The larger elemental reared back for another crushing blow, jagged arm raised high. Viola’s eyes narrowed, her breath locking into the rhythm she’d drilled for weeks. This was the moment.

She shifted her grip, one hand sliding down the hilt until the sword felt like an extension of her arm. The brown shimmer along the blade deepened to a hot crimson glow, earth and will merging with a spark of her own fighting spirit.

“Crimson Horn!” she shouted, and lunged.

She drove forward in a blur, boots scraping sparks off the stone. The elemental’s arm came down to meet her, but her strike shot past it like a charging bull’s horn. The sword’s point punched straight through the iron limb with a screech of tearing metal, slicing clean to the core. Before the beast could react, she twisted and thrust again, the blade spearing straight through the glowing heart of the monster.

The elemental froze, a deep grinding echo rolling through the cavern. Cracks spiderwebbed across its ore-plated body. For a heartbeat it stood motionless, then the glow of its core dimmed to nothing. The massive form sagged, crumbling apart into dull chunks of iron that clattered to the cavern floor.

Viola spun on her heel, cheeks flushed, sweat glistening on her brow. She held up two fingers in a jaunty V, a grin splitting her face. “Told you,” she said, breathless but triumphant.

Ludger smirked faintly from where he stood, dust swirling around his boots. Luna only raised an eyebrow but allowed herself a small nod. The cavern echoed with the last clatter of falling ore — and the sound of Viola’s pride was louder still.

Viola still held the stone sword out, chest heaving, a triumphant grin plastered on her face. “Crimson Horn!” she repeated under her breath, like she was savoring the sound. The broken remains of the elemental hissed and crumbled behind her.

Ludger walked up, hands shoved into his pockets, an amused look flickering in his eyes. “So…” he drawled, “are you going to yell the name of your attack every single time you use it?”

Viola turned, still glowing from the fight. “Of course. It sounds cooler that way.”

He snorted. “Cooler? You looked like a maniac screaming it in a tunnel. You’re lucky it worked, otherwise it would’ve been just you yelling at a rock before it flattened you.”

Her cheeks puffed out. “It’s called dramatic flair.”

“It’s called looking moronic,” Ludger shot back, a crooked smirk tugging at his mouth. “But hey, if you’re happy.”

Viola stuck her tongue out at him, still unable to hide her pride. “Moronic or not, it worked. And you’re just jealous my move has a name.”

Ludger shook his head, chuckling under his breath. “Sure. Let’s see how long you keep screaming it when there’s a whole mob of these things.”

Luna, a few steps back, covered a small smile with her hand, watching the two of them bicker in the echoing cavern while chunks of iron lay scattered around their feet.

Viola planted her boots amid the crumbled iron, still catching her breath. The glow along her blade had faded back to a faint shimmer; sweat ran down her temple in thin lines. She’d won, but it hadn’t been instant — every block, every parry, every push of mana had dragged the fight out.

Ludger stepped up beside her, eyes flicking over the shards of metal, then back to her flushed face. “Not bad,” he said, voice even. “But you’re burning a lot of time to finish them off. You’re strong enough to solo these things now, but it’s still a slog.”

Viola tilted her head, still grinning. “You got a better idea?”

“Yeah.” He adjusted his bracers, smirking faintly. “I’ll give you the openings. Pin them down, break their guard, whatever it takes so you can go straight for the core. Faster, cleaner kills.”

She raised an eyebrow. “And you?”

“I’ll manage.” His tone was dry, but his eyes were sharp. “Just don’t get lazy. Not every fight’s going to give you a perfect Crimson Horn moment. You’re going to have to react fast, find the weak spots on the fly, and hit them without me setting them up for you.”

Viola’s grin softened into a more determined look. She tightened her grip on the sword. “Got it. You make the hole, I’ll drive the horn through.”

Ludger chuckled under his breath. “Exactly. Just don’t yell it so loud next time.”

Luna moved up silently behind them, scanning the cavern ahead. “Then let’s move. More of them are coming.”

The three of them started forward again, their rhythm already shifting into a sharper, faster pattern — Ludger setting the plays, Viola striking hard, and Luna watching the dark.

They didn’t have to wait long for the next one. A heavier shape stirred in the shadows ahead, the glow of a deep-red core flickering between jagged plates. The larger iron elemental stepped out with a grinding roar, claws dragging furrows in the stone as it lowered its head to charge.

Ludger moved first. He stepped forward, and planted his boots squarely in the tunnel. Viola slipped to his flank, blade held low, the earth-brown shimmer already crawling up her arms.

