Endless Evolution: Last Star Chapter 2046: Sun Under the Ground

Silvana didn’t know what had happened at the training hall, nor what awaited them at the Radiant Branch, because she had her own test to take.

The difference between her and Adam was that she had asked Gladius for this herself.

She didn’t know where they would go from Relana’s atelier, but she was sure it couldn’t be anything ordinary if Gladius was involved.

Slowly, Silvana opened her eyes.

To her surprise, they were in a simple, stone passage, a tunnel that, judging by the old stone columns and cracked bricks, was located in an abandoned area or deep underground where few people ever ventured.

The only sources of light were a few faint energy crystals placed in the corners. If there were even fewer, it would be completely dark in here.

Silvana turned to Gladius, who was standing next to her with a blank expression. He showed no emotion.

"What kind of place is this?" Silvana asked with a hint of wariness. She knew Gladius wouldn’t harm her, but she could expect anything from him.

Gladius kept his hands behind his back as he looked around, as if he regretted not having come to this place in a long time.

"Oh, Silvana, you’ve been to a place like this before, not just you, but Adam and many other people as well."

"Ah...?" Silvana was confused.

This place looked like an abandoned maze, covered in moss and roots trying to grow through the cracks in the walls.

"Well, to be honest with you, you’ve never actually been here before. Though you do know about this place."

Then, Gladius looked up as she followed him.

"Right above us is the Sun Colosseum. You’re well aware of what that is, aren’t you?"

Silvana’s eyes widened as a shiver ran through her heart.

"W-What? The Sun Colosseum?"

Now she understood what Gladius had been talking about earlier.

One of the most important battles on Adam’s path took place at the Moon Colosseum. It was his fight against Fromund at The Rule of Power.

At the Citadel, there were hundreds of arenas and thousands of training halls where Phantoms could battle each other. Even for the military, there were spacious training grounds where they could test new developments.

But among all the arenas, two stood out: the Sun Colosseum and the Moon Colosseum.

These were special arenas where battles could only take place on important occasions. The fighters’ power levels weren’t as important as the stakes involved in the outcome of the fight.

The Rule of Power, as well as the conflict between several noble families, was reason enough for this.

The Moon Colosseum was located in the ninth wing, while the Sun Colosseum was located in the first wing. Every noble and every Phantom who had fought in the arenas even a few times knew this.

These arenas were special not only because of their size, status, and importance, but also because they were the External Artifacts located at the very center of the Citadel, in the First Ring.

"The Sun Colosseum, but... why?" Silvana was confused. "What are we doing here? And... why are we in the underground tunnels? If you wanted me to fight someone, you would have sent me straight to the arena."

Gladius nodded deeply.

"Good line of reasoning, Silvana. You didn’t come here to fight, at least not yet. I want you to meet someone. Then, we’ll have a better idea of what to do next."

The glint in Gladius’s eyes showed he had plenty of ideas, but he wasn’t in any hurry to share them with her.

Silvana gulped as she looked back. She saw only darkness and perhaps a dead end, while the path ahead of them was lit, albeit faintly, by crystals.

Step.

Gladius stepped forward.

"Come on, follow me, Silvana. You’ll understand everything soon. But I’m warning you."

He glared at her over his shoulder.

"It won’t be easy. You wanted me to set up a test for you, so I’ll do it, I’ll just need some help from someone."

Silvana had no choice but to do as he said. After all, Gladius was right, it was Silvana’s wish, and Gladius was simply helping her.

...

For some time, they walked through old, perhaps even ancient tunnels, after all, they could have been there for as long as a thousand years, since the First Ring had been protected by Queen Elisa’s barrier from the shockwave of the World Wipe.

Gradually, more and more crystals appeared along their path, until their path became so bright that all they could see was a dense light ahead of them forming a distant shape.

Still, Gladius didn’t stop, and Silvana followed him.

Only when they passed through the dense light did they reach the end of the tunnels, finding themselves directly beneath the Sun Colosseum, right at its center.

Silvana’s pupils dilated as a massive, fiery orb hovering above the ground was reflected in her eyes.

This orb was large enough to serve as an arena for dozens of high-level monsters, and that was assuming they used only a fraction of its space.

The hall surrounding the fiery orb was even older than the tunnels they had passed through earlier. Still, the ancient stones remained cold despite the intense heat radiating from the orb.

"This... It’s like I’m looking at the sun..." Silvana muttered in disbelief.

Gladius nodded.

They had been here less than a minute, but Silvana’s skin had already begun to redden from the heat.

"Yes. You’re not mistaken. After all, there’s a reason why this arena is called the Sun Colosseum."

Tap.

He placed his hand on her back.

"Now, it’s time for you to meet him."

"Ah? Wait... Are you saying I have to go to that sun?!" Silvana exclaimed.

Gladius nodded with a serious expression, something rare for him.

"Indeed. Don’t worry, we’ll do this together. I’ve been here so long that it would be rude of me not to meet him this time."

He turned to Silvana.

"Now, we’re going to meet the Lost Sun, that’s the name of the Sun Colosseum’s External Artifact. Don’t be afraid of the flames. The pain is just a temporary inconvenience."

Before Silvana had a chance to collect her thoughts, Gladius yanked her by the wrist as a wave of fire surged toward them, as if to greet them.