Despite his many tries, Silas still died, life draining from him as his eyes became distant and unfocused.
The potion had worked, but being unable to move the boulder pressing upon him, his fate was sealed.
Ninia continued to cry—a raw and agonizing sound that kept echoing throughout the place. As for the others, they sobbed in silence, all except Yamamoto.
Yamamoto felt the system's familiar dampening effect wash over him, smoothing away the sharp edges and bringing his emotions under control. While all of it was still there, acknowledged and processed, the emotional impact was muted.
After waiting for a while more for the others to grieve in peace, Yamamoto decided to speak up. "We can't stay here for long," he said, his voice cutting through the grief. "The path behind us is blocked. The only way is forward." Because of the poor ventilation, the entire place was still filled with dust particles and the air was hard to breath, and that would only get worse.
