The guardian screamed like something trying desperately to remember how to live.
The sound echoed violently through the labyrinth after the fragment embedded in its shoulder cracked apart beneath Arin's strike. For several seconds the entire creature staggered backward uncontrollably, enormous claws tearing through the stone floor while golden energy burst wildly from the exposed wound.
And for the first time since entering the maze
the corruption weakened.
Natural fur appeared briefly beneath the shattered crystal. The creature's distorted breathing changed. One of its many glowing eyes dimmed completely before slowly returning to something closer to ordinary amber.
Human.
No.
Not human.
Alive.
Arin stood motionless while the guardian trembled violently in front of him.
The realization settled deeper now.
The fragments were poisoning everything around them.
Not intentionally.
Vijaya's power simply existed beyond the limits of ordinary living beings. Centuries of exposure had twisted the beasts inside the labyrinth until only fragments of their original selves remained beneath endless hunger and pain.
And if even animals suffered this badly…
Then what would happen when a human tried claiming the fragments directly?
The question lingered inside his mind only briefly before the guardian roared again.
The moment of clarity vanished instantly.
The remaining fragments embedded inside the beast pulsed violently, forcing corruption back across its body like spreading infection. The natural amber eye disappeared beneath burning gold again while black veins surged through its flesh.
The creature attacked immediately afterward.
Faster than before.
The labyrinth shook violently as the guardian slammed through several stone pillars while charging directly toward Arin. He barely dodged sideways in time before the beast obliterated the corridor wall behind him entirely. Stone exploded outward across the maze while entire sections of the labyrinth trembled beneath the impact.
Arin landed roughly against another glowing pathway several meters away before immediately noticing the symbols beneath his feet shifting again.
The sequence had changed.
His eyes sharpened instantly.
The labyrinth reacted differently now that one fragment inside the guardian cracked.
Not random.
Closer to completion.
The glowing patterns spreading across the floor resembled flowing rivers of light now instead of disconnected symbols. Some paths illuminated brighter while others darkened entirely. Several nearby walls moved slowly deeper into the maze while distant mechanisms echoed beneath the mountain again.
The trial was progressing.
But not fast enough.
Because the guardian had become more unstable after the fragment cracked.
The creature roared violently before smashing directly through another corridor while hunting him through the shifting maze. Golden energy burst uncontrollably from the cracks across its body now, damaging the labyrinth itself with every movement.
And the more damaged the maze became—
the more dangerous everything inside it felt.
Above him, Arin could still hear the others fighting too.
Faintly.
Riven shouting.
Stone collapsing.
Liora's energy surging through distant pathways.
They were still alive.
For now.
Another massive impact shook the labyrinth while the guardian suddenly burst through the wall beside him again. Arin immediately blocked the enormous claw rushing toward his chest, but the force behind the strike still launched him violently backward through several glowing pillars. Pain surged through his ribs instantly while blood spread across his sleeve from reopened wounds.
The creature did not stop attacking.
It could not stop.
That realization struck Arin harder than the injuries themselves.
The corruption controlled it completely now.
And deep down, part of him understood that the guardian probably wanted death more than endless suffering.
The beast lunged again.
This time Arin didn't dodge immediately.
Instead his eyes moved toward the glowing patterns beneath the guardian's feet.
Three symbols illuminated brighter every time the creature stepped across them.
A sequence.
He understood it instantly afterward.
The labyrinth required alignment.
Not merely movement.
The guardian itself needed to complete the path together with him.
The realization came with another memory fragment suddenly surfacing inside his mind.
Not Kurukshetra.
Something older.
A massive hall beneath darkness. Ancient warriors kneeling before a weapon wrapped entirely in golden cloth while a voice echoed across the chamber itself.
"Vijaya accepts no master who seeks victory alone."
The memory vanished immediately afterward.
But the meaning remained.
Arin exhaled quietly while the guardian charged again.
"…so that's your test."
The beast roared violently.
Arin moved instantly afterward.
Not away from the creature this time.
Toward it.
