Right turns out to be a long corridor carved from stone so old it makes the upper levels look recent. Vivienne's [Luminous Sphere] casts strange shadows on walls covered in symbols I don't recognize, and our footsteps echo in ways that suggest vast empty spaces beyond what we can see.

  "Your shoulder okay?" Vivienne asks after we've been walking for maybe five minutes.

  "It's alright. You?"

  "Same here. Nothing's broken, just bruised." She's already started examining the walls as we walk, her analytical mind noting details. "These architectural patterns are totally different from the tomb above. It's a bad fit, both in terms of period and style, and honestly, it's just not right across the board."

  "So we fell into something older."

  "Much older. Centuries, at least. Maybe more."

  "Great. We're lost in the ancient section of a very old dungeon."

  "Technically yes."

  "You're good at seeing the positive side of things."

  "Panicking won't help."

  "We're not going to walk around without a pn, but we're doing it anyway."

  She looks at me, and I can't tell if she's amused or annoyed. The lighting is weird, so it's hard to tell. "You're very sarcastic for someone who was scared earlier."

  "I deal with fear by using humor."

  "That expins a lot about our conversations."

  The hallway leads to a room, and we both pause to look around. It's enormous. The ceiling is covered in darkness, and the walls are lined with alcoves that hold statues carved from bck stone. This time, it's not sarcophagi, but real statues. They have faces that are so detailed, they might look alive if we look away.

  "This is definitely something important," I say quietly.

  "This feels dangerous," Vivienne says.

  "Those things don't exclude each other."

  "You're quoting me now?"

  "You say smart things sometimes."

  We move through the chamber carefully, watching the statues for any sign of movement. But nothing happens; they're just stone, and we reach the far side without incident. There are three doorways, and they all look the same.

  "Which one?" I ask.

  Vivienne takes out her journal and starts drawing a picture of the chamber yout. "There's no way to know. We could split up and check each one—"

  "Absolutely not."

  "I was going to say that's a terrible idea, but you didn't let me finish."

  "Sorry. Splitting up feels like a surefire way to mess things up."

  "I agree. So we pick one and hope for the best."

  "Middle path?"

  "Okay, take the middle path, then."

  The middle doorway leads to more stairs, which go down into the depths. The air feels colder, and I see frost on the walls. I can even see my breath in the light of the [Luminous Sphere].

  "That's weird," Vivienne says, touching the frost carefully. "We're below ground, so it shouldn't be this cold."

  "Magic, perhaps?"

  "Probably. Or, we're deep enough that we're in yers of rock that are naturally cold."

  "How deep can these ruins go?"

  "No idea. Records from this time are often incomplete."

  The stairs end in another short corridor. This one leads to a rge set of double doors. The doors are carved with more of those overly detailed figures, and standing in front of the doors is something that makes my brain think, "Ugh, this is a boss encounter."

  It's tall, maybe three meters, covered in tattered robes that were probably ceremonial once but are now just rotted fabric hanging from dry, dead skin. The skull is exposed, with the jaw hanging open as if screaming. The eye sockets glow a sickly green light that's become very familiar. In one skeleton's hand is a staff with a crystal on top. This crystal is simir to the one we saw upstairs, but it is darker and full of corrupt energy.

  "Lich," Vivienne whispers, her voice shaking with fear. "That's a Lich. Nyx, we need to run. Even with your power, this is—"

  She suddenly stops, gasping for air, and I catch her before she falls. Her eyes are unfocused, and she's breathing shallowly. I realize what's happening: the thing in front of us is radiating an aura, a magical pressure that's affecting her but not me.

  "Vivi? Hey, stay with me."

  "I can't... it's too strong... there's too much of it..."

  She goes limp in my arms, passed out from the overwhelming force the Lich is putting out. I carefully lower her to the ground and check her pulse. It's still strong and she's still breathing, but she's unconscious. The aura that dropped her feels like pressure against my skin, but not too bad. It's more like a small discomfort than an overwhelming force.

