Kalm took a moment to reflect.
'Life is victory and loss…'
And every victory demands a sacrifice of some kind… while every loss burns like hellfire and teaches something new.
The gentle woman before him had chosen to sacrifice the last remaining city—everything within it—just to help him pass the trial and inherit her legacy.
'I just hope… it's worth it to her, at least.'
After the fall of the last city, both Kalm and Kalystra moved in an atmosphere heavy with tension and quiet dread.
The air between them felt heavier than before.
Kalm already knew the weight of loss and absence—and so did Kalystra. But even with that, emotions don't simply vanish.
They demand time… time to reconcile with, or to move past.
Once they had finished eating, Kalystra stood and cast her gaze slowly around the cave, studying it with unusual intensity.
The walls here had turned a deep crimson, like blood.
The black stones had vanished completely.
It was as if the cave itself had drunk the blood of the monsters… and the humans who had died.
*"That's… deeply unsettling."*
A strange, creeping sensation rose in his chest—one with no clear source, but strong enough to send a shiver through his heart.
He looked back at her again.
Kalm felt as if she were surveying the entire cave—or at least a massive portion of it.
She knew where the remaining monsters were… how many had fallen… how many still fought on.
From the sharp movements of her eyes and her unreadable expression, it was clear—she was formulating strategies, preparing for every possible scenario.
Kalystra, on her own, wouldn't have struggled with any of this.
With her sixth-stage power and her elite shadow servants, she could have cleansed the entire cave and ended it all in a matter of hours.
Even if something supernatural had occurred, it wouldn't have taken a full day.
But deep down…
Kalm felt something was wrong.
A quiet but persistent feeling echoed inside him—that she hadn't told him everything.
Not about the two weapons.
Not about the location.
Not even about herself.
It was like they stood before a door that could only be opened by slaying a specific number of elite monsters—along with the area's leader.
Or perhaps it required the blood of certain rare creatures, spilled on some forgotten altar.
Maybe even a sacrifice… or something stranger still.
These strange ideas surged through Kalm's mind like a treacherous river, disturbing both his thoughts and his heart.
The woman before him had shown countless signs of power, dread, wisdom, and intelligence… all hidden beneath a beautifully crafted mask.
And in moments where he should've questioned more deeply… he simply hadn't.
It was almost as if she *wanted* him to see—wanted him to suspect.
As though she was guiding him to ask the questions himself… rather than giving him answers outright.
So he allowed himself to reconsider everything—every piece of information in his head—
and doubt… everything…
From beginning to end.
Did he truly know enough to be confident in any of this?
Even if Kalystra *showed* him certain things…
Because even if he were truly that weak…
Protecting him wouldn't have been *that* difficult, not with all the power and cunning she'd displayed.
And this cave—this absurdly vast cave—only deepened the mystery.
If the queen had summoned her shadows and confronted the place's ruler directly…
then even in the worst-case scenario, it wouldn't take more than a few minutes—or an hour at most—to kill him.
Even monsters from the fourth stage wouldn't arrive in time to assist their king or delay his death.
And by the time they did… it would all be over.
Dealing with them afterward would pose far less danger.
Adding everything up like that… it all sounded *logical*.
And yet…
he still didn't know much about the monsters… or the place…
or even the woman in front of him.
And worst of all…
he knew nothing about the two weapons or the Lost.
Even if he killed the leader and all the monsters together… there was still a possibility that he wouldn't receive the weapons.
Or that they weren't even the true goal of the trial.
Kalm's eyes narrowed.
His fingers trembled as a completely different possibility began to take root.
*"What if… this isn't even a 'reawakening trial'? Or maybe… it's something similar—but fundamentally different…"*
The flickering orange flame reflected in his dark pupils.
He listened to its crackling… and thought deeply from an entirely new angle.
*"What did the officer say again…? The trial is a double-edged sword…
Some find themselves in their darkest nightmares…
Others find themselves in their most treasured dreams…
And some… discover they aren't even human at all…"*
What they all shared was a single truth:
They had to gain something from it.
A trait.
Perhaps courage.
Determination.
Conviction.
Or fear… terror… desire…
Emotions powerful enough to drive them forward.
But this wasn't meant to be a material reward—like some legendary weapon or the legacy of a warrior.
Those things were supposed to be secondary… mere byproducts of the true purpose: attaining the strength to reach the Awakening stage.
Yet for some reason…
For Kalm, the roles had been reversed.
The secondary goal had become the main objective.
If he didn't obtain the two weapons—or at least one of them—
he might die here,
alone in the terrifying dark of the cave.
And even then… he didn't know what those weapons were, or whether he could even use them.
More importantly… would simply acquiring them be enough to finish the trial?
Then there was something else…
The words the warrior had spoken earlier.
He'd said something...
**"The Lost forged two weapons and hid them in a secret cave within the kingdom… a place known only to the royal family..."**
Then, when his brother asked how he'd come across such information, he replied:
**"No one was supposed to know about it. I just happened to meet someone… and they told me."**
Kalm frowned. That warrior's words had never made sense.
First of all—
how had this cave remained secret in the first place?
A place of this massive scale, full of danger and beasts… it was *impossible* that no other warriors had discovered it.
And yet, somehow, it had remained hidden—for a reason.
