Silence pressed down on the basin, thick and unbroken, like the world itself had paused to acknowledge what had just happened.
Bran stood at its center, chest rising and falling in slow, measured breaths. Around him, the Ironfang pack lay still—bodies sprawled across fractured stone, their presence heavy even in death.
No movement. No sound.
Just the aftermath.
"…That thing again."
He didn't linger on it. Thinking about something he couldn't remember wouldn't help him survive what came next.
Crystals began to form.
Not slowly.
Not gently.
They surfaced all at once—light condensing into solid shapes across the basin, dozens of them catching the dim glow filtering through the mist. It turned the ground into a scattered constellation.
Too many to ignore.
Too dangerous to mishandle.
Bran stepped forward.
He didn't hesitate this time.
He started collecting.
One after another, he picked them up, moving with quiet efficiency, his gaze constantly shifting, not out of fear—but habit. Even here, alone, he didn't trust stillness.
He gathered them all.
Every single one.
Breaker-tier crystals filled his hands, then his pouch, then overflowed.
He didn't stop.
Because leaving them behind made no sense.
Because this place wouldn't stay empty forever.
Because anything left here—
Would be taken.
His pouch grew heavy.
Too heavy.
Bran paused.
Looked down.
"…Yeah. That's not going to work."
Walking out with this much?
That wasn't survival.
That was an invitation.
His eyes shifted.
The Alpha.
Its body lay apart from the rest, larger, heavier, its presence lingering even in silence.
And beside it—
The crystal.
Dense.
Dark.
Wrong.
He approached it slowly, crouching beside it as it fully formed. Even without touching it, he could feel the difference. This wasn't just higher quality.
This was attention.
"If I carry this out…" he muttered, "…I might as well announce it."
His gaze hardened slightly.
Then—
"…System."
The response came immediately.
Not in sound.
In access.
The interface unfolded, runes assembling with quiet precision, waiting.
He didn't browse this time.
He searched.
Found it.
Utility Functions
One option.
System Storage (Basic)
Cost: 100 RP
→ Internal storage space
→ Undetectable by external scans
→ Capacity: Low (Upgradeable)
Bran stared at it for a second.
Undetectable.
That was everything.
He checked his RP.
Not enough.
"…Alright."
He moved again.
This time with purpose.
He picked up crystals—
And absorbed them.
+2 RP
+2 RP
+2 RP
The energy stacked quickly, warmth building under his skin in controlled waves. He didn't overdo it. Didn't drain everything.
He chose.
Carefully.
Some crystals vanished into energy.
Others remained.
Stored physically.
A balance.
When the number aligned—
He stopped.
Opened the shop.
Purchased.
Purchase Confirmed: System Storage (Basic)
Something shifted inside him.
Not power.
Space.
A small, silent compartment, separate from the world.
Hidden.
Bran exhaled once.
Then got to work.
This time—
He stored.
Crystal after crystal disappeared into that internal space, vanishing without trace, without weight. He moved efficiently, clearing the excess, leaving only what he intended to show.
Then—
The Alpha crystal.
He picked it up.
Held it for a fraction of a second—
Then stored it.
Gone.
Hidden.
Safe.
Bran stood up.
Looked around the basin again.
Nothing left.
Not really.
Just what he wanted to be seen.
He adjusted the pouch at his side.
Light enough.
Believable.
He turned.
Walked back the way he came.
Through the fractured ridge.
Across the uneven ground.
Until—
The portal.
It shimmered faintly between jagged stone, unstable but active, its surface rippling like disturbed water.
Bran stopped in front of it.
A thought settled in quietly.
"…I missed it."
He didn't know.
Didn't need to.
That was what it felt like.
He stepped forward.
And entered.