CHAPTER 151: UPHOLDING A CONTRACT

’How come I can see this?’ he thought.

[The System exists on a plane higher than that of the normal eyes... It exists in space too.]

’I see,’ Lucius replied mentally.

Even though he couldn’t see with his physical eyes, the translucent blue window was still vivid before him, like he hadn’t turned blind.

’Is there any way to cure my blindness?’

[Processing request...]

[Request has been processed.]

[Item Name: Spatial Mend.]

[Cost: 99999999999999999 SP.]

Lucius froze.

’What the absolute fuck?’ he thought.

The number of digits was so ridiculous he almost laughed. Who could have that much SP? Was the system mocking him?

’Is there no cure or something?’ he wondered again, trying to control his frustration.

[Your body has currently been exposed and absorbed a higher level of spatial energy than you can hold. Your mana is being depleted to keep it under control.]

Lucius clenched his jaw. ’So my eyes are bursting open because of that?’

[Your body is barely holding on. Failure to discharge or completely absorb this spatial energy will lead to Host’s death.]

A muscle in his cheek twitched.

It sounded simple, but it wasn’t.

The problem was he could barely sense any spatial energy left to manipulate within him... his internal flow felt like static.

He was fighting to stay conscious, using scraps of willpower to hold the unstable dimension within himself from tearing his body apart.

Still, he couldn’t afford to let them see how bad it really was.

His breathing slowed and he sighed.

"I’m fine," he muttered softly, even though no one had asked.

Luna was crouched near the P40 drone, tinkering with it with her hands trembling slightly.

Lucius turned his head toward her, sensing her location through space itself. "What are you doing?"

Luna froze.

Her heart skipped a beat. "H-how did you—" she began, but stopped when she saw the grin on his lips.

Even blind, he could still read her presence.

"I’m trying to connect the P40 to the glasses," she said, trying to sound composed. "So I can stream again... and ask for help."

She clicked a few times on her visor. A small cable extended from the drone into her device, sparking lightly.

[Stream is starting...]

[Connection established.]

[@MiraVoid: Omg they’re alive?!]

[@HexHunter: THANK THE GODDESS they’re okay!]

[@BlueStarFan: You guys had us terrified, what happened??]

[@LilShrimp: Dungeon Shift??? Is that what this is?!]

[@IronSoul: Finally! Been waiting for an update for an hour]

Luna exhaled shakily.

The chat exploded almost immediately, filling the side of her vision with colorful lines of text.

Then came the second wave... comments that made her heart pound.

[@SilverVane: Wait... why is Lucius wearing a blindfold?]

[@EmeraldWing: Is that blood on the ground?!]

[@VoidEcho: Dude, what happened to his eyes?]

[@KeirnX🔹: That’s a lot of blood. Holy hell.]

[@RinTheMage: Don’t tell me he’s blind???]

Luna bit her lip, her voice trembling as she answered.

"We’re fine... for now." She pulled the glasses back over her visor and looked toward Lucius with her heart hammering in her chest. "We just... we just need to think."

Lucius shifted his posture, lifting his head slightly as if he were facing the stream. "Guys... I have something to say."

The chat was quiet. Even the group inside the cave went silent.

"You remember the contracts I made you sign before we started this?"

Everyone in the room nodded. Grimm, Luna, Erika, even the Hudson brothers... none of them dared to speak.

It was true that none of them had read through every clause in that massive document, but they remembered how strict Lucius was about it.

He had warned them that every part of it mattered.

Lucius continued quietly, "The middle clause of that contract... says I’m responsible for your lives. That means it’s my job to make sure every one of you makes it out alive."

Lucius’s jaw tightened.

He hated this.

He hated every part of it and never imagined he would ever do this... But a contract was a contract.

"So," he said softly, "I know you want to stay with me. But I already made a promise."

Luna’s head snapped up. "Lucius... what are you saying?"

He smiled beneath the dried blood staining his face. "Thank you... for all the good times we spent together. It might not have looked like much, but I enjoyed it."

"Wait... what do you mean?" Erika stepped forward, alarmed. Her voice shook. "Why are you talking like you’re about to die?"

"Probably," Lucius murmured.

A small smile appeared at the corner of his lips as blood trailed down from his nose.

The air around him began to warp... faint ripples expanding outward like heat distortion. Space itself trembled under his control.

"Lucius, stop it!" Luna shouted, panic seizing her chest.

She reached for him but the pressure pushed her hand back.

Raven’s voice sounded as he brought his hand up. "Boss! Don’t you dare!"

Grimm took a step forward, reaching out, but it was already too late.

The ground vibrated under their feet.

Then came the wave.

A surge of energy pulsed out from Lucius’s body, filling every corner of the cavern in an instant.

The air became heavy, light bending as translucent arcs of space stretched outward. The mana density spiked so suddenly that Luna’s visors flickered with warning signs.

"Lucius!!!" Luna screamed.

Her voice was the last thing he heard before the entire cave exploded in white light.

[Unique Spell: Spatial Transfer (LV. 4) has been used.]

[Destination: Tideshear Cove.]

[Warning: Host remaining within dungeon space.]

The light consumed them all.

They didn’t have time to resist... it swallowed everything.

...

The next thing they knew, cold air hit their faces.

The howling wind was gone, replaced by the sounds of mana generators and dozens of voices shouting orders.

They were standing just outside the dungeon gate.

Snow covered the entire field, but what caught their attention was the wall of Awakeners stationed around the entrance... over fifty of them.

Emergency barriers surrounded the gate, glowing blue.

"What the hell—" Erika gasped, stumbling forward.

"Luna!"

The familiar voice made Luna turn. Emilia was running toward her, her red hair whipping behind her in the wind.

The moment she reached her, Luna broke.

She threw herself into Emilia’s arms, sobbing uncontrollably.

"He-he-he-he’s still in the dungeon..." Luna stammered through the tears, clutching at Emilia’s coat. "He’s still inside... Lucius is still in there..."

Emilia froze, horror washing over her face. "What?"

Luna shook her head violently, her words breaking into cries. "I don’t know why he got us out... Whyyyyy...."