The pressure inside the throne chamber thickened.

  It spread through the air like an invisible tide, pressing against Haruto from every direction. It wasn't immediately lethal, but the sheer density of the aura made breathing feel heavier with every passing second.

  This monster was stronger than him.

  That much was undeniable.

  And judging by the casual way it carried itself, it was obvious that the insectoid had not even begun to exert its real strength.

  Haruto could already sense the terrifying truth.

  If this creature decided to go all out from the start... he would not last long.

  Yet despite that realization, Haruto forced himself to remain calm.

  Instead of giving in to instinctive fear, he leaned on the one weapon he trusted the most.

  His mind.

  The insectoid was intelligent. That much had become painfully obvious during their brief exchange.

  Its earlier attacks had not been random.

  They had been probes.

  Feints.

  The creature had thrown deceptive strikes at him, movements that looked slower at first glance but carried terrifying speed beneath their surface. Each attack had been designed to observe Haruto's reaction.

  And when the insectoid realized Haruto could keep up with the pace, it gradually accelerated.

  Faster.

  Sharper.

  More precise.

  Until it finally found the perfect opening.

  Only Haruto's own restraint had saved him.

  He had intentionally held back portions of his true limit, carefully measuring the monster's behavior instead of recklessly revealing everything he could do.

  Even so, the result had been brutal.

  The ant's claw had grazed across his cheek.

  A thin line of blood ran down his face.

  Yet the strike itself had not been wasted.

  The thrust had still struck the wall behind him with terrifying force, leaving the stone shattered and crumbling like brittle glass.

  And the insectoid?

  Completely unfazed.

  It merely stood there, watching him.

  Observing.

  Judging.

  Then it muttered calmly,

  "How interesting..."

  The clicking of its mandibles echoed faintly through the vast chamber.

  The sound alone carried a disturbing meaning.

  It was amused.

  The message was painfully clear.

  The creature was playing with its food.

  Haruto clenched his jaw, forcing himself to suppress the wave of pressure threatening to suffocate him.

  But he did not allow his composure to break.

  Instead, he spoke.

  "Who are you?"

  His voice echoed loudly through the chamber.

  Calm.

  Direct.

  Almost fearless.

  The insectoid tilted its head slightly, seemingly taken aback by the question.

  Then its mandibles clicked again, producing a chilling, metallic laugh.

  "...Oh?"

  It leaned forward slightly, its crimson eyes narrowing.

  "A human can understand what I am saying?"

  For the first time since their encounter began, the creature straightened its posture and began observing Haruto more carefully.

  Its gaze moved across his body.

  Studying.

  Evaluating.

  Then its eyes gleamed.

  "I see..."

  A low chuckle escaped its throat.

  "You're not human."

  Its mandibles spread slightly as if amused by the discovery.

  "A dragonoid."

  The ant scoffed softly.

  "Well, isn't that surprising..."

  Its crimson eyes glowed brighter.

  "A dragonoid inside the Great Ancestor's labyrinth."

  Haruto didn't understand why the creature had called him that.

  Dragonoid.

  The word meant nothing to him.

  But he knew one thing.

  He could not afford to get distracted by that revelation.

  Not here.

  Not now.

  Even the smallest lapse in concentration would cost him his life.

  So he asked again.

  This time more firmly.

  "Who are you?"

  The insectoid suddenly burst into laughter.

  Its voice echoed across the chamber, an unsettling mixture of human speech and insect-like vibrations that reverberated through the stone walls like a distorted roar.

  The laughter lasted several seconds.

  Then it stopped abruptly.

  The creature inhaled slowly before exhaling with theatrical calm.

  It placed its blood-stained hand against its chest.

  And bowed slightly.

  "I am but a mid-ranking subordinate of my mother and creator."

  Its voice carried a strange pride.

  "The Crimson Empress."

  It straightened.

  "The ruler of the Great Forest of Lunar."

  Haruto froze.

  His eyes widened slightly.

  "The... Crimson Empress..."

  The name escaped his lips in a quiet murmur before he looked back at the insectoid.

  "...What do you want from me?"

  The question was blunt.

  Dangerously blunt.

