Christopher heard Jules sigh in relief as a set of downward onyx steps appeared in the distance.

About a dozen Authors stood nearby, quietly engaged in glooming discussions, while others hurriedly moved to and from the steps. A few of them cast curious glances as they approached. Despite the sand muffling their hasty steps, their heavy panting was still enough to attract attention.

Most of the gazes focused on Jules. The boy’s clothes were ragged and soaked in blood, to the point that Christopher felt he could follow him blindfolded, guided only by the metallic scent of fresh blood.

Jules kept sprinting ahead, pushing himself as fast as his wounds allowed him, ignoring the menacing stares directed at him.

Christopher stole a quick glance behind his shoulder, and upon confirming that Salvio was still out of sight, he quickened his pace to catch up to the boy.

“Wait,” he shouted, voice shaking, struggling for air. He extended a hand, trying to stop Jules.

“Keep running,” Jules replied, shrugging off his hand. “The sooner we enter the 4th, the sooner we get rid of him.”

“We shouldn’t go to the 4th floor. It’s too dangerous,” Christopher said, barely able to keep up with him despite his enhanced Grace. Somehow, the boy’s stamina seemed to have improved while they escaped.

“Remember Lisa’s warning?” He insisted. This time, he managed to grab onto his sleeve and force him to stop just as they stepped foot on the first onyx step.

“Forget about her warning!” Jules complained, releasing his arm. “What do you think will happen once Salvio gets here?”

“We did nothing wrong,” Christopher uttered.

“Are you willing to bet our lives on that?” Jules asked, his eyes glinting with concern.

There’s something he isn’t telling me, Christopher realized. Looking around, he saw more than a dozen faces turned to them, watching their discussion with interest.

A loud snort startled them as a tall, broad-shouldered man clad in a thick bronze cuirass emerged from the dark mist that led to the 4th floor. He paused with discontent, his eyes narrowing as he found them blocking their way.

The crowd watching burst into laughter as the man spoke in a deep, rumbling voice, using a weird dialect. Christopher couldn’t make sense of his words, but Jules seemed to grasp the git of it, his expression tightening.

Jules threw the man a contemptuous look before pushing himself and Christopher against the wall.

“It’s not long until the Prelude starts,” Jules whispered in his ear–it was evident he didn’t want anyone else listening to his words. “We can find a place to lay low and just wait until it comes.”

Christopher's eyes moved back and forth, hesitating between Jules and the dark mist below. Jules’s eyes were wide with determination, yet deep down, they seemed to silently plead for help.

“Ok, let’s go,” Christopher finally gave in. No matter how much he didn’t want to enter the next floor, Jules’s face, covered in a mess of wounds and blood, was a grim reminder of how much he owed him.

Jules sighed with relief once more, grabbing onto Christopher’s hand and pulling him down the stairs.

A wooden Javelin slammed violently into the onyx steps, barely missing them. Despite the tremendous force of the impact, the onyx stone remained undamaged, completely pristine, with not even a spec of dust or sand on it.

Cries of alarm echoed as the nearby Authors instinctively shielded themselves from the flying wooden debris. They turned their heads toward the far end of the cavern, searching for the attacker.

Jules and Christopher didn't wait to watch the conflict unfold. Before anyone could connect the dots between the two fleeing Authors and the assailant, Jules jumped onto the gaping dark maw, dragging Christopher behind him.

─ ⴵ ─

A bright blue light flooded the cavern, casting shadowy ripples across the moss-covered cave walls.

Christopher ignored his exhaustion and looked around him.

A massive lake of luminescent blue water stretched deep into the cavern as far as the eye could see. Giant mushroom trees and oddly colored shrubs lined the shores, dimly lit by the lake’s eerie glow.

The air was thick with moisture, carrying an odd scent–a strong, earthy aroma mixed with the unmistakable scent of stagnant water.

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He spent two minutes carefully observing his surroundings, scanning every mushroom tree, stunted shrub, and shadow to ensure no threats were nearby. Though his dark vision could not activate because of the dim blue light, his enhanced senses were enough to give him an edge when searching for danger.

