章 180: Chapter 180: System's Sixth Level - 4

Elio stumbled several times, his legs numb from the cold, but each time he got up and kept running.

The icy air burned his skin, his muscles screamed in protest, every movement a battle against his own body.

Resistance: 100/500... 80/500... 60/500...

The numbers flashed in his book, a grim countdown to potential failure. Fear began to settle in his stomach, a cold, heavy weight that threatened to drag him down.

What if he didn't make it? What if he had waited too long to make this decision? The idea of failing, of dying here, alone in this frozen tunnel, terrified him to his core.

But it wasn't just about him. He thought of his family, his friends, the entire city that depended on him... Even the ungrateful ones, he couldn't fail them. Not now, not like this. The weight of their expectations pressed down on him.