  But Haruto had already realized something important.

  The creature was testing him.

  Which meant hesitation would only make him look weaker.

  So he pushed forward with the risk.

  The insectoid tilted its head again, appearing mildly surprised.

  Yet beneath that reaction, something else flickered in its gaze.

  Interest.

  Then its expression hardened once more.

  "What makes you assume that I want something from you, dragon-born?"

  Its voice turned cold.

  Haruto did not look away.

  Even as the suffocating aura wrapped around him like chains, he kept his gaze steady.

  "If you wanted me dead," he replied calmly, "you would have killed me already."

  The insectoid remained silent.

  "If you had no interest in me," Haruto continued, "you would have simply left after killing the boss."

  He gestured briefly toward the headless giant corpse beside the throne.

  "You already completed the dungeon on your own."

  His eyes narrowed.

  "So the only reason you're still here... is because you're waiting for us."

  The two stared at each other.

  For a moment, the chamber was silent.

  Then the insectoid scoffed.

  "Your intuition may not be entirely wrong."

  It stepped forward slowly.

  "But I doubt you would be capable of delivering what I desire."

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  Haruto did not retreat.

  Instead, he replied calmly.

  "Isn't it unwise to make that decision purely based on your own assumptions?"

  His eyes sharpened.

  "What if we are capable of giving you what you need?"

  The insectoid fell silent again.

  For a moment it simply stared at him.

  Then suddenly-

  It burst into laughter.

  Wild.

  Chaotic.

  Almost manic.

  The sound echoed through the labyrinth like the triumphant roar of something that had long abandoned the concept of reason.

  Haruto knew that kind of laughter.

  He had seen it before.

  People who laughed like that were a very specific type of individual.

  People who didn't care about other opinions.

  People completely convinced of their own superiority.

  People who believed the world existed solely for their amusement.

  His lips moved before he even realized it.

  "Psychotic killers..."

  The words slipped out.

  Haruto immediately straightened his posture, tightening his stance as he prepared himself for the inevitable.

  This time he would not be caught off guard.

  His eyes hardened with determination as he raised his weapons.

  The blood scissor claws gleamed beneath the torchlight.

  The gauntlet tightened around his fist.

  Ready to strike the moment an opening appeared.

  The insectoid merely sighed.

  "How troublesome..."

  Its tone sounded almost disappointed.

  "It is truly a shame."

  Its crimson eyes gleamed as it looked down at him.

  "If not for the direct orders of the Empress..."

  The creature slowly clenched and released its fists.

  "...you might have even been granted the opportunity to join us."

  Astrons flared around its arms.

  Dark red energy surged across its exoskeleton before gathering around its claws.

  The Astrons condensed.

  Shaped.

  Then materialized into long, blade-like extensions along its fingers.

  Crimson claws.

  They resembled Haruto's blood scissor claws, yet they were different.

  Both of the insectoid's hands had transformed into elongated talons designed purely for slaughter.

  Haruto immediately analyzed the difference.

  His own weapon design offered superior versatility.

  The gauntlet and scissor configuration allowed more flexibility in mobility, defense, and counterattacks.

  But that advantage barely mattered.

  Because the creature standing before him possessed overwhelming superiority in nearly every other category.

  Strength.

  Durability.

  Astron reserves.

  Combat experience.

  Haruto had already calculated all of it.

  His accelerated thoughts had simulated dozens of battle scenarios within mere seconds.

  Every outcome led to the same conclusion.

  Head-on combat would end in his death.

  The only possibility of victory required one thing.

  A decisive strike.

  Against a weak point.

  But the problem remained painfully obvious.

  He couldn't see one.

  Not yet.

  Haruto's eyes sharpened.

  Then he activated one of his abilities.

  Analysis.

  Astrons surged through his vision as the skill attempted to dissect the enemy standing before him.

  But unlike the monsters he had faced earlier, the insectoid resisted the process.

  The analysis demanded far more processing power.

  More time.

  More mental capacity.

  Haruto clicked his tongue internally and cancelled the attempt.

  Trying to analyze it mid-combat would only expose him to a fatal opening.

  Instead, he turned to another strategy.

  Knowledge.

