Three days later, they ascended to the second floor, leaving the room of mirrors behind them. They were all different now, changed by the ordeal. The haunted looks were gone, replaced by a quiet confidence.
Jolly no longer flinched at shadows. Jia fought with a new ferocity, her grief now a source of strength. Yenna had finally accepted her past, and she now moved with a purpose that was entirely her own.
They were no longer just a group of survivors. They were a team, forged in the crucible of their shared nightmares.
The second floor was a sprawling jungle, with trees that reached up to a sky that was not a sky, but a ceiling of glowing crystals. The air was thick with humidity and the scent of strange, exotic flowers.
"Well, this is a change of scenery," Ada commented, taking readings of the environment. "The mana here is wild, untamed. Very different from the controlled energy of the first floor."
