Arkhiel watched in silence.
The creature was blocking the only visible exit.
Getting too close could mean death. If it unleashed a shriek like its predecessor, the group wouldn't just risk dying from a sonic attack, they'd also risk being buried alive by a cave-in.
There was no room for mistakes. He had to end it all in one single strike.
Quickly and with no margin for failure.
Without a word, the first thing he did was cut off the mana flow to the light sphere he had been maintaining. Darkness returned. A darkness that, to him, was comfortingly familiar.
The passive ability of the Shadewalkers was activated, Blessing of the Eternal Night.
His pupils dilated, fully adjusting to the pitch black, and that dark, unnatural gleam returned to his eyes, eyes that no longer seemed to belong to a human but to something else, something that should never have existed.
And then, he unleashed the ultimate ability of the Shadewalkers into the Maw of the Abyss.
The air shifted immediately, suffocating, oppressive.
An invisible pressure took over the space.
What looked like a thick black smoke surged out from Arkhiel, drowning even the darkness. Inside it, all senses were erased, except for his. Within that abyss, his perception sharpened, heightened to unnatural levels.
He was no longer Arkhiel.
He was the apex predator.
Celica noticed it right away. She stepped forward, but then stopped, hesitant.
"Arkhiel… what are you…"
But she didn't finish the sentence. She understood.
He wasn't going to stop. She knew him well enough to realize the decision had already been made. But she couldn't stop the anxiety from building. She didn't want the darkness to consume him completely.
Not again.
Lina understood, too. The last time she saw him like this was years ago. On that day. The one that all three of them tried hard to forget.
And now he was back. That Arkhiel. The one who scared even his allies.
She tried to reach him, but he was already gone.
Mirell, on the other hand, understood nothing.
The fear overwhelmed her. She was no longer a seasoned adventurer. She was a lost child in the dark, praying to wake from a nightmare.
She curled up, hugging her knees as tears streamed down uncontrollably.
Arkhiel had to be careful.
In his mind, only one thing existed: the enemy that needed to be destroyed.
He knew he couldn't remain in this state for too long. Losing himself within his darkness meant surrendering control. And if that happened, he would no longer be Arkhiel.
He would be something else.
Fortunately, his mind remained calm. Emotions in this state were dangerous.
The first thing he did was teleport directly in front of the creature using the Shade Walk spell.
The instant he appeared, Arkhiel conjured multiple chains made from the same smoke that surrounded him. They wrapped around the creature violently.
They didn't just restrain; it crushed her.
Then, countless spears erupted from the darkness, piercing every vital point, from the sensory gland to the skull. There wasn't a single part of the body left intact.
The creature barely had time to react.
As the spears pierced its body, one after another, Arkhiel felt euphoria.
It was like a drug.
A voiceless whisper urged him to keep going. To never halt.
Arkhiel took a deep breath. He had to regain control.
Now.
But the smoke didn't dissipate.
Arkhiel closed his eyes.
And then, he heard them, Celica's and Lina's voices calling his name.
He could hear them growing fainter, more desperate. Begging him to stop.
"Stop…" he whispered.
And the darkness obeyed.
The spears disintegrated. The chains faded. The smoke began to fade.
Within seconds, the pressure vanished from the air.
When the black smoke disappeared and Arkhiel conjured the sphere of light again, only a shapeless mass remained where the creature had once stood.
Celica trembled, on the verge of tears. Lina clung to her, eyes filled with tears.
Mirell stared at Arkhiel in horror. Everything had happened in less than a minute.
Arkhiel stood motionless. He felt drained, physically and mentally.
"…Are you okay?" Celica asked quietly, still not daring to approach him fully.
Arkhiel took a moment to respond.
"Yes."
Celica cautiously stepped closer to the body.
"It's… completely destroyed."
"The core should still be intact," Arkhiel replied as he searched.
Finally, within what remained of the creature's torso, he found a crystal sphere the size of an apple. Its purity revealed the estimated power of the monster.
"Here it is," he said, holding it between his bloodstained fingers.
Lina looked at Arkhiel, as if searching his eyes for a sign that he was still himself.
"We need to move," Arkhiel murmured. His voice was low.
"To where?" Celica asked.
"I don't know," he replied. "But we can't stay here. If that creature had a nest or a colony, more will come."