  Right. Because I'm level 198 and this is probably equivalent to a mid-tier boss at best.

  I stand up and look at the Lich directly, now that I'm not worried about Vivienne. It's watching me with those bright, empty eyes, its head tilted in curiosity. When it speaks, the voice echoes directly in my head instead of using normal sound.

  "Interesting… the small one does not fall… the small one resists."

  "Yeah, I know I'm full of surprises," I say, stepping between it and Vivienne's unconscious form.

  "Demon-touched, huh… so young yet the vessel is weak but the essence is strong… You shouldn't be here, little demon. This pce is sealed, warded, and off-limits to the living."

  "We fell through a trap. Didn't exactly pn to intrude. Sorry, tho."

  "Intent matters not… only trespass matters… only consequences matter."

  It raises the staff and I feel magic gathering, massive amounts of power coalescing into something destructive. This is what's happening then. There's no talking our way out of this. There's no diplomatic solution either. It's a combat, like every boss encounter ever.

  The Lich fires, and I move on instinct, [Abyssal Step], taking me three meters left as a bolt of necrotic energy destroys the space where I was standing. If that had hit, it would have been painful. Stone cracks and dissolves, and corruption spreads from the impact point.

  Viviene is safe. That's good.

  Time to actually try, then.

  I cast [Shadow Bolt] at reduced power, testing its defenses. The bolt impacts a barrier around the Lich, dissipating without causing damage.

  Expected. Bosses always have defensive yers.

  "Futile resistance, little demon… Your power is nothing before death eternal."

  "You talk too much for a dead person."

  I dodge another necrotic bst, this one faster than the first, and the Lich is already casting a third before the second nds.

  DUM DUM DUM

  Rapid fire assault, trying to overwhelm me with volume.

  I use [Crimson Chains] to grab a chunk of fallen masonry and throw it into the path of the incoming spell, the improvised shield buying me time to reposition.

  This is actually interesting. Not dangerous, not yet, but interesting.

  The Lich has good damage output and decent casting speed, adds that with protective barriers and area denial. In a game, this would be a mechanics fight, which means you have to recognize the patterns and manage your cooldown time properly.

  …I'm starting to realize I've been holding back too much.

  The Lich casts something more complex now.

  Multiple necrotic bolts that track my movement, and I stop running.

  [Void Barrier] manifests around me, a sphere of compressed shadow that absorbs the incoming attacks without strain.

  The mana cost is very low, maybe one percent of my total mana, and the barrier easily withstands the attack.

  "Impossible… such defense from one so small—"

  "I told you. I'm full of surprises. Mhm, I think I'm the special one."

  I drop the barrier and cast [Obsidian Spear], a mid-tier piercing spell I rarely used in the game because it had weird trajectory mechanics.

  It manifests as a nce of crystallized shadow that punches through the Lich's defenses like they're made of paper. The spear impacts its ribcage, cracking bone and disrupting the animation magic that holds it together.

  "You... uh, what are you?"

  "You want honest answer? Well, still figuring that out too."

  It tries to create distance, floating backward toward the massive doors, casting defensive spells in yers while preparing another assault. I could end this now, one serious attack would obliterate it completely, but something occurs to me.

  I've been fighting at range this entire time. Caster builds, distance attacks, and magical bombardment. But Nyx's css in the game had melee options too, abilities I unlocked but never used because why get close when you can delete things from safety?

  Except now I'm curious. How does melee combat actually feel here?

  I focus on my inventory. The mental command brings up the list of equipped items and stored gear, and there it is: [Reaper's Requiem], the legendary scythe I farmed for three months to obtain. Pure bck metal, bde that curves like death itself, and it has ridiculous aesthetic that I loved despite it being suboptimal compared to staff builds.

  I equip it.

  The scythe materializes in my hands, solid weight that should be impossible for this small body to lift but game logic says I have the strength stat to wield it so I do. The bde hums with power, shadow magic resonating with my own energy, and the feel of it is right in ways I can't articute.

