The early morning light filtered through the curtains of Cale’s apartment, casting long shadows across the room. Snow sat lazily on the couch, flipping through TV channels with a distant look in his crimson eyes. His white hair shimmered in the sunlight, making him seem almost otherworldly. Meanwhile, Cale leaned against the kitchen counter, sipping his coffee, his sharp gaze locked onto his old friend.

“You still haven’t told me what happened, Snow.” Cale’s voice was calm, but there was an unmistakable edge to it.

Snow didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he let out a long sigh, his eyes lingering on the TV screen. The news still replayed footage of last night’s battle. The return of the Calamity Killer was the only thing the world could talk about.

Finally, he spoke. “Honestly? I think some of my memories are sealed… by someone, or something, far stronger than anything I’ve ever faced.” His voice was unusually serious. “Far stronger than all the monsters I’ve ever fought—combined.”

Cale narrowed his eyes. “Sealed?”

Snow nodded. “I only remember fragments. But I do remember this—Inferno Gate was no ordinary calamity-class dungeon. It was like... a stage set up for torture. As if someone designed it, not to be conquered, but to break whoever entered.”

A chill ran down Cale’s spine. “What do you mean?”

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Snow clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white. “That gate wasn’t like the others. There wasn’t just one boss. Every single monster I’d ever faced, every boss that had ever existed in previous gates—normal, medium, difficult, hell, disaster, and calamity—they were all inside. Waiting. It was like I was fighting the history of the gates itself.”

Cale’s grip on his cup tightened. “All of them? That’s…”

Snow’s voice dropped lower, a haunted look flickering across his face. “I fought them all. Every. Last. One. Not just the ones I personally defeated, but even those from the past—monsters I had only read about, legends that were supposed to be long gone.”

He exhaled, his breath shaky. “I burned through every last drop of my mana, my life force barely holding me together. I was at death’s door, barely standing. And just when I thought it was over—just when I thought I had won—another gate opened.”

Cale felt a cold dread settle in his gut. “Inside the Inferno Gate? Another gate?”

Snow nodded. “It wasn’t normal. The air around it… it felt wrong. Like reality itself was rejecting it. But I had no choice. I stepped through.”

His fingers trembled slightly as he recalled the memory. “And then... I saw him.”

Cale frowned. “Who?”

Snow shook his head. “I don’t know. He had no face. No body. Nothing. Just... presence. Like a shadow that wasn’t really there. But I could feel him looking at me. Studying me. And then... he spoke.”

Snow’s crimson eyes darkened. “‘You did a great job, you measly human.’”

A silence heavier than steel filled the room. Cale’s mouth was dry. He had faced some of the strongest beings in existence, but even he felt an unfamiliar unease creeping up his spine.

Snow’s voice was barely above a whisper. “His voice wasn’t spoken. It was inside my head. Calm... but suffocating. Like it could crush my soul with a single thought.”

Cale leaned back, running a hand through his black hair. “Oh man… we are so screwed.”

To be continued...