Sanesh, the Chaos God of Excess, thrived on this dance of indulgend decay. The pursuit of pleasure, pushed to the extreme, would lead her followers into self-destru, hollowed out by their own desires.

  ID had tasted this power, and though it paled pared to Sanesh’s own, it was enough to manipute others with surgical precision. A gentle caress, a fleeting touch—ID’s mere presence could unravel a person’s posure, leaving them exposed and vulnerable. Elizabeth, despite her armor and discipline, felt her resolve crumbling under his touch. Every brush of his ha shivers through her body, a mix of ecstasy and dread she had never known before. It was as if he had unlocked a door within her—a door she had never wanted opened.

  Shame warred with responsibility, and her miered on the edge. She felt overwhelmed, drowning in a torrent of emotions aions, uo think clearly. Yet, ID showed no mercy.

  With the pranted by the chaos, ID had an intimate uanding of her body and mind, as if he had mapped every nerve and impulse. Her movements betrayed her, revealing her weaknesses and vulnerabilities. It amused him, this game of domination. She was like a forbidden world to explore, full of secrets aations. But to destroy her here—now—that would rob him of his fun.

  For a moment, ID hesitated. It wasn’t because he felt pity. No, his as followed a simple principle: pursue happiness, no matter the cost to others. He rarely made cessions unless his own safety was at risk, and he would never sacrifice himself. Still, Elizabeth presented an iing dilemma. Killing her now would elimihreat, but it would also deny him the eai she could provide.

  As he pondered, he uionally rexed his grip ohe intoxig sensations he had inflicted began to fade, and with it, Elizabeth’s crity returned. Her training kicked in. She realized, that if she didn’t aow, she would fall pletely.

  Lightning crackled at her fiips, born from her psychic power. Without hesitation, she raised her hand and unleashed a powerful arc of energy—not at ID, but at the dark cage of beedles trapping another prisoner nearby. The silver bolt tore through the structure, shattering it instantly. The energy dissipated, leaving Sylph standing amidst the ruins, wide-eyed and frozen in pce.

  ID tilted his head, surprised but not armed. “Hmm? Just Sylph? Where’s the other one?” He chuckled, his voice dripping with mockery. “Ah, a clever little mouse, trying to resist. But you know it’s pointless, don’t you? Against absolute power, your efforts are ughable.” His gaze shifted to Rosina, who had been hiding in the shadows. “What now, Rosina? Do you think you do anything to stop me?”

  ID spread his arms wide, leaving himself opeood with a smug grin, daring them to strike. “Go on. Attack me. Let’s see what you’ve got. All your efforts will only lead to more despair. None of you stand a ce against me.”

  “You’re wrong. At least one person stop you.” Rosina’s voice rang out suddenly as she darted out from behind Elizabeth, moving with the grad precision of an Eldar. In a fsh, she pressed a cold crystal to ID’s forehead.

  ID frowned, his expression a mix of fusion and irritation. “What’s this? Is this y attack? What exactly are you pressing against my head?”

  Rosina didn’t answer directly. Her voice was calm yet firm as she said, “Kayvaan, fight like a warrior—a yourself.” Her words weren’t meant for the being before her but for the man trapped withirue Kayvaan, overshadowed by the darkness of Chaos.

  For a brief moment, ID’s expression shifted. He realized something he had ignored until now: the most powerful enemy wasn’t someoside of him but the one lurking within. It had always been this way.

  A cool sensation spread across his forehead, like the touch of a winter breeze, and it stirred something deep within him. Slowly, Kayvaa himself waking from a dream.

  Kayvaan found himself standing behind the fortress in his heart. It was a strange, surreal pce—a solitary white castle rising in the middle of an endless bck sea. The fortress walls were pristine, unyielding, and strong, standing firm against the violent waves that stantly crashed against them.

  Kayvaan rose from the bed ihe castle, poured himself a cup of green tea, and stepped onto the baly. He gazed at the tumultuous o surrounding him. It was uhe blue seas of his memories. This sea was bck, inky and ominous, its depths ing with raw, chaotic power. Kayvaan knew he wasn’t in the real world.

  This was his mindscape, a refle of his iruggles and truths. Everything here carried symbolic meaning. The bck sea represehe vast, votile pranted by Chaos—a gift that promised infiential but came with uing turmoil. The white castle symbolized his defenses, painstakingly built to resist that power. No matter how fierce the waves became, the fortress stood steadfast, its walls unmarred.

  It was the first time Kayvaan had truly examihis pce within himself. He realized how much of it had been shaped by the old Kayvaan’s influehe man who had helped him fe these defehe guilt weighed on him. He respected him deeply but knew he could never be like him. The old Kayvaan had been selfless, a hero who sacrificed everything for the greater good. He wasn’t that kind of person. He preferred trol, ensuring situations unfolded on his terms. Only when backed into a er did he reveal his darkest, most ruthless side.

  Looking back, he saw how one misstep had led to another. At first, it had been a simple pn: capture a few Eldar rangers alive. But things had spiraled out of trol, driven by unforeseen sequences and the corrupting influence of Chaos.

  Regret? There was no pce for it here. Kayvaan had accepted that fate wasn’t something he could undo. Yet, he hadn’t anticipated the sheer magnitude of Chaos’s power. Like the raging sea before him, it was untamed and limitless, far beyond anything he could trol. “This isn’t the time to lose hope,” came a melodic voice from behind him.

  Kayvaan spun around, startled. His eyes widened as he reized the figure. “You?! How did you get here?”

  Rosina, calm and posed as ever, offered him a faint smile. “I shouldn’t have been able to ehis pce. The stone allowed me to reach you. Don’t be so surprised, human. Many things you firaordinary are as natural as the sun and stars to my people.” Her tone grew more serious as she tinued, “ing here wasn’t easy—it’s a heavy burden. So I’ll get straight to the point: you’re in danger, Kayvaan. If you don’t learn to trol this power, it will destroy you.”

  Kayvaan turned back toward the sea, watg the endless waves batter his fortress. “The castle holds for now,” he said, his voice heavy. “But you’re right. It ’t st forever. Sooner or ter, the pressure will bee too much.”

  Rosina stepped closer, her voice soft yet firm. “You uand your predit, then. This fortress you’ve built is strong, but it’s not invincible. Chaos is patient. Over time, it will wear you down.”