Skyler flashed Zack a smile.
He wanted to say, I believe in you.
After all, they had spent so many days together—struggling, fighting—to reach a shared goal. But what came out instead was different, and it made him frown.
"It no longer matters. I know I can handle the consequences of what I have revealed so far or will choose to reveal in the future."
Zack blinked, a hint of shock on his face.
"What?"
At that moment, the gate they had come through glowed, and more people began arriving in the maze. Skyler suddenly told 505 to record the time before declaring.
"Two hours. We will clear this maze in exactly two hours—no more, no less."
Those who had just arrived in the maze laughed at his bold claim. People couldn't even clear the maze in the given time limit, and this guy wanted to do it in two hours?
How ridiculous.
He must be dreaming!
But Zack, Isaac, Yuris, Austin, and Charles felt like crying—because when Skyler said two hours, they knew this devil meant it!
Skyler slowly rolled his shoulder blades before suddenly dropping into a runner's stance, a sharp smile tugging at his lips.
"Get ready. Anyone who slows down or can't keep up with me will become a test subject for my newly ranked-up skills."
His eyes flashed, and he vanished like a fast breeze into the random passage he had been eyeing, quieting those who had been laughing at his earlier bold claim.
Yuris rubbed his temples, regretting the moment he had decided to follow Skyler.
Yet the excited gleam in his emerald eyes far outweighed that regret as he vanished after him, thinking about how they would soon accomplish another impossible feat.
Although Charles, Austin, and Zack didn't have the space element, they did their best to follow the two in front. Only Isaac cried out in panic as he chased after everyone.
"This is cheating! Two of you are using teleportation skills! The others have light and wind elements! How am I, who has none of it, supposed to catch up?!"
Obviously, no one heard his complaints.
Even his dear friend Charles, who usually stopped to help him, seemed to betray him, leaving him pissed off. It was as if they had all already tacitly agreed to sacrifice him!
Damn it!
He didn't want to become a test subject!
His anger sparked a fierce determination within him. No way would he, Isaac Brown, take this quietly! True, he was the weakest, but he was also the most indispensable—after all, he was their free potion maker!
With that thought, he sneered and pulled out a new crimson-colored potion he had been developing before entering the Battle Royale—one he had finally perfected using the assorted plants and herbs Skyler had tossed his way as if they were worthless.
It was an enhanced version of a strength and speed potion, designed to stimulate a person's Evol and temporarily double their agility, stamina, and overall strength. The drawback was that once the effect wore off, one would be weakened for a while.
Despite the risk, it was very useful. Isaac had named it 'Titan's Surge.' It wasn't his first creation, but it was one of the best.
He opened the potion vial and gulped it down, laughing to himself as a surge of power erupted from his Evol crystals and coursed through his body within seconds.
Those in front didn't notice the change in him as they ran through the maze, slaying monsters here and there in the numerous passages they entered while avoiding the people they encountered along the way.
Therefore, when they suddenly paused at the sight of a towering, ugly monster with vine-like tentacles, they heard Isaac roar.
"Get outta my way!"
Skyler was the first to flinch and sidestep when he sensed a powerful surge of heat rushing toward the monster from behind.
Yuris was second to react, followed by Austin and Charles. Zack almost lost his hair, but instead of cursing, they all stared dumbfounded as a sea of fire swallowed the towering monster, and Isaac, his figure cloaked in a layer of water, vanished into the flames amid the monster's screams.
Skyler blinked and turned to 505.
His eyes flashing with surprise.
"What did he do?"
505 was too shocked by the development and hurriedly pulled Isaac's system, 1078, for a quick interrogation before replying.
("Host, it seems Isaac has created a new type of reagent—a more potent fusion of the Strength and Speed potions.")
Skyler raised a brow, a brilliant idea immediately taking form in his mind.
"Can I sell it in the system shop?"
505, who was secretly praising Isaac, felt relieved in his place that the system didn't have such a function. Otherwise, 505 knew Isaac's future would have been truly grim.
("No. Host can buy things in the system shop; there is no option for selling.")
Skyler nodded, his gaze tinged with regret, which made 505 shiver. He glanced at Yuris and the others, still wide-eyed, and felt the irony, which made him laugh softly. In the end, he just tsked and vanished again.
"Stop staring and follow him."
Yuris, Zack, and the others finally regained their bearings and ran after Skyler. The sea of fire Isaac left behind was still burning; it only faded upon touching the maze walls.
No one knew how or why, but after they began following Isaac, they encountered fewer roaming monsters and more traps, like falling boulders and poisoned arrows.
Zack looked at the dimly lit environment and hissed softly as he hurriedly avoided touching a crooked gray rock in the wall.
He muttered under his breath, surprised.
"We are getting closer to the center of the maze. I know this trap."
Austin, who was next to him, muttered.
"Hah, what did you say?"
Zack stiffened. Well, it's not like he could admit that he had read about it in the novel, where one of Max's followers had triggered this trap, and they all spent an entire day in an isolated tunnel before finding a way out.
He quickly stopped him from accidentally touching the rock and changed the topic.
"Nothing."
Austin shrugged and quickened his pace.
In the end, the team was shocked to have cleared the maze in just an hour and a half—far faster than the two hours Skyler set—simply because they kept following Isaac, who ran as if injected with chicken blood.
And there were no casualties!
Let alone anyone getting injured!
Isaac raised his head to the sky, breathing heavily but still wearing a brilliant smile.
"I… made it…! Haha, I'm first!"
With that, he fainted. Skyler gazed at his fallen body, then at the door to the next level waiting at the center of the maze.
He shook his head with a smile, thinking that Isaac's luck was quite remarkable for finding this place so quickly and easily.
Then, he whispered with a hum.
"Yes, you made it."
He looked at the others, who were still breathing heavily, as he adjusted Isaac's body into a more comfortable position.
"We will rest until he wakes up."
Charles quickly pulled out two blankets from his storage ring, throwing one over Isaac and pulling the other on himself.
His entire body ached with exhaustion—keeping up with Isaac, who become so strong so suddenly, hadn't been easy.
He closed his eyes, muttering.
"Wake me up when he's up."
Ultimately, only Skyler remained awake.
He wanted to rest too, but the agitation in his heart kept him from closing his eyes.
So, he just sat in a corner, staring blankly into the thin air. Amid the silence, a blurry memory, not from his current life, began to take shape in his mind. He frowned, trying to grasp it, even reaching out with his hand.
But in the end, when he finally grasped the memory, it sent a chill through his heart.
He was standing alone, facing a familiar, beautiful figure. He looked unrecognizable—thin, weak, and disheveled, with oversized hair falling over his eyes. Yet... it wasn't his own trembling frame that made his heart throb with pain, nor the bleeding lip or the slap mark on his face—it was the look of disgust on that familiar figure's face.
Her words were crisp.
And they struck like a thunderclap.
"I regret giving birth to you."
"Such a useless thing."
Skyler shut his eyes tightly.
He shook his head in pain.
"This isn't real."
He muttered under his breath, over and over, before forcing the memory away.
Instead, he hurriedly recalled the novel's storyline he had read to calm himself.
"I must be losing my mind."
Whispering to himself, he sighed softly in annoyance, thinking that not knowing his past lives was making him create strange memories. The life he was living now was real; everything else had long since faded.