"Long time no see, Lady Mia."

  Soft cushions sprawled across the floor, sheer curtains hanging from nowhere, and pink luminescent orbs casting a subdued glow that somehow conveyed the entirety of the spectrum.

  At the center of it all, Mia Vyris lounged on a plush couch, her pink hair falling around her shoulders in relaxed waves. The last few times Edris had visited this place, she was still speaking to him as pillows and canvases, but now the mage seemed much the same as she did in the outside world.

  Edris was quite surprised at how quickly her control of the Playroom had grown. It'd only been less than a week since they last saw each other at the Dene Jungle.

  Mia tipped her head in greeting.

  "We've been trying relentlessly to reach you and the others. It's not easy, you know," she said, voice lacking her usual cutting sarcasm. "I visited your mental space every single day, trying to sneak through the cracks of whatever wall the Labyrinth has put up. Do you know how hard it was for me to exploit this tiny gap and get to you?"

  Edris nearly offered some remark about her concerning familiarity with his mental space—but he held his tongue, knowing that the current situation wasn't exactly one for bantering.

  "I take it you've got news," he said, stepping forward until he stood near the couch.

  At his words, the pink-haired mage let out a brief exhale of relief. Her gaze shifted to something behind him, lips drawing tight. "I'd appreciate it if you'd fill me in first: what in Serenity is going on? You vanished along with your little group upon teleporting, and ever since, we've been hit with signals from all sorts of Labyrinth expansions."

  She sighed in exasperation.

  "I'm sure you can imagine, but things aren't in very good states at the moment."

  Edris folded his arms, careful not to trip over the pillow on the ground.

  "Quite a bit," he replied.

  Under Mia's probing expression, Edris recounted the Labyrinth developments—the thickening illusions, the changes in the system's mana prohibitions, and the unusual expansions pulling in new participants far more aggressively than before. Throughout his summary, Mia listened with intense focus, her posture too rigid to be called comfortable.

  When he asked about the outside world, Mia looked aside as though reluctant to say.

  "Just as how things have changed in the internals of the Labyrinths," she said. "The same has been happening outside, too."

  Edris tilted his head, gesturing her to continue.

  "As you may know, the Labyrinths and the outside world follow a different flow in time," Mia began. "Originally, a week in a Labyrinth might only equate to a day outside?" She paused, perhaps giving Edris some time to process her words. "That ratio is now reversed."

  Edris blinked. "Reversed."

  He had a bad feeling about this.

  "Edris, nearly a month has passed since you disappeared." Mia looked at him, a subtle sigh escaping her lips. "Dolan was worried sick, by the way."

  A month.

  Edris felt his gut tighten as he processed her words. Less than a week from his perspective, but nearly a month had passed outside? He forced down his thoughts and maintained a neutral expression.

  "How is His Highness holding up?"

  At that, Mia managed a wrinkled smile. "He's knee-deep in negotiations with Wendimore, half a month of back-to-back meetings about intervention strategies and Nest—you'll have to get him to share the exact details. Sometimes, I wonder if he's even human. How does he function like that for so long without sleep?"

  She brushed a strand of pink hair from her face.

  "At least he'll be happy to hear you're still alive. We were about to process your funeral next week if we couldn't get hold of you then."

  "Well, I guess that's some expenses saved." Edris smiled gently, ignoring her look of disapproval. "You said that His Highness had met with people from Wendimore?"

  Mia nodded. "Rare, right? I didn't expect the Wendimoreans to reach out either."

  Edris's mind churned, but he held his silence. The "elementalist" kingdom stepping into their affairs was unusual, indeed.

  "If a month has already passed on the outside, I assume His Highness, Lord Magnus and the others are putting a solution into place?"

  Mia looked at him. "Nope."

  "..."

  "Not yet."

  A third voice sounded in the distance, followed by the sound of footsteps at the threshold of the Playroom. Lifting his head, Edris turned to see a tall figure approach. Magnus, clad in a dark cloak, waved at both of them with a charismatic smile.

  "Don't go around ruining my reputation like that, Mia. Otherwise, I'm going to tell Dolan that you were the one who swapped out his limberry tart for a lemon one ten years ago. He fell sick for a whole three days because of that."

  "Magnus?!" Mia flushed, standing upright in a reflex. "I didn't know he was allergic to lemons! More importantly, what are you doing here in my Playroom? What happened to the 'privacy' talk we had the other day about intruding mental spaces without asking?"

  At his twin sister's scolding, Magnus only tapped his wrist with his index finger.

  "I should be asking you the same, my dear sister. Dolan's been expecting us five minutes ago. Commander Moon too." Magnus flicked a glance at Edris, then back at Mia. "I came to get you from the office, only to see you've dropped into a full trance. Thought it was a spiritual possession, or something. You know how dangerous and tense things are right now, especially with Nest, so I had to track your mental link with my Touch in case I needed to collect your corpse."

  The archmage was just as loquacious as Edris remembered. Magnus then turned to him with a thumbs up. "Glad to see you well though, Edris."

