CHAPTER 18 — The First Step Into Madness

The blinding light swallowed Ivan whole.
It wasn’t pain.It wasn’t heat.It wasn’t cold.
It was simply nothing.
When the light faded, Ivan gasped softly—and his breath echoed unnaturally loud.
He wasn’t in a room.
Not in a dungeon.
Not even in a world.
He stood inside a white void.
No horizon.No ceiling.No ground—just a seamless, endless sheet of pale emptiness.
His heartbeat felt like the only sound in existence.
“What… is this place?”
His voice echoed again, unnaturally long and hollow.
A whisper came from everywhere and nowhere:
“The First Layer of the Trial of the Resonant Veil.”
Ivan tightened his grip on his sword.
“Show yourself!”
The void rippled—like water disturbed.
A figure stepped out of the distortion.
Ivan’s breath stopped.
Because the figure…
…was him.
Same height.Same hair.Same scars.Same sword stance.
Except…
Its eyes were wrong.
Completely empty.No fear.No hope.No purpose.
Just a hollow reflection.
Ivan raised his sword instinctively.“…What are you?”
The reflection tilted its head with a lifeless motion.
When it spoke, the voice echoed like a broken whisper:
“I am what you become… when you give up.”
A chill raced down Ivan’s back.
Before he could respond—
The reflection vanished.
Ivan’s eyes widened—
Then—
SLAM!!
A force smashed into his ribs, launching him across the void.He rolled violently, pain exploding through his side.
He pushed himself up, coughing.
“Tch—fast…”
The reflection appeared in front of him silently, sword already swinging.
CLANG!!!
Their blades met.
Ivan skidded back, boots scraping the nonexistent floor.
The reflection didn’t budge an inch.
Its voice stabbed into him:
“You’re weak.Driven by emotion.Easily broken.”
Ivan roared and charged, slashing with everything he had.
But the reflection parried perfectly.
Every move was flawless.
Because it knew all his habits.All his instincts.All his flaws.
It was him.
The reflection lifted a blackened copy of his sword.
“Humans like you don’t survive trials.”
It blurred and struck.
SLASH!!!
A deep cut ripped across Ivan’s shoulder.
SLASH!!!
Another across his leg.
Ivan stumbled, dropping to one knee.
Blood dripped down his arm, staining the white void red.
The reflection stood above him, motionless.
“Without her… you are nothing.”
Ivan’s breath froze.
“…What?”
The reflection leaned closer, voice echoing inside his skull.
“Eleonora is your strength…and your weakness.”
Ivan gritted his teeth.
“That’s a lie—”
The reflection’s voice sharpened like a blade.
“You fear losing her.”
Ivan trembled.
“You fear being left behind.”
His vision blurred.
He clenched his jaw, shaking.
“You fear you are not enough.”
Ivan’s hands tightened until his knuckles went white.
He couldn’t deny it.
Because every word was true.
The reflection raised its sword to strike the final blow.
“And that fear will kill you.”
The blade fell—
Ivan’s hand snapped up and caught it.
Blood dripped between his fingers.
But he didn’t let go.
The reflection froze.
Ivan lifted his head—and for the first time, his eyes burned with fire.
“No.”
The reflection’s empty eyes narrowed.
Ivan rose slowly, pushing the blade aside.
“I fear many things…But fear doesn’t own me.”
He shoved the reflection back.
His voice steadied.
“You’re right. I am afraid.”
The void trembled slightly.
“But Elen isn’t my weakness.”
Cracks spread across the reflection’s form.
Ivan’s aura surged, his heartbeat thundering like a drum.
“She’s my reason.”
The reflection trembled.
Ivan stepped forward.
“She is who I fight for.”
Another step.
“She is why I get up.”
Another.
“She is why I survived.”
The reflection tried to speak, but its voice stuttered like static.
“S-stop—”
Ivan grabbed its collar and pulled it close.
“And she is the reason…I’ll tear down this worldAND THE NEXTto reach her.”
He lifted his sword.
The reflection whispered:
“Impossible…”
Ivan roared—
“I WILL SURVIVE ANYTHING FOR HER!!”
SLAAAAAASH!!!
His blade cleaved through the reflection cleanly.
The figure shattered like glass—Fragments of white light spiraling upward into the void.
Silence fell.
Then a gentle voice echoed:
“First Veil… Conquered.”
The void darkened—
Light gathered beneath Ivan’s feet.
A path formed.
A staircase of shimmering crystals leading upward into swirling darkness.
Ivan wiped the blood from his mouth.
He looked up the stairs.
His legs trembled.
His body ached.
But his eyes…
Burned with unshakable determination.
“One step closer, Elen.”
He began to climb.
And the world of the second trial waited.
Hungry.Merciless.Watching.