The elemental thundered toward them, each step rattling loose chips from the ceiling. Ludger didn’t raise his hands, didn’t crouch, didn’t even tense. He stood loose, shoulders relaxed, watching the monster’s momentum like a hunter timing a trap.

At the last instant he flicked his palms outward and poured his mana into the ground. A hidden ridge of packed earth swelled up under the elemental’s foot. It stumbled, its weight pitching forward off balance.

Before it could recover, Ludger snapped forward with two palm strikes — not at the core, but at the creature’s jagged arms deflecting the iron limbs aside with a sharp clang. For a heartbeat the beast’s whole chest was open, the core glowing unguarded.

“Now,” Ludger said calmly.

Viola was already moving. She burst forward, boots striking sparks off the stone, her blade flaring as she thrust. The point drove straight into the exposed core with a hard crack. The elemental jerked once, the light in its chest flickering and then dimming as the whole frame shuddered.

Viola wrenched her sword free, landing lightly as the monster began to crumble apart behind her. A grim smile tugged at her mouth. “That’s more like it,” she murmured, spinning the blade once before setting it on her shoulder.

After another few minutes of steady progress the tunnel widened and then split into three jagged corridors, each one disappearing into darkness. The ceiling arched high overhead, ribs of iron-veined stone curving like the inside of some colossal beast. Thin streams of cold air hissed from cracks in the walls, carrying the smell of rust and damp earth.

Ludger slowed to a stop at the center of the intersection, his boots crunching over iron dust. He tilted his head back, scanning the vaulted ceiling, then the branching tunnels. The scale of it sank in — this wasn’t just a cavern, it was an entire subterranean world.

He let out a low whistle. “How can this place be so big when it’s supposed to be underground?” he muttered, mostly to himself but loud enough for Viola and Luna to hear. “Feels like we’ve been walking through the guts of a mountain, not a labyrinth under a city.”

Viola looked up too, brow furrowing. “It’s like the deeper we go, the bigger it gets…”

Luna’s gaze swept the shadows at each corridor’s mouth, her expression unreadable. “Labyrinths aren’t normal caves,” she said quietly. “They stretch in ways that don’t make sense. Space folds. Paths double back. Whole zones could be stacked on top of each other without touching. Some of them lead to places that are completely unexplored in the world.”

Ludger grunted, still staring at the ceiling. “Figures. No wonder people get lost down here.” He rolled his shoulders, shifting his weight back toward a ready stance. “Alright. Pick a path and keep your eyes open.”

Ludger dropped to one knee, sliding his pack off his shoulder. From inside he pulled the rolled sheet of parchment he’d been sketching on since their first day in Meira. With a bit of charcoal he began to trace the branching tunnels they’d passed, marking the intersection with a small X and noting the direction of the faint air currents.

Viola leaned over his shoulder, still holding her sword. “You’re actually mapping this place?” she asked. “Does that mean we’re going to map the whole second zone too?”

Ludger shook his head without looking up. “No. We’re not cartographers. We’re going as deep as we can manage, get a sense of the layout, then head back. It’s time to return home.”

She blinked at him. “Already?”

“Yeah.” He rolled the parchment back up and tucked it away. “We’ve been here long enough. We came to Meira to train, not to die of curiosity.” His eyes shifted toward the dark tunnel ahead, but his voice dropped a notch. “And I don’t like being away from home this long. Dad is reckless even on a good day. Leaving Mother alone with him for weeks…” He shook his head once. “Even if we had a good reason, it still feels wrong.”

Viola’s grin faded a little at that, but she nodded. “So we push a little deeper, test ourselves, then turn back.”

“Exactly.” Ludger stood, brushing the iron dust off his hands. “Make it worth the trip, then go home in one piece.”

Luna adjusted her dagger on her hip, her gaze flicking between the three branching tunnels. “Then let’s move while the path is still clear.”

Ludger smirked faintly and started forward, charcoal still staining his fingers. “Right. One last stretch.”

For once Viola didn’t argue. She slid her sword back into its scabbard and fell in step beside Ludger as he shouldered his pack. Her usual smile was muted, the restless energy in her steps a little softer than normal.

It struck Ludger as odd. She’s not pushing back? he thought. Maybe she’s starting to feel it too.

Viola stared down one of the dark tunnels, her fingers absently brushing the hilt of her blade. “Yeah… going home sounds good,” she said quietly. “We’ve been out here for a while.” Her eyes flicked up toward the vaulted ceiling as if she could see through the rock to somewhere far above. “I wonder how Grandfather’s doing…”

Ludger glanced at her but said nothing. She’d never admit it out loud, but maybe she missed the old man. Maybe she was just tired of endless stone and iron. Either way, it was the first time she’d agreed with him without a fight.

