In the heart of a forsaken realm, buried beneath layers of rot and madness, stood a throne—twisted, ancient, forged from the bones of fallen kings and bound in the sinews of regret.
Upon it sat a figure draped in writhing black robes, shadows pulsing with malignant life around him. The air was thick with decay, the silence broken only by the low groans of sothing breathing within the walls.
Before the throne, a man knelt—body trembling, sweat soaking his tattered robes. He dared not raise his head.
The figure spoke, voice colder than death itself.
"Hmph. Trash. Failure after failure. Do you understand how many chances I’ve given you?"
"M-my Lord, I—I beg you," the man whimpered, forehead scraping the blood-soaked floor. "One last chance... please... just—one—"
"Silence."
The word was soft. But it fell like a guillotine.
The throne figure’s fingers twitched. Dark energy spiraled toward the kneeling man—piercing him with needle-thin tendrils. In the next breath, his body convulsed violently. Skin tore open like wet paper, bones shattered from within, and a torrent of black blood erupted as his face twisted in an eternal scream. His remains were unrecognizable—flesh turned to ash, bones lted like wax.
The figure exhaled slowly, disappointed. "Even dying, you’re pathetic."
From the shadows, another stepped forth—taller, composed, cloaked in a veil of obsidian armor, a featureless mask concealing his face. He knelt soundlessly, awaiting command.
"You are the last one I trust," the throne figure said. "Do not fail ."
"Yes, my Lord."
"The Emperor... will return." His voice dipped into reverence—an eerie, hollow calm spreading across the room. "Four, maybe five years at most. That is the ti we have left to prepare. And here we are... exposed to the world because of these failures."
His tone grew darker, more venomous. "The Empire, the Magic Tower, the Holy Kingdom, the Middle Kingdom, and even Arcadia Academy... they all know sothing now. Their eyes have turned."
He gestured behind him—and as if answering a silent command, five bodies were dragged into the chamber by tendrils of corrupted flesh. Their identities were clear—representatives sent in secret from the continent’s major powers. Bound, beaten, gagged. So still breathing. Barely.
"They sent spies. Rats. Each believing they could outmaneuver us."
With a flick of his hand, the first man—marked with the sigil of the Empire—was suspended midair.
"Your Empire... so proud. So arrogant."
The man scread as his limbs twisted backward with audible cracks, his insides pulled out through his mouth in a fountain of gore. He was tossed aside like at.
The next—bearing the sigil of the Magic Tower—was set ablaze in cursed fire, the screams muffled as his body lted into the floor.
The Holy Kingdom’s agent was forced to drink liquified blood crystal—his form swelling grotesquely before exploding in a rain of corrupted flesh.
The Middle Kingdom’s emissary simply vanished—sucked into the floor by a void that closed behind him with a wet squelch.
And finally, the Arcadia Academy’s spy.
Young. Terrified. Weeping.
"Even children now. The Academy is desperate," the throne figure mused.
He snapped his fingers. The boy’s soul was ripped from his body—screaming, clawing, as it was caged within a crystal orb and fed into the throne itself.
All five were gone. Nothing left but stains.
The masked subordinate remained kneeling.
"Now," the throne figure said, conjuring a blood crystal unlike any before—larger, purer, and alive, its glow casting blood-red patterns onto the stone. "Take this."
The subordinate reached out and received it with trembling reverence.
"My Lord... this one is not for a human, is it?"
"No. If a re worm fused with a fragnt could level half a province... imagine this embedded in the mythical beast that slumbers atop the pyramid of Beastridge Mountain."
A pause. The chamber itself seed to hold its breath.
"There will be guests—heroes, champions, soldiers—from every corner of the continent. Let them gather. Let them believe this is just another expedition."
The figure on the throne leaned forward, eyes burning through the void.
"Then... let the mountain run red. Let them witness the rebirth of despair."
He laughed—slow, low, rising like a storm.
"Let this massacre be our offering... and our announcent."
