The Spare's Second Chance in Apocalypse-Chapter 255: Ch 254: Pulled In - Part 2

At first, Ethan did not say anything. He seemed to be waiting for Selene to give him a signal before he decided to speak up.

Ethan glanced toward the nearby trees.

"Want me to drag Noah out of hiding?"

Selene shook her head.

"There’s no need. Let him pretend he’s invisible."

Ethan chuckled, but the sound was strained. Before he could say more, the dungeon behind Selene pulsed—a low hum vibrating through the ground. Selene stiffened.

[Enter]

The voice whispered in her mind.

Her body moved without thought, feet carrying her toward the gate.

"Selene—"

Ethan’s voice snapped through the air as he lunged forward and caught her wrist.

She turned to him, startled. His face was pale, his eyes wide with something close to fear.

"You can let go now."

She said softly, trying to keep her tone calm.

Ethan didn’t budge.

"This gate... something’s wrong. It doesn’t feel like the others. I don’t think we should go in."

Selene hesitated. His concern was real—she could feel it radiating from his touch. And yet, that voice echoed again, louder this time.

[Enter. Now.]

"I... understand."

She murmured, her voice distant.

But even as her rational mind agreed with Ethan, something deeper inside her—the pull of that voice—was already moving her toward the unknown.

Selene stepped forward again, her body tense and her eyes unfocused. Ethan’s grip on her wrist tightened.

"Selene. Is this really you?"

His voice was low, firm.

She opened her mouth, trying to form the words, but they stuck to her throat. Her gaze flicked to the gate, then back to Ethan.

’It’s not me. I don’t want to go in.’

But she didn’t say it aloud.

Instead, her fingers trembled in his grasp, and for a split second, her eyes flashed gold.

"Damn it."

Ethan muttered. fгeewёbnoѵel.cσm

Suddenly, the dungeon pulsed again, brighter this time. A gust of energy burst out like a silent scream, slamming into Ethan’s chest. He stumbled, his hand still clinging to Selene.

Then it happened.

A hand—dark, clawed, and all too familiar—stretched out from the dungeon gate.

It latched onto Selene’s other wrist, cold and unyielding. She gasped as the force yanked her forward.

"Selene!"

Ethan roared, lunging after her.

But before he could reach her, the gate shimmered violently and exploded with energy, throwing Ethan backward.

He landed hard, skidding across the ground, his hands instinctively flaring with heat.

A translucent barrier had risen in front of the gate, pulsing with the same eerie energy he knew too well.

"No—no, no! Fuck! Why does this keep happening?"

Ethan scrambled to his feet and threw himself at the barrier. Fire licked his palms as he struck it, but the gate didn’t budge. It rejected him completely.

And then he felt it—the energy.

Familiar. Too familiar.

"...This is from Alteair...no, maybe the energy feels familiar and similar, but this is likely not that cursed place. This isn’t just any dungeon, but I also feel like I should not approach it."

He whispered, chest tightening.

Footsteps pounded behind him.

Noah burst out of hiding, eyes wide with panic.

"What the hell just happened? Where’s Selene?!"

"She was pulled in. I couldn’t stop it. I’ll follow her to try and get her out. You just wait here for me."

Ethan said, voice low and strained.

But of course, Noah decided to ignore him and do whatever he wanted anyway.

Noah bolted toward the gate. But before he could get too close, his system flared violently in front of his eyes. A red warning flashed across the screen:

[Access Denied: Insufficient Authority for Entry.]

Noah skidded to a stop, heart hammering in his chest.

"What kind of dungeon has authority levels?"

He breathed.

"That’s not normal—this isn’t normal."

He turned to Ethan, who stood frozen, staring at the barrier like it had betrayed him.

"Are you seriously going to stand there all day?"

Noah snapped, trying to hide his rising panic.

Ethan didn’t respond.

"Hey! Snap out of it! Selene’s gone—what are we going to do?!"

Noah stepped forward, grabbing Ethan’s shoulder.

"She’s not gone. She’s inside. But that dungeon... that energy... it’s bad news. I don’t know how, but it’s going to be a problem for all of us."

Ethan whispered.

Noah watched as Ethan clenched his fists.

Without warning, Ethan lunged at the barrier again, heat radiating from his skin as he struck the gate over and over. Fire blazed up his arms, uncontrolled.

"Stop—stop it, you’re going to burn yourself!"

Noah yelled.

But Ethan didn’t stop.

Noah bit his lip. There was no reasoning with him right now. Selene was gone, and Ethan was spiraling fast.

With no other choice, he fumbled for his communicator and called the others.

Zara picked up immediately.

"What happened?"

"Ethan’s gone mad! The dungeon grabbed Selene but we couldn’t follow because of a barrier. And Ethan is going a little...out of it with worry."

Noah said quickly.

There was a pause on the line. Then Zara’s voice turned cold.

"Knock him out."

Noah blinked.

"What?"

"Use whatever means necessary. He’s going to hurt himself—or worse. We’ll be there soon."

"Wait, I can’t just—"

The call cut.

Noah stared at the communicator for a second, then glanced at Ethan, who was still trying to tear the gate down with raw power.

"Damn it! Why is this always my job?"

He muttered.

He reached into his bag and pulled out a small artifact orb.

It glowed faintly—a stunning artifact meant to temporarily disrupt the flow of mana. Expensive, rare, and definitely not made for casual use.

"Sorry, Ethan."

Noah muttered, sneaking around behind him.

Ethan didn’t even notice.

With one toss, the orb activated mid-air and struck Ethan in the back.

There was a sharp crack, a flash of blinding blue light—then Ethan crumpled to the ground.

Noah exhaled, rubbing his forehead.

"I swear, if he tries to burn me when he wakes up, I’m quitting this team."

He looked toward the barrier again, expression darkening.

"Hurry up, guys. We’ve got a serious problem."

He whispered.