Chapter 26 – Fracture of the Soul
The wind in the astral village suddenly turned cold.
The sky looked as if it had been clawed from the inside.
Lumina stood before a small, still lake. Her body trembled, not from the chill—
but from the voice echoing inside her.
Yes.
Ilior's voice.
No longer faint,
it followed her like a shadow bound by blood.
> "Open the way, Lumina. This world is no longer theirs."
She covered her ears.
But the voice wouldn't stop.
It whispered from her bones and her blood.
—
Elsewhere, Enver sat cross-legged, eyes closed.
Before him, the spell cards were laid open.
One of them glowed a deep crimson.
> "Soul Divider," he murmured.
He was ready.
If Ilior's voice had begun binding itself to Lumina,
he would have to sever the path—
even if it risked breaking her soul beyond return.
—
In the Sacred Land of Ancient Spirits,
the sky shattered.
Currents of energy cut through like daggers.
Spirits fell—frozen, silent,
dying while standing.
Ilior walked through the chaos.
His body shimmered like light forced into shadow.
The Lord of Spirits stood before him.
> "You should've remained here," he said.
"You shouldn't have harbored a traitor like me," Ilior replied.
The battle began—
not with swords, but with pure energy that cracked the earth.
Ancient magic collided,
and the spirit forest burned.
Young spirits screamed…
then vanished.
Ilior didn't care.
He wanted freedom.
For a desire buried for thousands of years:
to erase the Vermille bloodline—completely.
And he knew…
the gate was within Lumina.
—
In the human world,
Amari lay weak upon the altar.
Beside her, Serdyn was drawing the final mantra lines.
They didn't speak. Only looked at each other.
Softly, Amari whispered:
> "If this fails again, I don't want to wake up."
Serdyn kissed her forehead.
> "If you fall… I'll follow."
The spell ignited.
The tip of the magic thread reached toward the sky—
toward where Lumina was.
—
In the secret chamber of the Hellseer Council,
Archon stood before seven elite mages.
Behind him, Raegar stood silently, cloaked in robes with no symbol—
but his eyes glowed.
> "If she turns into a demon,
you know what must be done," said Archon.
Raegar did not answer.
He simply gripped the hidden spell weapon beneath his cloak.
—
Meanwhile,
Lumina began to feel the earth beneath her stir.
Not an earthquake—
but a calling.
She walked toward the lake.
Its waters reflected her face—
but the image staring back wasn't hers.
It was Ilior.
> "Your blood… flows from betrayal.
But it could become redemption.
Or revenge."
His voice pierced straight into her mind.
She shut her eyes.
But the image didn't disappear—
it grew sharper.
—
In another dimension,
Enver began chanting the soul-dividing mantra.
The spell card pulsed like a heartbeat.
But each time the spell neared Lumina's body,
something resisted.
A spirit fought back.
Enver groaned.
It felt like being stabbed from within.
Still, he didn't stop.
> "You must choose, Lumina…" he whispered from afar.
Lumina opened her eyes.
Ilior's reflection remained in the water.
But this time—he smiled.
> "No one can save you but yourself."
And for the first time,
Lumina did not reject his voice.
She stood.
Her body began to emit a faint aura.
Enver's eyes widened.
His mantra was repelled—
his soul cracked slightly.
> "No…
Am I too late?"
—
Beyond the ancient spirit dimension,
the Spirit Lord was cornered.
Bloodlight spilled from his wounds.
He knew—
they had lost.
Other spirits began to fall.
One by one.
None could stop Ilior now.
> "If he escapes…
history will repeat itself,"
the Lord whispered.
> "But this time,
I will not lose,"
Ilior breathed.
And from the fracture in the spirit sky,
a hole appeared.
Ilior paused.
He gazed upon it—
his smile widened.
Far away,
Lumina too saw the small crack in the sky.
She could feel it.
> "This… is the path."
But just as she moved forward,
something stopped her.
A faint voice.
Not Ilior.
Not Enver.
But her mother.
A mantra Amari once planted inside her when she was a child—
> "If one day you can no longer recognize yourself,
take one step back.
Listen to your heart.
If it still beats for someone else…
then you are still human."
Lumina clutched her chest.
Her body trembled.
Ilior's voice began to fracture.
> "You're mine, Lumina…!"
But Lumina didn't answer.
She closed her eyes.
And the sky above her ignited.