  Both real-world knowledge and the countless fictional interpretations of insectoid biology he had absorbed through books, games, and anime.

  Ants had weaknesses.

  Every creature did.

  He just needed to find this one's.

  Haruto kept his gaze locked on the insectoid as his mind raced through possibilities.

  But before he could create a distraction-

  The creature vanished.

  Haruto immediately activated Thought Acceleration again.

  Time slowed.

  But even within that slowed perception...

  The insectoid was gone.

  Completely.

  Haruto's pupils shrank.

  Then-

  Two crimson lights appeared behind him.

  A cold shiver shot down his spine as he turned his head.

  The insectoid stood there.

  Right behind him.

  It had learned from their earlier exchange.

  The first attack had been frontal.

  After observing how easily Haruto avoided it, the creature had instantly adapted.

  Now it targeted his blind spot.

  The easiest weakness to exploit.

  Haruto barely managed to react.

  He swung his arm backward in a desperate attempt to block.

  Too late.

  The insectoid's claws pierced straight through his chest.

  Effortlessly.

  Haruto's eyes widened.

  Thought Acceleration shattered instantly.

  Blood erupted from both his chest and back as the creature lifted him slightly off the ground.

  Then it kicked him away, throwing him off its claws.

  His body crashed to the floor.

  "How pathetic..."

  The insectoid's voice dripped with disappointment.

  "Here I thought a dragon-born would at least be capable of reacting in time."

  It tilted its head slightly.

  "Perhaps I overestimated the influence of a dragon's blood."

  Haruto coughed violently as he collapsed to his knees.

  Blood spilled from his lips as he struggled to remain upright.

  The insectoid watched silently.

  It had expected him to die.

  Yet the moment stretched.

  And Haruto remained alive.

  That seemed to intrigue it.

  Haruto slowly lifted his head.

  His eyes trembled with burning rage.

  Then something impossible happened.

  Bones snapped back into place beneath his skin.

  Blood that had spilled onto the ground flowed backward like a reversed river.

  The crimson liquid returned to his body.

  The wound closed.

  Regenerating.

  With an ember of rage burning deep within his eyes, Haruto detonated a burst of wind beneath his feet, using the violent gust to propel himself upward. The air exploded around him as he launched himself toward the insectoid in a sudden counterattack.

  He could feel it.

  The skill was taking over.

  There was nothing he could do to stop it.

  But this time...

  He understood something important.

  He had no other choice but to accept it.

  Against an enemy like this, restraining himself would only lead to death.

  Perhaps this was exactly what the skill had been created for.

  So he released the final thread of control he had been clinging to.

  And surrendered to instinct.

  A faint shimmer of blue gleamed within his eyes as he lunged forward, thrusting his scissor claws just as the insectoid had done moments earlier. The sudden retaliation caught the creature off guard for the briefest moment.

  His blades tore across its arm.

  A spray of dark blood burst from the wound.

  The insectoid recoiled slightly, avoiding the deeper strike, but its senses immediately screamed danger.

  Something had changed.

  The presence before it was no longer the same cautious opponent from moments ago.

  An overwhelming storm of rage and hunger radiated from the half-dragon boy.

  The insectoid did not hesitate.

  If this continued any longer, things could become unpredictable.

  It had to end the fight now.

  Without taking another chance, the creature infused its claws with violent surges of Astrons and launched a relentless barrage of thrusts.

  Each strike aimed with lethal precision.

  Head.

  Heart.

  Limbs.

  Its goal was simple.

  Immobilize him.

  Then decapitate him before his body could regenerate.

  The plan was flawless.

  Under normal circumstances...

  It would have worked.

  But this was no longer the same Haruto.

  The young man's pupils shrank sharply.

  Then stretched.

  Vertical.

  Like the slit pupils of a predatory lizard.

  Instead of dodging the incoming attacks, he did something far more terrifying.

  He endured them.

  The claws pierced through his flesh again and again.

  His shoulder.

  His thigh.

  His chest.

  One blade even drove straight through his arm.

  Yet Haruto continued forward.

  Pain meant nothing to him now.

  The rage burning within his veins drove him onward like a demon unleashed.

