18.- Level Up

The silence, thick and oppressive as a shroud, spread through the chamber after the creation of the emerald mantis. An unreal silence, almost tangible, that contrasted with the latent hum of the orb.

Sebastian watched the young woman, now sitting cross-legged, her back against the blackened wall, returning to her initial posture. Her eyes, an intense green, now seemed fixed on an invisible point in the air, beyond the stone, beyond the dungeon, perhaps beyond reality itself. The mantis, motionless beside her, was an extension of her will, a silent guardian, lethal, but, for the moment, harmless.

Sebastian felt overwhelmed. The creation of the mantis, the palpable connection between the young woman and the creature, the latent power of the crimson orb… it was too much. His mind, a whirlwind of unanswered questions, struggled to make sense of it, to fit the pieces of a puzzle that eluded him, slippery as sand between his fingers.

Demon King. The phrase, absurd, impossible, came back to him, insistent. The young woman, at his side, didn't fit any preconceived image of a demonic being. Sebastian's shirt, loose on her body, revealed the pale skin of her shoulder, her collarbone, the hint of the curve of a breast, of a feminine, real body, and not the grotesque form of an infernal creature.

He stood up with difficulty, ignoring the twinge of pain in his injured knee, and cautiously approached the wall where the hologram had once been.

There was no trace of it left. Only the stone, cold, damp, covered with indecipherable inscriptions. He ran his hand over the surface, feeling the rough texture of the rock, the relief of the engraved symbols.

What were they? What did they mean?

He didn't know. He couldn't know.

His mind remained a void. A frustrating, distressing void that prevented him from understanding, that prevented him from remembering.

The young woman, without looking at him, without saying anything, made a gesture.

A slight movement of her head, pointing to another part of the wall. A different section, a few feet away, covered with other inscriptions.

Sebastian followed her gaze.

And then, he saw it.

A symbol.

A small, discreet symbol, almost hidden among the other engravings, blended with the stone.

A circle.

And inside the circle, a spiral.

The same symbol he had seen on the orb, that he had seen, fleetingly, on the vanished hologram, before the system's voice interrupted him.

The young woman, without saying anything, approached the wall. Her fingers, dirty with dirt and a dark substance that Sebastian preferred not to identify – dried blood, perhaps, from one of her creatures – brushed the stone, tracing the outline of the symbol, as if she recognized it, as if she remembered it.

And, at that moment, Sebastian felt something.

A vibration.

A subtle, almost imperceptible vibration, that came not from the orb, but from the wall itself.

A slight tremor, as if the stone were alive.

And then, a sound.

A soft, almost inaudible sound.

A sound like… gears.

Gears moving.

Gears hidden inside the wall.

The young woman, without taking her hand from the symbol, closed her eyes.

Her face, previously expressionless, now showed an expression of intense concentration.

As if she were listening to something.

As if she were feeling something.

As if she were… doing something.

And then, the wall changed.

It didn't crack. It didn't crumble. It didn't open suddenly.

It simply… transformed.

The stone, previously solid, impenetrable, became translucent, as if it were turning into water, into glass, into… nothing.

Sebastian, amazed, incredulous, watched the scene, unable to look away, unable to believe what his eyes were seeing.

And, through the translucent wall, he saw something.

A space.

A small, hidden space.

A… niche.

And inside the niche, something was shining.

A light.

An intense, blue light, that illuminated the interior of the niche, revealing its contents.

The young woman opened her eyes.

And looked at Sebastian.

Her green eyes, now, seemed to glow with the same blue light that emanated from the niche.

And, in that gaze, Sebastian saw something else.

Something that unsettled him.

Something that disturbed him.

Something that, deep down, amazed him.

It wasn't fear. Nor hate. Nor confusion.

It was… invitation.

A silent, but clear invitation.

An invitation to approach.

To look.

To discover.

