The suppression field hit first.

  It rolled outward from Kael like invisible pressure, flattening mana currents in the air. The crystalline formations lining the cavern dimmed instantly.

  Grey felt it like a weight on his spine.

  [Warning: Suppression Field – 30% Output]Lightning Efficiency Reduced

  "Hold them," Kael ordered calmly.

  The three Argent Veil operatives spread out without hesitation.

  Disciplined. Coordinated. No wasted movement.

  Levels 21, 23, 24.

  Grey's instincts screamed.

  Lyra stepped forward, blade glowing white-blue.

  "Stay near the crystals," she said quietly.

  "Planning on it."

  The first operative lunged.

  Twin short blades. Clean footwork.

  Grey reacted on instinct.

  Lightning Channel.

  A thin arc shot from his palm—

  It curved mid-air unexpectedly.

  Luck nudged trajectory.

  The operative twisted to dodge—

  The bolt struck a crystal behind him instead.

  The crystal flared violently.

  Lightning rebounded outward in branching arcs.

  The operative took the full backlash.

  He convulsed mid-stride.

  Not down.

  But slowed.

  Lyra capitalized instantly.

  She vanished in a blur of white light and struck.

  Steel met reinforced armor.

  Sparks erupted.

  The second operative raised a gauntleted hand.

  A barrier of translucent mana formed.

  This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

  Grey's Storm Sense flared.

  Weak point.

  Upper right seam.

  He didn't think.

  He pushed more mana into Lightning Channel.

  The bolt he launched this time was thicker.

  It struck the barrier—

  The crystal network answered.

  Energy multiplied.

  The seam fractured.

  Lyra's blade punched through the opening.

  Blood hit stone.

  The suppression field intensified.

  Grey's knees buckled slightly.

  Mana: 78/120.

  Kael watched calmly from the rear.

  "Adaptive," he murmured.

  The Level 24 operative charged Grey directly.

  Heavy shield. Short spear.

  Grey barely rolled aside in time.

  Stone shattered where he'd been.

  Micro-Analysis activated.

  Left shoulder armor heavier.

  Shield pivot slow when rotating right.

  Grey darted left deliberately—

  Then stumbled "accidentally."

  The operative overcommitted forward.

  Grey twisted mid-fall and released lightning directly into the shield's metal rim.

  The current traveled up the conductive frame—

  The man screamed as it bypassed his armor's internal dampening.

  [Argent Operative Defeated][Level Up!]Level 11

  The remaining two adjusted immediately.

  Professional.

  Dangerous.

  Lyra fought one in close quarters, lightning crawling violently across her blade now.

  But something was wrong.

  The lightning wasn't fully controlled.

  It snapped unpredictably.

  Her seal was destabilizing.

  Kael saw it.

  His eyes sharpened.

  He stepped forward at last.

  "Enough."

  His spear appeared in his hand in a single fluid motion.

  He thrust once—

  The air itself split.

  A compressed wave of force tore through the cavern.

  Crystals shattered.

  Grey was thrown backward into stone.

  HP dropped sharply.

  HP: 61/140

  He gasped.

  That wasn't even a direct hit.

  Lyra staggered.

  Kael moved.

  Fast.

  Too fast.

  He was in front of her instantly.

  Spear tip stopping a hair from her throat.

  "Return," he said quietly.

  Lightning exploded outward from her in response.

  Uncontrolled.

  The cavern ceiling cracked further.

  Grey forced himself up.

  Storm Sense roared.

  Not just atmospheric.

  Internal.

  Something inside him answered the threat.

  He didn't think about efficiency.

  He didn't think about control.

  He pulled.

  All of it.

  Lightning surged through the entire chamber.

  The crystals screamed with light.

  Mana plummeted.

  Mana: 12/120.

  Kael turned just slightly—

  Grey's bolt hit him directly.

  The impact drove him backward three full steps.

  Not injured.

  But displaced.

  Lyra tore free.

  Her eyes were no longer fully human.

  They glowed pure white.

  A ring of lightning formed behind her like a fractured halo.

  Kael stared.

  "Seal breach," he whispered.

  The temperature in the cavern dropped.

  Wind began to circulate in impossible spirals.

  Grey felt resonance spike violently.

  Her storm answered his.

  And his answered hers.

  This was bad.

  If she fully awakened—

  He didn't know what that meant.

  Kael clearly did.

  He thrust his spear downward.

  A relic embedded at its base activated.

  Chains of golden light shot outward from the ground itself.

  They wrapped around Lyra mid-air.

  Her lightning flared against them—

  But the chains held.

  Containment relic.

  Higher grade.

  Grey tried to move.

  Mana: 4/120.

  Empty.

  Kael looked at him.

  "For your level, impressive," he said evenly.

  Then he reached toward Lyra—

  And the cavern shook.

  Not from lightning.

  From above.

  A deep, grinding collapse.

  Storm overuse had destabilized the entire underground network.

  Kael's eyes flicked upward once.

  Calculation.

  Then he made a decision.

  He withdrew the relic activation.

  The chains vanished.

  He stepped back sharply.

  "Extraction aborted," he said calmly to his operatives.

  The remaining two disengaged instantly.

  Kael met Grey's gaze one final time.

  "You accelerate matters."

  Then he vanished upward through the collapsing stone as his operatives retreated.

  The cavern ceiling gave way seconds later.

  Lyra fell.

  Grey lunged.

  Caught her.

  The crystal network imploded in a cascade of blinding light—

  And everything went dark.