  Blood spilled.

  But each wound closed almost instantly.

  His arm healed.

  His chest sealed.

  His torn muscles reformed in seconds.

  The flaw of the berserk state became painfully clear.

  In exchange for overwhelming strength, endurance, and regenerative power...

  He had sacrificed most of his reason.

  The careful strategist was gone.

  The calculating mind that had once simulated countless battle outcomes had vanished.

  What remained was raw instinct.

  Brutal.

  Relentless.

  Dangerously predictable.

  If this continued any longer, it was only a matter of time before the insectoid recognized the pattern.

  Instincts could not lie.

  And sure enough-

  It happened.

  The insectoid noticed it.

  Every single time it aimed for Haruto's head...

  He moved.

  Every other attack he endured.

  But never the head.

  The creature's mandibles clicked slowly.

  It understood now.

  That was the true weakness.

  The next instant, the insectoid lunged forward.

  Faster than before.

  Haruto barely registered the movement before the creature appeared above him.

  Its massive mandibles spread open wide.

  The jagged edges glistened like execution blades as they descended toward his skull.

  The intention was clear.

  It would crush his head.

  End the fight instantly.

  Haruto felt dread stab through his chest.

  For a moment, his mind was nothing but chaos.

  Rage.

  Bloodlust.

  Violence.

  The berserk state threatened to drown his thoughts completely.

  But then-

  With sheer willpower alone...

  He forced the madness back.

  Just barely.

  It lasted only a fraction of a second.

  But it was enough.

  Haruto pushed his muscle enhancement skill to its absolute limit, flooding every fiber of his body with the last fragments of Astrons he could gather.

  He forced his muscles to obey him.

  Not instinct.

  Not rage.

  Him.

  The mandibles were only inches away from crushing his skull when his body suddenly shifted.

  His enhanced muscles pulled him backward with explosive force.

  The lethal bite missed him by the narrowest margin.

  But Haruto knew it wasn't enough.

  He needed distance.

  Immediately.

  Out of desperation, he detonated a wind burst directly in front of his chest.

  But his control shattered.

  Instead of releasing a simple burst of wind...

  His Astrons spiraled out of control.

  Energy gathered uncontrollably, compressing itself into a violently unstable sphere of condensed power.

  Haruto's eyes widened.

  He hadn't meant to create something like this.

  But before he could react-

  The sphere detonated.

  A crushing explosion erupted at the center of the throne chamber.

  The shockwave blasted outward with catastrophic force, swallowing both Haruto and the insectoid within its violent radius.

  The cavern walls trembled violently.

  Stone cracked.

  Dust exploded into the air as shockwaves tore through the labyrinth, shaking the entire dungeon with a magnitude never felt before.

  Far away within the labyrinth corridors-

  Hana suddenly froze.

  Her eyes widened as she felt the overwhelming surge of energy ripple through the dungeon.

  For some reason...

  She knew.

  "That's... Haruto."

  At the same moment, Haruna and Haruki also felt the shockwaves ripple through the labyrinth.

  All three of them instinctively accelerated their pace.

  Haruna even began ignoring the enemies in her path entirely, leaping past them in a desperate sprint toward the final chamber.

  Their only thought was reaching Haruto before it was too late.

  But while they fought desperately to reach him...

  Haruto himself lay buried beneath dust and rubble.

  Broken.

  Helpless.

  The throne chamber had become unrecognizable.

  The explosion had carved a massive crater into the center of the room.

  The once jagged stone walls had been violently smoothed out, as if a colossal hammer had crushed the chamber and polished the surfaces through sheer pressure alone.

  Dust filled the air like a suffocating fog.

  Nothing could be seen.

  Only faint flashes of purple electricity flickered occasionally within the haze, crackling through the lingering Astron residue left behind by the explosion.

  Slowly...

  Very slowly...

  The clouds of dust began to settle.

  The massive chamber gradually revealed itself.

  And at the center of it all-

  Sat the throne.

  The majestic blood-crystal throne stood untouched amidst the devastation.

  And upon it...

  Sat Haruto.

  His body leaned weakly against the side of the throne.

  His head hung low.

  Blood covered him.

