The dungeon entrance shimmered behind them as Leah stepped onto polished glass, cold air brushing against her skin while the world shifted from the open skies of Nexus into something far stranger. The transition still felt wrong every single time. One second she stood beneath floating islands and endless sky, and the next she was surrounded by walls that reflected movement from impossible angles.
Leah’s eyes narrowed slightly. The chamber stretched outward through interconnected crystal corridors, every surface smooth enough to distort the blue lantern light floating overhead. Massive glass pillars rose from the floor while mirrored walls split the pathways into branching directions. Reflections moved everywhere throughout the chamber.
“Still hate this dungeon,” Rian muttered behind her. “Feels like the walls are watching me.”
“That’s because they probably are,” Bert replied calmly.
“That does not help.”
Marcus rolled his shoulders before lowering the spear resting across them. “Stay focused. First sections should still be manageable. We clear the lower halls, regroup near the center chamber, then decide whether we push deeper.”
“You say that like we didn’t almost die yesterday,” Colin muttered.
Marcus pointed at him immediately. “Nearly dying builds character.”
“You say that about everything.”
“And I’m always right.”
Leah snorted softly before she could stop herself.
Marcus glanced sideways at her. “What?”
“Nothing.”
“That sounded judgmental.”
“It probably was,” Rian said with a laugh.
Despite the dungeon surrounding them, Leah found herself relaxing slightly, which still surprised her. A week ago she hadn’t expected joining another group to feel natural. At first she had mostly agreed because Ethan wanted her growing independently. Tomas had supported the idea too, convinced this dungeon would force rapid improvement.
Now Leah understood why. Ethan could not always stand between her and danger. The thought settled heavily in her chest as they moved deeper into the labyrinth. Reflections followed them endlessly through the corridors, shifting across every mirrored surface until Leah constantly found herself checking whether movement belonged to her team or something else entirely.
Her mirage had made sure she understood that fear painfully well. It had shown Ethan continuing forward while she slowly fell behind, not because he abandoned her, but because she simply wasn’t strong enough to keep pace anymore.
Leah frowned faintly. She had practically raised Ethan after their parents died. Even before the trials, she had always been the one making sure he ate properly, slept occasionally, and didn’t vanish into his own head for days whenever something obsessed him.
That part of him still hadn’t changed. Other things had changed though, and Ethan tried acting normal around her, but Leah noticed the tension anyway. The way his eyes sat heavy with burden and pain. The way he was always on edge. Sometimes she caught him staring into nothing with an expression she couldn’t place before he buried it again beneath calm focus.
It worried her more than she wanted to admit. Which was exactly why she needed to get stronger herself.
“Stop,” Tilly whispered.
The entire group froze instantly.
[Wayfinder] pulsed faintly in the back of Leah’s mind. As she focused on searching for danger, she realized it was heading right for them.
Marcus lowered his spear. “Where?”
Tilly pointed toward one of the mirrored walls ahead. “Reflection’s wrong.”
Leah narrowed her eyes. At first the corridor looked empty apart from their distorted reflections stretching endlessly through the glass. Then one of them blinked late.
Marcus reacted instantly.
“Contact!”
The mirrored wall exploded outward. Crystal shards erupted across the corridor as thin humanoid creatures burst free from inside the reflection itself. Their translucent bodies shifted constantly beneath the blue lantern glow, limbs unnaturally long while reflective skin rippled like liquid glass.
Leah moved immediately. Her sword flashed free as the first creature lunged toward her. [Silent Draw] adding to her speed. Steel carved across its chest while she pivoted sideways, narrowly avoiding another clawed strike aimed toward her face.
Marcus attacked almost simultaneously. His spear blurred forward with frightening speed, punching through one creature before twisting sideways to intercept another trying to flank Colin.
“Behind!” Rian shouted.
Mana surged through the corridor as compressed wind exploded outward, smashing one of the creatures into a mirrored pillar hard enough to crack the surface. For a moment she watched, still in awe of seeing actual magic, and a small part of her wished she had taken the mage class.
Leah snapped back into action and stepped forward ready to meet the next attacker. Control the exchange. Ethan had drilled that lesson into her repeatedly during training. The creature in front of her darted sideways, its reflection splitting across the surrounding walls. Leah tracked the real body carefully while redirecting another swipe with her sword before slipping inside its reach.
Her blade carved upward as it blocked with razor-sharp glass claws.
Then she saw the opening. She called on [Silent Draw] again. Her dagger appeared in her hand, moving from its sheath at her hip to the creature’s jaw in a single fluid motion.
The monster convulsed before cracking and collapsing into fractured crystal across the floor.
Leah exhaled sharply while turning toward the next target, excitement flickering briefly through her chest. The skill felt increasingly natural to use.
Marcus glanced toward her while fighting another creature. “Still hate that skill.”
“You’re just mad I beat you.”
“I am mad you beat me.”
Leah grinned. Another creature emerged from the reflection beside Marcus, claws already driving toward his blind spot. Leah moved before thinking. Her sword intercepted the strike while Marcus twisted instantly, his spear punching cleanly through the creature’s skull.
The attacks flowed together smoothly.
“…Thanks.”
“Don’t mention it.”
The fight ended quickly after that, and once the final creature shattered apart, silence returned to the corridor apart from everyone’s breathing and the faint hum resonating through the labyrinth.
Leah cleaned her dagger against her pants before sliding it smoothly back into place. Everything she was learning now traced back to Ethan in one way or another. Sword Mastery. Dagger Mastery. Fighting unpredictably instead of relying purely on force.
