The cave grew narrower the deeper he went.
The air felt thicker.
Not suffocating—
but heavier.
Elios didn't slow down.
His steps were steady.
Deliberate.
The faint trace of black still lingered around him—
thin.
Unstable.
Like it was waiting.
Again.
"…Fine."
The word came out low.
Not frustration.
Acceptance.
Elios stopped.
Not because he needed to.
Because he chose to.
He closed his eyes halfway.
And reached for it.
This time—
he didn't force it immediately.
He let it come.
Slow.
Measured.
The response was different.
Subtle—
but there.
The black flow surfaced.
Thicker than before.
Closer.
More responsive.
But still—
wrong.
Elios exhaled.
"…Better…"
The flow didn't flicker as much.
Not immediately.
It held.
For now.
A sound echoed ahead.
Low.
Multiple.
Elios opened his eyes.
The cave widened slightly ahead.
Enough space.
Enough distance.
And enough movement.
Ten.
At least.
Elios stepped forward.
The black flow tightened around him.
Not protective.
Not controlled.
Just—
present.
The goblins noticed him.
Their movement changed instantly.
Aggressive.
Coordinated.
They rushed.
Elios didn't step back.
He moved forward.
The first clash came fast.
Too fast.
Elios cut one down.
Turned—
blocked another—
countered—
but the third came from the side.
A strike landed.
Shallow.
Ignored.
Elios pushed forward.
The flow held.
Barely.
"…Not enough…"
He needed more.
Not just movement.
Not just reaction.
That pressure.
That condensed force.
Elios raised his hand.
Focused.
The black flow responded.
Faster this time.
Pulled inward.
Condensing.
Stronger.
Denser.
His arm trembled.
Pain surged.
Sharper than before.
"…Hold…"
He didn't release it.
Not yet.
The pressure increased.
More.
More than before.
Too much.
"…Ghh—!"
His breathing broke.
The goblins closed in.
Too close.
Too many.
Elios didn't let go.
Didn't release it early.
He forced it.
The pressure tightened—
compressed—
beyond what it should.
Something snapped.
Not outside.
Inside.
The black flow surged violently.
Unstable.
Wild.
His vision sharpened—
then distorted—
The world felt closer—
then wrong.
"…Now—!"
He released it.
The burst shot forward.
Not controlled.
Not clean.
It tore through the space ahead—
hitting multiple targets—
but not precisely.
Two dropped instantly.
Another was thrown aside.
The rest staggered.
But Elios—
staggered too.
His body jerked slightly.
His vision blurred hard.
"…Tch—"
That cost more.
Much more.
The black flow around him thinned—
then flickered violently.
Almost gone.
"…Not yet…"
He forced himself forward.
The remaining goblins recovered.
They rushed again.
Elios met them headon.
No distance.
No space.
Close combat.
Messy.
Brutal.
He took another hit.
Deeper this time.
Ignored.
He struck back.
Cut one down.
Then another.
His movements slower now—
but still enough.
The last goblin lunged.
Elios stepped in—
too close—
and ended it.
Silence returned.
But it didn't feel the same.
Elios stood there—
barely.
His breathing broken.
Uneven.
His vision still unstable.
The black flow—
almost gone.
"…That was…"
He didn't finish.
Because he knew.
Too much.
He looked at his hand.
It trembled slightly.
Not from fear.
From strain.
"…So this is the limit…"
Not final.
But current.
Elios exhaled slowly.
Then stepped forward again.
Deeper into the cave.
Because now—
he understood something else.
That power—
wasn't something he could use freely.
Not yet.
And if he pushed it further—
it might not just hurt.
It might take something.
Something he couldn't get back.
Elios didn't stop.
Because even knowing that—
he still moved forward.
End.