Vince raised a hand. “He’s exhausted.”

Only now did Rosaline notice the dried blood and claw marks across Axel’s arms. His eyes were bloodshot, rimmed with fatigue—he clearly hadn’t slept in days.

“…Idiot,” she muttered. Her nose stung a little, and she quickly looked away, pretending she wasn’t on the verge of tearing up.

“Axel…” Vince stepped forward, his voice low. “You really did all this alone?”

“I couldn’t just sit back and let you die,” Axel said softly. “I’m just glad I made it in time.”

And with that, he collapsed.

“Whoa—he’s okay!” Rosaline caught him gently and lowered him to the ground. “He just passed out.”

Within seconds, Axel’s exhausted snores filled the cavern.

Kaia looked down at him and whispered, “If he made it in…" Maybe things had changed. Maybe there was a path out now.

“Maybe,” Vince said. “We’ll ask him when he wakes up. For now, let him sleep.”

He turned to leave. “Rosaline, stay here with him.”

Rosaline nodded slowly.

When the others left, silence settled in the cave. She sat beside Axel, watching the rise and fall of his chest.

And then, unbidden, the memory of the water—his wide-eyed face, the nosebleed, and her standing there completely naked—floated back into her mind.

Her cheeks lit up again.

“…Pervert,” she whispered, though her lips curved into a smile she couldn’t quite fight.

........

Vince and Kaia took turns keeping watch while Axel slept. Three hours later, he finally stirred, groaning as he sat up.

“Captain…” he rasped.

Vince stepped forward, handed him a strip of tough dried beef. “Eat something first. Then tell us what the hell’s going on out there.”

Axel didn’t need to be told twice. He devoured the jerky in large bites, chewing between breaths as he recounted everything he knew about what had happened in the city.

“We lured the Black-Scale Python into the mountains to keep it from attacking Drakenfall?” Rosaline snorted. “Is that the official story Cody and Jude are selling?”

Vince’s expression darkened. "It seems that Jude acquiesced to Cody's doing that."

Rosaline snapped. “We were supposed to bait the Black-Scale Python toward the city perimeter. Cody was in charge of buying us time. Once the beast got within one kilometer of the wall, the city would fire the energy cannon and cripple it.”

Axel narrowed his eyes. “And?”

Rosaline gave a cold laugh. “And that coward Cody lost his nerve. The moment the python got close, his face went pale and he ran. Took his whole unit and hauled ass back to the city.”

Axel's pupils shrank slightly. Desertion. That was criminal. Military court stuff.

“Worst part?” Rosaline continued. “To get back inside, they had to shut down the city’s shield momentarily. But that meant the cannon couldn’t fire. If we had kept going with the plan, the wall would’ve been wide open—just in time for the python to smash straight through it.”

“And if the wall falls,” Vince said grimly, “it’s over. The beast tide pours into Drakenfall. No survivors.”

Axel exhaled sharply. “So that’s why you ran into the mountains…”

Rosaline nodded. “Bought the city time to reboot the cannon system. Someone had to.”

Now the full picture was clear—and it made Axel's blood boil.

“We lost contact after that,” Kaia added, her voice sharp. “All our comms were fried during the retreat. And down here, we can’t get a signal for shit. If we make it back… that bastard Cody is finished.”

Vince waved a hand. “Let’s not dwell on that now. Axel—since you made it in, what’s the situation outside? Did the Black-Scale Python leave?”

Axel’s expression turned grim. “No. It’s still there.”

Everyone tensed.

“What?! Then how the hell did you get past it?”

Axel glanced at Rosaline, then shifted shape. In a soft shimmer of Force, his body shrank and transformed—until a small, sleek civet cat stood in his place.

Vince’s eyes widened. “All Things Simulation...”

Kaia gave a low whistle. “Now that’s impressive.”

“But it doesn’t solve our problem,” Vince muttered. “We weren’t its match before. And now? We’re exhausted. No way we survive a frontal clash.”

Axel frowned. “Captain, why is everyone still so depleted? You’ve had time to rest, haven’t you?”

Rosaline answered. “When you swam in, didn’t you feel the heat? The pressure?”

He nodded. “Yeah. The water was like a damn sauna. And the Force in the air was... weird. Oppressive.”

“Now try to feel it again,” Vince said. “But don’t absorb it.”

Axel closed his eyes, reaching out with his senses. At once, he felt it—an overwhelming, aggressive heat pulsing through the very air. hot… violent.

His body recoiled instinctively.

Rosaline nodded. “It’s not like natural Force or energy from stones. It’s wild. Corrosive. If you draw it in, it’ll burn you from the inside out.”

“Why is it like this?” Axel asked, brows furrowed. “I’ve never felt anything like it.”

“There’s something wrong with this river,” Vince said, gesturing toward the flowing stream nearby. The air around it shimmered with heat, steam rising in curls.

“We were planning to follow it—to see if it led to another exit. But the deeper we went, the worse it got. We could barely breathe, let alone use Force.”

Rosaline stepped forward. “We think there’s a fire spirit in the depths.”

After the onset of the Mutation Era, the surge of ambient Force gave rise to strange phenomena across the world. In certain regions, energy would condense naturally, forming rare and powerful treasures.

Among them was the Fire Spirit—a living crystallization of searing energy, born deep beneath the earth along ancient flame veins. It formed slowly, over decades or centuries, absorbing heat and pressure until it became a tangible embodiment of destructive power.

For elemental Awakened, especially those of the fire or combat systems, Fire Spirits were priceless. Consuming one didn’t just boost raw strength—it granted the rare “Burning” effect, allowing a user's attacks to ignite with explosive heat, multiplying their damage output severalfold.

But absorbing a Fire Spirit wasn’t simple.

The sheer heat could incinerate a person from the inside out. Without specialized cryogenic equipment or support from high-level Awakened, trying to claim one usually meant death.

“If I weren’t injured, I’d go down and at least scout it out,” Vince said, glancing at the turbulent river that led to the spirit’s domain. “Rosaline’s affinity clashes with fire. She’d barely last a minute.”

Kaia shrugged. “I’m a Tier 3, upper class. That shit would roast me alive.”

“What a waste…” she muttered with a bitter laugh. “If we had the right tools or backup, we could take it. Even if we didn’t use it ourselves, just selling it would cover our entire team’s bonus for a year.”

Axel’s eyes widened. He’d known Fire Spirits were valuable, but not that valuable.

“It’d sell for at least a hundred million U.S. dollars,” Kaia continued casually. “There’s an awakening talent called sunfire—one of the top 100. Absorbing a Fire Spirit grants a similar effect. People will throw fortunes at it.”

Rosaline glanced at Axel—and saw the familiar spark of recklessness glimmering in his eyes.

“Don’t even think about it!” she snapped. “You’re not strong enough. Just getting close to that thing will boil your blood.”

But then, her tone shifted. “…Wait. Axel, your original veins....”

Vince, who had been watching silently, suddenly grabbed Axel’s arm. His eyes narrowed in disbelief. “… Flood-grade origin veins?”

“What the hell! That’s not fair!” Kaia shouted. “Rosaline! I’m the weakest again! This is bullshit!”

Axel's voice steady. “Captain, I want to try.”

Everyone turned silent.

“If we go back the way we came, Black-Scale Python will find us. In your condition, all of you will die. But staying here, waiting, doing nothing… it’s the same outcome. At least this gives us a chance.”

Vince was quiet for a long time. He knew Axel. The kid didn’t gamble unless he was holding at least one ace.

“No,” Rosaline cut in sharply. “We fight the damn python together. Going down there now is suicide.”

But Vince raised a hand, interrupting her.