The door creaked softly as it opened.
Drax stepped inside without ceremony, the smell of pine resin and distant rain still clinging to his clothes. The Abyss had receded—folded back into itself like a patient predator—but traces of it lingered in the air around him, invisible pressure bending the world just enough to unsettle the unprepared.
Mira sat in the center of the room, legs crossed, back straight.
Her breathing was controlled.
Too controlled.
Inhale—four counts.
Hold—two.
Exhale—six.
A novice's rhythm, forced and deliberate, the kind born from effort rather than instinct.
Drax paused, leaning against the doorframe, arms loosely crossed as he watched her. Her brow was faintly furrowed, lips pressed together as if she were wrestling something unseen.
She sensed him the moment he crossed the threshold.
Her breath hitched.
She tried to hold it longer—pride stubborn even in exhaustion—but her shoulders slackened a heartbeat later, and she tipped sideways, collapsing gently onto the floor, already asleep.
Silence reclaimed the room.
Drax chuckled under his breath, shaking his head as he walked over.
"You poor thing," he murmured, crouching beside her. "You'll get used to it soon."
He adjusted the blanket draped over her shoulders, careful—uncharacteristically careful—then stood and turned toward the couch.
Ellis sat there, legs dangling, a wooden training blade resting across his lap. His eyes were bright, alert, far too sharp for someone his age.
Drax reached out and placed a hand on his head, ruffling his hair.
"You good, Ellis?"
Ellis looked up and grinned.
"I'm good, hyung-nim."
No fear.
No tremor.
Just trust.
Something twisted quietly in Drax's chest—not pain, not regret, but resolve.
He nodded once. "Good."
The front door opened again.
Footsteps—light but purposeful.
Lyra stepped inside, a woven basket hanging from her arm. She paused the moment she saw Drax, eyes scanning him the way only a mother's could—searching for wounds no one else could see.
Then she smiled.
"How was the market, Mom?" Drax asked casually.
Lyra set the basket down, expression thoughtful. "I didn't go all the way in," she said slowly. "Stopped by the store near the outskirts instead. Something felt… off."
Drax turned slightly, hiding his face.
My mom has good intuition, he thought.
Even since I was young.
"You didn't notice anything strange?" he asked aloud.
She shook her head. "No. Just a feeling."
A dangerous thing, intuition.
Especially when it was right.
That night, the forest slept uneasily.
Not because of monsters.
Because something had ended.
High above the city, unseen currents of power still rippled—faint echoes of an annihilation too absolute to leave scars.
And someone else felt it.
The call came as Drax stood by the window, watching moonlight spill across the trees.
The device vibrated once.
Then again.
He answered.
"…Tess."
There was a long pause on the other end. Too long.
"Drax," she said carefully. "I'm going to ask you something, and I need you to answer honestly."
He sighed. "That usually means trouble."
"Were you," Tess continued, "the one Squad Zero was fighting with earlier today?"
Drax didn't hesitate.
"Yes."
Silence.
Then—
"You—what?"
"I killed them," he said calmly. "A few minutes ago."
The line crackled.
"…You did what?"
"I killed the so-called Squad Zero," Drax repeated, tone unchanged. "All of them."
Tess's breath caught audibly.
"Drax—don't talk so casually about this," she snapped. "Do you even know what you've done?"
"Enlighten me."
Her voice dropped, urgency bleeding through. "Squad Zero isn't just dangerous. They're legendary. They specialize in killing Inner World users—high-tier ones. All of them were Stage Two."
Drax leaned against the frame, eyes half-lidded.
"And?"
"And they're under Black God," Tess said sharply. "An organization that operates above national associations. Multiple subgroups. Multiple kill-squads. Zero was just one of them."
She swallowed.
"Black God is run by unmeasurable beings. People like Lex. Like Serius."
Drax was quiet for a moment.
Then—
"Good to know."
Tess nearly shouted. "That's it?!"
"I've reached Stage Two," Drax said simply.
Her breath stopped.
"…What?"
"During the fight. Absorbed their essence. My Abyssal World stabilized."
A pause.
Then, softer: "Drax… that changes things."
"Yes," he agreed. "It does."
She hesitated. "If Black God moves—"
"Tell me," Drax interrupted gently, "when you find out anything about them."
Another pause.
"…You're not afraid?"
He smiled faintly.
"Should they be?"
The call ended.