Killed Me? Now I Have Your Power Chapter 420: Screaming Mist

Kaden and Rea gazed intently upon the Frosted Bridge. They positioned themselves atop the final peak they had overcome. Astonishingly, this turned out to be the very first mountain.

Even more astonishing was how the bridge ripped through the fabric of reality and materialized right before their eyes without warning.

It seemed as though the bridge had existed all along, merely concealed from view until the eight mountains were fully traversed.

Kaden observed this with curiosity.

That persistent unease about overlooking a crucial detail in these Eight Mountains simply wouldn't fade. The sensation unsettled Kaden deeply.

Internally, he let out a sigh, scheming silently as he inspected the bridge.

Suspended mid-air without any support, the Frosted Bridge hovered above a endless abyss of swirling shadows that sent shivers racing down the spines of both Kaden and Rea.

The bridge remained partially invisible. Only its silhouette was discernible. A swirling, wailing, twisting fog concealed it, parting just enough to form a narrow entrance resembling a doorway.

The phenomenon beckoned Kaden and Rea to step inside and cross the bridge. It felt almost polite in its invitation.

"We planned to go in regardless," Kaden remarked with a slight frown, "but this mist's eagerness is making me hesitate now."

"It's unsettling," Rea whispered, "yet as you pointed out, we have no alternative."

"You don't appear frightened, Rea."

"Fear has shadowed my every moment, like a child refusing to leave its mother's side." Rea responded, glancing at him briefly, "You grow accustomed to what haunts you endlessly. Surely you understand that."

"Let's call it that." Kaden replied curtly.

"Moreover," Rea pressed on, "why speak as though fear grips you?"

She fixed him with a sharp look, her eyes flashing momentarily,

"This mist holds no terror for you."

Kaden cracked a smile at last. "Indeed. But lacking fear doesn't mean I'm rushing to plunge in. It just doesn't appeal to me right now."

"Are you some petulant child?"

"In a way, yes. I'm merely 17."

"Must you always retort?"

"Well, you did pose the question."

Rea fell silent in response, aware that Kaden would keep bantering until she did.

With a chuckle, Kaden tilted his head side to side, producing sharp cracking sounds that echoed loudly.

Then, he directed his gaze toward the surrounding mountains. His forehead creased, his expression one of deep contemplation.

"Come on, Kaden." Rea prodded him with her elbow before marching ahead, the sharp clinks of her rings resounding clearly.

Kaden gave a faint nod.

He extended his hand, directing his finger toward the ground. A slender strand of blood, fine as thread, trickled from it and burrowed into the mountain beneath.

Afterward, Kaden retrieved the remains of the sense-taste monster from his storage ring, the one he had faced on the fifth mountain.

This creature featured a long, forked tongue lined with toothy mouths. Each mouth contained its own tongue, which in turn bore another mouth, continuing in this fashion.

Releasing the corpse, Kaden let it drop precisely where his blood had seeped into the earth. Then, he murmured a final command before striding off to join Rea.

The monster's form twitched violently, its once-red hide transforming into a deep, pure crimson.

Its numerous mouths gaped open, as if grinning widely.

The image was utterly terrifying.

Moments later, it vanished, trailing the bloodline back to its newfound lord.

...

Positioned at the mist's threshold, Kaden and Rea exchanged glances, words unspoken between them.

Rea shut her eyes and released a slow breath. One vital lesson had emerged from their journey across the eight mountains.

It involved harnessing her ability in a way she had never considered before.

Essentially, she applied her mastery of instilling fresh terror in others upon herself.

Given her power that amplified her strength with rising fear, Rea could now perpetually boost her capabilities.

Her sole constraint lay in her Will. Indeed, there existed a threshold to the volume or potency of dread she could endure before shattering, left frozen and helpless.

Even so, that threshold stood impressively high, forged from her history of clashing might against a goddess.

Thanks to this, Rea infused herself with four fresh waves of profound terror.

Her strength surged exponentially, prompting Kaden to shoot her a look, secretly taken aback by the potent auras radiating from her.

At that instant, Rea's power nearly matched Kaden's during his Master rank. Such equivalence carried immense weight.

"If you're prepared," Kaden stated, redirecting his focus ahead, "then we proceed inside."

Drawing in a profound breath, he caught the faint wail of some distant entity. His brow knit in annoyance, he muttered a curse, then advanced with a single step into the misty portal.

