The corridor stretched on in a twist of angles, each turn a subtle betrayal of distance and direction. Alden's heartbeat thudded in time with the muted glow of runes that flickered across the labyrinth walls. Still clutching the Rune of Clarity (Fragment), he pressed a hand to his wounded arm, where sticky blood had crusted into a dark stain. Though the System's level-up boost had dulled the pain, it still felt like knives dancing under his skin with every movement.
A faint rush of air brushed his face, carrying a strange scent—metallic and cold, like steel drawn across ice. He slowed his pace, senses on high alert. Where the corridor dead-ended stood an ornate door carved from obsidian and inlaid with twisting sigils. It hummed with a power he could feel in his marrow. Above it glowed the faint inscription:
Only through insight shall thou pass into the Sanctum.
His fingers hovered over the black stone. A single push, and whatever lay beyond would greet him. But he remembered all too well the illusions he'd just faced. The Maze was built to test him, and whatever lurked behind this door was likely more than a simple puzzle. Steeling himself, Alden exhaled and pressed his palm against the sigils.
A wave of cold shot up his arm. The door shuddered, lines of silver spreading out beneath his touch like frost creeping across glass. Then, it groaned open, revealing a small chamber lit by a flickering brazier. At the center of that chamber, suspended in midair, was another rune stone—similar in size to his fragment, but glowing with a sharper, more intense light.
Alden stepped in, pulse hammering. The brazier's fire cast dancing shadows along the walls, each flicker seeming to twist into forms with too many limbs. He could almost hear distant whispers, like hissing serpents, urging him to claim the rune. Carefully, he approached. The second stone hung in the air, spinning slowly, its glow so bright it made his eyes water.
Just as his hand was about to close around it, the brazier's flames surged high, crackling in an unnatural roar. The chamber spun around him, turning the smooth stone floor into a swirl of color. Alden barely had time to brace himself before an apparition formed out of the swirling light—a tall, robed figure with an angular face and eyes like twin embers.
It stared at him in silence for a moment before speaking in a low, resonant voice.
"Two fragments, one truth. Prove you are worthy to unite them, or remain lost in the endless dark."
The figure extended a spidery hand toward Alden. Instantly, the lines of the labyrinth's runes glowed fiercely along the walls, and the space between Alden and the specter twisted as though warping under immense pressure. Alden's lungs tightened—another illusion? Or perhaps something deadlier?
DING!
The System chime cut through the tension:
Adaptive Will [Lv. 4]
Engage: Inner Trial
Alden felt a jolt of energy surge through him, adrenaline heightening every sense. The robed figure lunged, impossibly fast, its staff whistling toward Alden's head. Alden jerked back just in time, sparks flaring as the staff grazed his sword. He countered, slashing upward. But the figure's robes parted like mist, its form dissolving only to reform behind him. A searing pain lanced across his shoulder—the figure's staff smashing down with bone-jarring force.
He staggered, blood roaring in his ears. Calm. Focus. He couldn't battle illusions as though they were solid flesh. Fighting it head-on would be a losing game. Realizing this, Alden gripped both the existing fragment in his pouch and the new one hovering in the air. The moment his fingers brushed the second rune stone, a wave of clarity pulsed across the chamber.
Suddenly, he could see it: the figure wasn't truly behind him—it was an afterimage, a projection. The real threat flickered at the edge of his vision, shifting shapes in the brazier's firelight. Gritting his teeth, Alden forced himself to trust the twin rune fragments. He moved on instinct, stepping sideways and bringing up his sword in a defensive arc.
A clash of energy erupted as his blade met the figure's staff. This time, it felt solid—no illusions, no phantoms. Alden pushed forward, channeling all his fear, anger, and determination into a single thrust. The robed specter hissed, flickering like a dying flame. Its ember eyes widened in what might have been surprise before the staff clattered to the ground and the apparition disintegrated into motes of light.
Breathing in ragged gasps, Alden nearly collapsed to his knees. The swirling runes along the walls dimmed. In the brazier's fading firelight, both rune fragments—his original and the new one—fused together in his hand, sealing with a soft glow. A single line of System text hovered in the air:
Rune of Clarity (Unified)
Effect: Fully Wards Against Mental Interference
A warmth spread through Alden's palms, and for a fleeting instant, every corner of his mind felt crystal clear, free of fear and the labyrinth's gnawing oppression. He could sense the doorway at the far end of the chamber—a path leading deeper into the Maze, or perhaps out of it entirely. Its surface glowed with the same silver frost as the newly united rune.
A final message blinked:
Stage Two: COMPLETE
Access Granted to the Inner Sanctum
+1 Level
Alden closed his eyes, relief flooding his weary limbs. He had done it—passed the second stage, secured the Rune of Clarity, and survived another impossible challenge. Yet he knew this was only a glimpse of the Trials' true scope. The Maze of Ymir's Labyrinth had merely tested his resolve, scraping at old traumas and twisted illusions. Beyond this sanctum, fresh horrors and revelations undoubtedly awaited.
Fingers trembling, he slid the Rune of Clarity (Unified) into the pouch at his belt, feeling its protective hum resonate with each beat of his heart. This journey was far from over, but for the first time since stepping through that tear in reality, a seed of confidence took root in his chest. If he could conquer his own doubts and nightmares, what else could the Trials throw at him?
Standing beneath the flickering brazier light, sword in hand and new power flowing through his veins, Alden took a single steadying breath—and stepped through the sanctum door into darkness once more.