Golden energy exploded around him while he deliberately crossed specific glowing symbols beneath the floor before striking directly against another fragment embedded in the guardian's side.
The impact shattered the crystal partially.
The guardian screamed again.
And another section of the labyrinth unlocked.
A deep sound echoed throughout the mountain immediately afterward while several walls shifted somewhere far above. Pathways illuminated deeper inside the maze while golden light surged through the symbols beneath the floor.
It worked.
But the reaction afterward became worse too.
The guardian collapsed briefly before violently convulsing against the ground. More corruption spread uncontrollably across its body while the remaining fragments embedded inside it glowed almost blindingly bright. The beast's breathing became heavier. Faster. More painful.
Arin stared at it silently.
Then slowly understood something horrifying.
The guardian was not surviving because of the fragments.
It was surviving despite them.
Without Vijaya's energy poisoning it constantly, the creature would have died centuries ago naturally.
Now it existed trapped between life and death endlessly.
The thought alone unsettled him deeply.
The guardian slowly stood again afterward.
But this time—
it hesitated.
Its glowing eyes remained fixed on Arin while fragments of awareness briefly surfaced through the corruption again.
And suddenly—
the beast bowed its head slightly.
Only for a second.
Then the corruption surged back violently.
The creature roared again before attacking.
But Arin finally understood what he needed to do.
Not kill it.
Free it.
The realization settled completely inside him afterward.
This entire trial had never been about defeating the guardian through force.
It was about whether he could recognize suffering instead of simply destroying obstacles standing in his way.
The undefeated weapon was judging him.
And Vijaya apparently valued compassion more than conquest.
The irony almost made him laugh.
Because Karna himself understood suffering better than almost anyone.
Another memory surfaced suddenly afterward.
Vrushali crying quietly while treating wounds across his body after battle.
Supriya holding his hand silently beneath moonlight before war consumed everything.
Mira dying beside him while still trying to smile despite knowing he would follow her into death immediately afterward.
Pain.
Loss.
Endless suffering across countless lives.
And still—
he continued walking forward every time.
The guardian attacked again.
Arin intercepted the enormous claw before twisting sideways and slamming another precise strike directly into the largest fragment embedded within the creature's chest.
The crystal shattered violently.
Golden light exploded outward across the corridor immediately afterward.
The guardian screamed louder than before.
Then collapsed completely.
The entire labyrinth trembled violently afterward.
Every symbol across the floor illuminated simultaneously while deep vibrations echoed beneath the mountain itself. Entire pathways shifted again while ancient mechanisms moved somewhere far below the earth.
And suddenly—
the corruption began leaving the guardian's body.
Slowly.
Black veins faded.
Distorted limbs shrank back toward normal proportions.
Several extra eyes closed permanently.
The enormous creature trembled violently while the remaining fragments cracked apart one after another across its flesh. Golden energy escaped upward through the labyrinth ceiling like burning mist before vanishing into darkness entirely.
Arin stood silently while watching it happen.
The guardian's breathing slowed gradually afterward.
Not violent anymore.
Peaceful.
And for the first time since seeing the creature—
its eyes looked clear.
Just an animal.
Tired.
Ancient beyond measure.
But finally free.
The beast slowly lowered itself fully against the stone floor before looking toward Arin one final time.
Then quietly closed its eyes.
Silence settled across the corridor afterward.
Not empty silence.
Relief.
The labyrinth reacted immediately.
Golden light spread outward across every nearby wall while the pathways around Arin stopped shifting entirely for the first time since entering the maze. Several distant corridors opened deeper into the mountain while the symbols beneath the floor rearranged themselves into one enormous pattern now clearly visible from above.
A bow.
Vijaya's true form.
Arin stared at the glowing pattern silently.
Then the mountain shook again.
Harder than before.
A massive sound echoed somewhere beneath the labyrinth immediately afterward.
Not from the maze.
Not from another beast.
Something else.
Something ancient enough that even the labyrinth itself seemed to react fearfully toward it.
Arin's expression darkened instantly.
Because he felt the presence clearly now.
The real guardian.
Not the corrupted beast.
Something connected directly to Vijaya itself.
