The chamber didn't quiet after the fight.

  Heat still crawled along the walls, flowing in uneven pulses. Melted stone dripped from the ceiling in slow strands, hissing when it struck the floor.

  Naro wiped his blade against the ground and sheathed it.

  The Runes dimmed.

  He didn't look at the bodies again. He was already listening for movement beyond the walls.

  Rami pressed her back against a pillar of stone, breathing shallowly. The Rune of Life had faded, leaving exhaustion behind. She stayed upright anyway.

  Naro noticed.

  Rami still had scars all over her body despite the Rune of Life's effect.

  She would probably keep them forever.

  He stepped closer, lowering his voice.

  "Can you walk?"

  "Yes." she answered, with exhaustion apparent on her face.

  He nodded and turned away from her, positioning himself between her and the next corridor.

  They moved.

  The deeper tunnels were wider the walls bulged inward, warped by sustained heat and pressure. Every step forward felt like trespassing somewhere unfinished.

  Metal scraped ahead.

  Naro stopped.

  Magma-knights poured from side passages and broken vents, armor uneven, weapons mismatched. Spears. Axes. Short blades. Too many to count quickly.

  Their movements were messy, undisciplined.

  He almost laughed at that.

  'No more tactics, huh ? This is what you creatures should do.'

  Stop behaving like Gaonians and be the savages they are.

  Rami felt it before she understood it.

  "They're—"

  "I know," Naro said.

  He stepped forward.

  The first knight charged.

  Naro dashed.

  He reappeared inside its guard and drove the blade through its chest without extending it. The body dropped instantly, cooling as it fell.

  Another came from the side.

  Storm Strike flared just enough to widen the blade.

  One swing. Clean. Two bodies fell.

  No sound came from his mouth.

  He moved like he was clearing space, not fighting.

  A spear lunged toward Rami.

  Naro was already there.

  He caught the shaft with his vambrace, snapped it with a twist, and took the knight's head off with a short follow-up.

  Rami tightened her grip on the dagger and moved with him, staying close to his shadow. When something slipped past him, she struck joints, tendons, gaps.

  Exhaustion or not, this was a matter of life and death.

  Every actions counted.

  Another wave came.

  Naro's breathing stayed even.

  The blade extended forward, impaling two knights in a line. He retracted it mid-motion and dashed sideways, avoiding an axe that would have crushed his ribs.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  He didn't let the momentum carry him.

  Every motion stopped exactly where it needed to.

  Bodies fell. Stone cracked. Heat surged.

  But the space around Rami stayed clear.

  One knight broke through anyway, faster than the rest.

  Its blade cut across her shoulder.

  She hissed sharply.

  The Rune of Life answered immediately, sealing the wound before it could worsen.

  But the pain was real.

  Naro felt it like a hook in his spine.

  He turned.

  This time, Storm Strike didn't just extend.

  It dominated the space.

  The blade widened into a brutal, almost final arc. He cut straight through the knight's torso and didn't stop, following through into the one behind it.

  'Two down.'

  He dashed once, twice, appearing where they didn't expect him.

  'Four down.'

  'Seven down.'

  'Twelve down.'

  The last few tried to retreat.

  He didn't chase far.

  One precise thrust ended the final knight where it stood.

  'Looks like you had more wits than your peers... oh well.'

  Silence followed.

  Naro exhaled slowly and sheathed the sword.

  He turned to Rami.

  She was standing. Pale. Breathing carefully.

  "You alright?" he asked.

  "Yes," she said again. Then, after a moment, "Don't do that look."

  He blinked.

  "What look?"

  Rami gave him a deadpan look.

  She was about to answer him, but closed her mouth instead.

  She stepped closer despite the heat and rested a hand briefly against his arm. Just long enough to ground him.

  "I'm still here," she said. "So don't burn the world yet."

  His eyes widened as he blinked.

  'Did I really look that scary when fighting earlier ?'

  He nodded with an awkward reassuring smile.

  The cave trembled faintly, deeper this time.

