Author Note.
First, I want to say sorry again for the sudden gap in updates.
I didn't give any warning before disappearing for a while, and I know that can be frustrating for readers following the story. Thank you to everyone who stuck around regardless.
This chapter begins revealing a little more about what happened during the primordial encounter, and some of the consequences that Maxwell might not fully understand yet.
The world is slowly opening up, and not everything watching him is friendly.
Thank you for reading and for the patience.
____________
He was with me earlier when the explosion happened.
But I was too out of it to notice.
"Damn primordial…" Nova muttered under her breath.
Her eyes quickly scanned the snow-covered ground around her.
For the first time since the creature disappeared, uncertainty crept into her mind.
What if he died?
The thought came suddenly and refused to leave.
She knew it technically wouldn't be her fault. No one could resist a primordial.
Still… the thought lingered.
Her gaze moved desperately across the endless white landscape.
For a moment, she saw nothing.
Only snow.
Then—
A figure.
Standing.
A few meters away.
Nova's eyes widened slightly.
Maxwell stood there, leaning heavily on his sword for support. His posture was unsteady, as though the smallest push might send him collapsing into the snow.
Relief washed through her chest.
Nova quickly approached him.
She had expected the worst.
But surprisingly, he looked mostly fine.
There were no visible injuries on his body.
Her eyes moved across him carefully.
Clothes intact.
No blood.
No wounds.
Just exhaustion.
Then something caught her attention.
A faint glow.
Nova stopped walking.
Her eyes narrowed.
The light was subtle, barely visible beneath the fabric of his clothes.
But it was definitely there.
Coming from his back.
"…What?"
Her mind instantly shifted from relief to suspicion.
Without hesitation, she closed the distance between them.
***
Maxwell noticed Nova suddenly sprinting toward him.
Something about her expression felt… strange.
He couldn't see his own back, so he had no idea that it was glowing faintly beneath his shirt.
When Nova reached him, she gestured urgently toward his back.
Maxwell immediately understood.
He removed one hand from his sword and carefully lifted the back of his shirt.
His body swayed slightly from the effort, but he managed to stay standing.
Nova stepped behind him.
Maxwell couldn't see what she was looking at.
But he could still feel it.
The strange burning sensation on his back hadn't disappeared.
It wasn't painful exactly.
Just… hot.
Unnaturally hot.
Why does my back feel like it's burning?
His mind drifted back to the moment of the explosion.
I remember the blast clearly.
But there are no wounds…
Except this.
What even exploded?
Then—
A metallic scraping sound echoed softly across the snow.
Maxwell turned his head slightly.
Nova had pulled his sword from the ground.
Using the tip of the blade, she began drawing something into the snow.
Her eyes kept flicking back toward his back as she worked.
Maxwell frowned slightly.
What is she doing?
Curiosity slowly replaced his confusion.
When Nova finally stepped aside, Maxwell saw the drawing.
His eyes narrowed.
An eye.
A strange eye carved into the snow.
Inside its iris were writhing, worm-like shapes.
Above the eye was a triangle.
Strange lines and markings surrounded it, forming a symbol he couldn't understand.
Maxwell stared at it silently.
A terrible realization slowly formed in his mind.
Whatever she had just drawn…
It was on his back.
But that didn't make sense.
He had never gotten a tattoo.
So how?
The primordial…
The thought appeared almost immediately.
If the primordial had done this…
Then what did it mean?
Was it harmful?
Beneficial?
Or something far worse?
Maxwell had only recently learned that this world had only three ranks—Dormant, Diamond, and Epic.
Even among those ranks, all five classes still existed.
He had seen Nova's strength with his own eyes.
She was a Diamond Demon.
And yet…
Compared to that primordial—
She had been less than an ant.
If something like that had placed a mark on him…
There was no way he could remove it.
And that thought terrified him.
"Oh…" Nova finally said quietly.
Maxwell snapped out of his thoughts.
"Take a look at this," she said, pointing at the symbol in the snow.
She handed Maxwell his sword.
"Alright," Maxwell replied, taking it before stepping forward.
His gaze fell on the drawing again.
At that exact moment, the burning sensation on his back faded slightly.
But something else replaced it.
A strange feeling.
Like someone was watching him.
Then—
He heard them.
Whispers.
Faint at first.
So faint he almost thought he imagined them.
Maxwell frowned.
Then the whispers multiplied.
More voices.
And more.
They came from everywhere.
Above him.
Behind him.
Beside him.
Every direction he could imagine.
Maxwell spun around, searching desperately for the source.
But no matter where he looked—
The whispers followed.
When he turned back toward Nova, she stared at him with a blank expression.
Her lips moved.
Muttering something.
Whispering.
Maxwell felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.
Cold sweat ran down his spine.
The whispers felt close.
So close.
Like they were just outside his understanding.
As though if he listened carefully enough…
Imight finally understand them.
And the moment he tried—
Pain exploded inside his head.
"Ahhh—!"
Maxwell screamed.
The pain was unbearable.
It felt like something was clawing through his skull.
Thinking became impossible.
His vision blurred.
The whispers only grew louder.
Maxwell clutched his head as his eyes turned bloodshot.
His knees buckled.
He collapsed into the snow.
Rolling violently across the frozen ground.
He screamed.
But no sound escaped his throat.
He begged for help.
No one came.
He hoped.
He prayed.
Still nothing answered.
Maxwell writhed in agony as the whispers consumed his mind.
Then—
A voice shattered the silence.
"BE GONE!"