Rea trailed right after, enveloped in a protective surge of energy that draped over her like armor.

Within her thoughts, Einar urged her onward, her tone laced with subtle strain.

Thus, the mist engulfed them both.

Enveloped within, Kaden and Rea sensed the fog pressing in from every direction, adhering to them like damp perspiration.

Scanning their surroundings revealed only the fog itself. Yet what evaded sight assaulted their hearing and touch.

Gradually, the purpose of the eight mountains dawned on the pair.

Without a word, they pressed onward—or believed they did—through the haze, detecting the bridge's solid, icy surface beneath their feet.

The engaged duo lost track of time spent traversing, yet their vista remained unchanged.

As they continued, clarity emerged from the impressions their senses relayed. Eventually, they detected emanations seeping from the encircling mist.

These weren't voices exactly, but intrusive ideas. Put differently, random notions began infiltrating Kaden and Rea's minds.

The intrusion proved unnerving, halting them momentarily.

The ideas brimmed with bizarre chaos: yells, sobs, and clashing voices all vying to express themselves, only to drown in the cacophony.

Kaden's formidable and distinctive Will shielded him from disturbance. The deeper he delved, the nearer he sensed himself to a revelation.

Rather than resist, Kaden permitted the thoughts to flow unchecked through his consciousness, confident they posed no real threat. Or at minimum, breaching his defenses would prove challenging.

Rea's experience mirrored his yet diverged uniquely. Bolstered by her augmentations, she repelled the intrusive notions with ease.

Her eyelids remained shut, her concentration profound as she sought sensations accessible only to her.

"Do you hear them?" Kaden inquired softly, breaking Rea's immersion abruptly, while the mist clawed insistently at his form, yearning to envelop him.

"I have." Rea replied, her tone edged with vexation, "though likely not as you did. My abilities let me sense the dread and grief woven into those thoughts. It's astonishing how each fear varies wildly, yet shares some profound, elusive thread."

Rea inclined her head, stirring the mist into a furious whirl,

"I'm on the cusp of unraveling that shared essence in their terror. Once grasped, I suspect we can dispel this fog by exploiting it."

Her declaration provoked the mist, which responded with a piercing wail, unleashing a minor tempest that battered against Rea.

She deflected it deftly, tutting in irritation.

"A brilliant strategy," Kaden remarked at length, curiously untouched by the onslaught, "though I doubt we'll need such measures."

Raising his hand, he swept it through the vapors, as though partnering in a fluid dance.

Kaden sealed his eyes, deliberately dulling his familiar senses. Intuition told him this approach was correct. As if conventional perception wasn't meant for this mist...

...but an alternative awareness.

Embracing that, and led by the fog's guidance, Kaden at last comprehended the source of his odd familiarity with it.

A grin spread across his features.

"This is quite the revelation." He murmured.

"Revelation? What do you mean?" Rea pressed.

Kaden offered no reply. He now grasped why his probes into the mist evoked the touch of a sentient being.

He understood too why that faint, playful laugh had once emanated from it.

Above all, clarity struck regarding his subtle aversion to the mist.

The truth had stared him in the face all along.

With this insight came the recollection of Nocthar's words about the entity lurking beneath the bridge.

These hints, combined with the subtle pulse of his emerging sense, coalesced into a singular theory.

"You're spot on, Rea," Kaden affirmed.

At the same moment, an inner force within him roused, as though recognizing its moment had arrived.

"This mist embodies fear itself. This mist lives and breathes." He went on, his pulse quickening with abrupt thrill, "All stemming from the fact that this mist..."

Kaden halted, and Rea instinctively held her breath,

In that instant, a cherished Trait of his quivered.

[Soulbrand is stirring up.]

Kaden's smile widened, as Rea's gaze widened in alarm, scanning the surroundings with heightened fervor.

[Soulbrand is reacting.]

[Soulbrand is reacting.]

[Soulbrand is—!]

The Will announced.

[You have discovered the Dungeon: Dwelling of Souls.]

The entire Frosted Bridge erupted in radiant brilliance, then gradually descended toward the yawning void of Darkness below.

[Dungeon Danger: Epithet~Elderling.]

Kaden burst into laughter amid the plunge, while Rea stood too stunned to utter more than:

"Damn Kaden!"

—End of Chapter 420—