn't come freely.
And it didn't stay.
Elios looked at his hand again.
The faint trace of black still lingered.
Barely.
"…Not enough…"
The words came out quieter this time.
Not frustration.
Realization.
He lowered his hand.
Then stepped forward again.
Deeper into the cave.
Because now—
he understood something.
Not fully.
But enough.
If he wanted that power—
he would have to take it.
Again.
And again.
Until his body either adapted—
or broke.
End.