  The Lich has noticed the weapon, whatever passes for arm flickering in those glowing eye sockets.

  "I-Impossible… That artifact should not exist in this realm… You cannot wield—"

  I charge.

  [Abyssal Step] makes me move into melee range instantly, and I swing the scythe in an arc that feels natural, even though I've never done it before.

  The bde easily cuts through the Lich's protective barriers, making a loud cracking sound as it reaches the ancient bone.

  It tries to retaliate with point-bnk necrotic magic but I'm already moving, this body small and fast, dodging inside its guard and striking again.

  Each hit nds with devastating force as strength stat transting into physical power that makes the scythe sing.

  "Stop! Cease! You viote the sanctum, disturb the eternal rest—"

  "You attacked first," I point out, ducking under a wild swing of its staff and taking off one of its arms at the shoulder.

  The Lich screams, the sound echoing in my head like nails on chalkboard, and tries to retreat again.

  I don't let it, of course.

  [Abyssal Step] keeping me in range, the scythe finding weak points with precision that has to be game-assisted because I've never trained for this.

  It's fascinating actually, feeling the combat flow, the way my body moves without conscious thought, executing combos and positioning that I recognize from ability rotations.

  This is what high dexterity feels like, what legendary weapon proficiency means, what having powerful strength does to your damage output.

  The Lich tries one st desperate gambit, its staff glowing as it gathers all its remaining power for a final bst.

  I could dodge but I'm curious about something else, so instead I pnt my feet and cast [Void Barrier] again, yering it with [Shadow Veil] for extra absorption.

  The necrotic explosion hits and my defenses hold without strain.

  The chamber shakes, the stones cracking from the force, but inside my barriers I'm completely safe, watching the corruption spsh harmlessly against compressed void energy.

  When the bst clears the Lich is barely standing, most of its body destroyed by its own desperate attack. I walk through the dissipating energy, my scythe ready, and with one final strike I hit it…

  …and separate its skull from its spine.

  The body colpses into dust and corroded metal, the staff cttering to the ground, and suddenly the oppressive aura is gone, the chamber feeling normal again instead of heavy with death magic.

  Combat complete. Boss defeated, and of course experience gained except there's no experience system here, just the satisfaction of victory and the knowledge that I'm way, way too strong for this undead.

  "Heup!"

  Behind me I hear Vivienne gasp, consciousness returning now that the Lich's aura has dissipated. I turn and she's sitting up, staring at me with eyes so wide I can see white all around.

  "Nyx? What... what happened?"

  "Fought a Lich. Won. You were unconscious for most of it."

  "I know you said you were powerful but—" She's looking at the scythe in my hands, the destroyed remains of the boss, the scorch marks from the final explosion. "That weapon. Where did that come from?"

  "Um. I had it in storage?"

  "You carry a legendary-tier artifact in dimensional storage?"

  "Is it legendary-tier here? I wasn't sure how the cssification transted."

  "Nyx, that scythe is radiating enough magical energy that I can feel it from here despite being me completely drained. That's not just legendary, that's probably artifact-css. And you just used it to kill a Lich in what, three minutes?"

  "More like five. It had decent defenses."

  "Decent—" She's ughing but it sounds slightly hysterical. "You just soloed a creature that requires full adventuring parties to defeat safely, using melee combat which I didn't even know you could do, and you're critiquing its defensive capabilities."

  "To be honest, it was hard for me to see how the barrier was regenerating, and I could predict how much necrotic damage it would do once I figured out the pattern."

  "You're studying the Lich?"

  "Force of habit?"

  She stands up shakily, leaning against the wall for support. "I knew you were strong. You told us you fought high-level threats alone in your world. But seeing it is completely different from hearing about it. That was... Nyx, that was terrifying and amazing and I have so many questions."

  "Can they wait until we're out of this dungeon?"