The young woman removed her hand from the wall, and the translucency of the stone vanished, as if it had never been there, returning to its original solid and opaque state. But the niche, now revealed, remained there, visible, accessible, a promise and a threat at the same time.

And the blue light, the intense and mysterious light, continued to shine from within, inviting entry, seducing with its promise of secrets and power. Or, perhaps, of danger.

Sebastian, unable to take his eyes off the niche, felt a mixture of fascination and fear. What was in there? What had caused that glow? What had happened to the stone?

But, before he could formulate those questions, before he could even think clearly, the young woman did something that surprised him.

Without looking at him, without making any gesture, she simply… entered the niche.

One step.

Two steps.

And, as she did so, the blue light enveloped her.

Covered her completely, like a shroud, like a chrysalis, as if she were submerging herself in a lake of liquid light.

Sebastian, instinctively, reached out a hand towards her, as if to stop her, as if to protect her.

"Wait!" he shouted, or tried to shout, but his voice came out as a hoarse whisper, choked by tension and fear.

But the young woman didn't stop.

She continued forward, moving deeper into the niche, disappearing into the blue light.

And then, the light intensified.

It became brighter, more intense, more… blinding.

Sebastian had to look away, shielding his eyes with one hand. He felt an intense heat on his skin, as if he were too close to a bonfire. And, at the same time, he felt a deep cold, a cold that chilled him to the bone, as if he were in the middle of a snowstorm.

And then, the sound.

A humming.

A low, constant humming that seemed to emanate from the niche itself, from the blue light itself.

A humming that grew and grew, until it became a roar.

A deep, deafening roar that made the air vibrate, that made the ground tremble, that made Sebastian's bones resonate.

And, in the midst of that roar, another sound.

A dry, brittle sound, like… fabric tearing.

Sebastian, forcing himself to open his eyes, looked towards the niche.

The blue light was still intense, blinding, but something had changed.

The light flickered.

And, between the flickers, Sebastian thought he saw something.

Fragments.

Fragments of fabric.

Fragments of his shirt.

Floating in the air.

Disintegrating.

Turning to dust.

And then, the light went out.

Not suddenly, but gradually, as if something were absorbing it.

And, when the light disappeared completely, Sebastian could see the interior of the niche.

The young woman emerged from the niche.

Unharmed.

And naked.

Sebastian's shirt, along with any remnants of her previous clothing, had been reduced to ashes, scattered on the floor of the niche like a disintegrated shroud.

Sebastian gasped. It wasn't desire he felt, at least not only desire. It was a confusing mix of astonishment, embarrassment, and a profound discomfort. The image of the young woman, completely naked before him, was… shocking.

His gaze, without him being able to help it, traveled over the young woman's body, stopping at the subtle, but undeniable, changes that had taken place. The horns, previously blunt and opaque, were now pointed, like nascent daggers. The broken horn, reconstructed perfectly, as if it had never been damaged. And her skin… her skin, previously pale, now glowed with a faint golden hue, as if the light of the orb had seeped into her, transforming her from within.

The young woman observed him, with a neutral, almost curious expression, as if she didn't understand his turmoil, as if she were unaware of her own nakedness.

Sebastian felt the blood rush to his face, burning his cheeks. He tried to look away, but he couldn't. He was trapped, fascinated, horrified at the same time.

"Damn it," he murmured, frustrated, embarrassed, confused. "And now what? I can't… we can't…"

The young woman moved, barely a step. Sebastian instinctively stepped back, not out of fear of her, but out of fear of himself, of his own reactions, of his own thoughts. He didn't want her to activate anything else. Not in her current state. He didn't know what else might happen.

An absurd, desperate idea crossed his mind: to put her back in the capsule. Would it be possible? Would it do any good?

He knew it was crazy, but…

"Uh… you… uh… inside… okay?" he stammered, avoiding her gaze, pointing to the niche with a clumsy and vague gesture. "Just… for a moment…"

The young woman didn't move. She didn't answer. She just observed him, with an indecipherable expression. Was she smiling? Barely, a minimal curvature of her lips. That only increased Sebastian's frustration, his sense of ridiculousness.