  Edris returned a smile. "Lord Magnus."

  For a moment, it seemed the archmage might go off on another one-man show, but the strain in his posture said he had too little time for that. Magnus breathed in, summoning his professional composure.

  "I assume Mia has updated you on the essentials. As for the rest, I can't share every detail," he said, "but we did locate a critical clue. A week ago, the largest Labyrinth pull yet occurred—over nine hundred people from the three kingdoms. Over two-thirds were from Adalan. We've nailed down the culprits to Nest and have been trying to pin their location since."

  Edris went still, the number lodging in his head. It was almost ten times the usual pulls when Labyrinths only occurred on the Tip of Crescent.

  "Nest members have also entered the Labyrinth, and it seems that they've discovered some loopholes that allow them to override some of its rules," he said. "We've come across two. One is Robin, the same guy behind Awakeneds' kidnappings and the Slums outbreak. Another is a woman, under the codename 'Sparrow.' There could be more."

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  "Robin and Sparrow—ah, these damn birds," Mia muttered, her lips pressing thin. "We've also pinned down suspicious gatherings from their members on the outside. Now that we're close to a location fix, all that's left is to lock in the coordinates, which wouldn't take long as the entire Mage Faction is put to work."

  "On that note, we'd like your input," Magnus said to Edris, who tilted his head.

  "Mine?"

  Mia nodded. "As a rather experienced Labyrinth participant now, if you could provide us with details on the Labyrinth's internal mechanics, maybe we'll refine how we track the next expansions or invert them."

  The reality that time was running faster outside meant everything had changed. He could sense the urgency, the pressure they all were under.

  Edris massaged the back of his neck. He had no reason to refuse, given the severity of the situation and his own well-being at stake.

  He sat on one of the room's many cushions, wishing the Playroom's soft glow could soothe the tension in his head as he shared his experiences in the past few days. Mia and Magnus had perched on the couch, both pink heads set against the white backdrop of this mental space.

  As the siblings listened to him speak, their expressions grew sour.

  Magnus sighed. "This is not a good sign, huh."

  Edris leaned back against a cushion. "No, it is not."

  "So let me get this straight," Mia said, hands folded. "After each Labyrinth, players can choose a well: either get out with no additions or trade blood for better odds—cards, abilities, and what-not for the next Labyrinth."

  "It's the Labyrinths' main snare, I believe. They tie the chance of survival to offering blood." Edris laid his hands out. "I don't personally buy it, but many do. Not that they can help it, though."

  "You were smart to refuse, despite the incentives." Magnus nodded, a flicker of sternness in his eyes. "Blood sacrifices historically show up in black magic from the Creatos Era—classified as strictly forbidden. Anyone messing with that is… not to be trusted."

  Mia tapped her lips, thinking. She pushed stray pink strands behind her ear. "Followers of Diales used those spells extensively, but that sect was eradicated in the war. If someone's resurrected those practices…" She trailed off, expression tightening. "I'll relay this to the factions back outside. They'll want to investigate further."

  "Thank you for the information, Edris. Owe you a big one." Magnus added with a small smile. "You can ask Dolan for anything once you're out."

  "Did Dolan agree to this?" Mia rolled her eyes, then paused. "Actually, he most definitely would."

  Edris smiled. "I'll keep that in mind."

  A quiet lull settled as each person mulled over the discoveries from this short conversation. Eventually, Mia cast a sidelong glance at Magnus, and the latter gave a succinct nod.

  "Unfortunately, time is short," Magnus said, returning his gaze to Edris with a sag of his shoulders. "We still have much to handle on our side. And Mia can't keep the Playroom open for too long. But with the information you've provided us, I can tell you that we're on the brink of something. If our leads track out, we'll put an end to this soon."

  Mia let out a half sigh as she peered towards the dark-haired man.

  "Make sure you survive, Edris," she said. "At least until we find a way to end these pulls."

  "I suppose my life is in your hands." A faint smile flickered across Edris's face, mixed with something of amusement. "It's hard, but for you two, I'll hold on as best I can."

  Mia stiffened, pointing an accusatory finger in his direction. "You see that, Magnus? Dolan's right! He's always pulling that subtle mental game—like we're responsible for his every breath."

  Magnus chuckled under his breath. "I can't tell if he's joking or actually serious."

  Before Edris could respond, a tremor rippled through the Playroom's walls. The siblings' expressions snapped to alertness—Mia swung her legs off the couch in a single fluid movement, while Magnus rose instantly, hand flickering with a quiet crest of magical resonance.

  "Intruder?" Magnus frowned while Mia narrowed her eyes. "No one should be able to break into your mental link unless—"

  He paused, turning to signal Edris to get behind them, but the man was already off the cushion, stepping away from center stage. He slid behind the nearest plush seat, half-lowered against its back, eyes scanning the ephemeral door that shimmered into existence at the edge of the Playroom.

  "Well, aren't you quick to act." Mia snickered.

