Silver had planted himself in front of the outpost's warp gate the moment the group left. He hadn't moved since—as if he had to guard the exact spot where she'd return.
The portal flashed six times in a row.
Klein, Dale, Issin, Kunimittz, Harry One, and Dynamm appeared with tired but upbeat faces, talking over each other about how brutal the forest route had been.
Silver waited.
One eternal second.
Then another.
Then another.
No new flash.
Yuiha wasn't back.
He strode up and grabbed Issin by the armor.
—Where is Yuiha? —His voice came out low, restrained, dangerous.
—S-she was at the caravan entrance when we came back. That was the strategy —the guy answered, failing to pry Silver off him.
Dale and Dynamm stepped forward, but Klein stopped them with a quick gesture.
—Easy there, big guy —Klein said—. She made it to the safe zone just fine. Like I promised Miwacchi.
Silver didn't let go of Issin.
Then he felt a firm hand clamp onto his arm.
Veget.
—Let him go, Silver. Now.
After a tense beat, Silver released him and turned his eyes back to the portal.
A few minutes passed.
A new flash lit the plaza.
Yuiha appeared, calm and satisfied. She took a couple steps—and the moment she noticed how rigid Silver was, she walked straight to him and gently took his hand.
—I came back safe and sound. Like I promised you —she said, with a smile meant for him alone.
At last, the tension left Silver's shoulders.
Yuiha then turned to Veget and Ryuho.
—I got a lot of masks and antidotes.
—Well done —Veget replied.
Then he looked at Silver.
—We need to talk. Follow me.
They moved a short distance away from the group. Veget didn't waste time.
—This isn't a game. If something goes wrong, that's it.
—I know —Silver said, serious.
—Then stop acting like a spoiled kid for once.
Silver's jaw tightened—annoyed, but not defiant. He couldn't find words.
—Even if we're two parties, this afternoon we're moving as a single unit —Veget continued—. You've already reacted badly in front of them more than once. How do you think they're supposed to trust you? Trust us?
Silver dropped his gaze. It wasn't anger.
It was shame.
—I know how much you care about Yuiha. We all do. She's part of the team. But if you do something stupid out there, you could get all of us killed —Veget paused—. And "all of us" includes her.
—I know —Silver said at last, quieter.
—If you really know that —Veget concluded— you're going to apologize to them right now. Before you ruin everything.
March 20, 2023. 3:30 PM — Cracked Causeway, Floor 25
Both parties moved together across the uneven terrain. The route was a chain of stone platforms and hanging bridges—some dangerously unstable, others already broken, collapsed toward the swamp far below.
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Klein and Harry One led the way, clearing ahead. Veget and HappyGoose covered the rear. Silver and Yuiha held the right flank, while Ryuho and Dale secured the left. The rest stayed centered, advancing carefully.
Silver had wanted to protest not having Yuiha in the middle of the formation, but she stopped him with one simple line: she felt safer beside him.
That ended the discussion.
The route was far more dangerous than expected. Moving as a large group didn't make travel easier—it made it clumsy and slow. The Galebreak Harpies patrolling the area were a constant threat: they could grab a player and hurl them into the void, and they could whip up violent gusts that stole your balance in an instant.
Even bridges that looked intact weren't truly safe. Some sections gave way after being stepped on a few times, collapsing without warning. It forced the group to stay on high alert at all times—and made any emergency retreat brutally complicated.
At one crossing, Harry One was forced to drop his weapon to keep a harpy from dragging him over with it. He managed to stay upright, but he had to switch to a backup weapon that was clearly inferior.
After clearing several bridges and detours, Veget and Klein traded a look and reached a decision without needing to say it out loud.
They had to find another route.
This one was too dangerous. Only the Liberation Army—or the Divine Dragons—could afford to clear it safely.
March 20, 2023. 4:08 PM — Flooded Catacombs, Floor 25
After backtracking off the bridges, the group reached the entrance to the Flooded Catacombs. Even though it was a maze, the corridors were wider than the hanging structures—and that simple width gave them a deceptive sense of safety.
Here, they found a different kind of enemy: Drowned Sentinels.
