The decision to go back didn't need to be discussed.
After the last fight, after the number rose once more in the interface, everyone's body had already decided for them. The Fourth Floor did not allow room to insist out of pride. Continuing like that was asking for someone to make a serious mistake.
The path back to the city was slow. Not because of fear, but because of exhaustion. Their legs were heavy. Their arms ached. Even silence felt tiring.
When they crossed the gates, everything changed.
Noise. Voices. Hurried steps. People arguing. Children running between players far too armed for that kind of scene. The city was full.
Full of players who had managed to climb… and stopped there.
Jay exhaled slowly.
– I've never seen so many people stuck on the same floor.
Sienna looked around.
– Because no one knows what's going on.
They sat near the fountain in the center of the square. The cold water helped a little, but it wasn't a miracle. The exhaustion wasn't just physical. It was the feeling of fighting without understanding the game.
It didn't take long for someone to approach.
– Did you just come from outside? – a player asked, looking at their condition.
– We did – Ethan replied.
The man scratched his head.
– So… did you understand these sigils?
Other players looked over immediately.
– Because nobody explained anything – said a woman sitting on the ground. – They just stay there, piling up.
– I have nine – another said. – But that hasn't changed anything.
– I thought it was just a useless number – someone else commented.
The group exchanged looks.
Ethan realized then that no one knew. No one had received any explanation. They were all fighting in the dark.
– The system didn't explain it to us either – Ethan said, standing up. – We only understood because we went through something you haven't seen yet.
– What? – someone asked.
– A labyrinth.
The noise in the square dropped.
– Labyrinth? – they repeated.
– Where is that?
– Is it like a dungeon?
Jay answered:
– It's a place separate from the field. It doesn't appear on the map. And you can't get through it by fighting.
– What do you mean? – a young man asked, confused.
Sienna crossed her arms.
– If you run, it locks you. If you insist, you walk in circles. The more force you try to use, the worse it gets.
– We only got through when we stopped trying to win – Ethan added. – And started observing.
Some laughed, thinking it was exaggerated. Others grew serious.
– And the sigils? – someone asked. – What are they for?
– To learn abilities – Ethan replied. – But the cost is high. Very high.
He explained calmly. He said that an entire day of fighting yielded few points. That splitting evenly doesn't work. That the group needs to choose who will grow first.
– Alone, you take too long – Jay said. – In a group, it only works if you do the math.
The silence that followed was heavy.
– So that's why no one is progressing… – someone murmured.
That's when a younger player, who had been quiet until then, spoke:
– People are disappearing.
Everyone looked at him.
– Groups that went out and didn't come back – he explained. – We thought they had died out there… but no one saw bodies. No one saw a message.
Sienna grew serious.
– If they entered the labyrinth without understanding…
– You can get stuck – Jay completed.
– There are no monsters inside – Sienna said. – No resources.
Ethan finished the thought:
– You can starve to death.
The atmosphere in the square shifted completely.
– Then how do you get through? – the woman on the ground asked, now serious.
– Calmly – Ethan replied. – No rushing. No forcing it. The labyrinth reacts to how you move.
– It tests your mind – Sienna said.
That was when Sienna stopped speaking and narrowed her eyes.
– Well, well… – she said. – The Crane decided to show up.
Kaelyn walked across the square with confidence.
– Shorty – she replied, without stopping.
It was the group that had fought alongside them against the Sin of Pride.
Kaelyn walked in front. Boros came right behind, carrying a heavy weapon and using Jay's old shield, already worn down. Riven came last, quiet as always.
Jay noticed the shield.
– I see you're taking good care of it.
– Better than the old one – Boros replied. – This one holds.
Kaelyn looked around.
– Looks like you've become an information hub.
– Because nobody knows anything – Sienna replied.
Kaelyn gave a slight smile.
– Normal. This floor doesn't explain.
Ethan got straight to the point:
– Do you already know about the labyrinth?
Kaelyn frowned.
– Labyrinth?
Sienna smiled provocatively.
– Yeah. So efficient that you'd spend the whole day killing monsters and getting nowhere.
Kaelyn crossed her arms.
– We'd figure it out.
– You would – Sienna shot back. – After wasting time.
Ethan explained quickly. He talked about the place, the Safe Zone, how you couldn't get through it by fighting.
Kaelyn listened in silence.
– So that was it… – she said. – We thought it was just about quantity.
– Everyone did – Sienna replied.
Kaelyn laughed.
– Sooner or later we would have figured it out.
– Or you'd get too strong to admit you were wrong – Sienna countered.
Kaelyn shrugged, then looked at Marcus.
– The offer still stands – she said. – If you want to leave this nervous dwarf and join a truly strong group… our doors are open.
Sienna stepped forward.
– Say that again.
Marcus grabbed her arm.
– Not worth it.
Kaelyn was already walking away, laughing.
– Think about it – she said, without looking back.
Sienna tried to go after her, but Marcus held her firmly.
– She's going to choke on that someday – Sienna growled.
Jay watched the trio disappear down the street.
– Or not.
Ethan took a deep breath.
– Today is over.
Marcus nodded.
– Tomorrow we go back to the field.
Ethan looked toward the gates.
– Tomorrow we finish what's left.
They didn't get stronger that day.
But they learned something that, on the Fourth Floor, was almost as valuable:
Knowing when to stop was also part of the fight.