Time: 12:32 AM – Elowen Forest
Kael crouched behind a thicket, eyes glowing faintly as he stared at their torn-up camp from a distance. The firepit they had used earlier was now nothing but cold ash, and the surrounding shadows seemed too quiet almost expectant.
Beside him, Cynthia yawned for the fourth time, struggling to keep her eyelids open. She leaned against a tree, head bobbing slightly with sleep's tempting pull.
"Damn," Kael muttered, not looking away from the camp. "Could you just try to stay awake?"
"You can't blame me," she shot back, her voice drowsy and slurred. "It's not my fault you don't need sleep like a normal person. What are you, even? A vampire?"
Kael didn't answer. His expression shifted. His body tensed.
It was subtle at first a quiet pressure, like a storm was building inside his bones but then the sensation sharpened, almost vibrating through the air. A terrifying aura. It wasn't just mana. It wasn't bloodlust. It was something deeper.
It came from the soul.
His eyes widened. No time.
"Duck!" Kael barked.
"Wha...?" Cynthia barely managed to turn her head before Kael tackled her to the ground. A split second later, a slash of pure red aura tore through the space they had just occupied, cleaving forward with terrifying precision. Trees exploded in a clean, straight line a hundred meters of forest instantly flattened.
Leaves rained down in silence. The sound came after like thunder compressed into a single, bone-shaking boom.
Cynthia blinked beneath him, stunned.
Kael's breathing was slow, calculating. That attack hadn't just passed them. It was meant to kill. Instantly.
A calm, amused voice rang out behind them.
"Wow," the male said. "They actually lived through that. I guess that makes this fun."
Kael turned his head slowly. His sword hand twitched.
Two figures stood calmly on a raised hill behind them, illuminated by the red glow of drifting aura particles.
The first was tall, with blood-red embroidery across his chest. His hair was snowy white, and his eyes glimmered with a detached amusement.
Matthew Glacern.
Kael recognized him instantly. A prodigy of the northern Glacern main family. Famous for his cruel duels and reputation as a tactical executioner. But it was the other figure who made Kael's spine tense.
She didn't speak, yet the forest seemed to silence itself around her presence.
Long black hair framed a face that was too sharp, too perfect like a blade carved from ice. Her eyes were bright red, but they pulsed with a cold madness. A thin sword hung loosely from her fingers, glowing red with residual aura.
Elira Morvayne.
The Sword Queen.
She stepped forward.
Her voice cut through the air like a dagger dipped in venom. "You dodged it. Interesting. But let's see how long you can keep that up."
Kael stood, pulling Cynthia up with him. His hand rested on his sword hilt, his body already shifting into a defensive stance.
"Cynthia," he muttered, "if I say run, you run. Got it?"
Her lips pressed into a thin line. "I'm not leaving you."
"This isn't about pride," he snapped, eyes flicking back to Elira. "This is about surviving."
Elira licked her lips. "I was going to save you for later, Kael Vernier… but I changed my mind."
Kael's red eyes burned brighter. The shadows around his feet began to twist.
"Looks like the real monsters of this forest…" he murmured, "aren't the mana beasts at all."