Die. Respawn. Repeat.

Before I can do anything else, a warning blares into my skull, making me wince from the sheer force of it. I have to blink away the spots in my eyes to even begin to parse what just happened, but when I do, my eyes widen.

[Let it kill you.]

It's a Paradox Warning. The skill construct resonates within my core, and I stare up at the volley of golden spears. I don't like the idea of letting it kill me. I don't like the idea of not pushing this fight to its limits and getting everything I can from it. Almost unbidden, I can feel something rising within me, responding to my desire to keep fighting.

The Knight. It struggles to free itself, and already I can feel its influence leaking into my Firmament; my skin hardens, gaining the glint of solid metal in odd, mishappen spots. I grit my teeth, forcibly pushing it back—I can't afford this right now. Not if I need to let myself die. I don't know how I know, but I feel certain that if I allowed it to take over, I won't die. At least not easily.

And if I let that Seed get destroyed... that's a failure that has a chance of blowing back into other Trials. As much as I'm interested in seeing that process, I don't think I'm ready for it. I need to have something that allows me to—

Oh.

I suddenly understand, and the moment I do, I trigger the skill.

Paradox Warning. I feel the skill activate, then feel the way it coils around me, asking me to complete the loop, to send back the warning that gave me this train of thought in the first place.

So I do. Sending the message just a second or two into the past doesn't cost me as much Firmament as it might have otherwise, but the cost is still staggering; I feel nearly a quarter of my Firmament supply empty out of me in a way that I almost never feel these days, leaving me to stagger and grit my teeth.