And Mikail…
He stood between them.
Breathing hard. Chest heaving. His body screamed to run, every instinct clawing at his nerves, telling him to go, to abandon reason, to abandon everything.
But he didn't.
His legs were locked in place, not by courage, but by the sheer gravity of fear.
The Nightmare didn't roar.
It didn't shriek.
It existed, and that was worse.
Reality bent around it as if the world tried to forget it was there. Its limbs unfolded with slow, twitching malice. Its slit of a face dripped with shadow, and it stared.
Mikail tried to summon something, anything. A spell. A skill.
But the System stuttered.
[ERROR]
[NO FUNCTIONAL ABILITY MATCHES THIS THREAT]
[DANGER: YOU ARE OUTMATCHED]
And still, he stood.
His hand twitched a useless motion. His breath caught in his throat.
He wasn't brave enough to fight this thing.
But maybe...
Maybe he could buy one second.
Just one.
