Celeste..."
I froze mid-stride, eyes widening as a blinding pillar of white light shot up into the sky.
It was Celeste without doubts.
But underneath it... there was sothing else. A faint, almost nostalgic trace of mana that sent a chill crawling up my spine.
Nevia...
Did sothing happen to her?
I clenched my fists, forcing my legs to move again. My heartbeat pounded like a drum as I sprinted across the shattered rooftops. The glow in the distance pulsed brighter and brighter—the Blood Moon Spell was still active. Even if it wasn’t as devastating as Elizabeth’s version, its power was growing by the second.
"...!"
Instinct scread, and I leapt backward just in ti.
-BOOOM!
A blast of golden fire erupted where I’d just been, obliterating the entire rooftop in a single instant. The shockwave hit , sending debris and burning fragnts flying through the air. I raised an arm to shield my face as the world turned into a storm of dust and heat.
Landing hard on the cracked ground, I groaned. I didn’t even have to look to know who it was.
"You seem rather busy, Nyrel."
Earth.
Of course.
He descended from above, landing lightly amid the smoke with a smile.
"Move," I snapped, glaring at him. "I don’t have ti for you."
"But I’m here for you, Nyr," he said, smiling. "Aren’t you happy? Co on, let’s talk a bit. Like the old days. Rember school?"
"I don’t want to talk." I shot past him, not wasting another second.
Predictably, he attacked the mont I turned my back.
Golden flas burst forward—but my arm was already wreathed in purple fire. The two forces collided mid-air, exploding into a shower of sparks that lit up the darkened streets.
"Heldora’s been restless," Earth said, his smile widening. "Angry. Hungry. He doesn’t want to let you go so easily this ti."
"Did you already forget what happened in Fangoria?" I said coldly.
His smile faltered for just a heartbeat before twisting into sothing crueler. "Fangoria? Hm. You’ll have to be more specific. A lot happened there. Are you talking about..." He tilted his head. "Elizabeth’s death, perhaps?"
-BOOOM!!
My fist slamd into him before he could finish, purple flas roaring around it. The impact cracked the ground beneath our feet. Earth caught my punch with his forearm, grunting as the heat seared through his skin—but he was smiling again, eyes wild with excitent.
"That’s it Nyr!""
Another explosion tore through the air as golden fire surged around him. I jumped back, the shockwave ripping through the nearby buildings.
"This ti," he growled, his voice distorting as his power flared, "it won’t be as easy as before, Nyr."
Flas burst from his body, molten light swirling around him. Golden scales began to crawl up his arms; horns split through his hair; his pupils narrowed into slitted lines of molten amber.
I gritted my teeth.
I really, really didn’t have ti for this shit.
***
Alvara stood silently, her golden eyes fixed on the massive pillar of white light.
She could tell imdiately that it was Celeste’s mana.
But sothing about it felt... off.
Stranger.
Her first instinct was to move but her gaze drifted to the girl lying motionless beside her.
Sephira.
She was unconscious, bound tightly by Alvara’s vines. Thankfully, Alvara had been careful not to use the thorned ones this ti; even so, the smooth vines coiled firmly around Sephira’s arms and torso, just enough to prevent any sudden movents.
She leaned slightly, watching the girl’s chest rise and fall with slow, even breaths. At least she’d cald down broken free from whatever trance had seized her earlier.
It hadn’t been easy. Alvara could still recall the strange feeling she’d sensed within Sephira—sothing alien lodged deep inside her. She’d had to reach in with her vines, forcing the foreign object out through Sephira’s mouth. Painful, yes, and she’d nearly choked, but it had been necessary.
Now, the girl looked fragile again, pale, weak, but no longer consud by that influence.
"As I said before," Alvara said quietly, her tone even, "I won’t oppose you joining my family."
It was strange saying that out loud.
For years, Alvara had done everything in her power to keep Sephira as far away from the royal castle as possible. She’d made it painfully clear she wasn’t welco near the family. Even when Tanya Teraquin herself had invited Sephira to visit, the girl refused not because she didn’t want to, but because of Alvara and Allen’s cold disapproval.
Yet things had changed.
