"It remembers this place," he murmured.
A glyph flared at the spire's base:
[Only Those Who Carry a Weapon Born of True Conflict May Enter]
Each team member stepped forward, unsheathing their signature weapons. Roman's silence-forged claymore, Roselia's mind-thread bow, Millim's chaos-wrapped fists, and Liliana's harmonic blade. The spire responded with a low, resonant hum—and opened.
First Chamber: The Blade Garden
They stepped into a vast field where blades grew like flowers—stuck upright in the earth, each one humming with a faint echo of memory. Some sang of victories. Others wept.
A large obsidian knight blocked their path—headless, but very much alive. Its armor was rusted black, its hands holding twin warblades shaped like lightning bolts.
As they prepared to fight, the knight didn't attack immediately.
Instead, it threw a blade at Roman's feet.
"A duel?" Roman blinked, then cracked a rare grin. "Fine by me."
