The silence that followed the Venator footage hung over them like fog. Even Mia, typically the first to spit venom or sarcasm, said nothing as they packed their gear.
The group moved deeper into the labyrinth. The air grew heavier, dense with a pressure that made every breath feel like swallowing stone. Their torchlight flickered as if the shadows themselves pushed back.
Noct's steps slowed.
He felt something.
Not just the weight of the path ahead… but presence. Like the Numbers were warning him of a shift in pattern, the subtle cracking of symmetry in the world's design.
"Wait," he said. "Something's off."
Ellen stopped mid-stride. "You see something?"
"No," he whispered. "I feel something."
Suddenly, a series of stone mechanisms groaned to life. The floor beneath them shifted. Walls twisted like gears grinding into place.
Ambush.
Monsters spilled out of crevices—spindly creatures made of glinting obsidian and muscle, with bone-jointed limbs that clicked like chimes. They were fast—erratic in movement, like broken equations.
Mia drew her daggers in an instant. "Finally."
Ellen rushed forward beside her, blades a blur.
Noct didn't move at first. His mind ran a thousand calculations per second.
Movement analysis: erratic. Speed ratio: 2.7x human norm. Trajectory offset: 13 degrees.
Solution required: Predictive recursion.
"Formula Array: Vector Web."
Glowing gridlines erupted in a dome around them. Numbers, equations, and calculated angles shifted through the air like a living map.
Noct darted through the field, his blade glowing with the activated array.
He twisted left—dodging a claw. Pivoted right—intersected an attacker mid-jump.
Multiplier Edge: x2.3 Force.
His sword cleaved through the beast's limb with surgical precision.
But every move drained him. The mental tax of his ability burned behind his eyes.
As Mia broke another enemy's spine with a whirlwind motion, Ellen shouted, "Noct, your left!"
Too late.
A creature tackled him. He hit the ground hard, claws piercing his shoulder. Pain flared—but in that instant—
Division Blink.
His body distorted—phased—and the creature's claws slashed through empty air.
He reappeared meters away, barely staying conscious.
The group pressed on, cutting down the remaining foes with grit and technique. The battle ended with heavy breathing and limbs trembling from exhaustion.
Noct collapsed against a wall, sweat dripping down his jaw. "Too much Ather…"
"You held your own," Ellen said, crouching beside him.
Mia tossed something toward him. It hit the ground with a clink.
A sword—curved and light, with runes etched into the hilt. The blade vibrated faintly with residual Ather.
"Took it off one of the monsters," Mia said. "Probably useless. But maybe you can math it into something."
He picked it up, examining the balance. Light, durable. More manageable than his current blade.
"I'll make it work," he murmured.
As they moved again, deeper still, Ellen glanced over her shoulder at him.
"You're pushing yourself hard," she said quietly.
"I have to," Noct answered. "If I don't change down here… I'll never make it back up."