He stood, spreading his arms wide.
"We have returned."
***
As the sun dipped beneath the horizon, the caravan of carriages ca to a halt beside a quiet grove. The students of Arcadia Academy disembarked, stretching sore limbs and shaking off the stiffness of travel. Warm fires were lit, the scent of roasted at and herbs wafting through the crisp night air as everyone settled down for a shared dinner.
Luca found himself surrounded by familiar faces—Aiden with his usual quiet calm, Lilliane nestled close beside him, Kyle loudly cracking jokes, Eric tossing in dramatic flair, and Aria seated with a graceful poise that contrasted the chaos around. Even Aurelia eventually joined in, plopping down beside Luca with a yawn and a playful glare for disappearing earlier. Laughter echoed as the group exchanged theories and wild guesses about what kind of contracted beast they might receive tomorrow.
"What do you all think you’ll get?" Kyle asked enthusiastically, his eyes sparkling as he bit into a grilled skewer. "A gryphon? A thunder lion? Or maybe sothing cute and deadly?"
Lilliane humd thoughtfully. "Sothing graceful and fast. Like a silver lynx."
"I’ll be fine as long as mine has wings," said Eric, stretching dramatically. "Nothing says style like an aerial entrance."
Aiden rely nodded. "I don’t mind. I’ll accept whatever cos."
"Sothing divine," Aria said with a soft smile. "A beast that carries both blessing and burden."
They all turned to Luca, but he only shrugged, smiling faintly. "Let’s see what fate decides."
As the fire crackled and chatter continued, Luca quietly stood up and excused himself. He wandered past the grove until he reached a still lake bathed in moonlight. The surface shimred like silver glass, a perfect reflection of the sky above. The peaceful solitude pulled at his thoughts, grounding him yet stirring sothing deeper.
He looked across the water, and unbidden, a mory surfaced—those calm, piercing eyes of a purple-haired woman he t weeks ago at the Academy lake.
I haven’t seen her since... it’s been three weeks. Strange.
As he stood, lost in that thought, footsteps approached softly behind him.
"You’re here alone?" ca a gentle voice.
Luca turned. "Saintess Aria," he said in mild surprise. "Just taking in the atmosphere."
She stepped beside him, her gaze also drawn to the moonlit lake. "It’s beautiful," she murmured, then glanced at him with a small smile. "Everyone’s happy now that you’re awake."
He tilted his head. "Hmm?"
"I an it," she said more firmly. "These past three weeks, I’ve been with them—your friends. They never stopped worrying. Every day, they’d ask how you were doing. They waited for you. You’re... lucky to have people like that."
Luca looked away, his eyes reflecting the moonlight, shadowed with sothing softer. "Friends... They really are good friends."
She seed to notice the quiet sadness behind his words, but chose not to probe further.
After a mont, Luca hesitated, then asked, "Back in the carriage this morning... it seed like you knew already."
He scratched his head awkwardly, trying to sound casual. Damn it, I can’t sleep tonight if I don’t get this cleared up.
Aria blinked, her expression shifting. "Oh, um—yes. As I said, I’ve heard so much about you these past weeks, it felt like I already knew you."
Then, almost too quickly, she added with a small nervous laugh, "D-do you know from before, then? You reacted the sa way..."
Now it was Luca’s turn to freeze, laughing awkwardly as he replied, "Ah... well, you’re the Saintess. Of course I’d recognize you... hehe."
A silence stretched between them, no longer awkward, but heavy with the words unsaid.
Then Aria took a breath and smiled. "We should head back. The carriages will start moving again soon."
Luca nodded, and together, they turned toward the flickering lights of the campfires in the distance.
Yet, as they walked side by side, both thought the exact sa thing in unspoken unison:
As I thought... he/she didn’t know beforehand.
**
In the middle of the night Aria woke up breathing heavily eyes filled with fear "Huh, huh,...no that can’t be,.....what was this divine revelation"
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