The desert did not return to normal.
Even after the Executioner shattered… something remained wrong.
The sun hung dimmer than before.
The cracked moon lingered faintly in the sky, visible even in daylight.
And the sand beneath their feet felt unstable—like glass stretched too thin.
Souro stood slowly.
His body trembled.
Not from exhaustion.
From imbalance.
The crescent mark on his wrist pulsed irregularly, no longer in rhythm with his heartbeat.
Albert noticed immediately.
"You overextended," he said calmly.
Souro glanced at him. "You did too."
Albert's golden aura flickered faintly around his shoulders before stabilizing.
Silence stretched between them.
Not hostility.
Not yet.
But tension.
They had combined their power.
And the world had bent because of it.
Selene broke the silence. "Can we argue later? The floor still feels alive."
She was right.
The sand shifted unnaturally, forming subtle spirals across the battlefield.
Selene stood a few steps away, staring upward.
Her hair still shimmered faintly silver.
Not bright.
But not normal either.
"Selene?" Souro called softly.
She didn't respond immediately.
When she did, her voice sounded distant.
"The moon… isn't just watching."
The air turned colder.
Above them, the fractured moon pulsed once.
A ripple spread across the sky like a disturbed lake.
The system flickered.
[Warning: Authority Disturbance Detected]
[Moon Alignment Increasing…]
[Source: Unknown]
Albert's expression sharpened.
"That's not from us."
The ground cracked.
A thin fissure split the desert floor where the Executioner had fallen.
From within it—
Dark light seeped upward.
Not shadow.
Not solar energy.
Something older.
Something observing.
Far beyond their sight—
Beyond the sky itself—
A presence stirred.
No form.
No face.
Only awareness.
It had watched countless candidates climb the floors.
Most broke.
Most failed.
But these four—
Were different.
Sun and moon had collided.
And the balance had shifted.
Back on the battlefield, Souro clutched his wrist suddenly.
Pain shot through his arm.
The crescent mark burned violently.
He dropped to one knee.
"Souro!" Selene rushed forward.
The mark cracked.
Not physically—
Energetically.
Silver light leaked from the fissure like escaping breath.
[Hidden Class Instability: 14%]
[Warning: Forced Authority Use Has Consequences]
Albert stepped closer, golden light forming instinctively around him.
"You forced synchronization during an incomplete eclipse," he said quietly. "This world isn't stable enough for that."
Souro gritted his teeth. "I didn't have a choice."
Selene finally turned.
Her eyes were glowing faintly now.
Not intense.
But ancient.
She stepped toward Souro and knelt beside him.
Without thinking, she placed her hand over the crescent mark.
The desert wind stilled.
The broken moon pulsed once more.
A soft silver glow flowed from her palm into his wrist.
The pain dulled.
The instability warning flickered—
Then froze at 14%.
Not healed.
Stabilized.
Albert watched carefully.
"…You're connected to it," he said.
Selene looked down at her hand.
"I don't know how. But when the eclipse happened… something answered."
Selene blinked. "So what, you're like… the moon's favorite?"
Selene didn't smile.
"The moon isn't kind."
Silence followed that statement.
Because they all felt it.
The moon did not feel warm.
It did not feel protective.
It felt distant.
Judging.
The fissure in the sand widened suddenly.
A low vibration echoed through Floor 2.
The system chimed again.
[Evaluation Complete]
[Candidates Deemed: Irregular]
[Floor 3 Access Granted]
[Additional Condition Applied]
Selene frowned. "Additional condition?"
The sand collapsed inward, revealing a descending spiral of black stone.
But unlike the staircase before—
This one radiated pressure.
Heavy.
Oppressive.
Albert stepped toward it first, as usual.
But this time, he paused.
"Forcing the eclipse changed something," he said quietly.
Souro stood beside him.
"I know."
Their eyes met again.
Less rivalry now.
More understanding.
They had both felt it.
The presence beyond the sky.
Watching.
Measuring.
Waiting.
Selene looked toward the cracked moon one last time.
For a brief second—
The fissures across its surface aligned.
Like an eye narrowing.
Nova exhaled slowly. "I really miss normal problems."
No one laughed.
The spiral staircase descended into darkness.
Floor 3 awaited.
And whatever was watching them—
Was no longer distant.