And unlike the animals corrupted by the fragments…
this presence felt intelligent.
The glowing pathways ahead suddenly illuminated one after another deeper into the mountain, forming a single route through the labyrinth now.
An invitation.
Or perhaps a warning.
Arin exhaled quietly before immediately moving toward the opening corridors.
The others found him several minutes later after the maze pathways finally stabilized.
Everyone looked exhausted.
Riven's clothes were torn nearly beyond recognition while Aira carried visible injuries across one arm. Selene looked pale from exhaustion while Darin still held a broken stone weapon covered in black blood from the creatures.
But all of them froze immediately after seeing the massive guardian lying peacefully against the stone floor nearby.
"…you killed that thing?" Riven asked carefully.
Arin shook his head once.
"No."
Liora looked between him and the creature silently before understanding immediately.
"…you freed it."
Arin nodded quietly.
Nobody spoke afterward.
Because somehow the atmosphere surrounding the dead guardian no longer felt hostile.
It felt mournful.
Ancient.
Like the mountain itself recognized the creature's suffering had finally ended.
Then the ground trembled again.
Everyone immediately looked deeper into the maze afterward.
The pathways ahead now remained completely open, illuminated by flowing golden light stretching downward into darkness far below the mountain.
Kael frowned slightly.
"…that definitely feels intentional."
"It is," Arin answered quietly.
Another pause.
"The trial isn't over."
Silence settled heavily across the group again.
Because all of them felt it too now.
The presence waiting below.
Ancient.
Massive.
Watching them.
And somehow—
every instinct inside their bodies screamed the same warning.
Whatever waited near Vijaya itself…
was far more dangerous than anything they faced so far.
The group continued deeper into the labyrinth afterward.
The corridors gradually transformed the farther downward they traveled. Rough stone walls slowly became smoother, almost polished unnaturally over centuries. The glowing symbols grew more complex too, covering entire sections of the maze now instead of isolated pathways.
And the deeper they descended—
the stronger the pressure became.
Not physical pressure.
Soul pressure.
Like existence itself became heavier around Vijaya's fragments.
Even breathing felt more difficult now.
Several times the others nearly collapsed simply from the overwhelming presence radiating upward through the mountain. Only Arin continued walking without slowing significantly.
Because the closer he moved toward Vijaya—
the more complete he felt.
Fragments of memory stabilized instead of breaking apart chaotically now. The timelines stopped overlapping violently inside his head. Kurukshetra no longer interrupted reality unexpectedly.
It almost felt like the weapon itself was calming him.
Recognizing him.
Welcoming him back.
That realization unsettled him more than comforted him.
Because deep down, he still remembered the final memory from earlier clearly.
"As long as Vijaya remains incomplete… the cycle remains unbroken."
If gathering the fragments completed the weapon…
Then what exactly would happen afterward?
Would he finally break free?
Or would remembering everything completely destroy him first?
The question remained unanswered while they continued descending deeper beneath the mountain.
Eventually the corridors opened into something enormous again.
Everyone stopped immediately afterward.
A massive underground chamber stretched before them beneath the heart of the mountain itself. Golden rivers of energy flowed through cracks across the floor while enormous pillars surrounded the chamber like ancient guardians standing watch over something sacred.
And at the center—
floating above an enormous circular platform carved entirely from black stone—
was the fragment.
Far larger than the others.
A massive curved piece of golden-black metal suspended within the air itself while endless symbols burned across its surface like living fire. The energy radiating from it distorted the entire chamber visibly enough that reality itself appeared unstable nearby.
Even from a distance—
the fragment felt alive.
And standing directly beneath it—
was someone waiting.
The figure remained motionless in the darkness at first. Tall. Wrapped entirely in black cloth marked with ancient golden symbols identical to the ones spread throughout the labyrinth. Long white hair moved slightly beneath the pressure filling the chamber while one hand rested calmly against an enormous spear carved from black stone.
Then slowly—
the figure lifted its head.
And Arin froze instantly.
Because the eyes staring back at him glowed the exact same gold as Vijaya itself.