  "Most of them yes. But one immediate question. Can you please not demonstrate that level of power in front of Captain Aldridge or his knights?"

  "Huh?"

  "If they see what you can actually do, they'll report it to Celine's father. And if her father knows we have access to someone with that kind of combat capability, the political complications will be endless. You'll be recruited or monitored or worse."

  Right, I hadn't thought about that. Politics, power dynamics, the fact that I'm supposed to be a minor noble's daughter not a walking apocalypse.

  "So we tell the others I fought some undead and we escaped?"

  "We tell them you handled a combat encounter competently, which is true, without specifying that you casually destroyed a Lich that should have killed us both."

  "You want me to downpy this?"

  "I want you to have a normal Academy experience without becoming a political chess piece. Can you do that?"

  I dismiss the scythe back to inventory, the weapon vanishing. "Yeah. I can do subtle. Probably."

  "Probably is not reassuring."

  "It's the best I can offer."

  She's staring at the Lich's remains again, at the staff lying on the ground. "Should we take that?"

  "The staff?"

  "It's clearly a powerful artifact. Might be valuable."

  I approach it carefully, examining the crystal at the top. Up close I can see it's cracked, the corruption inside dissipating now that its wielder is destroyed. "I think it's dying. Whatever magic sustained it was tied to the Lich."

  "Still might be worth studying."

  "Your academic curiosity is going to get us killed someday."

  "Says the person who just engaged a Lich in melee combat."

  "That was necessity."

  "But I feel like that was you experimenting."

  "Can it be both?"

  She picks up the staff despite my concerns, wrapping it carefully in cloth from her pack. "We should check beyond those doors. If the Lich was guarding them they must lead somewhere important."

  "Or somewhere dangerous."

  "Again, not mutually exclusive."

  The massive doors aren't locked, just heavy. We push them open together and they swing inward with the groan of ancient hinges, revealing a chamber beyond that's completely different from anything we've seen.

  It's pristine. Clean stone, active magical lighting, the air fresh rather than stale. In the center is a circur ptform carved with intricate symbols, and standing on the ptform is a crystal formation identical to the one we saw in the upper level's protected chamber.

  "What is this pce?" I whisper.

  "I think..." Vivienne moves toward the ptform cautiously. "I think this is what the whole crypt was built to protect. This, not the tombs or the family's remains, is what we have here. Whatever this is."

  "Should we touch it?"

  "Probably not."

  "But you're going to anyway, right?"

  "I'm curious."

  "That's not a good reason."

  "It's the only reason I have."

  She reaches toward the crystal and I brace for some catastrophic response, but nothing happens. Her fingers touch the surface and the crystal just... sits there. Inert.

  "Huh," she says.

  "That's anticlimactic."

  "I thought so. Though it is generating a lot of magical energy. This might be a ley line convergence point, or a sealed power source, or—" She pulls out her journal, already sketching and taking notes. "This is incredible. The architectural implications alone—"

  "Vivi. As much as I love watching you nerd out, we should probably focus on finding a way back to the surface."

  "Right. Yes. Priorities." But she's still sketching while she talks. "Though if this chamber is maintained and pristine there must be another exit, probably better than the trap pit we fell through—"

  A doorway on the far side of the chamber catches my eye, smaller than the main entrance, with stairs leading up. "Found something."

  "What? Oh, perfect! That must connect to another section of the upper levels."

  We take the stairs, climbing for what feels like ages, until finally we emerge into a corridor I actually recognize from Vivienne's map. We're back in the main tomb structure, not far from the entrance.

  "We made it," Vivienne says, relief clear in her voice.

  "We survived," I correct. "Made it implies pnning rather than luck."

  "I'll take either at this point."

  We head toward the entrance, following familiar paths now, and I can hear voices ahead. Mara and Celine are calling our names. Captain Aldridge is giving orders to his knights. We can hear the sound of an organized search.

  "Here!" Vivienne shouts. "We're here!"

