Chapter 34: A Fragment of the Past
The aftermath of the battle left the ruins eerily quiet. The oppressive mist had vanished, but a strange energy still lingered in the air. Reiji, Aeris, and Lyra stood at the center of the battlefield, their eyes locked on the spot where the crystal had once pulsed with dark energy.
"Something isn't right," Aeris muttered, scanning the ground. "The corruption may be gone, but I can still feel a presence... something watching us."
Reiji wiped the sweat from his forehead, his breath still heavy from the fight. "Maybe whatever was controlling the corruption isn't completely destroyed." He turned to the tank and his party. "Have you guys seen anything like this before? Other corruption fragments?"
The healer nodded, stepping forward. "Yeah. This is the third one we've found, but it's the first time we've successfully destroyed one. The others… we barely managed to escape from."
"Then you're lucky," Lyra said, crossing her arms. "These crystals are growing stronger. The next one won't be this easy."
Reiji knelt down, running his fingers over the scorched earth where the crystal had been. Something caught his eye—a small, faintly glowing shard, no bigger than a pebble. Unlike the dark, pulsating crystal from before, this fragment shimmered with a mixture of black and silver hues.
Aeris's eyes narrowed. "That's not corruption. That's… something else."
Reiji carefully picked it up, feeling a slight warmth in his palm. "Whatever it is, it survived the explosion. That means it's important."
Before anyone could respond, a system notification flashed before Reiji's eyes.
[World Event Progression: Unknown Relic Discovered]
His stomach tightened. A world event? That meant this was bigger than just a simple corrupted fragment.
"World Event?" the tank asked, clearly seeing his own notification. "That doesn't sound good."
Reiji turned the fragment over in his hand. "It means this isn't just some random crystal. We might have just triggered something huge."
Aeris sighed, rubbing her temples. "Great. Just what we needed—another mystery that could change the entire game world."
Lyra smirked. "Isn't that what we're here for?"
The tank exchanged looks with his party before sighing. "Look, we've done what we can here. If this is part of some world event, then we're out of our depth. We'll report back to our guild and see if we can dig up any information."
"Smart move," Reiji said, slipping the fragment into his inventory. "But be careful. If the system registered this as a world event, others will come looking for it too."
The party nodded before gathering their supplies and heading back toward the main city, leaving Reiji, Aeris, and Lyra alone once more.
Reiji stared at the empty ruins, his mind racing. "We need to figure out where this shard came from. If more of these exist, we need to know what they're capable of before someone else gets their hands on them."
Aeris's wings flicked in agitation. "And how do you plan to do that? It's not like there's a guidebook for dealing with ancient relics."
"There might be," Lyra said, her gaze thoughtful. "The library in the capital holds records of ancient artifacts. If this fragment is connected to something from the past, we might find our answers there."
Reiji sighed. "The capital, huh? That means a long journey... and dealing with more players."
Aeris smirked. "Afraid someone might recognize you, Mr. Fateweaver?"
"More like I'd rather avoid unnecessary trouble," Reiji muttered.
Lyra placed a hand on his shoulder. "Trouble follows you whether you want it or not. You might as well embrace it."
He chuckled. "Fair point. Alright then—next stop, the capital."
As the trio left the ruins behind, the ground where the crystal had been let out a faint, almost imperceptible pulse—one that traveled deep into the earth, reaching something waiting in the darkness below.
End of Chapter 34