Sage and the others stood frozen, not by choice but as if something unseen had locked their bodies in place. The weight pressing down on them was overwhelming, ancient, unnatural, like a colossal mountain had suddenly descended from the sky to rest upon their shoulders.
This pressure wasn't the kind that came from a mighty Warrior or a powerful Mage; it felt wrong, as if it belonged to something not alive at all. It reminded Sage of the Abyssal Mana Leviathan, a suffocating presence that instilled fear before his mind could even process it.
His fingers twitched slightly, yet he couldn't move his hand. Even his Mana stirred sluggishly within him, as though submerged in mud.
Valeria stood closest to the old man, her crimson sword still gripped tightly in her hand. Her gaze remained fixed ahead, yet she too was immobilized. Though her expression was cold, there was an alertness Sage rarely witnessed on her face.
