The minotaur's roar shook the tunnel.
Max barely managed to dodge the axe strike that split the ground where he had been standing just a second earlier. The impact sent up a cloud of dust and shattered stone, scorching his lungs as he inhaled.
"Damn it…" he growled, forcing himself to stay upright.
His body trembled. Incarnate Lie was still active, but it was no longer a clean blessing. Every heartbeat felt like something was tearing apart inside him, as if the power demanded an immediate price.
The remaining Goblings circled the area, screeching, waiting for the perfect moment. They didn't flee. They didn't hesitate.
They were predators.
One of the minotaurs advanced, dragging its axe along the ground, producing a screech that made his skin crawl.
"Max…" Mira's voice came from behind him, tense. "Move away from them."
"I can't…" he replied without turning around. "If I fall back, they'll surround us."
The system appeared again.
Current survival probability: 3.2%
Max let out a hoarse laugh.
"Wow. It went up."
The minotaur raised its weapon.
And then—
The ground trembled.
Not from the enemy's weight.
But from something deeper.
Mira stepped forward.
"That's enough."
Her voice wasn't loud—but the earth answered.
The tunnel walls emitted a deep pulse, almost like a heartbeat. Mineral veins flared with light, and the ground beneath the Goblings' feet began to move.
"Mira…?" Max turned, stunned.
She walked slowly, stopping beside him.
For the first time since he had met her, she opened her eyes.
They weren't white.
They were golden, with vertical pupils, gleaming like molten metal beneath the earth.
"Max," she said calmly. "Now you listen."
She extended a hand and placed it against the ground.
"The earth is not silent," she whispered. "The surface world simply stopped listening."
The ground opened.
Not like an explosion—but as if the rock obediently melted away. Two Goblings fell instantly, swallowed by the darkness without even a scream.
The others staggered back, confused.
"Magic…?" Max muttered.
"No," Mira replied. "Affinity."
She stomped her foot.
Columns of rock erupted from below, impaling three more Goblings. Their bodies hung there, twitching briefly before going still.
The minotaurs roared in unison.
One charged straight at her.
"Mira, watch out!" Max shouted.
She didn't move.
When the minotaur was less than a meter away, Mira closed her eyes again.
"Depth: third stratum," she said softly.
The ground beneath the minotaur collapsed.
The creature sank down to its torso, trapped in rock hardened like steel. It roared and struggled—but the more it fought, the tighter the prison became.
"What… are you?" the beast bellowed.
Mira tilted her head.
"I am the one who keeps the tunnels stable," she answered. "The one who prevents the world from collapsing in on itself."
The second minotaur hurled its axe.
Max reacted on instinct, using the momentum of his skill to deflect it—
—but the impact shattered his forearm.
He screamed.
The skill roared inside him.
"Max!" Mira spun around sharply.
For a brief moment, the calm on her face cracked.
"Don't you dare die now," she said.
The ground beneath Max rose, partially enveloping him, holding him in place. The pressure on his body eased.
"Are you… protecting me?" he gasped.
"Yes," she answered without hesitation. "Because you're not done lying to the world yet."
The last minotaur hesitated.
That was a mistake.
Mira raised both hands.
"Morvyn Domain: Subterranean Chamber of Silence."
All sound vanished.
The creature's roar died in its throat.
The pressure in the air increased violently.
The minotaur dropped to its knees, bones creaking under an invisible force.
Then… it collapsed.
When sound returned, only the echo remained.
Silence.
The surviving Goblings fled, shrieking, disappearing into the tunnels.
Max dropped to his knees.
The skill deactivated.
The system appeared one final time.
Skill deactivated.
Status: On the verge of collapse.
System Comment:
Your survival was statistically improbable.
Max looked up at Mira.
"…See?" he murmured. "It lied again."
Mira watched him in silence.
Then she knelt in front of him.
"No," she said gently. "This time, it told the truth."
Max frowned.
"Then why am I still alive?"
Mira rested her forehead against his.
"Because truth doesn't always decide the outcome."
And for the first time, Max understood something terrifying:
The system could lie.
The world could lie.
But the earth… could not.
And she was on his side.