[Chapter 154. Another Node]

Searanox stood motionless outside the dungeon entrance, his black coat rippling in the valley breeze. The dying light cast the forest before him in shades of deep orange and shadow, painting the landscape in hues of fire and blood. Three Intermediate Travel Drones hovered silently above the rocky cliff edge, their metallic forms casting distorted reflections in the fading light. The crunch of loose stones behind him announced the arrival of the four women, their footsteps hesitant on the uneven ground.

"You took your time," Searanox said without turning, his voice cutting through the evening air. "But efficiency isn't what I expected from you today." He pivoted slowly, his gaze sweeping over the group as they emerged from the dungeon exit, their faces pale and their movements stiff from exhaustion. "We're relocating. I have something to test, and your participation is required."

As he finished speaking, the first drone drifted closer, its surface gleaming in the twilight. Searanox mounted the ATV-like craft in a single fluid motion. The drone adjusted slightly beneath his weight, waiting patiently as the others approached their own rides.

"What do you mean 'test'?" Vanessa asked, her voice tight as she walked toward her assigned drone, her eyes never leaving his face. The other two drones moved to position themselves beside Lana, Sarah, and Carmen, who were already mounting with practiced reluctance.

"It won't involve combat," Searanox replied, his expression unreadable. "Your mere presence will suffice."

Vanessa glanced at the others, who had already settled onto the drones or were in the process of doing so. "That's not reassuring."

Lana spoke up from behind, her voice flat and pragmatic. "Vanessa, if he intended to harm us, it would have happened already. It's not as if any of us—nor all of us together—could prevent unwanted advances." Her voice trailed off, leaving the implication hanging in the air.

Sarah nodded in agreement, adding, "You should be grateful he hasn't forced us to..." She stopped mid-sentence, the words catching in her throat as the color drained from Vanessa's face at the unfinished implication.

Vanessa settled onto the drone behind Carmen, her posture rigid as the craft hummed beneath her. Carmen caught her gaze for an instant, something unreadable passing between them before Carmen turned away. Vanessa was still fighting against the chains of their reality, while the others had already learned to bear their weight. Carmen had observed how Sarah and Lana had bent more completely to Searanox's will. She suspected they had offered themselves to him—of Sarah, she was certain. It would explain his treatment of them, the subtle gradations in his contempt. Carmen understood the cold logic; she might have done the same herself, but a knot of fear and ingrained shyness kept her frozen, unable to take that step.

The sudden lurch of the travel drone tore her from her thoughts. They lifted off, rising above the trees, the forest canopy spreading out below them in a dark, undulating sea. Their destination—the black tower—stabbed at the sky ahead, a shard of black stone against the dying light. No one spoke as they flew; the only sounds were the hum of the drones and the wind whistling past their ears.

They descended sooner than expected, the tower still distant on the horizon as they broke through the treetops. Below, a familiar structure emerged: a ring of ancient stones surrounding a central, angled monolith. It was one of the land nodes, a territorial claim point, just like the others scattered around the tower.

Carmen's gaze lingered on the stones before she turned toward Searanox.

"I would like to know how the claiming works if there are multiple people involved," he said, his voice cutting through the drone's fading hum. He seemed to read her thoughts.

"We will also gather some materials while we are inside," he added, not as an answer but as an addition. His drone dissolved under him, particles of light scattering like dust motes as his boots struck the forest floor with a soft thud.

Now all four of them stared at him, their expressions a mixture of apprehension and calculation.

Their drones dissolved beneath them in showers of blue sparks, the brief weightlessness making Lana gasp. Sarah adjusted mid-air, landing with controlled grace that contrasted with Vanessa's clumsy thud. Carmen simply folded her legs, absorbing the impact. All four stood now on the forest floor, their boots sinking slightly into the loose soil as they stared at Searanox.

"Once the Guardian is defeated," Searanox continued, as if their brief fall had been insignificant, "one of you will claim the node. Then we move to the next to test whether all of us are restricted from entering."

He stood beside the angled monolith, his black coat absorbing the dying light until he seemed part of the deepening shadows. When none of them approached, his fingers tapped impatiently against his thigh. "Your hands. Now."

Vanessa stepped forward first, placing her palm against his upper arm as if touching something dangerous. Lana followed, then Sarah, with Carmen bringing up the rear, her fingers trembling slightly against his coat. Searanox placed his hand flat against the monolith's weathered surface.

The world dissolved.

Vertigo seized them as reality stretched thin, colors bleeding together before resolving into the familiar obsidian chamber. Golden veins pulsed through walls that seemed impossibly distant and claustrophobically close at the same time. All four stumbled as their balance adjusted to the sterile, metallic air of the node space.

"Intruder detected: Summoning Node Guardian."

Searanox had already acted. Six Intermediate Offensive Drones materialized around him, their metallic bodies gleaming under the rhythmic pulses of golden light. His drones hummed with rising power.

The Guardian formed before them—a Level 20 Magitech Golem assembled from pulsing golden energy, its dark armor plates clicking into place with sounds like grinding stones.

Six violet beams erupted simultaneously, striking the still-forming golem with pinpoint accuracy. Metal screeched as components tore free, sparks cascading through the sterile air like falling stars. The Guardian's legs buckled first, its massive weight crashing to the polished stone with an impact that sent tremors through the chamber floor. Arms detached next, landing with metallic clangs that echoed in the sudden silence.

The golem lay in pieces, its destruction so complete it seemed more like deconstruction than combat. Searanox's Offensive Drones vanished, replaced by Cargo Drones that descended upon it.

The four women stood in the pulsing golden gloom, their faces illuminated in brief flashes as the chamber's veins brightened. They had witnessed only a blur of motion—golden light forming into shape, violet strikes, then the ground-shaking impact of something massive collapsing. Through it all, Searanox remained motionless, his expression unchanged as he supervised the methodical disassembly of his defeated foe, as if dismantling a clockwork toy rather than a level twenty guardian.

The glow behind him intensified as the golem's armored plates separated, exposing an amber sphere within its chest. Another sphere was revealed, then another.

"If there's something you need to do, this place exists outside of time," Searanox said, his voice flat as he unfolded a chair.

All four stared at him, confusion warring with fear. Lana broke the silence, her gaze sweeping the empty chamber. "What do you mean? There's nothing here."

A sigh escaped him. "You can sleep, eat, meditate. Whatever. There's no urgency." He gestured to the core as a cargo drone secured it. "We just claim this node. With luck, the others too. There's no need for you to wait outside, wasting time."

Sarah scanned the void. "So we're... what? To sleep here?" Confusion colored her voice, but beneath it, something else sparked—curiosity, maybe even excitement at the novelty.

"It doesn't matter what you do," Searanox said, settling back in his chair. "For now, I'm going to sleep."

The four women stood in the sterile silence as Searanox closed his eyes, the drones still working behind him, dismantling the massive construct.

"This is insane," Vanessa whispered. "A timeless pocket dimension, and he's taking a nap."

Lana watched the golden veins pulse in the walls. "Insane or not, it's better than being hunted out there."

Carmen's mind raced, connections forming. "Time dilation... that's what he meant." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "Days of training compressed into hours."

"Not hours," Searanox said, his eyes still closed as he answered. "Seconds... And yes, I will sleep. Haven't had a full night's rest in days."