  His body was battered and torn as his regeneration finally began to slow, struggling to keep up with the enormous damage he had endured.

  His Astron reserves were nearly empty.

  His internal energy was fading.

  His eyes...

  Held nothing.

  No rage.

  No determination.

  Only emptiness.

  Just like his broken ego.

  A bitter chuckle escaped his lips.

  "Guess... I wasn't strong enough..."

  Then he heard it.

  Metallic footsteps.

  Slow.

  Heavy.

  Approaching.

  The figure was still hidden within the shadows.

  But Haruto already knew what it was.

  The insectoid had survived.

  The dust finally cleared enough to reveal its battered form.

  Its torso was partially crushed.

  One of its arms had been completely severed, torn away when it attempted to shield itself during the explosion.

  Yet it still stood.

  Its thick exoskeleton had absorbed the worst of the blast.

  And its own regenerative abilities were already repairing the damage.

  Its crimson eyes burned with pure rage.

  It walked toward Haruto slowly.

  Step.

  Step.

  Step.

  Malice radiated from every movement.

  The creature had been thrown to the far end of the chamber by the explosion.

  Now it returned.

  Determined to finish the job.

  Haruto watched it approach.

  He didn't even bother standing.

  The insectoid gathered its remaining Astrons into its surviving arm.

  A massive blood-red blade formed along the limb, extending outward like a brutal execution weapon.

  The glowing blade scraped across the stone floor as the creature approached.

  Sparks scattered across the ground.

  Haruto lifted his head slowly.

  The insectoid now stood directly before him.

  Towering above the throne.

  The enormous Astron blade rose into the air like the weapon of an executioner preparing the final strike.

  Haruto understood.

  It was over.

  Still...

  He tried to move.

  But his body refused to respond.

  That was when the realization struck him.

  He had failed.

  Images flashed through his mind.

  Hana.

  Haruki.

  Haruna.

  Their faces appeared one after another.

  And in that moment...

  His mind made a final decision.

  If he couldn't win...

  Then he would at least make sure the monster died with him.

  For the people he loved most...

  He didn't hesitate.

  Not even for a second.

  Haruto gathered every last fragment of Astrons within his body.

  Then violently reversed the flow of his energy circulation.

  A suicidal technique.

  One he had once designed purely for fictional scenarios in his novels.

  And now-

  He was about to use it for real.

  A faint smile appeared on his lips.

  He wished he could see them one last time.

  But it was already too late.

  The insectoid swung the execution blade downward toward his neck.

  At the exact same moment, Haruto forced all of his Astrons to collide violently within his core.

  The explosion was about to trigger.

  Then-

  His vision blurred.

  And everything went dark.

  ...

  When Haruto opened his eyes again...

  He was standing somewhere familiar.

  A vast, endless abyss of darkness.

  The same place where he had once encountered that entity.

  And as if responding to his thoughts-

  Arms wrapped around him from behind.

  Soft.

  Possessive.

  A figure pressed her face gently against the side of his head.

  Haruto caught a glimpse of her reflection in the darkness.

  Her face was covered by a cloth mask.

  The eerie covering gave her an unsettling appearance.

  Yet the way she held him...

  Was strangely affectionate.

  Her hand slowly slid up to his cheek, cradling his face as she rested her head against his.

  It almost felt like...

  She was upset.

  "Who gave you permission to throw your life away like that?"

  Her voice trembled slightly.

  "I tolerated sharing you with them..."

  Her grip tightened.

  "But I will never tolerate losing you."

  Haruto didn't know how to respond.

  Was she genuinely concerned for him?

  Or was this simply the twisted possessiveness of something far beyond human understanding?

  Either way...

  He couldn't speak.

  Words refused to leave his mouth.

  For a moment, he simply remained there.

  Held within the strange warmth of the mysterious being.

  But just as he began to accept that warmth-

  The abyss shattered.

  Cracks spread across the darkness like broken glass.

  Reality began glitching violently.

  Fragments of the void collapsed and dissolved.

  And then-

  Haruto lost consciousness once more.

  The warm abyss vanished.

  Leaving behind nothing but an endless, silent void.

  ...