[: 3rd POV :]
"What do I really want to achieve…?"
The thought did not come as a sudden realisation, nor as a moment of clarity born from battle.
It emerged slowly, quietly, like something that had always existed within Daniel but had never been acknowledged, never given the space to take form.
For the first time, his gaze wavered, not outward toward an enemy, but inward toward himself, his own existence.
And then...all of a sudden, everything stopped.
The storm froze mid-howl, shards of ice suspended in the air like unmoving stars.
The towering figure of the leader remained locked in place, his overwhelming presence reduced to a silent statue.
Even the flow of time itself seemed to halt, as if the entire dimension had been paused by an unseen hand.
There was only absolute silence.
[: Have you finally thought about it? :]
The system finally appeared and questioned.
However, Daniel did not react with surprise.
