"Captain, are you saying..."
Daphne's eyes widened instantly as she recalled another crucial objective of their current trip. "Like Alise... like the Crimson Flower of Justice, she is a former adventurer who was resurrected by the Dungeon?"
"Lady Astrea, can you discern anything?"
Aiden didn't answer directly. Instead, he turned to Astrea, who had been silent all along, a glimmer of hope in his eyes.
Astrea's brows were deeply furrowed. Her gaze pierced straight through the girl in the distance, analyzing her from the inside out.
After a long pause, she slowly shook her head, her voice carrying a tone that could have been either relief or disappointment.
"There is no soul. She is merely a phantom husk. She possesses the form, but none of the substance within."
Astrea let out a sigh.
If her poor child, Alise, were also resurrected as this kind of soulless husk, she would rather commission Aiden to completely shatter whatever was wearing Alise's face, lest it do anything to tarnish her legacy.
To her, a soulless shell was nothing more than a desecration of the dead's honor.
Hearing this, the spark of hope in Aiden's eyes finally extinguished.
He let out a disappointed sigh.
Deep down, he knew this was merely a phantom born from a chemical reaction between his skills and the Dungeon—an illusion existing solely from his memories.
She wasn't the Spindrift Knight who hid her passion beneath an exterior of solid ice. She was just an empty vessel, a puppet devoid of even a sliver of true will.
Looking at it this way, the Alise resurrected by the Dungeon was likely in the exact same state.
And his extravagant hope of using this method to see Alfia one last time was destined... to remain unfulfilled. At least for now.
Soon, Eula finished slaughtering every last monster in the area.
As the remains of the final monster dissolved into fading black ash, the entire colossal cavern plunged into a deathly silence.
Monster blood stained the ground she had frozen over with her power, congealing into bizarre, magnificent patches of blood-red ice crystals under the pale blue light.
And there she stood, gripping that massive ice-blue greatsword, quietly resting atop the bloodied frost.
Biting cold emanated from beneath her feet, intertwining with the elegant aura radiating from her body, painting a picture that was both breathtakingly beautiful and utterly chilling.
Then, she slowly turned around.
Those golden eyes, which should have been as clear as autumn water, were now completely vacant and hollow. They locked directly onto Aiden and the group.
An unadulterated, pure killing intent hit them like a physical wave of absolute zero.
Aiden understood instantly.
Her slaughtering of the monsters wasn't born out of hatred for them. It was pure instinct—a drive to grow stronger, to evolve, and perhaps, through endless carnage, to awaken a true "self."
In a sense, she and the monsters she had just killed shared the same origin; they were all born of the Dungeon, sharing the same "mother."
But this mother's love was clearly not impartial.
The Dungeon evidently placed far greater importance on a special existence like "Eula." It continuously drove monsters to attack her, not to kill her, but to temper her. Like the strictest mentor, it sought to use a baptism of blood and fire to forcibly forge true sentience and a soul within her.
How incredibly similar this was to the birth mechanism of the Xenos.
Ever since the first intelligent Xenos appeared, the Dungeon seemed to have discovered this bizarre possibility.
It had even specifically carved out a cruel stage in the deep floors known as the "Colosseum," a place that spawned endless monsters, forcing them into perpetual, mutual slaughter, all to actively and systematically spur the birth of more Xenos.
Wearing Eula's face, but nothing more than an empty monster...
Aiden's eyes grew cold. An indescribable wave of irritation welled up in his chest—the distinct displeasure of a cherished memory being tainted.
"Your existence really pisses me off."
He muttered under his breath, his voice devoid of a single trace of emotion.
"So, die."
The very second "Eula" raised her massive greatsword and took an elegant, lethal step toward them, Aiden moved.
He instantly drew the Fire Spirit Sword from his waist.
"Ride Upon This Wheel of Flame!"
The ultra-short chant flashed by. Crimson flames erupted from his body as if alive, instantly weaving into a gorgeous cloak of fire around him.
The hem of the cloak fluttered without any wind, dripping with golden sparks.
The next instant, he transformed into a streak of fire tearing through the darkness, charging head-on at the walking figure of ice.
Seeing Aiden take the initiative, Robin and the others didn't hesitate for a second. Understanding his intent perfectly, they immediately retreated, quickly putting dozens of meters between them, turning the vast cavern into a battlefield exclusively for their Captain.
They all knew clearly that Aiden's experience had already reached the critical threshold for leveling up. All he needed was a "Great Feat" capable of shaking the soul to serve as the catalyst.
And the formidable enemy before them, possessing basic stats at the Level 5 tier at the absolute minimum, was undoubtedly the perfect stepping stone for him to shatter his limits and advance to Level 4.
The battle erupted in a fraction of a second.
Aiden's Fire Spirit Sword and "Eula's" ice-blue greatsword collided violently in mid-air.
CLANG—!!!
A deafening screech of clashing metal echoed throughout the entire cavern.
----
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