And now she could feel the two styles pulling closer together. Hopefully soon she would be able to merge them into something else entirely. Blademastery. The system had not confirmed it existed, but Leah was certain it would eventually. Ethan had promised her as much.
After that, she wanted Dual Wielding. Not because it sounded impressive, though admittedly it absolutely did. But because it fit her style perfectly. One visible blade controlling the flow of combat while the second appeared unpredictably through [Silent Draw]. Fast pressure from multiple angles. She liked the sound of that. Liked the thought of being close and personal to the action. And was reminded once again why she was glad she hadn’t taken mage, even if it gave access to powerful skills.
“Leah.”
She blinked, realizing Marcus was staring at her.
“What?”
“You zoning out?”
“Sorry.”
Marcus stared at her in disbelief. “If you’re a part of this team, you need to stay focused. Don’t make me regret having you join.”
“You didn’t have me join anything.”
“That’s true,” Bert said thoughtfully from the back. “Tomas kind of forced her on us.”
Marcus grunted and looked away.
“I’ll pay more attention,” Leah said. “I’ve just got a lot on my mind.”
“You’re doing good,” Tilly said. “I saw you looking after Marcus. It was a good save.”
Leah smiled. “Thanks.”
“Let’s keep moving. Tilly, if you could lead the way,” Marcus said while examining the shattered shards of crystal that now covered the ground.
The group settled again as they continued deeper into the labyrinth. Rian poked one of the shattered remains lightly. “Hate this place. It’s creepy.”
“That’s generally how dungeons work,” Bert replied. “Dungeons and Marcus.”
Marcus glanced back toward him. “Comments like that make me feel unsupported as a leader.”
“You aren’t really the leader,” Tilly said while checking another corridor. “Your brother shoved responsibility onto you and hoped for the best.”
Rian snorted loudly. “Damn Tilly.”
Marcus looked personally betrayed. “Wow. Alright. I see how it is.”
Leah shook her head slightly, though a faint smile still tugged at her lips. Over the days she had come to realize that despite the group’s harsh words they were actually extremely close. She had also realized that Marcus may have come across rude when she had first met him, but he generally meant well. Most of the time.
The deeper they traveled, the stranger the labyrinth became. Some reflections no longer copied their movements at all, others showed corridors that did not exist, and several times Leah caught glimpses of herself standing motionless while the real version continued walking. Each instance sent unease crawling beneath her skin.
[Wayfinder] kept leading her and the others in the direction of the boss. Hopefully they would get to it this time and not have to exit. She looked at her crystal reflection as it waved to her.
Leah adjusted her grip on the sword while her gaze swept slowly across another branching corridor and away from whatever that was. Ethan would probably hate this place. Would he have cleared it by now?
She could already picture him dissecting the dungeon mechanics piece by piece, that large sword of his shattering crystal like it was nothing. The thought tightened her chest. If she stayed weak, Ethan would continue moving further ahead until eventually she could no longer stand beside him. That possibility hardened her resolve more than fear ever could.
They kept walking, the reflections coming to life multiple times as they were ambushed by living glass. Each attack wore on Leah. It wasn’t so much the fighting. It was having to constantly stay on guard, unsure when one of the strange creatures would pop out with those razor-sharp claws. However, the group worked extremely well together. Between Colin keeping the creatures at bay, Rian and Tilly decimating them from a distance, and Leah, Marcus, and Bert attacking in close range, they generally handled most battles with ease.
So as time wore on, it was with a sense of urgency when Tilly called for a stop. The reflective walls had disappeared entirely, replaced by smooth black crystal that swallowed the lantern light instead of reflecting it.
“That’s not normal,” Rian muttered.
Leah narrowed her eyes toward the darkness.
The corridor widened gradually into a massive circular chamber supported by towering black crystal pillars stretching high overhead. Silver lines pulsed faintly beneath the glass floor like veins carrying light through the structure itself.
The room felt wrong immediately, unnaturally quiet and still beneath the pulsing silver light. Then Leah spotted the figure standing motionless at the center. At first glance it looked human. A woman clad in smooth crystal armor with silver hair cascading down her back.
But the longer Leah stared, the more unnatural it became. Its limbs were slightly too long. Its posture too rigid. Thin fractures spread beneath pale skin while silver light glowed faintly through the cracks.
Marcus lowered his stance immediately. “Well,” he muttered, “that’s horrifying.”
The creature tilted its head. Every reflection around the chamber moved with it.
Leah’s grip tightened instinctively on the hilt of her sword.
The reflections along the black crystal walls shifted, not delayed or distorted, but completely independent from the original creature. Dozens of mirrored versions of the creature slowly turned toward the group despite the original remaining perfectly still.
The silver lines beneath the floor brightened. Then every reflection smiled.
Rian took a small step backward. “I officially hate this dungeon more than Marcus now.”
“What the fuck,” Marcus replied without taking his eyes off the creature.
The figure finally moved. Its motion was unnaturally smooth, almost gliding across the floor instead of walking. Cracks spread wider across its arms as silver light leaked through them in thin glowing lines. It looked at the group, eyes lingering on Leah. Then the unthinkable happened. The surrounding reflections copied Leah.
Every mirrored version turned into her and drew a dagger simultaneously while stepping out of the crystal.
“That,” Marcus said tensely from somewhere beside her, “cannot possibly be good.”