Kael clicked his tongue as he stared at the enraged sand worm.
"What an annoying opponent."
The creature had spent the entire battle doing the same thing. Whenever it suffered any meaningful damage, it immediately retreated underground before looking for another opportunity to attack.
It was far too cautious.
Most monsters fought with brute force and instinct.
While this thing on the other hand actually knew when to retreat.
Still, judging from the murderous aura radiating from it now, the worm seemed to have finally lost its patience.
Its enormous body twisted violently beneath the sand as its crimson eyes locked onto him with naked hostility.
Kael smiled.
"Looks like we’re on the same page."
The black armor covering his body reflected the blazing sunlight as he slowly tightened his grip on his weapon.
"I want to finish this too."
The sand worm released a furious screech causing the surrounding desert to tremble.
Then both of them moved.
Or at least they tried to as at that moment a strange ripple suddenly spread through the air.
The desert around Kael distorted.
The blazing dunes blurred as the sunlight warped.
The very atmosphere seemed to become tangible, pressing against his mind like invisible fingers trying to pry apart his thoughts.
Kael’s expression immediately changed.
"What the hell is this feeling?"
Even the sand worm halted its charge.
The monster seemed capable of sensing that something was wrong.
The next moment the ground beneath Kael shook violently.
A surge of strange energy erupted from below.
The sand around him darkened.
The distortion intensified.
Without hesitation, Kael jumped backward.
Unfortunately...
He was too late as darkness swallowed everything.
The desert vanished and the sky disappeared.
For a brief moment, Kael’s consciousness darkened.
Then it surged back only for him to realize one very important thing.
He was falling.
His eyes widened.
A flicker of panic appeared in his heart as the ground rapidly rushed toward him.
Then—
Boom!
He crashed into a cold stone floor with tremendous force, the impact knocking the air from his lungs.
Thankfully, the Specter-X armor absorbed most of it.
Kael quickly pushed himself up.
His eyes swept across his surroundings.
"Where am I?"
Before he could investigate further, a blue notification appeared before him.
---
[Welcome to the Drifting Castle of Bael’thun.]
---
Kael frowned.
Then another notification appeared.
---
[You have entered the Domain of Sloth.]
[Domain-Type Sin Curse Detected.]
[Torpor of the Eternal Rest has been cast upon you.]
---
The moment the message appeared, Kael felt it.
A wave of overwhelming drowsiness crashed into him.
His eyelids became heavy.
His body felt sluggish.
A powerful urge to simply lie down and sleep began creeping into his mind.
Then suddenly—
The sensation disappeared.
A new notification appeared.
---
[You have resisted the First Contact of Torpor of the Eternal Rest.]
[Second Contact will occur in 30 Minutes.]
---
Kael stared at the notification.
His expression turned serious.
"An instance?"
The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed.
Instances were among the strangest phenomena connected to the Tower and the Rift worlds.
Unlike ordinary rifts, they existed as independent dimensions that periodically revealed entrances to the outside world.
Some contained ancient treasures.
Some contained forgotten legacies.
Others contained nothing but death.
The danger varied wildly from one instance to another.
Normally, whenever an instance entrance appeared, major organizations would first evaluate its mana signature before allowing anyone to enter.
The stronger the mana signature, the greater the danger inside.
Unfortunately, Kael hadn’t exactly been given a choice.
One moment he had been fighting a sand worm.
The next he had been dragged into a mysterious castle.
He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
Opportunities and danger often walked hand in hand.
The problem was that he currently had no idea which side outweighed the other.
Still.
Complaining wouldn’t help.
The situation was already upon him.
The only thing that mattered now was surviving it.
Taking a deep breath, Kael forced himself to calm down.
Then he finally took a proper look at his surroundings.
The chamber was enormous.
Dim light flickered from ancient wall sconces.
Dark banners hung from towering stone walls.
Many had long since decayed, leaving only tattered remnants swaying gently in an unseen breeze.
Broken suits of armor stood motionless throughout the room.
Like forgotten guardians.
Or mournful sentinels keeping watch over a kingdom that no longer existed.
Dust covered every surface.
The air felt stale.
Heavy.
As if time itself had abandoned this place centuries ago.
Kael frowned.
The atmosphere alone was enough to make someone uncomfortable.
Still, he couldn’t afford to linger.
Thirty minutes.
That was how long he had before the second contact of the curse arrived.
He had no idea whether his resistance would be enough to save him a second time.
Which meant one thing.
He needed to clear this place as quickly as possible.
With renewed determination, Kael began moving.
Soon he reached a towering archway leading out of the chamber.
The moment he stepped through it, the pressure in the air intensified.
A suffocating feeling washed over him.
The courtyard beyond was unlike anything he had expected.
Strange plants covered the area.
Or at least they had once been plants.
Now they looked fossilized.
Twisted.
Frozen in unnatural shapes as though time had suddenly stopped while they were growing.
Then movement caught his eye.
Several figures wandered through the courtyard.
Their bodies swayed from side to side as they shuffled forward.
Kael immediately sensed something unnatural about them.
They felt alive.
Yet dead.
Existing somewhere between both states.
Without hesitation, he activated Absolute Verdict.
Information appeared before him.
---
[Grey Shambler]
A former castle servant mutated from prolonged exposure to the Torpor of the Eternal Rest curse, leaving them trapped in a half-undead state.
Level: 30
Health: 3,000
Abilities:
Dragging Grip — Grabs a limb and reduces movement speed by 30% for 10 seconds.
Torpor Moan — Emits a low groan that applies 1 stack of Drowsiness.
Note: 5 stacks of Drowsiness are equivalent to the Third Contact of Torpor of the Eternal Rest.
---
Kael’s brows immediately furrowed.
There were six of them.
And every single one displayed the exact same information.
"How annoying."
Of all things.
Curse-based enemies.
His least favorite type.
Sure, the Eyes of Judgment had granted him enhanced resistance against curses and mental effects.
But resistance wasn’t immunity.
He had no intention of testing how many stacks of Drowsiness he could survive.
Just then the Grey Shamblers noticed him.
Several heads slowly turned.
Cloudy eyes locked onto his position.
A low groan echoed through the courtyard.
Then all six began shambling toward him.
Their movements looked almost comical.
Slow and awkward.
Like drunk corpses struggling to remain upright.
If Kael hadn’t already seen their information, he might have laughed.
Instead, he made a decision immediately.
Fighting them was pointless.
Not every enemy needed to be killed.
Especially when time was limited.
The moment the first Shambler drew near, Kael burst forward.
His speed exploded.
He shot past the creatures like a black blur.
The Grey Shamblers reacted far too slowly to stop him.
Within seconds, he had already crossed the courtyard, leaving the undead servants stumbling aimlessly behind him as he continued deeper into the mysterious Castle.