Ryker stood there like the world belonged to him.
The lingering heat of his skills faded slowly, embers rolling off his armor as the throne room settled into uneasy silence. The Sovereign was dead. The dungeon's pressure had loosened just enough to let people breathe again.
Ryker watched them all.
The awe.
The fear.
The familiar reverence he'd grown addicted to.
It was the same look he always saw from his party.
Then his gaze shifted—to the two newest awakeners.
Seris didn't lower her eyes.
"You call that an accident?" her voice cut through the silence like a blade. "Don't bullshit me. I saw you redirect that boulder. You were trying to get Kaelen killed."
Ryker blinked, genuinely surprised.
Not that she spoke—
But that she dared.
He turned to her slowly, disgust settling over his features.
"Do you know who the fuck you're talking to?" he said coldly. "He's alive, isn't he? And last I checked, I killed the boss."
Seris's jaw clenched. "Why does that matter? You could've destroyed it like the rest. Instead, you aimed it at him. I won't run with someone like you after this."
Ryker laughed.
Not loud.
Not amused.
Manic.
"So you still don't get it," he said, shaking his head. "Apparently I don't give a fuck."
She didn't flinch. "You think being A-rank lets you do whatever you want? Endanger the party just to prove a point?"
Ryker stepped forward.
"For what?" he echoed. "You really want to know?"
He gestured sharply to the four awakeners behind him—the ones who'd been with him since awakening.
"They have lives. Families. Nowhere else to go. This city?" He scoffed. "Nobody gives a shit about it. Not the government. Not the bigwigs. It's me. Me and the families like mine that keep it running."
His voice rose, sharp and venomous.
"I stop dungeon breaks no one else can handle. I hold this place together with my power. Which means I can do whatever the fuck I want."
He pointed at his party.
"I can call them back tomorrow, and they'll come. Same place. Same risk. Same chance to die—because I said so."
Seris stared at him in disbelief.
Ryker stepped closer, eyes burning. "You've been here a month. Let me teach you how things really work in this city. And how you talk to people above you."
His aura surged.
Crimson energy exploded outward, his innate ability feeding on his rage. He moved—
Too fast.
The crack echoed through the chamber.
Seris hit the floor hard, skidding across obsidian stone.
She pushed herself up, dazed, one hand pressed to her cheek. When she looked at the four party members—
They looked away.
Every single one.
Ryker wasn't finished.
He crossed the distance and lifted her by the throat with one hand, raising her off the ground effortlessly.
"Getting it yet?" he asked quietly. "When I say nothing can stop me?"
He gestured lazily with his free hand.
"They won't help you. And that weakling?" He pointed at Kaelen. "He sure as hell can't."
Kaelen sighed.
"Let her go," he said. "Put her down. What the fuck is wrong with you?"
Ryker glanced at him, surprised—then amused.
Kaelen hadn't moved.
He wasn't angry.
He wasn't shaking.
He just… sounded disappointed.
Ryker tossed Seris aside like trash and stepped toward Kaelen, eyes narrowing.
"I've been watching you," he said. "Trying to figure out what you are. But I should've done this from the start."
Kaelen met his gaze calmly. "And what's that?"
Ryker's aura flared again, heat warping the air around him.
"I'm going to show you why I'm on top."
Kaelen turned briefly to the knights and mages. "You gonna say anything? After what you just saw?"
They shook their heads. Silent. Terrified.
Kaelen nodded once. "Figures."
Ryker laughed again. "Talking's boring. Strengths easier. Everyone falls in line when I show mine."
His muscles tightened.
Then he lunged.
The pressure hit first.
Kaelen didn't move immediately.
He activated everything quietly—defenses locking, reality stabilizing around him, the world narrowing to a clean, manageable frame. An invisible field wrapped his body as Ryker closed the distance, fury feeding power feeding fury.
Kaelen looked at him.
Not with hatred.
With pity.
I won't become you, he promised himself.
Ryker's fist came down.
And Kaelen finally moved.