Aren’s gaze swept across the surroundings once more, slower this time. The broken walls, scattered debris, and metal frame sticking out—it all felt off. The distance between objects felt inconsistent, like his eyes were measuring one thing while his senses told him another.

"...Tch. A Domain."

Of all the things it could’ve been, getting trapped in a Space-user’s Domain was the worst.

Domains were already troublesome on their own, but a Domain controlled by a Space-element Mystic? That was a different level entirely. Within it, the user dictated distance, direction, even perception itself.

Paths could loop endlessly, exits could shift the moment you thought you found them, and the caster could hide anywhere within the warped space, watching without ever being seen.

Aren acted instantly, summoning his swords by his side as he stood in a defensive stance.

"...Eveline Cain," he called out calmly.

For a split second, nothing happened. Before—

The cracked walls around them rippled like disturbed water, the jagged edges melting away entirely. In their place, a vast of green grass stretched outward, swaying beneath a gentle wind that hadn’t existed a moment ago.

And just as quickly, the grass burned away into nothing, replaced by polished marble floors stained in red. Chandeliers hung overhead, their light blurry. It was the same banquet hall that they were just at.

"Illusions created by Psychic as well..." he muttered under his breath. "Tough opponent."

Yeah...she’s not just some random survivor. She’s a skilled Mystic.

"You, who I met at the banquet," the voice appeared again. "You aren’t on the list, so why do you pry? Are you with Ghoul Division?"

Aren decided to come clean. If he wanted answers, he’d have to give some of his own first.

"I’m Adrian Locke, a...private investigator of sorts," he finally called out. "I was assigned on a weird case in Misarck and found a discrepancy, that’s all."

"People go missing," Aren went on. "Then they reappear years later. Always the same pattern...a three-year gap."

He then added. "Look, I’m also a student at the University, that’s how I found out about you."

"I don’t want to fight. Please tell me what you know."

There’s too many holes in my statement...hopefully she buys it.

For a moment, the Domain slowed. The flickering lights of the banquet hall steadied just a bit to give the illusion of calm.

"...A private investigator?"

"Yeah."

"..."

"...Liar."

The marble floor beneath Aren fractured, folding in on itself like a collapsing mirror.

Shit!

The ground beneath him shifted, tilting sharply as if gravity itself had been turned on its side. He pushed off instinctively, lightning sparking beneath his feet as he dashed forward.

But what should’ve been a single step became five. Aren’s body swayed as the space elongated unnaturally, throwing off his momentum entirely.

"Within a Domain, I decide what’s real."

In the very next moment, his danger sense triggered, warning him of something coming from the side.

But it was already too late.

BOOM!

A chair slammed into him, throwing his body across the marble and into the nearby wall. The impact cracked the floor beneath him, leaving behind a crater as blood flowed down his lips.

I need to find her, it’s the only way out...

Another distortion rippled through the Domain. This time, it came from above.

Aren managed to see the attack this time, raising on blade as a warped shard of space itself crashed down into him like a collapsing tide. His arms trembled under the force, his boots grinding against the floor as he held it back for a fraction of a second...

Then it vanished. Gone, like it never existed in the first place.

A feint!

A force slammed into his back, launching him forward as the world twisted again.

"Tch—!"

Aren drove his blade into the ground, the edge biting deep as it carved a long trench across the floor. The friction slowed him just enough to regain control, skidding before finally stopping.

Fighting like this...

"...is a pain."

Aren exhaled slowly, adjusting his stance and closing his eyes. He tried to feel the ether, specifically, any inconsistencies in where it was flowing.

That was when he saw one, right in the center of the stage.

Got you.

Letting go of a sword, water ether gathered into his fingers before he swung his arm horizontally, letting the attack go.

"Dragon’s Claw!"

Three slashes of compressed water flung out instantly, traveling through the air before it reached its destination. At first, it looked like nothing happened.

Though as Aren squinted his eyes, he saw it. The space in front of the attack folded inward violently, like invisible walls slamming shut to intercept it. The air distorted, layers of warped distance stacking over each other in an attempt to redirect the strike.

But it was no use.

The water slashes carved straight through.

A sharp, tearing sound echoed out as the compressed blades forced their way through the warped space, splitting it apart like fabric under tension. A chunk of the domain shattered, illusion flickering violently as the broken section revealed the real world outside.

Good, her Space Element refinement is not as good as my Water.

With a chunk broken, Aren could finally see her.

Standing just beyond the fracture in space was a girl, her figure partially obscured by the Domain. Long autumn-brown hair fell over one side of her face, with crimson eyes staring at him in disdain.

But he couldn’t focus on her for long, as she was already trying to fix her Domain.

"Oh no, you don’t..."

Lightning burst beneath his feet as he dashed forward. With space working normally again, he reached her in a single step. Her eyes widened, not expecting him to get so close before—

"Dragon Gauntlet!"

His swords had responded on command, the morphing gold and metal changed instantly as it crawled up his right hand and warped around it until it formed his signature radiant gauntlet.

"Garghhhhhhhh!" Aren yelled as he put his full force behind the punch.

Her arms shot up to guard, space distorting frantically around her in an attempt to redirect the force...but it wasn’t enough.

The gauntlet slammed into her defense—

BOOM!

The impact tore through the unstable Domain, sending shockwaves rippling outward as the fractured space around him collapsed entirely.

Eveline’s body was launched backward, thrown out of her own Domain as the illusion shattered. She skidded across the rough concrete of the real world, momentum carrying her until—

CRASH!

Her back slammed into a half-formed pillar, cracks traveling across its surface from the force.

"Is it...finally over?"