Not because Alvara suddenly felt so sisterly affection or guilt. No, the shift ca because of Bryelle. Her sweet younger sister who’d told Alvara she wanted to et Sephira herself. And because of Amael, who had quietly asked her to show Sephira rcy to give her a chance.
So, eventually, Alvara had relented. She’d told Sephira she was free to co to the castle whenever she wished.
But Sephira hadn’t.
The scars from her past still lingered. Years of being bullied and mocked for her mixed blood had carved deep wounds in her heart—wounds that never quite healed. That sa vulnerability, Alvara realized, might have made it easier for her to be manipulated by whatever force had taken hold of her earlier.
It wasn’t Blood Arts Alvara was sure of that. This was sothing else entirely. Sothing... unknown.
Sephira stirred faintly, but didn’t speak. She just sat there, weak and silent, her eyes half-open and unfocused.
Alvara didn’t press further.
Turning away, she summoned her vines once more, and they lifted her easily from the ground. The air whipped around her as she launched forward, soaring across the ruined streets toward the direction of that blinding white light at trendous speed.
***
"Mother!"
Christina’s voice rang out as her eyes locked onto the massive pillar of white light cutting through the clouds.
She didn’t know what it was—only that it wasn’t far from the Holy Tree. And that alone ant trouble.
She and Alea had been fighting side by side, doing their best to hold back those who had fallen under the spell’s influence. But it was becoming impossible to keep up.
And now this.
Alea’s expression hardened, her amber eyes narrowing.
She didn’t know the full story behind Cyril’s spell, but she knew one thing: the Blood Moon Spell had a source, and every source could be destroyed. Most of them had assud Cyril’s defeat would break it, but no one had been able to get close enough to confirm that.
Alea had been patient up until now. She’d believed soone would deal with Cyril. But as the pillar of light pierced the sky, that patience finally snapped.
"I’ll go see what’s happening," Alea said, already preparing to move. "Stay here, Christina."
"No! Mother, I’m coming with you!" Christina cried out, stepping forward without hesitation.
"Christina..." Alea sighed softly.
She didn’t want her daughter anywhere near the chaos not until she understood what was going on herself. But Christina’s fear was there and real. She didn’t want to lose her mother too. Not again. And deep down, she also believed she might find Amael near that light.
Before Alea could respond—
"You should both stay here."
The two froze instantly.
Their bodies stiffened, hearts skipping a beat. Slowly, they turned toward the sound and when they saw who stood there, both gasped in disbelief.
"F–Father..." Christina whispered.
Alea’s breath froze. She blinked rapidly, her mind struggling to process the sight before her.
Kleines stood on the edge of a broken rooftop. His expression was gentle, almost lancholic.
The last ti Alea had seen him was during the Utopian War. He had vanished after showing her and Christina a glimpse of another tiline then disappeared, leaving nothing but confusion and grief behind.
And yet here he was, alive.
"Both of you," he said quietly, "stay here."
"W–Why?" Christina asked.
Kleines paused before answering. "Because going any farther will only get you killed. It’s reckless and dangerous. You’re safer here. Help the others... until it’s over."
"Until what’s done?" Alea asked, warily.
Kleines smiled faintly, a bitter smile. "Don’t look at like that, Alea. Everything I’m doing... it’s for our family. Ever since I thought it was over, that’s all I’ve been thinking about—the two of you."
Alea shook her head, her fists tightening. "You died. I saw it with my own eyes! We buried you!"
He tilted his head slightly. "Then tell , Alea, did you actually find my body?"
She froze.
They hadn’t.
No body, no trace.
"Beyond the Wings of Krona—those who awaken the Core Bloodline are granted sothing more. Another breath. Another Wing of Life. I didn’t even know it existed until my father used mine to bring back."
He sighed, his voice softening. "It took ti to recover. I was treated, hidden away. When I woke up... I knew I couldn’t return to you. I couldn’t rember much about my death, but I knew soone in our family had betrayed ."
His eyes darkened.
"I wanted to co back to you both. But then I t soone. Soone who told the truth about Amael... and everything that’s been happening. Going back to your side would’ve only put you in more danger. So I stayed away. I worked with them. I waited until I found a way to save our son."
"C–Connor..." Alea interrupted him. "Connor is dead, Kleines. It hasn’t even been two years. You... you knew?"
Kleines nodded slowly. "I did. And it... destroyed ."
