[Labyrinth Stats — Axiom]

[Type: Labyrinth]

[Status: Claimed (S-Ranked)]

[State: Stable]

[Sentience: Half-Sentient]

[Authority Holder: Bruce Ackerman]

[Zonal Structure]

[Snow Zone (Snow Variants)]

[• Terrain: Frozen plains, ice ridges, perpetual snowfall]

[• Area: 42 km²]

[Forest Zone (Shadow Variants)]

[• Terrain: Dense forest, low light, high mana concealment]

[• Area: 68 km²]

[Mountain Zone (Moon Variants)]

[• Terrain: Steep mountains, cliffs, elevated plateaus]

[• Area: 55 km²]

[Total Labyrinth Area] - [165 km²]

[Environmental Data]

[Total Tree Count: ~3,400,000]

[• Majority concentrated in the Forest Zone]

[• Trees are mana-infused and regenerate slowly over time]

[Ambient Mana Density: High]

[• Peaks near the Rune Stone]

[• Increases during lunar cycles]

[Pocket Space Stability: 100%]

[• No spatial collapse detected]

[Inhabitant Status]

[Total Mutant Count: 0]

[• All previous inhabitants eliminated]

[• Ecosystem reset pending regeneration]

[Labyrinth Characteristics]

[• Self-regenerating terrain]

[• Capable of spatial expansion through devouring other Labyrinths and Dungeons]

[• Responds directly to Authority Holder's will]

[• Core (Axiom) integrity: Perfect]

[Current Authority Permissions]

[• Environmental Control: Limited]

[• Zone Access Control: Active]

[• Regeneration Rate Adjustment: Locked]

[• Labyrinth Expansion: Available ]

The blue-white panel hovered silently before him.

Bruce read through it once.

Then again.

Claimed. Stable. Perfect integrity.

A half-sentient Labyrinth, fully under his Authority.

On paper, it was flawless. The zones were cleanly divided, snow, forest, mountain, each vast, each self-contained. One hundred and sixty-five square kilometers of regenerating terrain, thick with ambient mana, empty and waiting. No mutants. No resistance. No instability. A cleared Labyrinth in its purest state.

And yet...

Bruce exhaled slowly.

His shoulders loosened, but the tension lodged in his chest refused to fade.

"…I've cleared this labyrinth," he muttered under his breath, eyes never leaving the panel, "so why do I feel like this?"

The words slipped out before he could stop them. His brows knit together as the unease coiled tighter, a pressure that had nothing to do with mana or danger.

"Why do I have this unsettling feeling in my heart…?"

There was nothing wrong. No hostile presence lurked beneath the terrain. No hidden fluctuation in mana density. Axiom itself reported perfect stability, and even the pocket space showed zero signs of spatial collapse. Every measurable parameter said the same thing.

Everything was right.

And that was precisely what bothered him.

Bruce dragged a hand down his face, letting out a quiet breath. He had survived long enough to trust his instincts, and they had never screamed this insistently without reason. Ignoring them had always come at a cost.

After a moment, his gaze hardened, thoughts snapping into alignment.

"…Fine."

If the feeling refused to leave, then he would at least eliminate every variable he could control.

His eyes shifted toward the rune-lit shadows stretching across the terrain.

Shadow Wolves.

The choice settled instantly. Fast. Silent. Perfect hunters of concealment and surveillance. Creatures born to move unseen.

And more importantly…

Would be one hundred percent loyal with his Mirrored Surgeon skill.

Bruce raised his hand.

Mirrored Surgeon activated without a sound.

From his spatial storage, chunks of preserved beast meat emerged and hovered around him, heavy with density and still saturated with residual mana. S-Ranked Shadow Wolf flesh. The beasts themselves were dead, but at this level, death was rarely absolute. Cellular decay lagged behind physical destruction. The cells still remembered their structure, their function, their potential. The microscopic cells were still alive.

Perfect material.

Silver surgical light bloomed softly around his fingers. He didn't rebuild flesh in the traditional sense. He rewrote it.

Cells were forced back into alignment, vitality mirrored and imposed where it should no longer exist. One body took shape. Then another. Then dozens more, each form emerging silently from the light.

Shadow Wolves stepped out of the glow, black fur drinking in the surrounding illumination, bodies low and sleek, eyes glowing faintly with restrained intelligence. Their chests rose. They breathed.

The moment awareness settled in their gaze, they bowed.

Every single one.

Perfectly synchronized.

Bruce's expression remained calm, but something flickered briefly in his eyes.

"…Good."

He continued without pause.

Time lost meaning as he worked. One hundred. Two hundred. Five hundred. A thousand. The process never wavered. Mirrored Surgeon operated with cold, absolute precision, reviving each beast not as it once was, but as something better, aligned to him on a fundamental level. Their loyalty wasn't enforced.

It simply existed.

When he finally stopped, one thousand Shadow Wolves stood before him. At a single thought, their forms dissolved into darkness, not dispersing or fleeing, but slipping seamlessly into his shadow, merging with it as though they had always belonged there.

Bruce felt it immediately, the faint, unfamiliar weight beneath his own presence.

A mobile army.

Silent guardians.

With their concealment abilities, Lily and Lucy would be far safer now. Even if something slipped past conventional defenses, it wouldn't escape unseen.

And yet...

The pressure in his chest didn't ease.

It deepened.

Bruce frowned, jaw tightening slightly.

"…It's getting worse."

Something was wrong. Not here, but somewhere else.

He didn't like hesitation when his instincts screamed like this.

Without delay, he formed another body beside him. A clone. It opened its eyes, already understanding its purpose.

"You handle the Labyrinth," Bruce said calmly. "Populate it. Restore the ecosystem. Use Shadow variants where appropriate."

The clone nodded once.

Bruce turned away.

He could have managed the Labyrinth himself. He knew that. But the longer he remained, the heavier the pressure in his heart became, subtle, persistent, impossible to ignore.

'Lily.'

The thought surfaced instantly.

Bruce didn't hesitate.

"Axiom," he said quietly, authority threading through every syllable, "send me and Ash out of the Labyrinth."

....

A/N:

I know you all hate MC using clones, that's why I haven't written Bruce creating and using those till now, but what would be the use of such ability if it's not used. So therefore, Bruce would use his clones, but you guys have nothing to worry about. I'll make sure no clones overstep their boundaries, and Bruce will treat them as subordinates. Well, I guess this should be okay instead of letting such a useful ability go to waste.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.