The golden-flame golem reassembled its body from the remains of fallen golems. Though now smaller than before, its power had grown exponentially.
Lee Do-hyeon gripped his sword tightly, eyes fixed on the creature.
"What the—? It's smaller, but it feels stronger?"
Even Arknan mumbled in confusion.
"Golems are supposed to be stronger when they're bigger, right? If it's using leftover parts, it should be weaker..."
But Reyna understood the change.
She offered a faint smile as she floated her Seven-Blade Sword into position.
"Size doesn't dictate strength."
Do-hyeon and Arknan both turned to her.
Reyna stepped forward.
"True power isn't just about destruction. It's born from harmony.Even in Murim, the strongest weren't the ones with the greatest might—but those who mastered control."
Her eyes deepened.
"When hardness meets softness, when strength balances weakness—only then can power reach its peak."
The golden-flame golem lunged again, faster and more forceful than before.
Boom!
Do-hyeon parried with his blade, but the impact hit much harder than before, pushing him back.
"Damn... it really is stronger."
Arknan continued playing, lending strength, but the golem's attacks only intensified.
As the battle raged on, Reyna moved swiftly, not just dodging but observing, studying the golem's flow.
She realized its movements weren't random—it had a pattern.A core.A critical point that sustained it.
But she didn't share this discovery.
Not even with Do-hyeon or Arknan.
"Do-hyeon, don't overdo it! Just keep pressing!"
He frowned at the odd instruction.
"Keep attacking? Did she figure something out?"
Reyna deliberately circled the golem, her movements erratic.She even took a few hits on purpose, drawing specific responses.
"What the hell are you doing, Reyna?!" Do-hyeon shouted.
She only gave a sly smile."I need this."
He looked worried, but her eyes held certainty.She knew something.
Then—
She slipped through a narrow gap in the golem's defense.
"There you are."
At the center of its chest—a faintly glowing crystal orb.
She drew a sharp breath and swung.
Seven Blade Technique – Single Point Breakthrough.
Her blade pierced precisely into the core.
Flash—!
The golem reacted violently, its body convulsing before starting to collapse.
Do-hyeon and Arknan looked on in shock.
Reyna withdrew her sword calmly.
"It's over."
With a final burst of light, the golem shattered and vanished into glowing fragments.
As it fell, the whispering voices haunting Arknan vanished, too.
Clutching his head, he gasped.
"Is it… the Titan's influence… gone?"
Reyna shrugged with a light grin.
"The golem was infused with Titan's power. Break it, and that power vanishes."
Do-hyeon nodded slowly, eyes on her.
"But… why didn't you tell me?"
Reyna twirled her sword playfully.
"If I had, you would've rushed in like I did.Better to let you fight naturally."
He chuckled, shaking his head.
"So very you."
Arknan sighed.
"Well, I'm just glad the whispers are gone… but next time, a heads-up would help. I nearly died of shock."
Reyna grinned.
"Then you'll just have to get stronger."
Do-hyeon chuckled softly as he looked at her.
Now, it was time to leave the Valley of Twilight—and move toward their true destination.
***
Chapter : Essence of the Earth – A Fallen Spirit, or a Crafted Being?
Though the golem had vanished in fire, its remains still pulsed with faint warmth.
Bard Arknan rummaged through the fragments when he suddenly felt a familiar energy.Instinctively, he reached out and grabbed a piece.
"…This is…"
His eyes widened.
Resting in his palm was the Essence of Earth—a pure crystal infused with mana.
His thoughts spiraled.
Golems were known to be artificial lifeforms, created through magic.Yet this shard resembled the heart of an earth spirit.
"You're telling me… this golem was originally a spirit?"
Do-hyeon and Reyna perked up.
Do-hyeon leaned in to inspect it.
"Looks like any old mana crystal to me."
But Arknan shook his head.
"No… This isn't just mana. It's the Earth's Essence.Not something formed by nature, but crystallized from a living being."
Reyna narrowed her eyes.
"Then you mean… the golem used to be a spirit?"
Arknan fell silent, unsure how to explain.