They walked on in silence for a few steps, the only sounds the crunch of iron dust underfoot and the distant hum of the labyrinth. They didn’t know what was happening back home, who was waiting, or what had changed in their absence. The thought hung in the air between them heavier than the earth above their heads.

Luna moved a little closer behind them, eyes still on the shadows but her posture easing, as if she too felt the pull of home.

They pushed deeper, clearing one corridor after another. The second zone’s iron elementals came thicker now, their bodies heavier, but Viola cut them down one by one, but each fight took a little more out of her. The brown shimmer on her blade flickered, her breath coming harder, and soon she was fishing a small vial from her pouch.

She popped the cork with her teeth and drank, the faint glow of a mana potion sliding down her throat. By the next intersection she’d had to do it again. The empty glass clinked as she tucked it back into her bag.

Ludger noticed. His eyes narrowed, hand brushing the rolled map in his pack. She’s burning through potions already… He glanced at the dwindling supply in his own satchel. They’d planned on one or two for emergencies, not steady use.

As they walked, his mind began to turn. If we stay down here until something big happens, we’re going to be dry by the time it does. And then what? The image of fighting a stronger elemental with no mana left flickered through his thoughts. That would ruin everything. We need those potions just to be safe, not limp back empty-handed.

He adjusted the strap of his pack, keeping his voice neutral. “Viola, pace yourself. We’re not here to empty our bags.”

She wiped her mouth and gave him a small nod, still flushed from the fight. Ludger didn’t press the point, but inside the decision was already forming: push a little further, maybe one more big fight, then turn around. Better to leave on their own terms than get trapped by bad luck and an empty pouch.

They fought through another cluster of iron elementals and paused at a bend in the tunnel. Ludger knelt to pry the still-warm core from a fallen beast, the faint glow of its energy pulsing against his palm. He dropped it into his pouch and felt the strap dig a little harder into his shoulder.

He glanced at Luna. Her usually trim bag bulged, seams straining under the weight of cores. She’d been collecting without complaint, but now she had to hitch the strap higher every few steps. Even Ludger’s own satchel was starting to sag with the load.

He exhaled through his nose. Great. Another problem. Between the mana potions going down fast and the growing weight of the loot, they were slowing themselves with every victory. His eyes flicked to Viola, who was still twirling her sword, sweat glistening on her brow, as if eager for the next fight.

“Maybe it’s time to rethink,” he muttered to himself. We don’t have to force a big event to call this trip a success. Not every labyrinth run has to be an epic last stand. Sometimes getting out heavier than you came in is enough.

He shifted the strap of his pack again, feeling the cores knock against each other inside. Finish the exploration like this. Cash out. Get home. The thought settled in his mind like a stone, calmer than the hunger for a dramatic climax.

Luna caught his glance and gave a small, understanding nod. Even she could feel the drag now.

Ludger straightened, brushing iron dust from his hands. “Let’s wrap up soon,” he said quietly. “Before the labyrinth decides to remind us where we are.”

Viola dragged the edge of her boot through the dust, scowling at the tunnel ahead. “That’s it? We’re heading back already?” she grumbled. “I was expecting to find a real challenge down here. Something bigger. Something worth all this training.”

Ludger slung his heavy satchel higher on his shoulder, the clink of cores muffled inside. “Closest challenge you’re getting today is exhaustion,” he said dryly. “And besides—” he tilted his chin at her “—you’re the only one not carrying a mountain of iron cores. Easy to complain when your hands are free.”

Viola opened her mouth, then shut it, realizing he was right. She gave a small, sheepish laugh and scratched the back of her head. “Fine… but I’m still disappointed. I guess this is the result of the training being a success… the next time we head to a labyrinth, I will pace myself better.”

“Good,” Ludger said. “Save it for when we get back.”

They began retracing their steps, the labyrinth’s oppressive weight easing slightly as they moved toward the first zone. The tunnels looked different going out than they had coming in, their own footprints mingling with the faint drag marks of fallen elementals.

Then, without a sound, Luna’s pace slowed. Her aura shifted — no longer calm, but taut, like a bowstring. She lifted her head slightly, eyes narrowing into the area ahead. The quiet intensity rolled off her in a wave.

Ludger caught the change immediately. “What is it?” he asked under his breath.

Luna’s hand drifted to her dagger, her gaze fixed on the far corridor. “Something’s off,” she murmured. “We’re not alone.”

The three of them froze at the edge of the tunnel, the easy rhythm of retreat broken in an instant. The labyrinth’s air seemed to thicken, the sound of dripping water suddenly too loud, the shadows stretching a little too far.

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