Smoke.
Blood.
And a streak of blue lightning tearing through the massive tentacles.
One of the three figures tilted his head slightly.
His low voice drifted through the wind.
"Oh… he's activated Destruction Mode, has he?"
The second man never took his eyes off the battlefield.
"A cornered beast always turns to bite."
A faint smirk curled on his lips.
"In the end, he's nothing more than a wild animal."
Below—
Another explosion shook the ground.
Blue light flashed amid the rain of blood.
The low voice spoke again.
"It won't affect our Queen, will it?"
The second man chuckled softly.
He tilted his head.
"Nothing to worry about."
At that moment—
From the darkness behind them, the third figure slowly stepped forward.
Their footsteps were so light they made almost no sound.
The faint glow of the night sky slid across their arm.
Perched on that arm—
Was a white crow.
Its three eyes were half open.
Inside each eye flickered thin strands of blood-red light, like threads.
The other figure gently stroked the crow's feathers.
Then said calmly,
"If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving."
Their voice carried almost no interest in the slaughter unfolding below.
The second man tilted his head and looked at them.
"You don't feel happy?"
He spread his arms toward the battlefield.
"This is a work of art."
His eyes flashed with a strange excitement.
"No."
The third figure answered indifferently.
The second man chuckled softly.
His fingers absentmindedly scratched at his cheek.
"I'm still not satisfied."
He looked down at the battlefield.
"This chaos."
"The stage I arranged."
"The Queen…"
His voice lowered.
"I want it to become a masterpiece."
No one spoke for the next few seconds.
The first man continued watching the battle.
The second man kept staring at the one holding the crow.
A silent tension lingered in the air.
The figure with the crow seemed to notice it.
They shrugged.
"As you wish."
They turned halfway around.
"I have things to do. I'll be going."
The crow on their arm gave a small flutter of its wings.
"The rest is up to you."
They paused for a moment.
Their voice suddenly dropped.
"Just don't make it too obvious."
The wind swept across the rooftop.
Their cloak shifted softly.
"The higher-ups already said it."
"If that thing is disturbed—"
They glanced at the other two.
"It won't just be us who ends up in trouble."
The moment those words fell—
The air around them turned cold.
The other two almost froze at the same time.
Only for a brief moment.
But it was enough to notice.
The first man laughed first.
"Relax."
"I know my limits."
The second man clapped his hands twice.
"Alright! Alright!"
"I always remember the higher-ups' orders."
He looked down at the battlefield.
A sick excitement flashed in his eyes.
"I'll go down there."
"Clean everything up."
"Make sure nothing connected to us is exposed."
He licked his lips.
"Don't worry."
"No one will see me."
His finger pointed toward the battlefield below.
"You two just need to stand here…"
"…and watch."
The first man said nothing.
He simply stood there.
His gaze followed the figure holding the crow.
That figure was slowly stepping back into the darkness.
Step by step.
One step at a time.
Until their silhouette was completely swallowed by the night.
The second man turned toward the edge of the rooftop.
"Alright then!"
His voice brimmed with excitement.
"Just stand here and wait!"
Then he jumped down.
Explosions continued to erupt across the battlefield below.
The first man let out a quiet breath.
"Disgusting."
His voice was cold.
He glanced toward the darkness where the crow bearer had just disappeared.
"That damned bastard… finally left."
Then he looked down.
The second man had already nearly vanished into the darkness of the battlefield.
Down there—
The man who had just jumped down cracked his knuckles.
Soft snapping sounds echoed.
"Earlier…"
He looked toward Dane, who was still fighting like a madman.
"I only used a little strength."
A faint smile appeared beneath his hood.
"I hate the feeling… of a performance being cut short."
He tilted his head, watching the battle.
"You can stay out of it."
"Just keep watching."
His voice was slow.
"My heroine will shine."
A brief pause.
"…no one is allowed to interfere with her shining on the stage."
His gaze lowered toward the battlefield.
"And it's my responsibility…"
He clenched his fist.
"…to bring down the curtain on those who stand in her way."
———
Lam Huy Trường tapped the stone wall as he walked past it.