  "Thank you, I do cherish my life," Edris said, tone matter-of-fact.

  Unlike the many crazy people around him, he was acutely aware of his lack of abilities at a time like this.

  Mia and Magnus exchanged baffled glances at the dark-haired man, who was already halfway across the room. He fluttered his eyelids, peering over a pink pillow.

  "Should I hide behind the couch instead?"

  "...That's fine," Magnus managed, bracing to cast a spell.

  Then, under the three pairs of eyes, the door swung open, revealing a stooped old figure hobbling into the room.

  Edris's eyes went wide at once.

  "Morris?"

  The man stepped forward, eyebags sagging beneath tired eyes, gray hair frizzy against his weathered scalp. Dressed in old sage-colored robes, he looked the same as in Labyrinth 24 when the serpent guards dragged him away. Yet here he was, inside Edris's mental realm.

  Mia stood from the couch, shifting to an offensive stance; she flicked an uneasy glance toward Edris. "You know him?"

  "You're supposed to be dead," Edris said, eyes glued to the front.

  The entire air felt charged, an inexplicable sense of foreignness emanating from this older man. Morris's gaze swept the three of them, calm but distant. Finally, in a coarse, throaty timbre, he spoke.

  "I came to fulfill the promise."

  The surge of threatening energy flared out from his words, raising a synchronized alarm in the Vyris twins that had them stiffen and summon their spells in a heartbeat. Edris felt the reverberation crack across the Playroom and watched as shimmering wards sprang up around the siblings.

  But it was too late.

  In the blink of an eye, the pinkish walls and whimsical cushions faded away, replaced by an expanse of stark gray—the bare reality of Edris's own mental space.

  The Vyris twins were gone, presumably kicked out by whatever Morris had managed to pull off. Edris tensed, careful to keep some distance from the old man as he eyed him with caution. Nothing about him changed in appearance—he still looked like Morris, with the same drooping eyelids and weary stance—but Edris felt a different aura now, something both eerie and potent.

  "You're not Morris," he said finally. "Why are you pretending to be him?"

  The moment he spoke those words, all shadows blinked out the meager light. The darkness moved in, thick and suffocating, as though draining the color from every edge. Edris's heart hammered a fraction faster.

  He prepared to unleash the Tempest or maybe even strain the Surge again—though part of him knew he'd pay the price in raw pain afterward. But he doubted he had a choice if things escalated.

  A voice thundered all around him, echoing in the emptiness. "What makes you say that?"

  "Yesteria showed me your ashes."

  "Yesteria is still only a child. It's normal for a child to mix things up."

  "Don't think that's something that can be mixed up." Edris dragged in a breath, steadying his thoughts. "And she had no reason to lie. That leaves only one explanation: you forged his identity so that I would help her in the Labyrinth."

  Even as he spoke, he questioned why this entity would go to such elaborate lengths.

  "You knew about the Sacrificial Hourglass," he said, voice echoing in the nothingness. "You singled me out. Why?"

  Why would someone go through all this trouble just to help a new Labyrinth goer? And why did they reach out to Edris, out of all the players?

  "Just who are you?"

  The next sound he heard was a whisper that grazed his ear, almost intimate, but the goading undercurrent turned his blood cold:

  “Impressive.”

  Edris whipped around, discovering that the entire backdrop had shifted again. The bleak gray evaporated, replaced by a familiar, dust-strewn room lit with half-dead sconces. His pupils shrank at the sight.

  "What…" he managed, eyes roving the table that extended through the space, the shelves lined with archaic tomes.

  He was in [WEISHA'S WARD].

  The hidden sanctuary was just as he remembered, archaic yet untouched by any specks of dust. A long table spanned from where he stood to the other end of the room, backed by obsoletely designed shelves that were filled with books.

  Everything was as he remembered, except for the figure sitting on the other end of the table.

  It was a man in casual black clothes: a loose-knit sweater, dark slacks, messy ash-colored hair obscuring half his face. The man swept his hair aside, revealing a single mole under his right eye.

  A rapid swirl of confusion knotted in Edris's chest.

  Impossible.

  He couldn't believe what he was seeing.

  "Impressive!" the man repeated, his voice crisp like a falling leaf in the morning air.

  Under Edris's incredulous gaze, he rose from his seat and brought his hands together in an exaggerated round of applause. A stray glimmer, almost cerulean, danced across his irises.

  "As expected from you."

  Edris took a silent step back. "You speak as if you know me very well."

  But before he could say anything more, the man paused mid-applause, expression shifting into melodramatic dismay. "What, and you don't recognize me? Don't tell me I've grown irrelevant this quickly."

  The man met his gaze, wearing a careless smirk that showed two dimples.

  No, Edris thought. In fact, it’s the complete opposite.

  Part of him yearned to believe it was mere delirium. Or, more luckily, an illusion. Either would make it easier for him to rationalize this entire situation.

  Otherwise, how else could it be that The Archivist—the man from almost a thousand years ago—was standing right before him?