  Something massive shifted far below.

  They shuddered then looked at each other with wide eyes.

  "...Let's keep moving."

  "Yeah, let's do that !"

  They did.

  The rampage stayed behind them

  And deeper in the earth, something waited.

  ----------------------------------------------------------------

  Hours later, the cave finally changed In a much simpler way.

  The stone sloped downward into a single vertical descent, a shaft carved smooth by heat and time. The air rising from it was hotter than anything they'd felt so far, heavy with the smell of molten rock and something older beneath it.

  Naro stopped at the edge and looked down. Darkness swallowed the shaft after a few meters, but the heat carried far.

  'Paro's there... looks like it's the end of the line.'

  They exhaled at the same time.

  "That's it," she said.

  He didn't answer right away. His grip on the sword loosened by a fraction.

  They hadn't spoken much since the last fight. There hadn't been room for it.

  Rami stepped closer, then unstrapped her staff.

  The sound made him turn.

  "No," Naro said immediately.

  She held it out anyway.

  "You're going down alone."

  "I said no."

  Her jaw tightened, but her voice stayed level.

  "You're not arguing this."

  He stared at the staff, then at her hands around it. The Rune of Life was quiet now, dormant, but he could almost feel it. A second heartbeat waiting to be lent out.

  "You need it," he said. "You—"

  "I'm not going any further," she cut in. "We both know that, Naro."

  He knew indeed. It was obvious how much she struggled fighting these days.

  He had to adjust his fighting style to protect them... No. His safety didn't matter at those times, only hers did.

  If he were to fight Paro with her... he'd die instantly, even Rami wasn't safe, Rune of life or without.

  Taking the staff and going alone was the most logical choice.

  His fists clenched.

  Silence stretched between them, broken only by the low hum of heat from below.

  He stepped closer, lowering his voice.

  "Rami, if something happens—"

  "Just take it already !" she cut him loudly.

  She pushed the staff into his chest with just enough to force him to take it or knock it away.

  "You need it more than I do."

  "You won't stop once you reach him."

  His eyes softened.

  'This woman...'

  "You're hurt," he said quietly. "You're still shaking."

  "Yeah but I'm still standing aren't I ?" she shot back.

  "You're the one about to jump into whatever that Demigod has turned into."

  He clenched his teeth.

  He looked away, back down the shaft. His reflection wavered faintly in the heat shimmer. He hated that she was right.

  But hated more the fact that he knew before she said it.

  Rami's gaze had fallen to the ground and she smiled faintly.

  "You wanna know something, Naro ? I know there's a part of you that wanted to do this for some time now. A cold, calculative part of you."

  His eyes widened at that, his lips shook.

  He wanted to deny it, reassure her it wasn't tr-

  "I like that part of you too, I trust it alot."

  Rami sighed, the tension leaking out of her shoulders as she looked at him again with a wider smile.

  "That's why I know you'll take it."

  She pressed the staff into his hands again.

  "..."

  This time, he closed his fingers around it.

  The Rune responded immediately, a faint green pulse traveling up the carved length of the wood and healing his muscle ache.

  He swallowed.

  "If anyone comes this way—"

  "I'm not stupid, Naro." she cut in with a deadpan expression.

  He almost laughed. Almost.

  "Haa... Stay where you are, don't chase sounds. Don't—"

  She reached out, grabbed the front of his armor and pressed her lips against his.

  Stopping him mid-sentence... Rude !

  But still welcomed.

  As she pulled away she said two words:

  "Come back."

  "I will."

  He was still blushing from the kiss but had answered with no hesitation.

  She let go and stepped back.

  Naro turned toward the shaft, secured the staff across his back beside his sword, and took one last breath before stepping over the edge.

  As he began his descent, the heat rose to meet him.

  Above, Rami stood alone in the dim tunnel, dagger ready, eyes fixed on the darkness he'd vanished into.

  Below, Naro dropped toward Paro.

  And this time, there would be no one behind him to slow his hand.

  No one to stop his wrath either.