บท 61: Ch 61: Huh?

Gray stood frozen, hand still hovering over the door, his pulse thundering in his ears when, suddenly, a voice chimed in his mind:

「Gray.」

He jolted, nearly dropping his spear, his heart practically leaping out of his chest. "Ah—!" he gasped, spinning around to find… nothing. Only empty shadows stretched along the corridor, dark and silent as ever.

「It appears I've detected some sudden movement in the environment,」the system announced, its voice calm, almost cheerful, as if this were a casual observation.

Gray exhaled, his shoulders sagging as he regained his composure. "Huh? What?" he muttered aloud, his eyes scanning the hallway again. But then he noticed something strange—the corridor seemed different, like the walls had shifted slightly, narrowing, and twisting into odd angles that hadn't been there a moment ago. The space around him felt off-kilter, unfamiliar.