It didn't take long for him to reach it. Bruce slowed to a stop right in front of it.

The red pillar of light bathed him completely, its glow painting his face in deep crimson as he stared at the magnificent sight before him. From this close, the pillar wasn't just light, it was structure. Layer upon layer of condensed mana spiraled upward, vast and endless, vanishing into the sky like a divine signal flare.

Then his eyes dropped.

At the root of the pillar,

A gemstone hovered a few centimeters above the ground.

Red.

Big, the size of a large bucket. Diamond-shaped.

It rotated slowly in place, each rotation smooth and deliberate, as if governed by an unseen will. This was the source. The heart of it all. From the stone, pure condensed mana poured outward endlessly, feeding the pillar above like an inexhaustible spring.

Bruce immediately understood.

This was the Labyrinth Stone.

The mana here…

It felt familiar.

Bruce's breathing slowed as memories surfaced, unwanted, vivid.

The core of Velmora.

The place where he first met Vaelith.

The mana here wasn't as overwhelmingly dense as that ancient core, after all, Velmora's heart was directly connected to the universe itself, but the sensation was unmistakable. Thick. Intoxicating. Enchanting. Mana so pure it seeped into the senses, blurring the line between reality and instinct.

Bruce found himself momentarily still.

Entranced.

His hand lifted unconsciously, fingers tracing the air as though he could feel the mana flowing around him.

"This mana…" he murmured softly.

Then his eyes sharpened.

'Alright,' he said internally, breaking free of the trance. 'How do I claim this Labyrinth for myself, Vaelith?'

[Drip a few drops of your blood on it to claim the dungeon for yourself.]

Bruce nodded and switched Red to its dagger mode.

The warm gauntlets covering his hands shifted, dissolving into a bright sphere of light before rapidly condensing. In the next instant, the glow hardened into a single sharp dagger etched with intricate, unfamiliar patterns. Bruce caught it effortlessly.

He brought the blade to his thumb and sliced gently.

Because he willed it, the blade cut just deep enough, no more, no less. A bead of blood welled up, thick and vivid.

He extended his hand and let the blood drip onto the hovering Labyrinth Rune Stone.

The moment the first drop touched it, the blood was absorbed.

Bruce watched closely as his blood spread across the near-transparent red surface, branching outward in thin veins before slowly evening out, as though the stone itself were drinking him in.

Once the blood fully dispersed, faint runic patterns began to surface, tunic lines forming and interlocking, ancient and precise.

At the same time, the pillar of red light flared, its intensity rising subtly but unmistakably.

Just as Bruce began to wonder whether that was all,

A system panel materialized directly in front of his face.

[Your blood has been absorbed by the Labyrinth Rune Stone.]

[The Labyrinth Rune Stone recognizes you as its master. Do you accept?]

[Y / N]

Bruce let out a slow breath.

"Yes," he said.

[Congratulations, Bruce Ackerman. You have claimed a Labyrinth!]

The instant the message faded, something changed.

Bruce felt a connection form, sudden, deep, and undeniable.

It was hard to put into words, but it was unmistakable. A sense of linkage, of authority. Similar to the bond he shared with Red, yet not quite the same.

He could feel it.

As though, with a single thought, he could command the Labyrinth Rune Stone, and it would comply without hesitation.

The sensation was strange. Unfamiliar.

But it was different from Ash.

Very different.

His connection with Ash was emotional. Instinctive. Like that of a father and son, or two partners who trusted one another without question.

This wasn't that.

Red, and now the Labyrinth Rune Stone, felt colder. More absolute. Less emotional, yet deeply bound. As if they were extensions of his will rather than companions walking beside him.

As Bruce was still sorting through the feeling, Vaelith spoke.

Though it couldn't read his thoughts, it could sense his emotions. From that alone, it understood what he was pondering.

[Perhaps you feel that way because, just like Red, the Labyrinth Rune Stone is a half-sentient being.]

"Hm…"

Bruce finally understood the strange feeling after Vaelith's words settled in.

"So that means I can evolve it, right?" Bruce asked. "Just like Red, by allowing it to drink blood?"

[Yes. Half-sentient beings evolve by doing what they are most compatible with. What they love the most.]

[For Red, it is devouring blood. But for the Rune Stone, its tastes are quite different.]

Vaelith continued calmly.

[Every Labyrinth desires one thing above all else, expansion.]

[To increase its pocket space.]

[And they do so by devouring other Labyrinths and Dungeons, claiming their pocket space as their own.]

[Your Labyrinth is no different.]

[A Labyrinth loves nothing more than consuming another Labyrinth.]

A slow smile crept onto Bruce's face, a curious glint flashing in his eyes.

"Interesting…"

At that moment, another prompt appeared before him.

[You have yet to name your acquired Labyrinth. Please assign a name.]

Bruce paused.

He thought about it for a moment, then let out a soft sigh.

"Labyrinth Rune Stone of the Abyssal Wolves Labyrinth," he said quietly. "From now henceforth, I hereby name you, Axiom."

BOOM!

The instant the name left his lips, Bruce felt something snap into place.

His connection with the Rune Stone surged, deepening, stabilizing, becoming more defined, as though the name itself had completed something that was previously unfinished.

Then,

Growl.

A low sound echoed faintly.

It wasn't something Bruce heard with his ears.

It resonated directly in his chest.

In his heart.

For a moment, he wondered if he was hallucinating.

But no.

He understood it.

That growl carried meaning.

It was Axiom's response.

[Yes, Master.]

Bruce let out a slow breath.

'What a strange way of communicating…'

He then turned his attention back to Vaelith.

"So," Bruce asked, "is the Rune Stone capable of showing me its stats?"

[Yes, it can.]

"Alright," Bruce said calmly.

"Axiom, show me your stats."

---

A/N:

Golden Ticket event is live!

Every Golden Ticket cast right now counts as DOUBLE, which helps the book climb the ranking much faster.

If you've been enjoying the story and were planning to save tickets for later, this is the best time to use them. Every ticket matters, and I appreciate every single one

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