The fight with the Crystal Ogres had set a new rhythm for their journey downward. The quiet peace of the garden floor was behind them, a precious memory stored away. Now, they moved with a single-minded purpose: to conquer the Frozen Sepulcher. They were a machine built for this, and each floor was just another task to complete.

The portal from the crystal canyon took them to the seventh floor. They stepped out into a swamp. But this was no ordinary swamp. The air was thick and green, smelling of rotting plants and strange chemicals. The water was a sickly purple color, and giant, flesh-eating lilies floated on the surface, their petals snapping shut at random. From the murky water, giant leeches with sharp teeth and scorpion-like creatures with barbed tails emerged, hissing and clicking.

Alex and Saeko didn't even need to talk. They shared a look and understood the plan.

"Don't touch the water," Alex said simply. He raised a hand, and a path of solid ice, cold enough to make the air crackle, shot across the swamp's surface, creating a safe bridge.

Saeko took the lead. As the monsters scrambled onto the ice path, she met them. She didn't waste any movement. Her katana was a blur. A quick, clean slash would cut a leech in half. A precise thrust would find the weak spot in a scorpion's armor. The wind around her wasn't for show; it helped her move faster than they could react, and it pushed their poisonous spit and stinging tails away. She was like a gardener pulling weeds, methodical and fast.

Alex walked behind her, watching her back. When a group of flying insects with needle-like mouths dove at them from the green mist, he didn't use his sword. He just snapped his fingers. A small, controlled ring of fire exploded out from him, incinerating the swarm into ash. When a giant, tentacled monster rose from the deep water to crush their ice bridge, Alex pointed a single finger. A spear of solid ice, sharper than any blade, shot from his fingertip and went straight through the monster's head. It sank back into the purple water without a sound.

They cleared the toxic swamp in less than thirty minutes, leaving a trail of dead monsters and a melting ice bridge behind them. The portal appeared ahead of them. They walked through without stopping.

The eighth floor was a maze of mirrors. Endless hallways made of reflective surfaces stretched in every direction. Their own reflections were twisted and warped, sometimes showing them as monsters, sometimes showing them dead. It was meant to confuse and drive them mad.

Alex just closed his eyes. "Don't trust your eyes," he told Saeko. "Trust your spirit."

He stretched out his divine sense, his inner awareness. To him, the maze was like a map drawn in light. He could feel the correct path, a straight line of clean energy leading to the exit. The confusing mirrors were just noisy static.

"Follow me," he said, and started walking with his eyes still shut.

Saeko followed, her hand on his shoulder. She trusted him completely. She kept her own eyes open but unfocused, ignoring the terrifying images the mirrors showed her. She focused only on the feel of his cloak under her hand and the steady sound of his footsteps. When mirror copies of themselves stepped out to attack, she cut them down without hesitation, knowing they were just magical illusions. They walked through the maze in a straight line, and in ten minutes, they were at the exit. The portal shimmered, and they moved on.

The ninth floor was a library. But the books were made of skin, and the ink was blood. Floating, ghost-like creatures called Wailing Scribes drifted between the shelves. When they saw Alex and Saeko, they opened their mouthless faces and let out a scream that was not a sound, but a direct attack on the mind. It was a wave of pure despair and forgotten memories, meant to break their will.

Saeko flinched, a memory of a past failure flashing in her mind. But before it could take hold, Alex was there. He stepped in front of her and spoke a single, clear word. It wasn't loud, but it cut through the psychic scream like a knife through paper. The word was "Peace."

A calm, golden light washed out from him, a shield for their minds. The wails of the Scribes became distant, harmless echoes.

"Destroy the books," Alex instructed, his voice calm inside their mental shield. "They are the source."

Saeko didn't need to be told twice. She became a whirlwind of destruction in the quiet library. She didn't read the books; she cut them to pieces. Her katana sliced through shelves and the horrible books alike. With every book that was destroyed, a Wailing Scribefaded away, its terrible noise stopping forever. Alex walked behind her, using small, focused bursts of flame to burn any books she missed. They turned the library of nightmares into a confetti of ash and torn paper. The ninth floor was cleared.

They stood before the portal to the tenth floor, not even out of breath. Their clothes were a little dirty, but they were unhurt. The machine was working perfectly.

"Ready?" Alex asked, his voice flat and practical.

"Ready," Saeko replied, her expression just as focused.

They stepped through the portal together, ready for whatever was next. The lower they went, the harder the fights would be. But they were a team, and they were in a rhythm. They would clear every floor, one by one, until there were none left.

The tenth floor felt different the moment they stepped out of the portal. The air was heavy and thick, and it smelled like a storm was about to break. They found themselves at one end of a wide, rocky valley. The ground was cracked and dry, and the sky above was a swirling, angry gray. In the distance, they could see the portal to the next floor, glowing faintly.

But between them and that exit stood the guardians of this floor.