The cave swallowed sound.
The moment Ace stepped inside, the warmth of the forest vanished, replaced by damp stone and a darkness so thick it felt alive. His footsteps echoed faintly, each one sounding louder than the last.
Too quiet, he thought.
He summoned a small flame in his palm—not to attack, but to see. The fire flickered unnaturally, as if something in the cave was feeding on its light.
Then he felt it.
Hunger.
A low, creeping pressure crawled along his skin.
The first Evil Eye appeared without warning, lunging from the shadows. Ace reacted instantly.
"Flame Ball—forty percent."
The fire erased it completely.
But another followed. Then another.
Ace moved deeper, burning them one by one, until the ground was littered with scorched remains. His breathing grew heavy. These weren't strong—but they weren't the real threat either.
He could feel it now.
Something deeper. Watching.
Suddenly, the fire in his hand went out.
Ace froze.
A voice echoed through the cave—not spoken, but felt.
You burn too brightly, child.
The walls shifted. Shadows stretched and merged, forming a massive shape. An Evil Eye unlike any he had seen emerged—its body fused with the cave itself, veins of dark energy pulsing like a living heart.
A Devourer Eye.
Every spell Ace cast was being drained.
Ace clenched his fists, remembering Vargan's words.
Your heart is on fire… but chained.
He whispered, steadying his breath.
"Armour."
A faint glow wrapped around him as the Devourer struck. The impact sent him flying, smashing into stone. Pain screamed through his body—but he stood.
Again.
"Flame Ball won't work," Ace muttered. "Then I'll change it."
He focused—not on power, but control.
"Flame Ball + Armour"
Fire wrapped around his body instead of leaving it. The heat no longer burned him—it obeyed him.
Ace charged.
The Devourer screamed as flames tore through its core, unable to feed on what was no longer separate from its target. The cave shook violently.
With one final roar, the Evil Eye collapsed, dissolving into ash and silence.
Ace dropped to his knees, exhausted—but alive.
Far away, in the forest—
Vargan staggered.
"I can see him," he said sharply. "Flickering… but alive."
Darian tightened his grip on his weapon.
"Then we move."
Vargan nodded.
"The prince has made his move," he said coldly. "And now… so will we."
Deep inside the ruined cave, Ace stood alone, unaware that surviving the trial was only the beginning.
Because the darkness had noticed him.