After three weeks, Nora and Rose finally walked out of the cave.
Their clothes carried traces of dried blood, while countless monster corpses had been left behind during those weeks of relentless hunting.
The training had been fruitful.
Nora silently summoned her profile.
Tyrant Fragments: 2,000 / 5,000
A faint smile appeared on her face.
She could clearly feel herself becoming stronger with every battle.
Rose had also benefited greatly.
The battle against the Awakened creature had increased her fragment count considerably, making the dangerous expedition worthwhile.
Fortunately, throughout those three weeks, they never encountered Cynthia or her cohort again.
It seemed the other group had chosen another route.
Nora secretly felt relieved.
After all...
It had felt like Rose and she had done almost all the difficult fighting.
Rose stretched her shoulders before looking toward the massive fortress standing in the distance.
Goldsteel Shelter.
Its enormous golden walls reflected the sunlight, making the entire structure appear almost indestructible.
Rose slowly exhaled.
"I hope we survive this."
Nora looked at the gigantic shelter before replying calmly,
"We should."
The two women slowly approached the entrance.
Before they could pass—
Several figures stepped into their path.
Each carried weapons.
Each radiated the aura of an Awakened.
One of them smiled arrogantly.
He stepped forward.
"Leave your bags."
He glanced over both of them.
"And anything valuable."
Rose's expression immediately turned cold.
She leaned slightly toward Nora and whispered,
"Thankfully they're only Awakened."
"That puts them in the same class as me."
She glanced at the others.
"...But with their numbers..."
"I'm not sure I can beat all of them."
The man laughed.
"What?"
"Planning your funeral already?"
Rose didn't answer.
Instead—
A thick vine suddenly erupted from the ground.
BOOM!
It whipped directly toward the speaker.
The man barely crossed his arms before the vine smashed into him, throwing him several meters backward.
Dust filled the air.
The other men immediately drew their weapons.
The man slowly climbed back to his feet.
He dusted off his clothes before smiling.
"So..."
"You've chosen violence."
Rose narrowed her eyes.
"Get lost."
The man's smile widened.
"My name is Klaus."
"And I don't like repeating myself."
Without another word—
Water suddenly surged beneath Nora's feet.
CRACK!
Ice rapidly climbed her legs, freezing her in place.
Nora frowned.
"So you're a water user."
Klaus smiled.
"You noticed."
He calmly walked toward her.
Rose immediately tried moving to help.
Another layer of ice spread beneath her feet.
She almost lost her balance.
Before falling completely, several vines burst from the earth and wrapped around her waist, supporting her body.
Klaus looked amused.
"Interesting."
He slowly extended his hand.
Water gathered together.
It condensed.
Compressed.
Within moments, a sharp translucent blade formed inside his palm.
Without hesitation—
He swung it toward Nora.
In Nora's eyes—
The future unfolded.
She saw the blade pass through her body.
She saw herself split cleanly in half.
Blood painted the ground.
The vision disappeared.
Nora instantly moved.
The real strike passed harmlessly through empty space.
Klaus blinked.
"...You dodged?"
Rose finally shattered the ice imprisoning her feet.
She summoned her sword and immediately intercepted the remaining members of Klaus' group.
Steel clashed.
Vines burst from the ground.
The battlefield instantly divided into two.
Rose versus the group.
Nora versus Klaus.
Nora summoned her God Body.
Dark armor enveloped her figure.
Seven Divine Arms unfolded behind her one after another, making it seem as though several invisible arms floated behind her back.
Klaus looked genuinely surprised.
"What kind of ability..."
He didn't finish.
Nora had already moved.
She threw a punch.
Klaus wrapped his fist with flowing water.
The two fists collided.
BOOM!
The impact blasted dust across the battlefield.
Nora slid backward five full steps before finally stopping.
Klaus hadn't moved even an inch.
Nora immediately understood.
"He's physically stronger than me."
Without giving her time to recover, Klaus raised one hand.
Water exploded beneath Nora.
Ice instantly wrapped around one of her legs.
Nora reacted quickly.
She tore herself free before the freezing could spread further.
Water still covered the ground.
Nora smiled slightly.
"I'm also a water user."
She raised one hand.
The surrounding water immediately rose into the air before shooting toward Klaus.
Klaus instinctively formed a shield of condensed water.
The attack splashed harmlessly against it.
He laughed.
"So that's all?"
Nora smiled.
"No."
The water attack had never been intended to hurt him.
It was merely a distraction.
Behind Klaus—
Another Nora suddenly appeared.
BANG!
A powerful punch landed directly on his back.
Klaus was launched forward.
Before he could stabilize himself—
A second punch struck him from the front.
Then another.
Then another.
He found himself being bounced between multiple Noras.
His expression gradually became uglier.
"Clones?"
He immediately condensed dozens of sharp water arrows.
They shot toward one of the Noras.
The figure vanished the moment the arrows passed through it.
An illusion.
False Glimpse.
Klaus' eyes widened.
"The fake one?"
Before he could turn—
A heavy punch crashed into his back once again.
He stumbled several steps forward.
Nora quietly watched him.
False Glimpse had once again deceived her opponent completely.
Klaus looked around carefully.
Every Nora seemed real.
Every movement looked genuine.
For the first time since the battle began—
He no longer knew where the real Nora stood.
His face darkened.
"...Enough."
His voice echoed across the battlefield.
Rose instinctively turned toward him while still fighting the others.
Klaus slowly removed a small black orb from his pocket.
The moment it appeared—
The surrounding air became strangely heavy.
He calmly pointed it toward Nora.
A cruel smile spread across his face.
"Time..."
"...for you to be gone."
The orb activated.
A terrifying suction force erupted from it.
The ground cracked.
Loose stones, dust, and broken weapons were violently pulled toward the black sphere.
Nora immediately felt her body being dragged forward.
"What is this?!"
Rose's expression changed instantly.
"Nora!"
She abandoned her own battle and rushed toward her.
The suction only became stronger.
Neither of them could resist.
The black orb swallowed them both.
The moment the two women disappeared inside it—
The battlefield became silent.
The orb dropped back into Klaus' hand.
He looked at it for a moment before laughing.
"Cynthia really wanted this thing delivered."
He casually stored the orb away.
"Now..."
"...all I have to do is wait for it to release its light before dismissing it."
The other members of his group laughed together with him.
Not too far away...
Hidden behind a rocky cliff...
A lone figure quietly watched everything.
A faint smile slowly appeared on his face.
"You truly got me, Cynthia..."
He slowly stepped forward.
"Time for my turn."