Nora stood quietly in the middle of the chamber.
Dead bats continued falling around her.
One after another, their bodies struck the stone floor with dull thuds.
Some still twitched.
Others had already become completely motionless.
The air was thick with the smell of blood and essence.
Thread Breaker remained in Nora's hand.
Its blade was stained crimson.
Rose stared at the scene for several seconds before finally speaking.
"You're quite good for a Devil."
Nora glanced at her.
"Quite good?"
Rose smiled.
"You're too good for a Devil."
Nora looked around.
The number of dead bats was almost absurd.
"These ones were quite easy."
She lifted Thread Breaker slightly.
The blade was still in contact with the blood of one of the creatures.
"Once I understood how their destiny worked, they became much easier to deal with."
Rose nodded.
"That's because you're not fighting their bodies."
"You're fighting what determines their bodies."
Nora didn't answer.
She understood the difference now.
A creature could possess incredible physical strength.
It could have sharp claws, powerful abilities, or tremendous durability.
But if its destiny could be reached...
Then its physical strength wasn't always enough to save it.
Rose glanced toward the remaining corpses.
"Go ahead."
"We'll find more creatures deeper inside."
She crouched beside the meat they had collected earlier.
"I'll roast this."
"You need to keep increasing your class."
Nora looked toward the ancient runes covering the walls.
"I'll hunt."
"But before that..."
She paused.
"I want to learn the sorcery used to seal these creatures."
Rose looked at her.
"The Ocean God sealing sorcery?"
Nora nodded.
"I've already seen it several times."
"The Stone Knights had it."
"These bats have it."
"There has to be a connection."
Rose considered her words.
"Then try."
Nora took out a small bottle of water.
She uncorked it.
The water poured onto the ground.
A small puddle formed beneath her feet.
Nora stared at it.
This should have been simple.
Water.
Something ordinary.
Something she had seen countless times.
Yet the moment she tried to manipulate it...
Nothing happened.
Nora frowned.
She extended her hand.
Essence flowed through her fingers.
She tried pushing her will into the water.
Nothing.
The water remained completely still.
She tried again.
Still nothing.
Nora's brows tightened.
"Why isn't it responding?"
Rose glanced over.
"Maybe you're trying too hard."
Nora ignored her.
She closed her eyes.
She stopped thinking about the water.
Instead, she focused on her own emotions.
Calm.
Anger.
Fear.
Curiosity.
Excitement.
Each emotion rose within her mind.
Then disappeared.
Nora attempted to force her will into the water once more.
Nothing happened.
Her patience began wearing thin.
For a brief moment, irritation surfaced.
The moment it did—
The world disappeared.
Nora froze.
The cave vanished.
Rose vanished.
The dead bats vanished.
Even her own body disappeared.
She opened her eyes.
And found herself standing in the middle of an endless ocean.
There was no land.
No sky.
No horizon.
Only water.
Endless water.
The surface beneath her feet was perfectly calm.
Nora looked down.
She was standing on the ocean.
Her eyes widened.
"Ocean God..."
The name came to her naturally.
She took one step.
Her foot sank.
Nora immediately fell.
Water swallowed her completely.
She struggled upward.
Her lungs burned.
She reached the surface.
The moment she stood again...
She sank.
Again.
And again.
Every attempt ended the same way.
Nora began to understand.
It wasn't the water that was rejecting her.
It was her understanding of the water.
She believed she could stand on it.
She believed she could move across it.
That belief should have been enough.
Yet Ocean God's sorcery demanded something different.
It wasn't enough to believe.
She needed to impose her will.
Completely.
Without hesitation.
Without contradiction.
Nora tried again.
She stood on the surface.
For one brief moment, she succeeded.
Then doubt appeared.
Her foot sank.
She fell.
Nora clenched her fists.
"Again."
She stood.
Again.
She sank.
Again.
She stood.
Again.
She sank.
Hours seemed to pass inside the strange vision.
Each failure taught her something.
Ocean God wasn't teaching her how to control water.
Not yet.
He was teaching her how to control herself.
Her emotions were affecting her will.
Her will was affecting her ability to impose herself upon the world.
If her mind hesitated...
Her will weakened.
If her emotions conflicted...
Her control collapsed.
The ocean remained indifferent.
It didn't care whether Nora was angry.
It didn't care whether she was afraid.
It didn't care whether she succeeded or failed.
The ocean simply existed.
Emotionless.
Unmoving.
Unconcerned.
Nora slowly realized something.
Perhaps that was the essence of Ocean God's sorcery.
Not emotion.
Not passion.
But absolute control.
A will so clear that nothing could distort it.
Nora took a deep breath.
"Then I'll learn."
She stopped trying to force herself onto the water.
Instead, she calmed her thoughts.
Her anger disappeared.
Her impatience disappeared.
Her fear disappeared.
Even her excitement faded.
Her mind became still.
For a moment...
There was nothing.
No emotion.
No doubt.
Only her will.
Nora placed one foot on the ocean.
The surface remained solid.
She placed the other foot beside it.
The water didn't move.
Nora smiled.
"So that's it."
The vision shattered.
Nora opened her eyes.
She was back inside the cave.
The bottle of water was still lying on the floor.
Nothing had changed.
The puddle hadn't moved.
Not even slightly.
Yet Nora knew something had changed inside her.
She looked at her hands.
Then at the water.
"I think I made progress."
Rose glanced over from the fire.
"That quickly?"
Nora nodded.
"I didn't learn the sorcery."
"But I think I understood the first step."
Rose smiled.
"Then you're already ahead of most people."
Nora didn't reply.
She looked back at the water.
She understood now.
Runic sorcery wasn't simply about possessing enough essence.
It was about giving that essence direction.
A person's will determined what their power became.
If the will was weak...
The sorcery would be weak.
If the will was unstable...
The sorcery would collapse.
But if the will became absolute...
Even something as ordinary as water could become a weapon.
Nora slowly closed her eyes.
She remembered the words written in her Alegacy Practice.
Ocean Sealing Sorcery.
A sealing technique born from Ocean God's authority.
And somewhere within that ancient power...
There was a method she could eventually make her own.
She opened her eyes.
A faint smile appeared.
"Nothing should be too difficult for Fate."
She looked toward the ceiling.
"After all..."
"I'm the Heir of Crimson Fate."
Rose laughed softly.
"That's the confidence I was waiting for."
A while later, Rose's voice came from beside the fire.
"Food's ready."
Nora turned.
The aroma immediately reached her.
She sat down beside Rose and began eating.
The meat was much better than the government meals.
She ate quietly.
Then the System began whispering.
"You have received 40 Devil Fragments."
Nora continued eating.
"You have received 10 Devil Fragments."
Another notification followed.
"You have received 15 Devil Fragments."
Nora paused.
A translucent profile appeared before her.
Devil Fragments: 165/5,000
She stared at the number.
Not bad.
Still far from enough.
But every fragment brought her closer.
Nora dismissed the profile.
She stood.
Rose looked at her.
"Already?"
Nora nodded.
"We're not finished."
She glanced toward the darkness deeper inside the cave.
"There are still more Initiate creatures."
Rose smiled.
"You're becoming greedy."
"No."
Nora summoned Thread Breaker.
Her eyes became calm.
"I'm becoming stronger."
Rose stood as well.
The two girls looked toward the darkness ahead.
Somewhere beyond the cave...
More creatures were waiting.
More fragments.
More shards.
More secrets.
And perhaps...
More traces of the gods.
Nora tightened her grip around Thread Breaker.
"Let's go."
Together, they disappeared deeper into the ancient ruins.