SHHHHHHHHK—!

The blade didn't stop at Varek. It tore a deep trench into the ground behind him, carving a several-meter-wide gouge through the earth, as if a giant had dragged a flaming cleaver through the jungle.

For a moment, silence. Then—

SPLASH!

A fountain of blood erupted in midair. Varek's body fell apart in two clean halves. The red rain splattered across the jungle floor.

Not far off, Zoey and Camden stood frozen. They had sensed the surge of power.

The Varek—the fourth-tier upper-grade Awakener—had been obliterated in a single strike. One blow.

"Axel… killed him?!" Zoey's voice cracked—half disbelief, half terror.

Then, she and Camden froze as Axel's cold, merciless eyes turned toward them.

"You're next." A chill swept over them like ice water. Goosebumps rose across their skin.

"Run!"

Despite their powerful family backgrounds and deep pockets of raw stone resources, both of them had already burned through too much fighting Millers.

"How the hell is he this strong? He just finished compressing!" Zoey hissed, breath ragged.

She didn't know—couldn't have known—that Axel had already reached over 3,000 Force points before even beginning the compression.

And that attack just now? It wasn't just brute strength. It was the Red Flame Blade, boosted by his internal fire and layered with compressed Force.

But none of that mattered to them now. What mattered was that Axel had just slaughtered a high-tier Awakener in a single swing… and was now coming for them.

"You... can't pass..."

Millers' broken voice rasped from behind. His body trembled, his vision doubled, and blood seeped through every crack in his ruined armor. He thought they were coming at Axel again. Even now, he stood to defend him.

"He's mutating!" Camden warned, eyes flicking to the flickering red glow surrounding Millers.

Zoey and Camden ignored him and darted through the trees.

WHOOSH—

Axel shot forward, the Force from his Cloud Chasing Boots blasting him into a blur. In just a few heartbeats, he was almost on top of them.

"Miss Zoey, you go ahead, I'll buy you time!" Camden yelled.

But in the next instant, her body was yanked backward by something sticky and cold.

"Camden?!" Her voice turned sharp, furious.

But Camden wasn't looking at her. He was already bolting, teeth clenched. "I just need to be faster than you. Don't blame me."

Those were his parting words before vanishing into the trees.

Zoey's eyes burned with disbelief and hatred. She struggled to power up her mechanical gear—but most of it had been wrecked in the fight with Millers.

She turned—too late.

FWOOOOOSH!

Stolen story; please report.

A blazing blade of red light came crashing down from above.

"AXEL, YOU BASTARD—!" Her scream was cut short.

Blood and brain matter exploded into the air as the blade cleaved straight through her skull. Her wide, disbelieving eyes remained frozen in place—until the two halves of her body split apart and collapsed to the dirt.

Far ahead, Camden felt his legs weaken. His entire body trembled. "He's insane... He just killed one nobles without a second thought!"

But maybe… maybe Axel was spent. He'd just used two C-grade Original Instruments in a row.

"He can't keep this up. He has to be running on fumes…"

Camden pushed harder, wind whipping past his face.

Behind him, Axel clenched his hand—and a shimmering life crystal appeared.

The energy surged into his limbs. The Cloud Chasing Boots flared again.

FWUMP! The jungle blurred around Axel as he closed the gap in a blink.

Camden had just started to feel relief when he heard the sound.

A whoosh. Then nothing.

SHHHLICK—

His world went black.

His body hit the forest floor in two pieces—his mouth still hanging open in shock.

"Millers!"

After ending Camden's life, Axel spun around—and saw Millers convulsing on the ground. He bolted toward him.

"Bro… you're so damn strong…" Millers rasped, barely conscious.

His mask had shattered completely. His skin was turning a glowing, inflamed red, and his eyes—once sharp with mischief—were now fading into an eerie, infected haze.

"Don't talk. Just stay with me."

Axel's voice trembled. His mind raced, desperate to find a solution. There has to be a way. There has to—

Millers forced a smile. It came out twisted, bloody. Red foam pooled at the corners of his lips as the injuries he'd suppressed finally surged out all at once.

"Axel… I feel like hell... So cold... So this… is what turning feels like... Becoming an Infected…"

His teeth began to chatter uncontrollably, and the crimson in his eyes deepened. His limbs twitched. His breathing became heavier, more guttural.

Right then, with Axel only inches away, Millers felt it—that uncontrollable urge to tear, to feed. The scent of warm flesh filled his nose. His fingers curled. His instincts screamed.

"Axel, I… I can't stop it. I can't stop myself. I'm turning."

A sob broke through his voice.

"Kill me. Please. Kill me before I become a monster…"

His uniform split at the seams. Vivid red scales broke through the skin along his legs and arms. The infection was accelerating.

But Millers gritted his teeth—those teeth now sharp, inhuman.

"…Bro, I'll do it myself." With a last effort, he stood, staggered, then offered Axel a crooked, bitter smile—half human, half beast.

He turned and ran toward the edge of the cliff. "Take care of Kaia and Rosaline!"

Axel's eyes went wide. "No—Millers!"

But Millers didn't look back. He leapt. Down into the Infinite Cold Cave.

.....

The sky above him was blood-red. The fog below devoured everything.

The temperature dropped rapidly as Millers fell, and his vision clouded into nothingness. He couldn't feel his limbs. The Force had already left him.

This is dying, he thought. And god, was he scared.

But then—a voice shattered the silence.

"MILLERS! YOU'RE NOT DYING!"

His eyes snapped open. A figure tore through the freezing fog—rushing toward him at breakneck speed.

Then, Axel was there, right beside him, matching his fall.

"You're not dying." Axel growled, voice shaking from cold and adrenaline.

The wind screamed around them. The Force had already shut down. Before the jump, Axel had activated Cloud Chasing Boots at full capacity, using that final burst of momentum to catch him.

Now, freefalling in absolute silence, he did the only thing he could think of.

He grabbed Millers, pried open his jaw, and shoved a crimson fruit down his throat—

The Heavenly Spirit Fruit.

Millers' body twitched violently.

"What the hell was that…?" His pupils dilated, breath hitching. A powerful, unseen force surged inside him. Warmth bloomed. Sleepiness flooded in like a wave.

"Idiot…" he murmured weakly—and passed out cold.

The scales began to peel. His red skin faded, shifting to a more natural bronze tone. His pulse slowed but steadied.

Axel held him, tears mixing with the rushing wind.

"Isaac wasn't lying…" he whispered. "Torren, you didn't die in vain…"

Axel never fully believed in the efficacy of this thing. Therefore, he didn't give the Heavenly Spirit Fruit to Miller right away. Now, his last doubt was also verified.

The two of them continued plummeting toward the bottom of the abyss. Axel desperately tried to drive his Red Flame Blade into the cliff wall to slow their descent.

Ordinarily, even steel would yield easily to his weapon.

But the rock of the *Infinite Cold Cave* was something else entirely—hundreds of times harder than steel. The blade sparked uselessly on contact, leaving barely a scratch.

"Shit! Why won't anything work?!"

Their fall accelerated. In a desperate bid to slow down, Axel grabbed at every thick vine he could find. One by one, they snapped in his grip like damp paper.

"Damn it, these vines are useless!"

The descent was becoming deadly. They'd already plunged over two thousand meters, and the bottom was still nowhere in sight. If they hit at full speed, Millers—already barely clinging to life—would be shattered on impact.

Axel clenched his teeth and adjusted his grip, cradling Millers in his arms, shielding him with his own body. If someone had to take the brunt, it would be him.

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