Then there was the mysterious person who'd told the warrior about it…
Even if it *had* sounded like a lie, wouldn't any serious fighter at least try to investigate further? Chase down the facts? Search for the weapons?
One person knowing would inevitably lead to others knowing…
Eventually there *should* have been entire groups hunting for the weapons.
So why hadn't anyone taken them?
Something didn't add up.
None of it made sense.
Kalm lifted his fingers and rubbed his forehead in frustration.
Questions burst into his mind like wildfires—
scorching through his thoughts and exhausting him.
Putting aside the strange "truths" of this world, he tried to focus only on *his* situation.
First…
Why had the trial inverted itself in his case?
Why had a weapon become the ultimate goal, instead of a defining trait?
Only a fool would assume they were somehow "special" in this mad world…
And Kalm was the last person to think there was anything special about him.
So then…
The reason the Awakening Trial had flipped into this deadly mess…
It had to be something *external*.
Perhaps it was the Lost himself.
Or maybe someone else with immense power.
But… was that even *possible*?
And if so—why?
Kalm scratched his chin and glanced sideways at the beautiful woman before him… a flicker of suspicion in his gaze.
*"Did she lie to me about something…?"*
There was a high chance of that.
Could it be… that the two weapons didn't exist at all?
That this entire spectacle was a performance, orchestrated for some unknown purpose?
But what would be the point?
He had nothing of value—no power, no status, no secrets.
To calm his restless thoughts, Kalm summoned the golden characters in his mind again.
And in the next second, they appeared before him in the air:
---
Name:Kalm
World Title: ???
Stage: Dormant
Alignment: ??
Traits: ?????
Marks:[Shadow Mark]
Ichor:None
Elements:[Alarm Whistle], \[Melodic Shield]
---
*"Hmm… nothing new."*
Kalm stared at the letters for a long moment.
His eyes lingered on the question marks—those mysterious blanks for **World Title**, **Traits**, and **Alignment**…
Why were these marked with question marks…
yet **Ichor** was clearly labeled as "None"?
That didn't seem like a coincidence.
It felt more like those three fields had *always* been present…
But the system itself was questioning whether he was worthy of them—whether he'd earned the right.
Or perhaps… he still had something he needed to do first.
Kalm studied the golden letters again, thinking hard.
But his mind failed to find any conclusion.
Everything just led him back to one place…
Back to her.
To trusting the impossibly beautiful woman before him.
To believing that this all had meaning.
*"Annoying… it's like fate is just messing with me."*
He waved the letters away and turned his gaze back to the fire, still feeling shaken and unsettled by all the strange nonsense that had been thrown at him—perhaps without him even realizing it.
He needed to start filtering out the facts.
He needed to compare the queen's actions with what she *claimed* her intentions were.
Following her blindly like this…
That was a much bigger problem than it appeared.
Especially since she was the one planting *every thought* in his head.
'Why the hell is all of this happening to me…?'
The heavy silence stretched on between them—
a lingering weight born of the devastating losses in the city.
For nearly an hour, neither spoke.
Both sat still, staring into the flames, each lost in their own world of thought.
Kalm looked up as he heard Kalystra rise to her feet,
her hand resting on the hilt of her sword.
She gave him a faint, half-formed smile.
**"Come on, Kalm… break time's over."**
Kalm stood beside her, his eyes fixed on the path ahead.
Then, in a quiet voice, he asked,
**"Kalystra… are you alright?"**
For a brief second,
a shadow crossed her face—
a flicker of something dark and painful.
Then she raised a hand and ran it through his hair, gently tousling it.
**"I've seen much better days,"** she murmured,
**"but we can't stop now."**
She fell silent again—
and when she spoke next, her voice was so soft he barely caught the words.
**"All the conditions have been met… except for two."**
Kalystra withdrew her hand from his hair.
From the shadow at her feet, something began to rise—
something stunningly beautiful.
Kalm's eyes widened.
His breath caught in his throat.
It was a sword—
elegant, deadly, and unlike anything he'd ever seen.
Entirely black—
from its handle to its slightly curved blade.
It had a single sharp edge, etched with faint engravings—
no, *words*, in a language Kalm couldn't decipher.
The grip was wrapped in exquisite black leather,
with a crimson thread sewn into it in a meticulous, almost sacred design.
Two black ribbons trailed from the hilt, fluttering softly.
Kalm's mouth opened in stunned awe.
The sword radiated a presence—
a quiet, overwhelming power,
as if it could cleave through the very world itself.
Kalystra held the sword firmly in one hand.
In the other, a sheath appeared—
equally beautiful, black and crimson in color.
She slid the sword into the sheath with care,
then stepped in front of Kalm with a soft, serene smile.
**"Kalm… our little journey is nearly at its end.
Let me offer you a small gift, before we part ways."**
The graceful woman bent slightly,
fastening the magnificent sword to Kalm's waist—tight and secure.
Then she straightened herself,
removed her black cloak,
and gently draped it over his shoulders.
A warm sensation flowed through him—
a quiet heat, steady and comforting…
and beneath it, a hidden strength.
The queen smiled—this time, deeply, with a quiet sense of peace—
and once again, she patted his head.
Before he could ask a single question, Kalystra spoke:
**"When all of this ends…
the Voice of the World will transfer the cloak and the sword to you.
You'll also be able to claim the wolf, the serpent, and the raven.
I'm certain they'll serve you well."**