The armor stood in the flooded hallways, lined up like statues forgotten by time. At first glance they looked like inert remnants of old defenses: rusted plates, dented helms, blunted swords resting against stone walls.
But all it took was a few steps forward for the water to react.
A faint ripple.
Then another.
From inside the armor, black water began to seep—thick and heavy, as if something were compressing it from within. Metal joints creaked; pieces shifted into place with a forced, unnatural sound. There was no flesh, no bone, no eyes behind the sealed visors.
Only emptiness... and the weight of the water filling them.
The Drowned Sentinels advanced, dragging their feet through the flooded floor. Each step came with a metallic scrape and the slow splash of water spilling out from within. They didn't run.
They didn't need to.
Their advance was heavy and steady, turning the narrow catacomb passages into moving walls.
—Positions —Veget ordered, without raising his voice.
Both parties moved immediately, following practiced patterns. Fighting all together in a space this tight would be a mistake. They split the enemies: three for each group.
Silver and Veget took the front, as always. The Sentinels hit like freight trains. Even Veget's newly upgraded shield—far sturdier than the last—struggled to absorb the impacts, and it took all of the leader's skill to hold his ground.
Silver had it slightly easier thanks to Aegis's ability to withstand blows that normally would've driven him back. Even so, the violence of each hit traveled through his entire body, making every block harder than the last.
From his experience with the Sentinels on Floor 1, Silver knew "just endure" wasn't the right strategy. It was better to evade and punish.
But this time he wasn't alone. Miwa's, Yuiha's, Ryuho's, and HappyGoose's safety depended on him and Veget holding the line while the others dealt damage.
Veget reached the same conclusion almost instantly. If this became a pure endurance test, he and Silver would fall before they could bring down three enemies.
—Three pairs! —Veget ordered—. One per enemy—fast switches!
Silver used Shield Bash to shove back the nearest Sentinel, then regrouped. The pairs formed instantly: him with Yuiha; Ryuho with Miwa; Veget with HappyGoose.
Veget kept his shield up, aware of his lower agility. Silver, instead, put away Aegis and his one-handed sword and equipped a two-handed broadsword. It was an uncommon sight—though Yuiha had already seen him like this during the hovering shark fight.
This was Silver when retreat wasn't an option.
—Grand Slash! —he roared.
The blade unloaded a single-hit skill with brutal force, rejecting the enemy's strike and knocking its weapon upward.
—Switch!
—Rainbow Burst!
Yuiha surged in instantly, executing a seven-hit skill that pushed her sword to its limit. The Sentinel lost nearly half its HP despite its heavy defense.
—Switch!
Silver didn't need an explanation. He knew a skill like that came with a harsh drawback—likely a long cooldown. He lunged at once toward the Sentinel, which was already starting to charge at her.
—Avalanche!
He leapt and brought down the violent descending cut typical of two-handed swords. The attack fully knocked the enemy's blow off-line—but left it open.
The Sentinel twisted with an unexpected motion and fired a horizontal slash.
Silver saw it in time, but if he dodged, the strike would land cleanly on Yuiha. He wasn't sure she could move yet.
He stepped into the attack.
He lifted the sword just enough to trigger Horizontal. The enemy's force bent his motion—but it was enough to reduce the impact to something survivable.
The hit tore across his chest from side to side. His HP dropped into the red.
—Silver! —Yuiha shouted, panicked.
The moment he realized she could move again, he gave the turn away.
—Switch!
Yuiha charged at full speed and landed four consecutive critical hits with Vertical Square. The enemy disintegrated into fragments of light.
She ran to Silver.
—Are you okay?
Silver didn't answer right away. His gaze looked like it had drifted somewhere else.
—Silver!
—Huh? —he said, snapping back.
—Don't scare me like that! —she shouted, on the edge of tears.
—Sorry —he said softly—. I'm fine. Nothing a few potions won't fix.
He opened his inventory and restored his HP. Around them, the other pairs had defeated their opponents too. Almost no one had come out unscathed, but everyone was still standing.
On Floor 25, that was already an achievement.
Silver's eyes locked again on the message that had appeared the moment he took the hit to protect Yuiha.