The prison doors did not survive long.
Once the guards approached, Amagi gave the signal.
Gorath snapped the iron chains around his wrists with raw force, the metal cracking like dry branches. At the same moment, Liora cast a brief illusion across the corridor, making it appear empty for a few crucial seconds.
Kael moved instantly.
Two compressed blasts of Piercing Gale struck the approaching guards, knocking them against the stone walls without killing them. Seris used a brief rewind—only a heartbeat—to avoid a spear that nearly struck her side.
Ace broke his restraints last, focusing his strength carefully.
"Move," Amagi ordered.
The Six rushed through the prison corridors, guided by the old man's directions. The underground tunnels twisted through the mountain like veins, dimly lit by weak torches.
Then suddenly—
They heard arguing ahead.
"…I told you, the hole is not big enough yet!"
Another voice groaned. "Then make it bigger!"
Ace slowed and peeked around the corner.
What he saw was strange.
A young man sat on the floor beside a glowing circular opening in the air—like a floating black hole no wider than a shield. Around him were piles of weapons, food sacks, armor, ropes, and tools… far more than anyone could normally carry.
The man was casually pulling items out of the hole.
A sword.
A ladder.
A crate.
Then he tossed them aside as if they weighed nothing.
Amagi stepped forward cautiously. "What are you doing?"
The man jumped slightly, then relaxed when he saw they weren't guards.
"Oh good, not soldiers." He dusted off his clothes. "Name's Tarin."
Ace looked at the strange portal. "What is that?"
"My inventory space," Tarin replied proudly. "Anything I store inside weighs nothing to me. Food, weapons, armor—you name it."
He tapped the floating hole.
"And if I focus, I can make the opening bigger."
As if proving it, the circular opening stretched wider, large enough for someone to crawl through.
Gorath raised an eyebrow. "You could hide an entire armory in there."
"Already did," Tarin said with a grin.
Seris studied him carefully. "Why are you in a prison tunnel with half a market inside your pocket?"
Tarin scratched his head awkwardly.
"Well… Caldryn asked me to store supplies for their army. Then I accidentally overheard them talking about sacrifices and cursed rituals…"
"So you ran," Ace guessed.
"Exactly."
Distant alarm bells suddenly echoed through the tunnels.
Guards were searching.
Amagi looked at the portal, then at Tarin.
"You said that opening can get bigger."
Tarin nodded slowly.
"How big?"
Tarin grinned.
"Big enough to smuggle six fugitives and a few surprises out of a fortress."
For the first time since escaping the cell—
Ace smiled.
Because the prison escape had just become a lot easier.