  We hear footsteps, and then Celine runs up to us and hugs us so tightly that we almost fall over. "You're alive! We thought you couldn't be reached when you fell. We tried to find another path, but the corridors kept changing."

  "We're fine," I tell her. "We fell down to a lower level, but we found another way to get back up."

  Mara arrives next, doing a quick visual assessment for injuries. "Any wounds? Encounters?"

  "Some bruising from the fall," Vivienne reports. "Few undead in the lower sections but nothing we couldn't handle."

  "You're sure?"

  "Positive. Nyx's combat training proved very useful."

  Mara looks at me and I shrug. "Fought some things. And luckily we've won. Can we discuss it somewhere that isn't an ancient tomb?"

  Captain Aldridge looks worried on his weathered face. "Lady Celine insisted on organizing a rescue. I'm gd to see you're both unharmed."

  "Mostly unharmed," Vivienne says. "Thank you for your patience, Captain."

  We make our way toward the entrance, the girls fnking me and Vivienne like they're afraid we'll disappear again. Outside the sun is setting, painting the sky orange and red, and I realize we've been in the dungeon for most of the day.

  "That's enough adventure for today," Captain Aldridge says firmly. "We'll set up camp, take care of any injuries, and head back to the estate tomorrow."

  Nobody argues. We're all exhausted, even if I'm not physically tired the mental strain of everything that happened is catching up. The knights have camp already established, fires burning and food cooking, and it's the most welcoming sight I've seen all day.

  Once we're settled and the knights are at a respectful distance, Celine leans in close. "Okay, what actually happened down there?"

  "Fell through a trap," I say quietly. "Landed in an older section, and encountered some undead."

  "Some undead," Mara repeats. "That's very vague."

  "One was a Lich," Vivienne admits, keeping her voice low. "It knocked me unconscious with its aura. Nyx fought it solo."

  "She what?" Celine's whisper is strangled.

  "Killed it. With a scythe. In under five minutes."

  Both Mara and Celine turn to stare at me. I focus very intently on my food.

  "A Lich," Mara says slowly. "You killed a Lich."

  "It wasn't that hard."

  "Liches are apex-tier threats."

  "This one was kind of old and slow."

  "Nyx." Celine's voice is carefully controlled. "I know you're powerful. We knew that when we summoned you. But a Lich? Solo?"

  "I told you I fought high-level threats in my world."

  "You said threats. Not things that require entire adventuring companies to defeat."

  "Different power scales, maybe," I say weakly.

  "Apparently very different," Vivienne adds. "Which is why we're not mentioning this to anyone else. The captain thinks we fought standard undead and escaped through clever navigation. Let's keep it that way."

  Mara is quiet for a long moment, processing. "Why you have a scythe?"

  "In storage, yes."

  "Why a scythe?"

  "I like the aesthetic?"

  "That's your reasoning, huh. Aesthetic."

  "Aesthetics matter, y'know!"

  She shakes her head but she's smiling slightly. "You're insane. All three of us summoned an insane overpowered demon and decided to take her dungeon crawling."

  "In our defense," Celine says, "we didn't know she was this overpowered."

  "I'm right here," I point out.

  "We know. We're discussing you anyway. It's what friends do."

  "That's not how friendship works."

  "Sure it is," all three say in unison.

  I groan but I'm smiling despite myself, surrounded by three chaotic girls.

  "So," Vivienne says. "Academy in a week and a half. Think you can manage to not accidentally reveal you can solo apex-tier threats?"

  "I'll try my best."

  "That's not a promise."

  "It's the best I can offer."

  "We'll take it," Celine says, linking her arm through mine. "Just... maybe warn us next time before you pull out legendary weapons and destroy things that shouldn't be destroyable?"

  "Deal."

  We eat as the stars come out, talking quietly about the dungeon and what we found, and I let myself rex for the first time all day. Tomorrow we head back to the estate. Soon we'll go to the Academy.

  But for now, sitting with my friends after our first real adventure together, I think maybe this world won't be so bad after all.