The world resolved from the chaotic, blood-soaked soil of the trial grounds back into the serene, imposing quiet of the Sanctuary. The transition was a physical relief for Jade, an unclenching of a fist he'd held for hours. He felt the familiar, balanced weight of the scythe in his hand—its curved blade a promise of harvest, though today it had reaped only monsters.
Beside him, the air grew cold.
Zero emerged from the fading portal light not as a man, but as a consequence. His dark clothes were immaculate, untouched by the grime and gore that spattered Jade's own gear. In his hand, Gesshilla was clean, a sliver of captured void. The only evidence of the battle was the faint, cold energy that clung to him like frost.
Their trial had been a success. But the cost was a chasm of silence between them.
Jade's method had been one of sweeping, reaping arcs; using the scythe's range to control the battlefield. Zero's had been eradication. A single, precise line of nothingness. He didn't control space; he negated it.
"We got the job done," Jade said, his voice rough with exhaustion.
Zero's tarnished-silver eyes slid toward him. "The 'job' was a distraction. A whetstone to test an edge. You dance with your blade, carving wide, hopeful patterns. I simply cut the string."
He took a step closer, and the ambient warmth of the Sanctuary seemed to retreat. "You wield a tool of endings, yet you use it to maintain the flow of battle. That is not resolve. It is hesitation. A failure to commit to the final, silent truth of the cut. You are a reaper who fears the emptiness of the field after the harvest."
Before Jade could retort, the air itself thickened, pulling every candidate's attention to the central dais. The Curator stood there, his form seeming to drink the light.
"A commendable first performance," his voice echoed in their minds. "But a spark alone is easily extinguished. From this moment, the parties you have formed are locked. They cannot be disbanded until you have conquered the Tenth Floor."
A wave of murmurs swept through the hall. Jade and Zero turned, their gazes slamming into each other once more. Crimson eyes, burning with a chaotic fire, locked with Silver-green eyes, frozen in an eternal void. The decree had just chained a storm to a glacier.
"You heard him," Zero's voice was a razor's edge. "I will not carry dead weight." He turned his chilling gaze to the Curator. "Overseer. Before we proceed, I request a Duel of Resolution. To test the worth of this partnership."
A slow, unnerving smirk spread across the Curator's face. "A duel? So soon? How... deliciously volatile."
Jade didn't look away from Zero. A sharp, chaotic smile formed on his lips. "A duel sounds fun," he said, his tone light but his eyes deadly. He looked to the Curator. "But I have a question. If this is accepted... after the fight, will all injuries be healed? Even... severed body parts?"
The Curator's smirk widened into a terrifying, predatory grin. "But of course, little ember. The stage is for showing your mettle, not for culling the herd. All harm will be undone."
He simply willed it.
The fabric of the Sanctuary twisted. Space folded, stone erupted from the seamless floor. In less than a minute, a colossal, ancient-looking colosseum encircled a wide, sandy arena. The surviving candidates found themselves suddenly seated in the stands.
"Floor One, and already you provide such exquisite drama," the Curator's voice boomed from an obsidian throne. "I do so love it when the forge reveals the quality of its steel early. Proceed."
A stir ran through the crowd. The arrogant Dragon-folk now leaned forward, eyes narrowed with sharp interest. They saw it—the unnatural aura around these two humans was different. This was a fundamental clash.
Down in the arena, standing opposite each other on the pristine sand, Jade hefted his scythe. Zero stood motionless, Gesshilla still sheathed, his hand resting lightly on its hilt.
The void was about to test the reaper. The first lesson of the Tower was not about killing monsters. It was about proving you were not one yourself.