The next gate was nestled deep in the crumbled steps of Vaen's old palace. Half-sunken in crystal vines, it was quite unlike the typical gate. Cracks ran through the arch like veins, glowing hot with red embers beneath the surface.
There were deep pulses resonating from it—not warmth, only rage tightly bound and barely contained.
Gate 3: Trial of Fury
"To cross it, one must face the moment that their heart burned brightest and did not act."
Ren steeled himself and took a step before anyone started up.
"I have one."
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Inside Gate 3 - The Trial of Fury
He stood in a narrow hospital hallway. Yumi's sister was screaming. Doctors were spouting incomprehensible gibberish. Mei had just been wheeled in for emergency surgery.
He remembered how his hands curled into fists and how he failed to speak out, demand answers, punch something, or shout.
He just stood there.
Useless.
Now the memory-the hallway began to crack apart with a twist and elongation like a nightmare.
Floor cracked. Before him took shape a closely familiar shadow but of fire, fists held tight, eyes burning.
It spoke in his voice:
"You call yourself a man who protects? You let fear chain you."
They fought-not just physically, but emotionally. Ren had to relive every moment he swallowed his voice, every second he numbed himself.
He did not win by power.
He won when he screamed-the scream he never uttered, the raw, ugly sound that overcome the false hallway into pieces.
[Rage Purged-Suppressed Emotion Reintegrated]
[Emotion Surge: +13% - Fury, Release]
[Skill Unlocked: Iron Pulse - Temporarily hardens body against damage during moments of intense emotion]
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Ren stumbled through the gate, panting heavily. Steam wafted from his back as if he had walked through fire.
Yumi reached out to steady him. He leaned shamelessly against her.
"I hate that day," he whispered, "but I hated myself more for not being there."
"But you're here now," she said and kissed him on the cheek.
For the first time, Ren not only felt something but allowed it to show.
[Bond Sync - Ren & Yumi at 45%]
New Dual Skill Unlocked: Resonant Guard – Shield that forms when one partner is under 30% HP
______________________________________________________________________________________________
The gate didn't just strengthen their bond; it also cracked something in Vaen.
From the tower of the palace, a thin scream echoed high-pitched, digital, and somehow sorrowful.
The Null King stirred.
[SYSTEM ALERT: Local Instability – Emotional Frequency Surpassing Safe Thresholds]
Sub-Zones Awakening: Old Palace Ruins (Tier III Danger)
Enemy Presences Detected: Hollow Revenants – Former Vaen Knights, Emotion-Eaters
Shadows began creeping from the edges of the broken palace.
"Looks like we've got company," Roland said, drawing a blade he found from a fallen statue.
Lyra readied a barrier spell. "It's about time things got ruckus."
[Current Emotion Levels]
Ren: 28%
Yumi: 22%
Alistair: 19%
Lyra: 17%
Group Sync: Active
It was no longer a matter of survival.
This was a revolution of feelings now,
And the enemy knew it was coming.