The room was a small, black cube, identical to every room that had come before it.
The air felt thick as if the walls themselves were slowly closing in and gradually crushing them.
A dim light flickered on the opposite wall, casting shadows that danced like phantoms in the corners of the room.
The silence was palpable, only broken by a pair of footsteps, amplifying the eery mood.
*STEP*
Countless footsteps echoed throughout the cube-like room, reverberating off the oppressive walls as six figures stumbled in.
Each was gasping for breath, their bodies marked by the weight of countless battles—some rubbed at bloodied bruises, while others wiped the blood from their weapons,
Among them, one figure rose above the rest.
With striking white hair that seemed to shimmer in the darkness and dark purple eyes that pierced the pitch-black room, he was no older than twenty.
As he stepped fully into the chamber, a tangible aura surrounded him.
In his hand, he wielded a sword that mirrored the hue of his eyes, its dark purple blade glowing ominously.
Swinging the dark purple sword with practiced ease, the light illuminated the shadows and revealed the desolate surroundings of the cube.
As the sword sliced through the air with fluid grace, it felt as though it was cleaving the very air itself.
The dark purple blade shimmered with an ethereal glow, causing the shadows to recoil in fear, retreating into the corners of the room before disappearing.
The white-haired boy scanned the area, his gaze sharp and unwavering, before turning back to his companions.
Raising his other hand, the white-haired figure signaled to the five figures, causing them to carefully walk in with their weapons raised.
*CLANG*
As a girl wearing a traditional black cloak finally entered the room, the cube seemed to come alive, shutting the door, the only way in and out.
However, the six figures paid no attention to the door closing; instead, they grouped together.
A figure with orange hair and brown eyes stepped in front of everyone, drawing the gazes of the white-haired boy and the others.
In a near-silent whisper, the orange-haired figure said to the group before him.
"This is it... the final room. After this... we're free, our family is free... and our world is free of those abominations."
Interrupting the orange-haired boy's speech, a red-haired female sighed before exclaiming.
"Oh, here we go again, not another speech. Let's just get it over with, alright? Then, you can give all the shitty speeches you want, Cade."
Chucking at the red-haired' girl's words, the oranged-haired boy stepped further into the cube, raising his spear with unwavering courage and determination.
Without skipping a beat, the white-haired figure stepped forward as well, raising his sword in front of his face, revealing the countless scars plastered all over his porcelain-white skin.
However, instead of a grim or hurt expression, a smile was plastered on his face.
Turning around, his purple eyes seemed to spark with lightning as he gazed at the two women behind him.
"Lyra... this is it... the end. If you wanted to be scared, the time has long passed."
Letting out a sigh at the white-haired boy's banter despite the difficult situation, the girl stepped forward, her pink hair glistening as she moved.
Meeting the boy's purple eyes with her own orange eyes, the girl tipped her witch-like hat before raising her wand.
"Sora, what's after this for you?"
As the white-haired Sora opened his mouth to respond, the ground suddenly shook, causing him to tense his arms.
*QUAKE*
As the other two girls and boy stepped forward, each wielding a different weapon, the cube seemed to rumble even harder.
*QUAKE*
Despite the increasing rumbling of the cube's floor, the six figures remained perfectly still, not being affected at all by the rumbling equivalent to a level six earthquake.
At the front of the group, the orange-haired boy raised his elegant, brown spear well above his head.
Beside Lyra, the red-haired girl raised her sleek white bow before tugging at the strings with an arrow in her hand.
As she nocked the arrow, Lyra stretched out her wand to the tip of the arrow, causing a small flame to appear on the arrow's steel tip.
"You know you were acting so confident earlier, but Scarlett, you seem t-"
Drawing the string of the bow back, Scarlett interrupted Lyra.
"Oh, you're one to talk; why don't you go talk to your 'childhood friend' Sora over there to calm down."
Ignoring Lyra's agitated expression, Scarlett released the string, sending the flaming arrow through the cube.
Weaving in between the group members ahead and Cade's figure, the arrow flew right at the opposite wall of the cube, illuminating everything as it passed.
Following the arrow's movements closely with his eyes, Sora hesitated before screaming out.
"FOUR MARAQUISE-RANKS... 1 BARON-RANK!"