As they exited the combat room, Vale slowed his pace slightly, falling in just behind Callum. Evelyn walked alongside the knight once more, a broad smile stretched across her face as she softly hummed a cheerful melody under her breath, completely at ease after the devastating battle she had just fought.
Vale let out a quiet sigh. He raised a hand to his chin, lost in thought as he watched Callum's back. After reading the basic instruction book on planes and trials, one detail had stood out to him more than anything else:
Every cleared trial granted power, but also a curse.
And the higher the trial, the more severe the curse became.
'So just what kind of curse would Callum have?' Vale wondered.
He mulled it over as Callum and Evelyn walked close together ahead of him. The curiosity gnawed at him, growing heavier with every step. Eventually, he simply couldn't hold it back any longer.
"H–hey, Callum…"
His voice came out slightly shaky.
Callum glanced back at him, that same calm smile resting on his face.
"Is something wrong, Vale?"
Vale hesitated, then shook his head.
"No, it's not that."
He paused, debating whether he should really ask. But the question burned too strongly in his mind to ignore.
"It's just… I learned that every trial gives a more dangerous and severe curse," he said slowly. "So I was wondering…"
He looked directly at Callum, his eyes tense.
"What exactly is the curse you gained from your fourth trial?"
For a split second, silence followed.
Then Yuki, walking nearby, burst into loud laughter.
Vale flinched and turned toward her, startled, words caught in his throat.
At the same time, Callum answered calmly, as though the question were trivial.
"That won't be a problem."
Vale snapped his attention back to him as they continued walking.
"My curse," Callum said evenly, "is simply that my body is no longer alive."
Vale froze mid-step.
"…What?" His voice trembled. "What do you mean by that?"
Callum's smile softened.
"You know how your body naturally handles things like breathing, pumping blood, and all those vital functions?"
Vale nodded slowly.
"Well," Callum continued, "those processes are completely shut off for me. I have to consciously focus on them at all times. If I don't…"
He shrugged lightly.
"They stop. And I'd be dead within a few seconds."
Vale stared at him, a heavy knot forming in his chest.
"I'm… I'm sorry," he said quietly, genuine sympathy in his voice.
Before Callum could respond, Yuki suddenly slapped Vale hard on the back.
"Cheer up, kid!" she said loudly. "He's not dead, is he?"
Vale stumbled forward, coughing slightly.
'Did she hear what I just heard?!' he thought incredulously. 'How can she be so unfazed?'
Before he could say anything, Yuki continued casually,
"If it makes you feel any better, I'm already dead too."
Vale froze completely.
Yuki went on, gesturing ahead.
"Same goes for Eve over there. And Lord Hydra as well."
Vale's vision wavered as realization slammed into him.
"…Does that mean,"
He didn't finish the question.
Yuki grinned.
"Yep. You got it. Every single one of us here has cleared the fourth trial."
Vale stopped walking for a moment.
He stared at the three of them, wide-eyed, his mind refusing to process what he'd just heard. His mouth opened, but no words came out. He simply stood there, stunned into silence.
After a few seconds, the others noticed and turned to look at him.
Just then, Vale finally found his voice again. He turned sharply to Yuki.
"Then that energy you showed me earlier, was that from the fourth trial?!"
Yuki winced awkwardly.
"Uh… yeah. That was about thirty percent."
She scratched her cheek.
"One hundred percent would've killed you. Sorry about that."
Vale's eyes widened even further.
Only now did it truly sink in. He had nearly died just trying to sense Yuki's power, when she hadn't even been trying.
'These people…'
'Even passively, they're monsters.'
Vale went completely still.
Evelyn spoke up, her tone composed but firm.
"Not to worry you, but we need to be on time for the demonstration. So if you could save your astonishment for later, that would be appreciated."
She walked over, took Vale by the hand, and lifted him upright as though he weighed nothing.
Vale decided, right then, that thinking any further would only make things worse.
So he stopped.
He blocked out every active thought and focused solely on what was happening around him, the sound of footsteps, the feel of movement, the simple act of being present.
Callum stepped closer.
"Not to rush," he said awkwardly, still smiling, "but we'll have to run if we want to make it on time."
Evelyn nodded and released Vale's hand.
