The next morning, Kiett woke up to a familiar scent. With some difficulty, he got out of bed and walked to the window, watching as the rain continued to fall. His bare chest showed the wound on his left shoulder—the scar left by a lethal bite from a Scarlet. He grabbed a vest and slipped it on before heading downstairs, following the aroma that had stirred him awake. As he reached the kitchen, he found his sister, Claire, frantically trying to extinguish a small fire on the cutting board where she had been chopping lettuce.
"What are you doing, Claire?" Kiett asked. Claire blushed, quickly hiding a partially burned towel.
"Kiett! You're awake! I was trying to make you a good meal" Claire replied, embarrassed, her face smudged with soot from the tiny fire.
"How did you even set lettuce on fire?" Kiett asked, laughing at the absurdity of the situation. Claire scowled at him.
"Don't make fun of me! You know I'm terrible at cooking!" Claire snapped. Kiett continued to chuckle, but their sibling banter was interrupted by a knock at the door. Kiett walked over and opened it to find Marth, Lucas, Sakura, Cosette, and Margott visiting. He welcomed them inside.
"What an amazing smell! Kiett, what are you cooking?" Cosette asked, eyes shining with excitement. Sakura, Lucas, Marth, and Cosette eagerly headed to the kitchen, only to be shocked at the sight of Claire wielding a knife with superhuman skill. Meanwhile, Kiett and Margott remained alone.
"How are you feeling?" Margott asked, gently caressing Kiett's cheek. The young man blushed and timidly placed his hand over hers.
"I've had better days… it still hurts, and I haven't been sleeping well." Kiett admitted. Margott moved closer, intertwining her fingers with his before pressing a tender kiss on his lips. Kiett kissed her back.
"I was terrified… I thought you wouldn't survive!" Margott whispered, hugging him tightly. Kiett embraced her firmly.
"I was afraid too, I thought I'd never see you both again… but I'm here, and now I know I need to strengthen my skills even more!" Kiett declared. Margott gazed at him, and Kiett noticed tears welling up in her eyes, so he gently wiped them away.
"Too much sweetness in the air, don't you think?" Claire was teased, watching the couple with mild irritation. Kiett and Margott blushed, realizing the others had been spying on them.
As Cosette examined Kiett's wound, the others prepared the table for breakfast.
"It's healing incredibly well. I have to admit, I didn't expect it to recover this quickly!" Cosette exclaimed. Kiett was surprised.
"What do you mean by that?" Kiett asked. Cosette chuckled, noticing his worried expression.
"Sorry for scaring you! The wound was deep, and those damn creatures are extremely venomous. Their poison is almost impossible to remove… but we, the sentinels managed it!" Cosette said proudly. Kiett pondered for a moment, and Cosette noticed his thoughtful expression.
"What's on your mind, Kiett?" Cosette asked. Kiett hesitated before closing his vest.
"Cosette, is there any way I could learn from the Sentinels?" he finally asked. Cosette was taken aback.
"Well, I don't know… but I could find out for you!" Cosette offered. Kiett's face lit up, and he eagerly grabbed her by the shoulders.
"You'd do that for me? I can't thank you enough!" Kiett exclaimed, shaking her excitedly. Cosette, dizzy from the sudden movement, stumbled onto the couch.
"Everything's ready! Let's eat" Claire called. As Cosette grabbed her things, preparing to leave, Margott stopped her.
"And where do you think you're going?" Margott asked. Cosette insisted she had only come to check on the wound, but Claire approached and invited her to stay for breakfast. After much insistence, Cosette finally agreed.
Seated at the table, they shared stories of how they met in their early years at the academy. Despite the lingering sadness among them, they smiled as much as their thoughts allowed.
Marth remained silent, deep in thought. He took a long sip of orange juice.
"Marth… you seem tense. Are you okay?" Cosette asked.
Marth hesitated before speaking. "I just… I can't stop thinking about how close Kiett and I were to dying." The group fell into silence, reflecting on his words.
"Marth… what exactly happened when you were attacked? Why was Kiett the only one injured?" Claire questioned. Kiett, noticing the heavy atmosphere, shot her a look of discomfort.
Marth sighed. "We were surrounded. The dragons had us completely trapped. Kiett's original spell protected us from their fire, but one of them emerged from beneath us and wounded him. I managed to kill it before it finished him off… but then the others were upon us."
A fervent fear shone in Marth's eyes as he continued. "It happened in a blink of an eye… but someone wiped out all the dragons with a single, devastating attack."
Margott and the others were stunned. Marth had kept this information to himself, trying to comprehend who or what had such immense power.
"No doubt about it! It was Queen Fiora who saved you!" Claire responded.
"No… I saw it… in the sky, riding one of those creatures—half bird, half lion… a hippogriff!" Marth revealed.
"The Queen arrived later. She found me crying… struggling to stop Kiett's bleeding, trying to save him!!" he added, his voice trembling with a mixture of fear and gratitude. The others were left speechless. Marth's revelation was truly incredible.
Meanwhile, in the Ruins of Aldelviewreld…
Once the greatest and most powerful kingdom, Aldelviewreld now lay in ruins. Its shattered walls were blanketed in snow, its colossal castle collapsed into rubble. Amidst the debris of what seemed to be the castle's main plaza, a destroyed golden eagle statue remained partially visible. A blizzard raged through the ruins, and in the distance, large torches illuminated the entrance to a massive cave.
This cave, however, was unlike any other—it was completely sealed by two enormous golden doors, adorned with eight seals from the base to the top. The area was bustling with soldiers, preparing to repel any attack from the Scarlets, who continuously tried to reach the legendary "Eighth Gate".
Before the thirteen-meter tall and seven-meter-wide doors of solid gold, a group of scholars analyzed the seals, attempting to unlock the secrets hidden behind the colossal gates.
Suddenly, a young woman rushed through the crowd, nearly knocking over several people.
"Everard!" she shouted.
"What's wrong, Woodrow? Why are you yelling?" Everard asked. Woodrow, out of breath, tried to speak.
"The portals are active! You told me to warn you when they lit up!" she exclaimed. Everard's expression turned serious, "They are coming" he stated. He dashed off, motioning for Woodrow to follow.
"Running again?" Woodrow groaned.
They reached the hilltop, where four portals glowed intensely. From three of them, four figures emerged—three men and one woman.
Everard and Woodrow bowed deeply.
"Welcome, Your Majesties—Aurora Colden, Queen of Eircloft; Ezequiel Blackmour, King of Zuria; Argus and Dracus Downmore, Lords of Vrath. May the Light of Throme guide you."
The rulers looked imposing and powerful.
"Alright, Everard—we're here as you requested. What's the situation?" demanded the beautiful Queen Aurora.
TO BE CONTINUED…