After just a few minutes of intense combat, Chloe stood alone amidst the scorched, broken bodies of the [Corrupted Corpses] that had once been her teammates.
Her breathing was ragged, her heart pounding inside her chest. Vines retracted slowly from the corpses, blood still dripping from their thorn-covered edges.
She didn't say a word.
She just stared at their lifeless, twisted forms for a long moment, then closed her eyes and let out a shaky breath. "I need to keep going."
The [Black Sun] unleashing something like that... it had never been reported before. Never.
Not in the logs, not in the forums, not in the awakeners' testimonies, nowhere.
And the fact that all her companions, every last one, had been instantly transformed despite their preparations and defensive skills meant one thing.
Something had gone horribly, terribly wrong in this layer.
Chloe didn't know why she was spared. That same wave of corruption had struck her too.
She had braced herself for the worst, for madness or transformation... but nothing happened. Why?
She had no answer. But this wasn't the time to hesitate.
She steadied her breath and kept moving forward.
'After combat, teleportation is blocked,' she reminded herself. 'There's no going back. The only path is forward.'
Her vines hovered protectively around her as she sprinted deeper into the crumbling city.
…
Back to Sam.
He hadn't moved yet. He was still standing in the street right before the boss, one hand gripping his sword, the other resting at his side as he stared up at the [Black Sun]. Its giant eye glared down at him, unmoving, unblinking.
Sam narrowed his eyes. One minute passed. Then another.
"…That's it?" he asked, blinking once. "Lame."
He lowered his stance and let out a disappointed breath.
The way that eye stared at him made it seem like some major event was about to happen, like the world was preparing to collapse around him… and yet, nothing happened. Just that one dark shockwave earlier.
It was underwhelming.
[You sense that something happened in the distance.]
"Hm?" Sam raised an eyebrow, glancing toward the streets ahead. "Well, whatever it was, it didn't reach me… so who cares."
Still, a tinge of caution flared in the back of his mind.
The sun may not have harmed him directly, but that didn't mean it hadn't done something elsewhere. It was still watching, still seething.
'It could've changed the monsters. Or maybe the next boss,' he thought, slowly advancing. 'Better stay sharp.'
And then Sam stepped through the mist leading to the boss.
On the other side, a vast open plaza awaited. And in the center of it stood a tall, twisted humanoid figure draped in cracked stone armor and wielding a hammer made from the debris of the ruined buildings.
---
[Fallen Architect (Corrupted)]
[Level: 20]
[Hell-Mode Analysis: It doesn't matter.]
---
Sam didn't wait.
The moment he laid eyes on the boss, he lunged forward.
He raised his [Primordial Sword] and cleaved through the boss's neck in an instant.
The creature's head dropped to the ground with a thud in under 3 seconds.
[New record! Yahoo!]
"Nice," Sam muttered, a grin curling on his lips.
He turned his gaze back up toward the sky, meeting the giant eye of the [Black Sun].
Its pupil was twitching now, quivering in what looked like helpless fury.
He absorbed the fallen boss's core without a second thought, then turned toward the exit.
…
Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the zone, Chloe was still pushing forward.
She dashed through abandoned streets and broken alleyways, slicing through scattered corrupted monsters as they appeared.
Her vines did most of the work, piercing and binding targets as she sprinted forward.
But along the way, she saw the signs, more [Decayed Corpses].
They still wore the gear of other awakeners, still held the same weapons… but their skin was cracked and black-veined, their eyes lifeless and red. All of them had once been human.
'That shockwave transformed everyone in the layer…' she thought, bile rising in her throat. 'All of them…'
It was horrifying. What was supposed to be a calculated raid with her team had turned into a massacre.
But just when she thought she couldn't take another step, she saw it. The gray mist. The gate to the zone's boss.
She stopped in place, heart hammering in her chest. She looked around. No one else.
'No one's here… I'm really alone…'
Her arms trembled slightly.
She was only level 8. She had talent, yes, but this wasn't supposed to happen.
Her parents were powerful awakeners, leaders in the [Viper Guild]. They trusted her with a squad of handpicked apprentices to earn merit in the field.
But now they were all dead. And she was staring down a boss area.
She felt the tears start to rise, the panic beginning to build, but then—
Fwoosh—
The mist in front of her began to dissipate.
"What—?"
Her eyes widened. Someone was inside?
She sprinted toward the clearing, vines still swirling around her for defense, and stepped into the wide-open city square beyond the mist.
There, in the middle of the plaza, was a man.
He had black hair, sharp features, and wore dark, clean clothing. A shimmering blade hung from his hand, still glowing faintly from battle.
Then he turned around. And his crimson eyes met hers.
A shiver ran through Chloe's body.
That gaze… it wasn't normal. It didn't feel human. The pressure that bled from those eyes reminded her of the [Black Sun] itself, no... it was worse.
…
Sam noticed her the moment she entered.
'Oh?' he blinked. 'So I'm not the only one left after all.'
---
[Chloe Vineford]
[Rank: Apprentice]
[Level: 8]
[Hell-Mode Analysis: The third heroine. All her companions died because of us.]
---
"What?" Sam's eyebrow twitched, surprised to see another heroine, 'What do you mean because of us? I didn't do anything.'
"Oh my god," Chloe breathed out as she approached him, voice shaky but relieved. "I'm so glad to see another human. Everything's been insane. M-my whole team…"
"What happened?" Sam asked calmly, though his eyes flared with curiosity.
"You didn't see it?" Chloe asked, stunned. "That shockwave! From the sun! It… it turned everyone into monsters! Just like that! They were all standing beside me one second and then they were gone."
Sam stared at her for a second. Then he smiled. Not a soft smile. A twisted, amused one.
He tilted his head slightly and glanced back at the sky, his gaze locking onto the sun's enormous eye.
'So that's what you did,' he thought, expression cold. 'Nice trick. But it won't be enough.'
Even now, the idea of the [Black Sun] being some sort of living, reactive entity fascinated him.
Could it be fought? Destroyed?
[We'll kill it eventually.]
That's what [Hell-Mode Analysis] had told him.
Which meant… maybe it was the layer boss. Or perhaps something even more dangerous.
"W-Why are you smiling like that?" Chloe asked, disturbed.
Sam blinked, then glanced back at her. "Oh. Don't worry about it. Just remembered something."
He turned and began walking.
"I'm heading to the next area. Gonna finish this layer soon."
"The Ruined City has three zones," Chloe said, quickly following behind him. "The Outskirts, the Main Area, and the Luxury District. The next boss is… supposed to be the hardest one. You should be careful."
Sam gave her a quick look, then smiled again. "I'll be fine."
She didn't doubt that for a second. This guy… whoever he was… he wasn't normal.
"I still don't get it," she muttered, walking beside him. "Why weren't you affected by the sun's corruption?"
Sam shrugged. "Plot armor."
"…What?"
"Same reason as you," he added.
"Plot… armor?" Chloe tilted her head, confused. She clearly didn't get the reference.
Sam just kept walking.
She didn't press. She was just glad she wasn't alone anymore. But even so… she could sense it.
The danger ahead. It wasn't over yet. Not by a long shot.
Ding!
[You have entered the "Luxury District."]
[Proceed as usual. Kill everything.]