"You can run on your own, right?"
Vale nodded silently.
"Good," she said. "Then let's go."
All four of them burst into motion at once.
Though Callum, Evelyn, and Yuki were vastly stronger than Vale, they deliberately restrained themselves, limiting their speed and power. Even so, the pace was intense, but manageable.
And so they ran together, deeper into the base, toward a demonstration that would finally show Vale what true power really meant.
They ran at near inhuman speed.
Even if Vale was the lowest rank a Visorian could be, he was still a Visorian. Power flowed through his body, strengthening muscles, sharpening reflexes, and pushing his limits far beyond anything human. His feet barely seemed to touch the ground as he sprinted through the corridors.
Beside him, Yuki ran with effortless ease, as though the speed meant nothing at all.
"You okay, kid?" she asked, glancing sideways at him. "You look… focused."
Vale noticed her attention and responded without breaking stride.
"I'm alright."
The hallway ahead shifted into a section of the base Vale had never seen before. Long rows of thick glass walls lined one side of the corridor. Beyond them lay what was supposed to be the Chimera prison.
Vale stole a glance as they ran.
Instead of iron bars or stone cells, he saw a vast forest enclosure. Tall, deep-green trees rose from snow-covered ground. Animals moved freely between the trunks, their forms half-hidden by drifting mist and falling snow. It looked peaceful, almost too peaceful for a prison.
Vale kept watching as they passed, curiosity tugging at him.
Then he saw it.
In the shadow of one of the trees stood a pitch-black wolf. Its fur seemed to swallow the light around it, and its eyes glowed an unnatural, piercing blue.
The wolf was staring directly at him.
Vale felt a chill crawl up his spine. The distance between them was immense, hundreds of meters at least, yet he felt as though the creature's gaze was right on him, unbroken and deliberate.
For several heartbeats, Vale couldn't look away.
Then he forced himself to turn forward and continued running, unaware of the true intent behind the wolf's stare.
To break the tension in his mind, Vale spoke up.
"So… uh, guys," he said between breaths, "what was with that black wolf?"
Evelyn and Callum both turned their heads toward him mid-run. Yuki glanced over as well, her brow furrowing.
"What wolf?" Yuki asked.
Vale frowned.
"The black wolf in the enclosure we just passed."
Callum and Evelyn exchanged a confused look.
"You might have seen something we didn't," Evelyn said slowly, doubt evident in her voice.
Vale stared at them, stunned.
"You didn't see it?"
Before either could answer, Yuki slapped him on the back again, hard this time.
"Well," she said with a laugh, "seems like you're not just an anomaly, but schizophrenic too."
Vale ignored the comment and kept running, choosing not to press the matter further. Still, unease lingered in his chest.
After several more moments, the corridor abruptly turned. Callum and Evelyn veered sharply to the right. Vale followed, then stopped short.
Before him stretched a massive staircase plunging downward, far too long and steep to run normally. Callum and Evelyn didn't slow down in the slightest.
Evelyn reached out, her shadow stretching and anchoring itself firmly to the walls. She ran along them with effortless grace, completely ignoring gravity.
Callum, meanwhile, leaped down the staircase in a single, controlled descent, landing lightly on each step as though they were mere suggestions rather than obstacles.
Vale stood frozen for half a second, then felt a foot hook behind his own.
He stumbled backward.
Before he could fall, two strong arms caught him.
Startled, Vale shut his eyes instinctively. When he opened them again, Yuki was holding him securely, grinning down at him as she continued moving.
"No time to doubt, kid," she said confidently.
With that, she leaped onto the central railing. Ice surged beneath her feet, instantly freezing the metal solid. She slid down the railing like a skater on ice, speed increasing rapidly.
Vale's mind went completely blank.
He clutched onto Yuki, his heart pounding as they raced downward. All he could do was hope she wouldn't lose her balance, or drop him.
She didn't.
In only a few seconds, they reached the bottom. Yuki released him smoothly, already sprinting forward again.
Vale recovered quickly and followed, pushing himself to keep pace.
Ahead of them, Callum and Evelyn were waiting. Beside them stood a single reinforced door, plain, heavy, and unmistakably important.
It was clear.
They had reached their destination.