Do spirits fall and become golems?Or did mages use a spirit's power to create golems?If so, then golems might be built from remnants of fallen spirits…
His knowledge and the evidence before him didn't match.
What if all these golems—supposedly man-made over centuries—were actually warped forms of once-pure spirits?
"Do spirits turn into golems when they fall…?"
Reyna smiled, intrigued.
"Then what about the ones we built? Just scraps of already-fallen spirits?"
Do-hyeon crossed his arms, thoughtful.
"If that's true… what have all those wizards really been doing?They weren't animating stone—they were using leftovers of something once alive…"
Arknan stared at the Essence of Earth in his hand.
He'd studied magic, mythology, and countless tomes.But this single fragment defied what he thought he knew.
Do-hyeon exhaled slowly.
"We probably won't figure it out right now.Whether that golem was a fallen spirit or not…there's more ahead of us that we have to deal with."
Reyna lightly tapped Arknan's shoulder.
"Thinking is your specialty.But now's not the time. We'll dig deeper once we find more."
He nodded with a sigh.
"…You're right."
Even without certainty, he couldn't afford to chase that mystery now.
Clutching the crystal, he followed the others once more.
They'd need more time—and maybe, just maybe,the answers waited at their next destination.
***
Chapter : The Rift of Seals – The One Who Begins to Wake
The Valley of Twilight.Beneath a sky dyed crimson, the wind howled, wild and restless.Lee Do-hyeon, Reyna, and Arknan stepped cautiously into the depths of the canyon.
A malignant presence was seeping from somewhere.
"This is it," Reyna said quietly.
A massive fissure split the ground at the center of the valley.It looked as though the earth itself had been torn open, and from within, a dark red light faintly pulsed.
Lee Do-hyeon tightened his grip on his sword.Something inside was trying to awaken.
Arknan stood frozen.His eyes trembled.
"I've been waiting for you.""You were drawn here.""I know who you are."
A low, deep whisper echoed through his mind.
"Arknan! Snap out of it!"Do-hyeon grabbed his shoulder firmly.
Only then did Arknan shake himself free of the trance.But his fingertips were still trembling.
"This isn't just some lure," he murmured to himself."It's a force that burrows deep into your consciousness… it feels so natural, like it's part of you."
Do-hyeon and Reyna exchanged a glance.They could already sense the presence leaking from the fissure.
"This rift isn't just a seal," Reyna said in a hushed voice."Something here… is testing us."
And then—
BOOOOM!
The earth shook.A colossal red hand erupted from the fissure.
It was only a part of a body—but large enough to blot out the land beneath it.
Dark energy radiated from its fingertips.This was no mere power.It carried malice, fury, and an endless will to destroy.
"At last…""My hand has reached the surface.""To shatter this world… it's only a matter of time."
Do-hyeon and Reyna moved at once.
Do-hyeon's blade flared with blue light.Reyna's Seven-Blade Sword sliced through the air toward the enemy.
But—
CRACK—!
Before the attacks could land, the massive hand made the slightest gesture.
That alone unleashed a devastating shockwave, flinging both of them back.
Reyna landed and steadied herself midair, then touched down with practiced grace.But her face twisted with both frustration and disbelief.
"It deflected it… effortlessly?"
Do-hyeon steadied his stance again.This was unlike anything he'd ever faced.
A different class of existence.
But Reyna wasn't done.She darted forward, aiming for an opening.
Seven Blade Technique – Formation of Five Swords.Five blades flew in differing arcs, searching for a weak point.
Then—
BOOM!
The monstrous hand suddenly swept across the battlefield.
Reyna had no time to counter.Her body was struck and sent flying into a rocky wall.
Blood splattered.
Arknan's eyes widened as he watched.
"Reyna… was overpowered?"
Even Do-hyeon couldn't hide his shock.
The apex of Murim.The Celestial Sword Demon herself—had been overwhelmed by sheer force.
Reyna wiped the blood from her lips and slowly rose to her feet.Her expression was hard.
"This feeling…""It's the first time since reaching the summit of Murim—"
"…that I've sensed the threat of defeat."
But in that moment—
The massive hand, which had begun to move again, suddenly halted.
