The darkness above shifted.
Not violently.
Not suddenly.
But enough.
Enough for me to feel it.
My eyes lifted instinctively.
My Perception reacted before my thoughts did.
Something was there.
Not visible.
Not fully.
But present.
Watching.
The woman stepped back.
"…you shouldn't have said that," she whispered.
I didn't respond.
Because I felt it too.
The air had changed.
Heavier.
Distorted.
Like something was pressing against reality itself.
A low sound echoed.
Not from the ground.
From above.
From beyond.
My chest tightened.
"…it's coming again."
This time—
I didn't panic.
I focused.
I closed my eyes.
Just for a second.
Don't think.
Feel.
The world sharpened instantly.
The Arena wasn't just space anymore.
It was layers.
Movements.
Patterns.
And in those patterns—
Something was wrong.
A tear.
Not physical.
But real.
"…there," I whispered.
My eyes snapped open.
The sky—
No.
The darkness above—
Cracked.
Like glass under pressure.
Thin lines spreading slowly.
The woman stumbled back.
"No… not here…"
A voice shouted from a distance—
"Get away from him!"
Too late.
The crack widened.
And then—
It broke.
Something fell through.
Not like before.
Not forming slowly.
Not rising.
Falling.
Violently.
A mass of distorted fragments crashed into the Arena, sending a shockwave across the ground.
The impact threw nearby souls off balance.
Dust—
No.
Dark particles filled the air.
I stood still.
Watching.
The thing moved.
Not like a creature.
Not like before.
This one—
Was unstable.
Its body flickered between shapes.
Too many shapes.
Too fast.
Limbs forming—
Breaking—
Reforming.
Its presence alone made my head ache.
"…what is that…" someone whispered.
No one answered.
Because no one knew.
The creature lifted itself slowly.
Its hollow face—
No.
Multiple faces—
Shifted.
Changing.
Searching.
Then—
It stopped.
And turned toward me.
My chest tightened.
Of course.
It was always me.
"An… shu…"
This time—
It said my name.
Clearly.
The Arena fell silent.
That had never happened before.
The woman grabbed my arm.
"Run."
I didn't move.
Not immediately.
My Perception activated again.
Not forced.
Natural.
The creature's movement—
Unstable.
Unpredictable.
But not random.
There was a pattern.
Broken.
But still there.
"I can see it…" I whispered.
"What?!" she snapped.
"I can see how it moves."
She froze.
"What are you saying?"
I stepped forward.
Slowly.
Carefully.
"I'm not running."
"That thing will erase you!"
"Maybe."
A pause.
"But not if I understand it."
The creature twitched.
Then—
It moved.
Not fast.
Not slow.
Wrong.
Its body flickered—
And suddenly it was in front of me.
I reacted.
Not by speed.
By instinct.
I stepped aside.
Just enough.
The attack missed.
Clean.
The woman stared.
"…how…?"
I didn't answer.
I moved again.
The creature struck—
I avoided.
Again.
Again.
Each movement sharper.
More precise.
My breathing steady.
Calm.
Like the trial.
Like before.
But stronger.
"This is different…" I said quietly.
I wasn't just reacting.
I was reading.
The creature let out a distorted sound.
Frustrated.
It attacked faster.
More chaotic.
But that made it easier.
The pattern—
Clearer.
Even in chaos.
I moved through it.
Step by step.
Avoiding everything.
The Arena watched.
Silently.
"…he's not getting hit…"
"…he's reading it…"
"…that's impossible…"
The creature stopped.
Suddenly.
Its body froze.
Then—
It changed.
The instability increased.
Its form grew larger.
More violent.
"You made it angry!" the woman shouted.
"No…"
I said slowly.
"I made it adjust."
The creature wasn't mindless.
It was reacting.
Learning.
Just like me.
A cold realization hit me.
"…it's evolving."
The next attack came—
Different.
Faster.
Sharper.
For the first time—
I almost got hit.
My arm moved just in time.
Barely avoiding it.
Blood ran down my skin.
I stepped back.
Breathing heavier now.
"So it learns…"
The creature tilted its head.
Then—
It spoke again.
"Like… her…"
My heart stopped.
"What did you say?"
It twitched.
"Same… pattern…"
Lily.
It recognized her.
Or something about her.
My Perception sharpened instantly.
The connection—
There was one.
Not direct.
But similar.
That's why it targeted me.
Not just because I was here.
Because I was like her.
The creature moved again.
Faster.
Stronger.
Now—
It was adapting to me.
I clenched my fists.
"…then I need to be faster than that."
Not physically.
Mentally.
I closed my eyes.
Just for a second.
Let everything come in.
The Arena.
The movement.
The distortion.
The patterns.
The breaks in reality.
Everything.
And then—
I moved.
Not reacting.
Not predicting.
Flowing.
The creature attacked—
I was already gone.
Behind it.
It turned—
Too late.
For the first time—
I struck.
Not strong.
Not powerful.
But precise.
The point where its form broke the most.
The unstable center.
The creature froze.
Its body flickered violently.
Then—
It screamed.
Not distorted.
Not broken.
Real.
Pain.
The Arena shook.
The crack above trembled again.
The creature collapsed inward—
Then exploded into fragments.
Silence.
Total.
The pieces faded.
Slowly.
Gone.
Just like that.
I stood there.
Breathing heavily.
But steady.
Alive.
The woman stared at me.
"…you just…"
She couldn't finish.
I looked at my hand.
"…I understood it."
Not defeated.
Understood.
That's why it broke.
The Arena remained silent.
Watching.
Judging.
And above—
The crack didn't close.
Not completely.
It stayed.
A reminder.
Something was still wrong.
And I had just touched it.