The elder stepped back. "You've reached a threshold now. But understand—Absolute Return is not a weapon. It is a law. Misuse it, and you will break before it does."
Leon nodded. "I'll earn every step."
The elder turned, vanishing into the tunnel's glow.
Roselia looked down at the shard in Leon's hand. "So what's next?"
Leon, eyes still fixed on the glowing rings within the shard, smiled faintly. "Next… we ascend. After a night of actual rest."
Roman exhaled, relieved. "Finally. I'm making everyone steak."
Naval grinned. "I'm just glad I won't need to catch you in a blood puddle again tonight."
Leon just laughed.
That night, for the first time in what felt like weeks, there was no fighting. No training, no chanting echoing from the arena walls. Just the warm flicker of lanterns in their obsidian lodge and the quiet sounds of plates clinking, drinks being poured, and the occasional burst of laughter.