Finally satisfied, he let out a heavy breath and allowed himself to collapse onto the ground. Jules was already there, lying in a fetal position, panting heavily.

“How are you doing?” Christopher asked, ignoring his exhaustion and dragging himself towards him.

“Not dead yet,” Jules said, the shadow of a sarcastic laugh visible on his face. “Are we in danger?”

“None I can find.”

“Good,” Jules breathed in relief. “I’ve never met anyone with senses as sharp as yours.”

Christopher smirked.

“We should find a place to rest,” he said before echoing Lisa’s words. “Page Devourers roam this floor. There’s no chance we can fight against them.”

Jules couldn’t hold back a pained laugh.

“Do you even know what a Page Devourer is?” He asked.

Christopher shook his head.

“That’s what I thought,” Jules said. “Don’t worry. They are big and clunky. If one approaches, we will hear it for sure.”

“We still need to find a place to rest,” Christopher insisted.

“Yes, we do. Just give me five more minutes. My whole body is burning.”

“Let me try to use Crimson Proof on you again.”

“Not yet. Save it for when we find a shelter. I don’t want you passing out in the open,” Jules said. "Just five minutes, then we can move.”

Christopher nodded in agreement and lay on his back, staring at the ceiling. At least this time, they weren’t surrounded by endless darkness or disgusting ghouls.

“How did you end up meeting a Tainted anyway?” Jules asked.

Right, he has no idea what happened after he passed out.

“What’s a Tainted?”

“Short name for a corrupted Author,” Jules explained. “The Labyrinth’s corruption can easily taint our mind and body.”

Salvio’s grotesque shape made its way to Christopher’s mind.

“Was Salvio a tainted?”

Jules nodded in confirmation.

“I have no doubts about it,” he said. “His body was unnatural. Probably the result of binding to some dangerous tainted page.”

I am bound to a Tainted page too, Christopher realized. Am I going to end up deformed like him?

“What’s a tainted page?”

“Pages containing too much Labyrinth corruption,” Jules replied. “Usually, they have a low Integrity requirement, too, worsening the situation.”

“So if you bind to a corrupted page, you are done for?”

“No, of course not. As long as the corruption is not too strong, you can keep it at bay with some meditation techniques,” Jules explained. “Naturally, the best way to fight it once and for all is to invest some points in Integrity. Unfortunately, that means not investing those points in something else. Most people avoid doing so for that reason.”

Christopher frowned, already regretting having invested his two points into Grace.

“Was he already like that when you met them?” Jules asked.

“Not really,” Christopher replied. “He wasn’t very nice, but the crazed down spiral only started after Brune died.”

“Was Brune the dead guy?”

“Yeah. He was friendly,” Christopher added with regret.

“I think you’re right,” Jules said. "He was probably already near the edge. Brune’s death must have been the switch that allowed the taint to invade his mind.”

Christopher froze for a moment, lost in his own thoughts.

“What are you sulking about?” Jules asked.

“What do you think happened to him?”

Jules tapped his fingers on his chest.

“Probably is going to be fined,” he said after a while. “Maybe a night or two of sleep at Aeymenchuk. I heard the Keepers don’t like troublemakers at the floor frontiers.”

“They are not going to kill him?” Christopher asked mouth opened wide.

“Why would they?”

“He is tainted.”

“Lots of Authors are tainted. It’s not as rare as you think,” Jules explained. “As long as they don’t lose control and hurt someone, no one is going to stop them.”

“I thought they would be rarer,” Christopher confessed.

“Nope,” Jules replied with a smile. “I mean, Tainted Authors aren’t well regarded by others, especially Keepers and Ancient Families. However, surviving the Labyrinth is a constant power struggle, and Taint is a way to gain that power.”

It seems I’m not doomed yet.

Silence returned to the cave, broken only by the occasional water drip in the distance. Five minutes had passed, but Christopher’s exhausted body still begged him to rest. He was tempted to give in to its demands, but fortunately, Jules had more willpower than him.

“I think our time is up,” Jules said, struggling to get up. “Let’s go. The sooner we find a good shelter, the sooner we can rest.”

Christopher smiled and forced himself to stand up, offering his hand to help the boy to his feet.