I Reincarnated to Another World as a Woman-Chapter 236: Imminent Storm

"I told you to stop thinking about that," Alex says firmly.

He steps closer, his expression sharpening. "Let me ask you this. If there’s one thing that would solve all your problems right now, what would it be?"

Theo does not hesitate.

"Mana."

His voice is steady, certain.

"A tremendous amount of mana. With that, I can heal myself, purify the mist, and kill the King."

He exhales slowly and shakes his head.

"But I don’t have that amount. Not even close."

Alex narrows his eyes slightly, thinking.

"How much is ’tremendous’?" he presses.

Theo looks past him for a moment, as if mentally measuring the dungeon itself.

"As much as the green mist in this dungeon. At least."

His gaze sharpens.

"I’ve sensed the green mist carefully. It doesn’t have a core. It doesn’t have a source. It is the dungeon."

He pauses, letting that sink in.

"The spider haelions were born from the mist. The Dungeon King is not simply controlling it."

His eyes darken with realization.

"It is the mist."

"And purifying the mist without killing the giant spider won’t clear the dungeon. The spider is merely its concentrated form."

This time, Theo is not theorizing.

He is certain.

He has been assessing everything the entire time he has been lying there, being healed. Even in agony, even half-conscious, his mind never stopped working.

And that is how he miscalculated.

He failed to see that the green mist itself is the true Dungeon King.

When he formed his plan, he only saw the spider.

He did not factor in the dungeon as the enemy.

And now, that oversight is costing them everything.

Alex ignores him completely.

He is thinking very hard.

His brows knit together. His jaw tightens. He begins pacing in small circles, one hand pressed to his forehead as if trying to squeeze an answer out of his own skull.

"Mana... mana... a huge amount of mana..." Theo mutters to himself, eyes unfocused as calculations run through his mind.

"Where can I get it from?"

Silence stretches.

Then—

Theo’s head snaps up.

His eyes widen.

"I know!"

------------------------------

"JULIAN!" Arthur shouts.

He runs forward instinctively, but a massive spider leg slams down between them, followed by a green mist spear slicing through the air. Arthur is forced to jump backward. He rolls sideways across the dungeon ground, barely avoiding being skewered.

Julian is lying on the ground.

A green mist arrow has pierced him.

He writhes in excruciating pain. Both hands clutch his head as if trying to keep it from splitting open. The green mist is attempting to invade his mind, forcing its way in, twisting and probing.

Inside, Alex’s Light is holding the line.

They are fighting inside Julian’s mind.

"Julian!" Arthur can only shout from a distance.

He cannot get closer.

All he can see is his brother thrashing on the ground, body twisting in agony.

When he sees another green mist spear forming, aimed directly at Julian’s chest, something inside Arthur snaps.

"JULIAN!"

The world turns red.

His mana surges violently.

The dozens of flying fire swords hovering around him fuse together in a blinding flash, reshaping into one massive shield of roaring fire.

He throws it forward.

It lands just in time.

The green mist spear slams into the blazing shield and burns away.

Julian is safe from the spear.

But he is still writhing in pain.

Arthur staggers.

The surge cost him everything.

His knees buckle hard and he drops to them.

He is spent.

Both in mana and in body.

He pants so violently he has to breathe through his mouth. Sweat drips from his forehead, down his neck, soaking his back. His arms tremble uncontrollably. His fingers twitch, unable to even properly curl into a fist.

The dungeon spins.

Slowly.

But surely.

Arthur begins losing consciousness.

No.

He bites down hard on the inside of his cheek.

He cannot fall asleep.

If he does, both he and Julian will die.

But his vision blurs.

His body tilts.

And he collapses fully onto his side.

Through half-lidded eyes, he sees the spider lift two massive legs.

Both aimed.

One at him.

One at Julian.

"I... need... to... move..."

His arm inches forward weakly.

He tries to reach his brother.

"Jules... dodge..."

The legs descend.

Fast.

------------------------------

The sky outside the dungeon is dark, but it is not empty.

It is filled with stars.

The moon hangs high above, almost full, pale and watchful. Its silver light spills over the shoreline, glinting off the restless waves and stretching long shadows across the sand.

The world looks deceptively peaceful.

Captain Chambers sits on a folding chair in between the gate and the resort, a steaming cup of coffee in his hand. A few officers sit nearby on crates and portable stools, quietly eating packaged snacks and drinking their own cups of hot coffee.

No one is relaxed.

Every few seconds, their eyes drift back to the stone gate.

They all know Rhaenas went back inside.

They still do not know how the five of them managed to reopen the gate.

But they did.

And they entered without hesitation.

They have been gone for a long time.

Too long.

Yet the gate has not pulsed again.

The coffee and snacks are not for comfort.

They are survival tools.

Something to keep their bodies awake when their minds are exhausted.

Captain Chambers has divided the officers into rotating groups. They take turns guarding, resting, assisting the medical staff, and monitoring equipment.

He, however, has refused to sleep.

Two full shifts.

His excuse is simple.

No one else with the appropriate rank is here to make command decisions if something happens.

No one argues with him.

He lifts the cup to his lips and takes another sip. The coffee is still piping hot. Bitter. Strong.

He lowers it slowly and glances toward the temporary clinic rooms set up inside the resort buildings.

He exhales.

No one has woken up.

Not one of the unconscious officers.

But the doctors have reassured him repeatedly.

Their vitals are stable.

All of them.

Lieutenant Cole has regained consciousness earlier and spoken to him briefly. She was exhausted and disoriented, but stable.

Unfortunately, she had nothing useful to offer.

Nothing that could help them understand what is happening inside.

Captain Chambers presses his lips into a thin line.

This mission has spiraled into the worst possible outcome.

Eight months ago, Solarys DEU lost Chief Alex Lutherford.

And now—

They might lose another chief.

Is the position cursed?

The thought unsettles him more than he wants to admit.

Suddenly, a faint rumbling sound reaches them.

At first, no one reacts.

The ocean is loud at night. The wind shifts unpredictably.

But the rumbling comes again.

Closer.

Stronger.

"You guys hear that?" one officer asks, looking around.

"Sounds like thunder. Is it going to rain?" another replies, glancing up.

The sky shifts.

Clouds roll across the moon.

Lightning flashes in the distance.

Thunder follows, louder this time, vibrating faintly in their chests.

"It is going to rain!" one officer says, almost relieved.

After everything that has been happening with the gate and the dungeon, the idea of a simple storm feels grounding. Normal.

Natural.

Captain Chambers feels a similar flicker of relief.

For once, something ordinary.

But then—

"Captain, look!"

He turns sharply.

The stone gate pulses.

Again.