Emil didn’t hesitate.

  The moment Brent and Shadow left, he turned sharply on his heel and started after them, his expression unreadable but his movements decisive.

  None of the other minions spoke at first, but they watched. They all felt the tension in the room, the weight of what had just happened. Shadow had admitted to tampering with the dungeon. Shadow had confessed to causing an adventurer’s death. Shadow had announced he was leaving.

  And now Brent had taken him away for a private conversation.

  That was not something Emil intended to allow.

  His footsteps echoed against the stone as he moved toward the exit of Ignarok’s Forge, his pace quick and purposeful.

  But before he even reached the threshold, Brent’s voice rang through his mind.

  “Stay.”

  Emil stopped.

  The word wasn’t forceful. It wasn’t emotional.

  It was final.

  Emil’s jaw clenched slightly. “Brent, this—”

  “This conversation will be private.”

  Silence.

  For a moment, Emil didn’t move. His fingers twitched at his sides, but he didn’t argue. He could have. He wanted to. But Brent had made his decision.

  After a long pause, Emil exhaled through his nose and turned back toward the group. “Then we wait.

  The forge remained hot and alive, but the tension in the air made it feel stifling. The dungeon’s minions, gathered beneath the great molten falls of Ignarok’s domain, shifted uneasily in the aftermath of what had just transpired.

  Ferron’s heavy metal frame let out a low creak as he crossed his arms. “So. That happened.”

  Caldron hummed, his iron-plated body crackling with shifting magnetic fields. “I do not believe we have ever encountered something like this before.”

  Ignarok’s glowing eyes narrowed slightly. “Because it shouldn’t be possible. A minion does not simply… leave.” His voice was slow, thoughtful, more calculating than outright aggressive. “We are bound to the dungeon. To its purpose.”

  Kagejin, arms folded, leaned against a pillar of obsidian and let out a sharp exhale. “Unless they reject that purpose.” His silver eyes flickered toward the doorway. “And it seems Shadow has.”

  Ferron shook his head. “Shadow’s always been unpredictable, but this… this is something else.” He narrowed his gaze. “He killed an adventurer. Not because it was part of the dungeon’s design, but because he wanted to.”

  Caldron rumbled lowly. “Not just that. He did it in a way that Brent did not notice. That is… deeply troubling.”

  The gathered minions fell silent for a moment. That was the part that none of them had wanted to say outright, but it lingered in the air like molten slag cooling on stone.

  Shadow hadn’t just broken the dungeon’s laws.

  He had done it without leaving a trace.

  Zyrris finally spoke, his form shifting with celestial energy. “And now he wants to leave.”

  The words settled uneasily.

  Minions didn’t leave dungeons. That wasn’t how it worked.

  And yet…

  Ferron finally let out a low sigh, rolling his shoulders. “Whatever’s going on, it’s out of our hands for now.” His eyes flicked toward Emil. “You’re the closest to Brent. You think he’ll let Shadow go?”

  Emil’s expression didn’t change. His arms remained crossed, his posture stiff. “…I don’t know.”

  That, perhaps, was the most unsettling answer of all.

  Because if Emil didn’t know what would happen next—then none of them did.

  And that was dangerous.

  Very dangerous.

  The forge fires crackled around them as they waited, uncertain of what would come next.

  Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

  The sound of claws clacking on the ground echoed through the molten chamber as Brent and Shadow reappeared.

  Shadow strode in first, arms relaxed at his sides, but there was something in his eyes—calm defiance, the look of someone who had come to terms with their decision. Behind him, Brent’s core projection hovered dimly, his glow subdued, like a storm just waiting to break.

  The room went quiet as every minion present turned to face them.

  No one spoke immediately. The weight of the previous meeting still hung in the air like ash after a fire.

  Finally, Brent pulsed once, steady but heavy. “I’ve made a decision.”

  Shadow’s smirk deepened ever so slightly.

  Ferron was the first to step forward, arms crossed. “Boss, don’t tell me—”

  Brent’s glow flickered faintly. “I’m letting him go.”

  The words hit the chamber like a hammer on brittle stone.

  Ferron’s eyes widened. “You’re what ?”

  Caldron let out a sharp mechanical groan, his magnetic fields visibly destabilizing for a moment. “You… can’t be serious.”

  Ignarok’s molten body shifted behind them, his massive fists clenching against the blackened stone. “We are forged for the dungeon’s will. To abandon that—”

  “I am aware,” Brent said sharply, cutting off the boss minion.

  Kagejin narrowed his eyes, voice low but biting. “You would just... let him walk away after what he did?”

  Brent’s glow dimmed, but his voice remained steady. “This wasn’t a decision I made lightly.”

  “You can’t mean this,” Ferron pressed, stepping closer, voice tense. “He sabotaged the dungeon. He killed someone needlessly. What happens when he does it again in someone else’s domain?”

  Brent pulsed again. “That’s not my concern.”

  Caldron’s gears ground louder. “It should be.”

  Zyrris’ voice rumbled from his position at the edge of the group. “This isn’t how dungeons operate. This isn’t how we operate.”

  Brent’s glow darkened slightly as he tried to keep his composure. “I know that. I understand your concerns—”

  Ferron’s voice hardened. “Do you? Because it sounds a lot like you’re letting him get away with this.”

  Silence followed.

  Brent pulsed brighter, struggling to contain the roiling emotions within him.

  “Shadow’s actions… were reckless,” Brent admitted, tone quieter now but still strained. “But he believes we’ve strayed from what a dungeon should be. He—”

  “He betrayed us,” Kagejin cut in, voice sharp as a blade. “There’s no more philosophy to discuss.”

  Shadow, arms crossed, looked utterly unmoved by the argument. If anything, he looked… satisfied.

  Brent’s glow flickered again. “He’s leaving. I’ve made peace with that.”

  “You don’t speak for all of us!” Ferron snapped.

  Brent’s energy flared violently, casting a harsh light over the molten walls. “I speak for this dungeon! ”

  The entire room froze.

  Brent pulsed brighter, voice rising now, tinged with frustration and barely restrained anger. “This is my decision! My call! I created this place! I am the core! I decide what happens here!”

  The force of his words hung heavy in the air, pressing against every soul in the forge. Even the fires seemed to dim slightly under the weight of his outburst.

  Ferron’s mouth opened, but no words came. Kagejin lowered his head slightly, jaw tight. Caldron and Zyrris exchanged tense glances, both visibly holding back more questions.

  Brent’s glow dimmed slightly as the anger settled. His voice, now softer but still absolute, echoed once more. “This decision… is final.”

  Silence.

  Long, heavy silence.

  Shadow broke it with a soft chuckle. “Well. That went about as expected.”

  Ferron glared at him, fists clenched, but Brent raised no objections.

  Shadow turned slowly, pacing toward the exit. “I’ll be taking my leave, then.”

  As he reached the threshold of the chamber, he glanced back. “Try not to fall apart without me.”

  Then, he was gone.

  The minions stood in the forge, surrounded by fire and steel—dumbfounded, staring after the absence Shadow left behind.

  And Brent’s core flickered quietly in the gloom, alone at the heart of it all.