Its motion stuttered—as if it were straining to hold itself together.
Do-hyeon and Reyna sensed it instantly.
"It's not fully awakened yet."
"Titan cannot emerge completely… not now."
From the fingertips, crimson mana flickered and began to recede.
As though it could no longer sustain itself,the energy slowly drew back into the fissure.
"Wait for me.""Next time, I will face you… with my full strength."
And then—
The massive hand vanished entirely.
All that remained was a foreboding presenceand the deep scar it had left on the earth.
Reyna sheathed her sword with a quiet sigh.She looked down at her hands.
"To think I was pushed back this far…That thing is far stronger than I imagined."
Do-hyeon felt the same.Everything he had built until now—suddenly felt lacking.
"We need to grow stronger.As we are now… we can't face Titan."
Arknan stood silently, lost in thought.Of them all, his face bore the deepest weight.
He spoke in a quiet murmur.
"And… that thing knew who I was."
Reyna turned her gaze back to the rift.
"There's no reason to linger here."
"It's time to move on."
Do-hyeon asked,
"To where?"
Her eyes remained steady.
"To where the true seal lies."
***
Chapter : Titan's Choice – A Vessel for Descent
The Twilight Valley.The remnants of the massive hand that had vanished into the deep fissure still lingered in the air. And someone stood there, watching it.
Reina, the Heavenly Sword Demon.
She could still feel it—deep in her chest. That presence had not merely noticed her by chance. No—It had recognized her.And more than that…
It had seen her as a vessel.
Lee Do-hyeon and Aknan silently observed her.Do-hyeon spoke first.
"Reina. That thing—it didn't move toward you by accident, did it?"
She slowly nodded.
"No. It was looking at me."
She turned toward the fissure.The energy emanating from it had dimmed, but it hadn't vanished.She knew instinctively: it had merely gone dormant.
Aknan muttered under his breath.
"Something's not right... Titan hasn't even awakened yet. So how did it already recognize her?"
His fingers unconsciously traced symbols in the air. A theory had begun to form in his mind.
"It's because Reina destroyed the temple."
Do-hyeon frowned."The temple? You mean the one where those warped zealots worshiped?"
Aknan nodded.
"You thought it was just a religious site?It was part of the magical seal that kept Titan bound."
Reina felt the puzzle pieces locking into place.
When she destroyed the temple, it wasn't just misguided faith that crumbled.She had shattered a part of the seal itself.
And in that moment, Titan had sensed her.
Do-hyeon's voice dropped.
"Then... Titan already knew who you were."
Aknan went further.
"And not just as a threat.It saw Reina as someone it could use—as a vessel."
Reina looked down at her own hand.
She had spent decades mastering martial arts in the Murim.She had long since surpassed the limits of the human body.
"A powerful body."
That's what Titan needed to descend into this world: a vessel strong enough to contain its essence.
The gods, when they sealed Titan, had ensured it could never take physical form again.But if it were to claim a host—one with a body forged beyond mortal limits…
It would mean resurrection.
Do-hyeon clenched his fist.
"So that's why it reached for you. It believed you were strong enough to hold it."
Reina gritted her teeth.
"Titan doesn't just seek to return.It seeks vengeance—against the gods who imprisoned it."
"If it breaks free, what do you think it'll do first?"
Neither Do-hyeon nor Aknan answered.They didn't need to.
It will kill the gods.
Reina tightened her grip.
"I won't let myself be used by a being like that."
She had crushed countless forces in the Murim.Many had tried to control her. None had succeeded.
And in Elysium, nothing had changed.
"If Titan wants to use me, then I have no choice—I must become stronger than it."
Do-hyeon looked at her carefully.
"Will strength alone be enough?"
Reina smiled faintly.
"It's not a choice. It's a necessity."
Aknan spoke, his tone quiet but urgent.
"Then we must move quickly.Before Titan comes looking for us again,we need to find a way to stop it."
Their next destination was clear.
"The true seal."
There, they would find the means to stop Titan for good.
And before then—Reina would become strong enoughso that Titan would never dare covet her again.