The snow had barely settled from the first collapse when the vault groaned again. The symbols crawling across the stone weren't fading. They were accelerating, lines of black script burning themselves brighter, deeper, as though the stone itself was trying to tear open.
Lucen wiped blood from his lip with the back of his hand, grinning even as the system's hum still vibrated in his bones. "Alright," he muttered, voice just loud enough for the others to hear. "I knew it wasn't going to be a one-and-done."
Selindra didn't answer. Her blade was already in hand again, eyes locked on the arch. Her breathing was steady, deliberate, no hint of nerves.
Varik shifted his weight slightly. That was all. No words, no visible tension, but Lucen caught the way the air seemed to thicken around him, the subtle flare of his mana leaking outward.