"…What are you?" Mirell whispered, as if still unable to believe what she had seen.
"No one that matters," Arkhiel said, emotionless.
He looked at Mirell with detached indifference.
"Lina," he said in a low voice, "help her walk."
Lina nodded, stepped toward Mirell, and offered her hand. Mirell hesitated, still trembling, but eventually took it.
They began walking in silence until Arkhiel stopped. Something about the walls felt familiar.
"This place…" he murmured. "I've been here before."
Celica stopped behind him.
"You know the way out?"
Arkhiel nodded. He took a specific path without hesitation. And after several minutes, they emerged.
A calm night greeted them. After reporting the events to the dungeon guards, they continued toward the guild.
With the death of the queen, the balance had shattered.
The colony fell into a state of biological chaos, and the creatures began to scatter, disoriented, even devouring one another.
That disruption in the chain of control triggered a temporary collapse in their territorial behavior. The beings that had tunneled deep into the dungeon and disrupted its ecosystem now fled, hiding until the emergence of a new queen.
Arkhiel could sense it, but he knew there was nothing more he could do now except report to the guild.
They headed there in silence.
There was nothing else to be done. Their expressions were empty.
When they arrived, the receptionist looked up, surprised by their condition, and even more so to see that Mirell was the only one from Eldrick's party who had returned.
Arkhiel handed over the crystalline core without saying a single word.
The receptionist froze the moment she took it.
When she examined it with a tool resembling a jeweler's loupe, her suspicions were confirmed.
The purity, density, and mana concentration were of very high quality. It was the core of an SS-rank monster.
The few adventurers present began murmuring among themselves, carefully drawing closer. The guild staff mobilized immediately to confirm the report. And once the evaluation became official, there was no room left for doubt.
That core alone was worth ten thousand gold coins.
Celica remained composed despite the questions and the growing commotion. She fulfilled her end of the deal, just as she had promised.
When the gold coins were delivered, Celica turned to Mirell and handed her half the coin bags.
"You're owed half. That was the agreement."
Mirell looked at her in silence. She took the bags slowly. Her hands trembled. She wouldn't have to work again for the rest of her life, nor risk it, but none of that mattered. All she wanted was for her companions to still be alive. To laugh with them, to share drinks. But now that longing was a distant dream.
After a long silence, she finally spoke. Her voice was low, heavy with restrained fury.
"I'll never forgive you. Ever."
Celica didn't respond. She simply turned away.
None of them tried to explain, justify, or apologize.
Because there was nothing left to say.
The three of them returned to Vallenwood Manor.
They were exhausted.
Lina said nothing the entire way back. She simply made sure to stay close.
Celica, on the other hand, kept glancing at Arkhiel from the corner of her eye. Once again, it had been confirmed what she already knew but still refused to fully accept.
Arkhiel was a complete mystery.
To both her and Lina.
He had taken down an SS-rank creature in under a minute.
A feat that would spark a scandal if it ever became public knowledge. Not to mention the fact that he seemed to know the dungeon quite well.
Celica wondered how many more things he was hiding from them.
She wanted to ask. To demand an answer.
But she held herself back.
She knew she couldn't force anything, not with him.
Still, a sense of relief washed over her.
To know that someone so powerful stood by her side. Because if the world ever turned against her, she knew who would be there to protect her.
Only then did a darker thought creep in.
What would happen if, one day, he turned against her?
The idea chilled her blood. But it didn't last long.
She quickly pushed the thought away. He had made her a promise, many years ago. Back when her hands still trembled while holding a sword, when she was just a little girl who didn't yet understand the cruelty of the world.
When they finally returned to Vallenwood Manor, all they wanted was to rest.
But the moment they stepped into the main hall, they realized peace wouldn't last.
Waiting for them was a tall man with dark red hair and a stern expression.
He wore a long, dark coat, and though he said nothing, his presence alone commanded respect.
Sitting on the couch, one leg crossed and a calm expression on her face, was a young woman with carefully styled blonde hair. Her formal dress matched her noble status.
Celica froze in place, the color draining from her face.
"Fa... father..." she murmured. "I thought you wouldn't return until next week."
The man didn't reply. He simply stared at her in silence, as if inspecting every inch of her disheveled appearance.
It was the young woman who broke the silence.
"It's been a while, little sister," she said gently. "Did you miss me?"