There was no grand entrance this time.
No illusions. No divine voice. No labyrinth.
Just a room.
Square. Stone. Empty.
One door behind them, shut tight. One door ahead, sealed by chains of obsidian.
And in the center—floating in the air—was a single white orb, pulsing slowly like a heartbeat.
Then, a message appeared in glowing crimson:
[Welcome to Floor B96 – The Choice That Kills.]This door opens with blood.To proceed, one of you must die.Not suicide. Not trickery.Death by the hands of another.If the choice is not made within 2 hours, all will be erased.Time begins now.
Silence.
Then a soft ticking filled the room.
01:59:59
Naia was the first to speak.
"No."
Lucien said nothing.
Calen took a step back. "There's gotta be another way."
"There isn't," Lucien replied calmly.
"How can you be so sure?" Naia snapped.
"Because this Tower is made to strip us down. Floor by floor. Lie by lie. Hope by hope." He gestured to the orb. "It doesn't bluff."
Calen looked between them, his voice barely a whisper. "Then... one of us has to kill?"
Naia stepped in front of him protectively.
"No one's killing anyone. We'll wait it out. Find a loophole."
"There is no loophole," Lucien said. "You saw what happened to those who hesitated. The Tower doesn't blink."
"Then we go down fighting," Naia growled.
Lucien didn't argue. He didn't need to.
The Tower would handle that part for him.
Thirty minutes passed.
They tried everything.
Cutting the orb. Attacking the door. Praying.
Nothing worked.
Lucien sat against the wall, fingers steepled.
Watching.
Listening.
Naia's panic was growing. She paced, muttering. Every tick of the clock made her flinch.
Calen just sat near the wall, staring at the floor.
Lucien approached him.
"You're scared."
Calen nodded.
"But not of dying," Lucien continued. "You're scared of what happens after. That we die for nothing."
Calen looked up. "You don't sound scared."
"I am. But I'm good at hiding it."
Calen gave a weak laugh.
"I just… I wanted to be someone. Even here. Even if I don't make it."
Lucien leaned closer, voice soft as velvet.
"You already are. You're brave. Loyal. Kind. The kind of person who becomes a story others remember."
Calen's eyes shimmered. "Really?"
Lucien placed a hand on his shoulder.
"You trust me, right?"
Calen nodded.
Lucien smiled.
"Then I need you to do one last thing for me."
Naia saw it too late.
She turned—and Calen was stepping toward the orb.
Lucien behind him.
"Calen! Don't—!"
He stopped.
Turned to her.
"It's okay."
Tears ran down his cheeks.
"Lucien said... if one of us had to go... it should be someone who believes in something. I do."
Naia screamed, rushed forward—
But Lucien stepped between them, holding her back.
"Don't," he said.
"YOU MANIPULATED HIM!"
Lucien didn't deny it.
The orb began to glow.
Calen placed his hand on it.
[Life Signature Confirmed.][Death by Consent and Guidance.][One chosen. One responsible.][Lucien Vale – Bloodmarked.]
The orb cracked.
A blinding light erupted.
Calen's body faded — not violently, not in pain — but like smoke rising into the heavens.
He was smiling.
And then… he was gone.
The door unlocked.
Naia stood still.
Silent.
Lucien walked past her.
"Don't," she whispered. "Don't say anything."
"I wasn't going to."
She turned to him.
"I trusted you."
"That was your first mistake."
Her hand curled into a fist.
"You used him."
Lucien met her eyes. "No."
He stepped closer.
"I gave him something real to believe in."
"That's worse," she hissed. "Because it means he chose it."
Lucien walked to the door, now unchained.
Then he turned back.
"He didn't die because of me, Naia."
"He died because he believed I was worth it."
He stepped through the door.
The floor vanished behind him.
[You have completed Floor B96.]Lucien Vale: Soulmark Registered – Dominance over Will.Title Gained: "Bearer of Betrayed Faith"Your lies now affect reality with greater intensity against those who trust you.Proceed to Floor B95.
As Lucien stepped into the new floor — still dark, still unknown — he paused.
He thought he'd feel something.
Guilt. Relief. Triumph.
But there was only cold.
Then a second message appeared.
[Calen's soul accepted as Offering.]This soul has qualified for rebirth as a Trial Entity.Floor B90 Boss Prototype: "Calen the Last Believer."
Lucien stared at the words.
And whispered, "Of course."