[Consulate of Orelia]
"I swear it's true! It's all his fault!"
Vlad, clearly flustered, desperately tried to defend his honor in front of his fellow Paladins. Yet, instead of support, all he earned were bursts of laughter.
"So, let me get this straight," one of them said between fits of mocking laughter, tears streaming down his face. "You're telling us that some shirtless guy appeared out of nowhere, knocked you out with a single blow, and let the demon escape?"
Under their jeering gazes, Vlad felt a dual humiliation: the sting of his humiliating defeat and the relentless ridicule of his peers.
Amid the commotion, a calm yet authoritative voice cut through the noise.
"What's so amusing?"
A chilling silence immediately descended upon the room. Every Paladin turned toward the young man with blond hair and piercing blue eyes who had just entered. He was none other than Axael Lionhartz, the great-grandson of the leader of the illustrious Lionhartz Family.
An aura of respect and fear seemed to follow him wherever he went.
One of the Paladins broke the silence, a smirk still playing on his lips.
"Vlad lost the Vormorite we were chasing. And it seems he has a rather creative excuse."
Axael frowned slightly, his sharp gaze locking onto Vlad.
"What excuse, Vlad? Why did you fail?"
Sweat began to bead on Vlad's forehead, his throat tightening under the immense pressure.
"A-an outsider intervened… and he took the terrorist. I couldn't stop him!"
Axael narrowed his eyes.
"This outsider… you fought him? Was he powerful?"
Vlad swallowed hard.
"He… he was much stronger than me, that's for sure. I wouldn't dare say he's stronger than you, but… he was formidable."
Deep in thought, Axael turned without another word and left the room. A fleeting thought crossed his mind.
I'd like to see which of us is stronger.
[Basil and Lilith]
The pair had been walking along the forest trail for over an hour, heading toward the kingdom of Caldrimor. There, Lilith held the status of a political refugee.
The sun had dipped below the horizon, giving way to a pitch-black night sprinkled with glimmering stars.
"Damn it, I can't see a thing in this stupid darkness! How are you managing?" Basil grumbled in frustration.
"My Vormorite eyes allow me to see in the dark. But I suppose a mere human like you is completely blind," Lilith replied with a small, teasing smile.
A vein throbbed on Basil's forehead as he clenched his fists in irritation.
"Say that again, you—"
A flickering light interrupted his outburst. Lilith had lit a tree branch with a small flame of aether.
"How did you do that?" Basil asked, his curiosity piqued.
Lilith glanced at him, surprised by his question.
"Seriously? A guy who can knock a Paladin out cold with one punch doesn't even know how to summon a simple flame?"
"I don't need complicated tricks. My fists are all I need," he replied with a shrug.
Lilith sighed, exasperation evident.
Who is this guy? How can someone so strong be so clueless at the same time?
"Well… I just focus on a specific point and channel my aether. Then it comes naturally," she explained, igniting another flame to demonstrate.
Under the soft, flickering light, Basil looked up at the sky. The sight of the stars brought him an odd sense of peace. Where he came from, nothing had meaning or purpose. But here, under this celestial canopy, he felt a strange connection, a fragment of something familiar he couldn't quite name.
"Basil, do you know this world's history?" Lilith asked, curiosity lacing her tone.
He shrugged. "Aside from what you told me about your people, not really."
Lilith glanced at him, as though weighting how much to share, before taking a deep breath.
"This world was born from chaos. At the beginning, there was only destruction and desolation. But over 1,200 years ago, the Architects appeared. These superior beings infused aether into this world, giving it balance and purpose. Then, they vanished."
The story captivated Basil, and he listened intently.
"But their intervention didn't erase all problems. Four centuries later, a new event shook the world: the opening of the Shadow Rift. No one knows how or why it appeared."
"That's where your people came from, right?" he asked.
Lilith nodded. "Yes. But back then, the Vormorites were unimaginably powerful beings. They plunged the continent into a reign of terror, dominating all other races. For over five centuries, no one dared oppose them."
She paused, thinking.
"Until seven individuals, endowed with near-divine strength, rose up against the Vormorite Empire. These seven heroes gathered entire armies and waged a war that lasted a century."
"And they managed to defeat the Vormorites?"
"Yes… but it wasn't easy. Their victory was only possible by uniting their strength against the Vormorite Emperor, Qaelis."
Basil stroked his chin thoughtfully. "That emperor must've been insanely powerful, huh?"
Lilith nodded. "To this day, Qaelis is considered the most fearsome being to have ever existed, aside from the Architects. Even the Seven Heroes struggled to bring him down."
As Lilith prepared to continue, an unusual sensation filled the air, and Basil noticed it immediately.
"Lilith, stay sharp. I think something's coming…"
CLANG!
The sound of a violent clash between two blades echoed through the darkness.