"I don't know."
Kairo's voice cracked.
Not with weakness—but with something far worse.
Shock.
His own words rattled in his head like they didn't belong to him.
"I don't know."
He had never said those words in his entire life.
Not on a raid.
Not in training.
Not in any life-or-death scenario.
But now—
He didn't know anything.
Eli.
The serpent.
Getting torn out of its mouth.
Getting thrown out like he was trash.
Getting his ass beat by Caelen.
His pride wasn't bruised—it was shattered.
Everything inside him felt like it was caving in.
Kairo suddenly felt… weak.
The weakest he'd ever felt inside a dungeon.
The weakest he'd felt in years.
And he just… didn't want to move.
Didn't want to fight.
Didn't want to pretend he had control.
He let himself stay pinned under Caelen's boot—the one person he'd rather die than lose to—and for the first time, Kairo didn't throw it off.
He didn't snap.
Didn't snarl.
Didn't fight back.
He just… gave up.