A hollow sound echoed back.
"In the letter she left behind," he read slowly.
"May I remain by your side forever."
"May I always be the light that guides you through the darkness."
Lam Huy Trường raised his left hand.
The faint glow from the watch cast a thin beam down the corridor.
The path ahead was pitch black.
He said nothing more.
A few seconds later—
The AI's voice spoke.
"Sir."
"Has the story ended?"
"Yes."
Lam Huy Trường answered briefly.
A very strange sound came from the watch.
It was like someone seeing an extremely cute neighbor's cat—but not being allowed to pick it up.
The AI continued.
"This story is not logical."
"Where did the girl go?"
"And what does it have to do with this tunnel?"
Lam Huy Trường lightly tapped the face of his watch.
As if knocking on the head of an overly curious child.
He whispered,
"The white stone."
The AI repeated.
"That white stone?"
"Professor, do you mean she's connected to it?"
"Or does the stone contain a secret that could help the prince find her?"
Lam Huy Trường didn't answer right away.
He walked while counting.
"That fork earlier…"
"This is the second corridor now…"
"Then we turn right."
"Professooor!"
The AI dragged out the word like it was sulking.
Lam Huy Trường sighed.
"Ah."
"Does a white stone remind you of anything?"
"For example…"
"A crystal?"
"Ah—!"
A sharp cry burst from the watch.
"But Professor!"
"In historical records, the earliest crystal was discovered in an ore mine—"
The AI suddenly stopped.
Then its voice slowed.
"Could it be…"
"It didn't form naturally?"
"It might have been created by humans?"
"That's what you mean, Professor, isn't it?"
Lam Huy Trường shrugged.
"Most likely."
"The first crystal that appeared in this world…"
"No one knows why it exists."
"But this legend… might be a piece of evidence."
The AI fell silent for a few seconds.
Then it spoke again.
"This story does not exist in my historical database."
"How can we verify that it wasn't fabricated by some charlatan?"
Lam Huy Trường coughed lightly.
"I have a reliable source."
"Completely trustworthy."
But in his mind, he was thinking something entirely different.
The protagonist had to collect all four fragments of the legend.
Only after putting them together would this ridiculous story appear.
Then the tunnel would open.
Allowing them to come here and claim the power-boosting treasure.
But—
No matter how early the protagonist arrived,
this place had already collapsed long ago in the game.
The origin crystal?
Forget touching it.
There wasn't even a chance to see it.
From the very beginning, Lam Huy Trường had been aiming for this place.
Not because of the crystal.
He only wanted to grab a few ancient weapons left behind.
For self-defense.
So when that damned countdown timer appeared—
he ran straight here.
Before the tunnel collapsed.
Quickly do the "righteous" thing.
Loot the gear.
If luck happened to smile on him…
who knew—maybe he'd stumble upon something that could kill in one hit.
The AI's voice sounded again, calmer this time.
"So, Professor…"
"Are we looking for the Origin Crystal?"
Lam Huy Trường smiled.
A very sly smile.
"Of course."
But in his mind, only one sentence echoed.
Keep dreaming.
That precious thing—
the game had never truly let players see it.
No matter how many times people dug through the data,
no one had ever found anything resembling it.
It was just a display legend.
A story with no beginning and no end.
All he needed was to stop by for ten or twenty minutes.
Take what he needed.
Then disappear.
That had been the original plan.
But—
A while later.
Inside the dark tunnel,
Lam Huy Trường collapsed flat onto the ground.
His chest rose and fell violently.
He panted like an exhausted animal.
"…What kind of trash stamina is this…"
The AI calmly concluded,
"The professor's stamina…"
"…is indeed extremely poor."
Lam Huy Trường hadn't even responded yet
when the AI suddenly spoke again.
"…Thermal fluctuations detected."
He immediately lifted his head.
"Where?"
A brief silence.
Then the AI continued.
"…Apologies."
"It appears to be a measurement error."
Lam Huy Trường let out a breath.
"Don't scare people like that."
The AI did not respond.
In the tunnel ahead—
a very small heat signature had just appeared.
Then vanished.