Desperate, he gave her a small push, trying to guide her back towards the niche. It wasn't a lewd push, far from it. It was clumsy, almost childish, a gesture of pure helplessness.

Then, he remembered the mantis. The creature had proven to be useful. Loyal.

"Mantis!" he shouted, without thinking, without knowing if the creature would understand him. "I need… leaves! Many leaves! Big ones!"

He turned to the place where he remembered seeing the mantis last.

But the mantis wasn't there.

Where…?

And then, he saw it.

The mantis was outside the chamber.

In the hallway.

Watching them.

Sebastian, feeling the situation slipping out of his control, tried to communicate with the creature.

But not with words.

With gestures.

He pointed to himself, then pointed to the young woman, and then made a gesture as if he were covering his body with his arms, as if he were wrapping himself in leaves, imitating, in a pathetic way, the movement of an insect wrapping itself in a cocoon.

The mantis looked at him.

Its huge faceted eyes, a bright amber color, seemed to study him, evaluate him, understand him.

And then, it nodded.

A slight, subtle movement of its triangular head.

A movement that, nevertheless, filled Sebastian with an indescribable relief.

The mantis, with surprising speed, left the chamber, disappearing into the darkness of the hallway.

Sebastian was left alone with the young woman, feeling a mixture of precarious relief, deep embarrassment, and a growing sense of unreality.

The chamber remained silent, broken only by his ragged breathing and the constant, almost inaudible, hum of the orb.

The young woman continued to watch him, imperturbable, with her large green eyes, now slightly brighter, as if something inside her had awakened.

What was she thinking? Was she even thinking? Did she understand what was happening? Did she remember anything of her previous life? Did she know who she was? What she was?

Sebastian didn't know.

And the wait felt eternal.

Each second stretched, stretching like chewing gum, filling with doubts, questions, fears.

Would the mantis return?

Would it bring the leaves?

And if it didn't?

And if…?

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the mantis returned.

It didn't enter the chamber. It stopped at the threshold, blocking the entrance with its enormous body.

And, in its front legs, it held something.

A pile of leaves.

Large, green, lush leaves.

Leaves that Sebastian didn't recognize, but that, he intuited, came from somewhere in the dungeon, from some hidden garden, from some place where life still flourished in the midst of darkness and death.

The mantis, without waiting for any order, dropped the leaves at Sebastian's feet.

A bulky, fragrant pile that filled the chamber with a fresh, alive scent, a scent that contrasted with the acrid, metallic smell of ozone and the cloying sweetness of the orb.

Sebastian, grateful, knelt down and began to cover the young woman with the leaves, improvising a kind of vegetal tunic, hiding her nakedness from view.

The young woman let him, without resisting, without showing any emotion. Like a doll, like a statue, like an inanimate being.

When she was completely covered, wrapped in a cocoon of green and fragrant leaves, Sebastian took a deep breath, feeling some of the tension leave his body.

He had solved the immediate problem. The nakedness.

But there were many other problems left.

Too many.

The amnesia. The dungeon. The orb. The young woman. The monsters. The traps. The past. The future.

Everything was uncertain.

Everything was unknown.

Everything was… dangerous.

He sat on the floor, exhausted, confused, terrified, but determined to keep going.

He looked at the young woman, now covered in leaves, a strange, almost primitive figure, wrapped in vegetation.

The dungeon was still a mystery. And she… she was an even greater enigma. A powerful enigma, transformed, and now, strangely, dependent on him, at least in appearance.

The dynamic between them had changed, had been inverted. And Sebastian didn't know what that meant. He only knew that the adventure, the real adventure, was just beginning. And that he, despite everything, despite the fear and confusion, didn't want to be anywhere else. He only knew the girl, and that was enough to feel an incipient belonging, and a desire to stay with her, even though she is a complete show-off.