Tears welled in Alea’s eyes.
"You weren’t there!" She cried out, her voice cracking as tears stread down her cheeks. "You weren’t there when our son died!"
Kleines’s expression wavered, the faint smile fading into sothing painful. His voice trembled slightly, breaking through the heavy silence.
"I... I thought my presence would only put you both in more danger," he said, eyes lowering. "I wanted to return, I truly did. But as long as I hadn’t saved our Amael, I couldn’t face you. If I had co back empty-handed... we would have lost our other son too."
Alea’s breath caught. Christina’s heart sank.
There was more behind those words—a deeper fear. In truth, Kleines had been wary of the Iris Project ever since his resurrection. He’d chosen to remain hidden, to use their resources and power for one goal: freeing his son from everyone’s control and most importantly, from Nyrel’s influence.
"Father..." Christina took a shaky step forward, her emotions finally breaking through her restraint. "What are you saying? Connor is dead, and Amael—"
"He is not your brother."
Kleines cut her off, his expression turning cold imdiately.
"...!"
"You’ve known this deep down," Kleines continued. "You’ve accepted it, haven’t you? The truth is hard to face but you must."
"No..." Christina whispered, her voice trembling.
"He’s a foreigner," Kleines said. "An outsider who has been parasitizing your brother’s body."
Christina shook her head violently, tears glimring in her eyes. "He—he’s not! You’re wrong! Amael has been there for when you weren’t, Father. When Mother was taken, he was the one who risked everything to bring her back safely!"
Kleines sighed slowly, shaking his head. "That’s only because remnants of Amael still linger inside that corrupted body. But tell , Christina do you really think a parasite like that would have saved Alea out of kindness? That he would have cared for you if it didn’t serve his own purpose?"
Christina bit her lip. "No... I can’t think of him like that. He’s not soone who would hurt us. He never asked for this—did he?"
Kleines’s expression softened for a fleeting mont, but his answer ca with quiet finality. "You’re blinded, Christina. Your love for Amael clouds your judgnt. Once you see his true face... you’ll understand what he really is."
A small silence lingered until Alea spoke.
"What are you planning, Kleines?"
She could tell this wasn’t just about keeping them safe. He was hiding sothing. He was preparing sothing or maybe waiting for sothing...
Kleines t her gaze calmly. "Just a bit more ti, Alea," he said, a faint smile on his lips. "Then we’ll have our pure son back. Our true son. And our family will be whole again."
Alea clenched her fists. "I’m sorry, Kleines, but I can’t stay here. As Head of one of the Great Houses of Sancta Vedelia, I have a duty to protect my people—to defend Central Vedelia."
At that, the air shifted.
A surge of mana erupted from Kleines, shimring silver light spilling from his body. The mana radiated like liquid tal, distorting the air with heat and pressure.
"I don’t want either of you to get hurt," he said softly, his eyes glowing. "So please stay back."
Alea took a defensive stance, her expression darkening. "You’re going to stop us, Kleines?"
"If I have to," he replied. "I won’t let either of you be dragged into that battle."
"Wh—where is Amael, then?" Christina asked. "He’s here, isn’t he? What are you planning, Father? When you said we’d be reunited... it has sothing to do with him, doesn’t it?"
Kleines didn’t answer. He didn’t need to.
Finally, he said quietly, "Just wait. Stay back until things unfold as they must. When the ti cos... you’ll understand everything."
Alea didn’t wait to hear the rest.
She vanished in an instant.
-BOOM!
Kleines moved just as fast, intercepting her mid-charge. Their clash sent a shockwave tearing through the air, cracking the stones beneath their feet.
He caught her arm, his grip strong, his silver aura burning against her skin.
"You’ve never beaten before, Alea," he said with a faint, almost nostalgic smile.
"Let go, Kleines!" Alea shouted, her own mana flaring wildly.
"It’s for our son!" He roared back, his voice echoing through the ruins.
Alea’s amber eyes shimred, tears welling as she struggled against him. Her heart ached—torn between anger, confusion, and a desperate longing she could no longer contain.
She couldn’t understand any of it—his motives, his words, his conviction. But one thing was certain.
She just wanted Amael back.
And she couldn’t bear to lose anyone else.
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