The Spare's Second Chance in Apocalypse-Chapter 203: Ch : A familiar sight- Part 2

’I-Is it done? Am I finally free from that dungeon? Finally! It felt like it would never end.’

Selene won’t say she was nervous, but she could still feel her legs shaking. Confronting her father was something she never did, even in her dreams.

And yet, here she was - not only speaking up against her father but also breaking free of the illusion.

"I need to pull myself together and focus on why I am here."

Selene turned and realized she was the only one who had reached the dungeon’s core.

No one else had managed to break free from their illusions. Around her, there was nothing but empty space, where the others should have been.

She frowned, glancing back.

She felt sorry for them, trapped in whatever visions had ensnared their minds. But she also knew—this was a solo trial.

She couldn’t help them.

They had to fight their own battles.

Selene sighed, then turned forward. She had no choice but to move on alone.

She took a step deeper into the dungeon, her eyes alert, waiting for the next challenge to come.

Selene walked around the blank-white room, her footsteps echoing in the emptiness.

The walls stretched endlessly in every direction, with no doors, no windows—nothing that gave her a clue on how to escape.

Even her Insight ability, which had always been reliable, refused to work here. It was as if this space existed outside of the system’s usual rules.

Still, Selene didn’t feel panicked.

Something told her she had time.

Instead of wasting it, she reached into her inventory and pulled out the core she had obtained earlier.

As she inspected it, she noticed another one—one she must have gained after defeating the shadow creature.

Selene hesitated.

Taking in two cores at once seemed risky. She had no idea what her body was capable of.

But her instincts told her to take those cores. And Selene lost the fight to her instincts in the end.

The moment she did, a flood of energy surged through her veins. Her vision sharpened, and her mind expanded. A system notification appeared in front of her:

[Insight has leveled up to 4. Core Absorption has leveled up to 2.]

Another notification followed.

[New ability unlocked: Core Absorption Bonus – Absorbing cores will now grant skills based on the core’s properties.]

Selene blinked at the message.

This was huge.

If she could gain abilities directly from cores, it meant her growth would skyrocket compared to others.

It almost felt like cheating. But she knew the system never gave something for nothing. There had to be a catch.

Still, this was a much better payoff than before.

With her enhanced Insight, Selene took another look at her surroundings. This time, she saw what she had missed before.

Faint threads of light crisscrossed the room, connecting this place to somewhere else. Most of them shimmered in different colors—silver, blue, green. But one thread stood out.

A golden thread, pulsing with warmth.

The moment she saw it, a feeling bloomed inside her—recognition.

Ethan.

The golden thread belonged to him. Somehow, she just knew.

Without hesitation, she reached out and grabbed the thread. It felt solid under her fingertips, buzzing with power.

As she held on, the space around her shifted, the white walls rippling like water.

Then, everything collapsed into darkness.

Selene followed the thread of danger to the white wall at the edge of the room. She stopped, realizing this was as far as she could go. There was no way forward.

She clenched her fists. She wanted to help Ethan, but she knew she had no chance of doing anything for him right now.

Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the wall.

"Ethan, do your best. I’ll be heading ahead without you for now."

There was no reply.

She turned away, forcing herself to move. She had to find the core of this dungeon and get what she came for.

After some searching, she found an exit. Stepping through it, she entered a new area—and immediately realized she had underestimated the danger.

Monsters.

More than she had expected.

Their bodies twisted in unnatural shapes, their eyes gleaming with hunger. They blocked her path, shifting and snarling.

Selene exhaled slowly. She wouldn’t be able to defeat all of them. Fighting here would be reckless.

She had to find another way.

Pressing herself against the shadows, she moved carefully. Her heartbeat pounded in her ears. Every step felt like a risk. She needed to stay hidden.

To distract herself from her growing fear, she whispered to herself.

"Just a little more... Just a little further..."

Her body tensed with every sound. Clawed feet scraped against the floor. Strange gurgling noises filled the air.

Still, she moved forward.

After what felt like forever, she finally made it across to the other side. Relief washed over her.

Then—

A touch.

Feather-light.

Something brushed against her side.

Selene spun around, heart hammering.

Nothing.

There was nothing behind her.

Her muscles tightened, every sense on high alert. Something was watching her. Something was close.

She swallowed hard and kept moving, every nerve in her body screaming to run.

______

Ethan felt like he was suffocating.

Darkness surrounded him. He couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe.

He clenched his jaw and tried to force his body to respond. But there was nothing.

Was he dreaming?

No.

This was something else.

He tried calling for his real self. The Ethan who wasn’t trapped in this endless void.

Silence.

Nothing answered him.

Despair crept into his mind. Was this it? Was he stuck here forever?

Just as he was about to give up, a presence brushed against him.

Soft. Familiar.

Then, a voice.

Faint. Gentle.

"Ethan, do your best..."

Selene.

Ethan’s eyes widened. His body surged forward on instinct, chasing after her presence.

But before he could move, a hand landed on his shoulder.

A firm grip.

And then—

"Your Highness."

The voice was calm, controlled.

Ethan froze.

Annoyance flickered through him. But at the same time, something in the voice made him serious.

His fingers curled into a fist. His mind cleared.

The darkness around him shifted.

And Ethan realized—

This was just the beginning.