"…Too easy."
---
The words echoed in my mind—
But I didn't trust them.
---
"…Too easy."
---
I frowned slightly.
---
The first trial was harder than this.
---
Even now—
I couldn't confidently say I could clear that first stage with ease.
---
Yes, I had grown stronger.
---
My control…
My instincts…
My mental fortitude—
All leagues above what they were before.
---
But that wasn't a reason for arrogance.
---
If anything—
It was a reason to be more cautious.
---
I exhaled slowly.
---
Then looked around.
---
The craters.
The molten rivers.
The destruction carved into the land.
---
Everything told the story of battle.
---
Yet—
---
A full minute had passed.
---
And still—
---
No Tower notification.
---
No confirmation.
---
No reward.
---
My eyes narrowed.
---
Danger.
---
A quiet whisper—
But clear.
---
Danger.
---
My body tensed slightly.
---
Something was wrong.
---
Very wrong.
---
I focused on the magma flowing around me.
---
At first glance—
Nothing unusual.
---
But now—
---
I could feel it.
---
A faint fluctuation.
---
"…Energy?"
---
That shouldn't be possible.
---
Magma doesn't carry intent.
---
It doesn't watch.
---
Yet—
---
This did.
---
"…So that's it."
---
My pupils turned blue.
---
My senses sharpened instantly.
---
Everything slowed.
---
Every ripple.
Every sound.
Every shift in pressure.
---
I stood still.
---
Listening.
---
Observing.
---
Nothing moved—
---
Except the magma.
---
But now—
---
I knew better.
---
I closed my eyes.
---
Expanded my awareness.
---
Letting my senses spread outward—
---
Deep.
---
Careful.
---
Silent.
---
The environment felt wrong.
---
Unnatural.
---
Almost like—
---
Something was hiding beneath it.
---
"COME OUT… wherever you are."
---
My voice echoed calmly across the burning landscape.
---
No response.
---
No movement.
---
Silence.
---
Ten seconds passed.
---
Then—
---
There.
---
My eyes snapped open.
---
Lightning flickered faintly around my body.
---
Not wild.
---
Controlled.
---
Focused.
---
"Found you."
---
BOOM—!!!
---
I moved instantly.
---
No hesitation.
---
No second thought.
---
I appeared above a section of magma—
---
The exact point where the disturbance pulsed.
---
I was about to dive—
---
Then—
---
My instincts screamed.
---
STOP.
---
Without thinking—
---
BOOM—!!!
---
I blasted myself backward.
---
A burst of compressed energy erupted beneath me—
---
Launching me upward into the air.
---
I hovered—
---
Eyes locked below.
---
"…Too close."
---
That wasn't magma.
---
That was a trap.
---
A bait.
---
I raised my hand.
---
Condensed energy gathered instantly—
---
Dense.
---
Compact.
---
Precise.
---
Then—
---
I fired.
---
BOOOOOM—!!!!
---
The blast tore into the molten surface.
---
The magma exploded outward—
---
But not naturally.
---
It resisted.
---
Reacted.
---
Like something alive.
---
Then—
---
It moved.
---
The entire surface shifted violently—
---
Spiraling inward.
---
Collapsing—
---
Condensing—
---
Forming.
---
My eyes sharpened.
---
"…So you finally decided to show yourself."
---
The magma rose.
---
Not as a wave—
---
But as a body.
---
A massive form began to take shape—
---
Far larger than Lithovar.
---
More fluid.
---
More unstable.
---
But—
---
More dangerous.
---
Its body wasn't solid rock.
---
It was molten.
---
Constantly shifting.
---
Constantly flowing.
---
Eyes formed within the magma—
---
Burning.
---
Watching.
---
Multiple.
---
"…A mimic."
---
Or worse—
---
An evolution.
---
It didn't roar.
---
Didn't announce itself.
---
It simply—
---
Moved.
---
Fast.
---
A massive arm of magma surged upward—
---
Reaching for me.
---
I vanished.
---
SWISH—!!
---
Reappeared to the side—
---
But the attack didn't stop.
---
The arm split mid-air—
---
Turning into multiple streams.
---
Tracking me.
---
"…Adaptive."
---
I twisted mid-air—
---
Barely avoiding the strikes.
---
Heat brushed past my body.
---
Too close.
---
I landed.
---
But didn't stay still.
---
SWISH—!!
---
Moved again instantly.
---
The ground beneath me erupted—
---
Magma bursting upward like spears.
---
It's controlling the entire field.
---
Not just attacking—
---
Controlling space.
---
Limiting movement.
---
Forcing mistakes.
---
I exhaled slowly.
---
Then—
---
My stance changed.
---
Lower.
---
Sharper.
---
Focused.
---
No wasted movement.
---
No panic.
---
Just calculation.
---
"…If the body isn't real…"
---
"…then the core must be hidden deeper."
---
Not in the surface.
---
Not visible.
---
Buried.
---
Protected.
---
I closed my eyes briefly.
---
Not to retreat—
---
But to feel.
---
To trace.
---
To locate.
---
The energy flow.
---
The center.
---
The origin.
---
Then—
---
"…There."
---
Deep.
---
Far beneath the surface.
---
The true core.
---
Hidden within layers of molten defense.
---
I opened my eyes.
---
A faint smile appeared.
---
"…Got you."
---
Energy gathered in my body—
---
Not explosive.
---
Not reckless.
---
Condensed.
---
Focused into a single point.
---
This wouldn't be brute force.
---
This would be precision.
---
I bent my knees slightly.
---
Then—
---
BOOM—!!!
---
I shot downward—
---
Like a spear.
---
The magma surged upward to intercept—
---
But I didn't slow down.
---
Didn't stop.
---
Didn't hesitate.
---
My body twisted mid-descent—
---
Slipping through gaps—
---
Reading movement—
---
Predicting flow—
---
Adapting.
---
At the last moment—
---
My hand extended.
---
Energy compressed to its absolute limit.
---
"…Break."
---
BOOOOOOOM—!!!!!!
---
The strike pierced through the molten layers—
---
Straight into the core.
---
A moment—
---
Of silence.
---
Then—
---
The entire field froze.
---
Cracked.
---
Collapsed.
---
The magma lost form instantly—
---
Falling apart like lifeless liquid.
---
The pressure vanished.
---
The heat dropped.
---
Everything—
---
Went still.
---
I landed lightly.
---
Breathing steady.
---
Eyes calm.
---
"…Now that's more like a trial."
---
Then—
---
DING—
---
> [Second Stage Cleared]
---
A faint smile appeared.
---
This time—
---
I accepted it.