The carriage wheels screeched as the convoy rolled past the gates of Heliana, the temple village nestled among white cliffs and flowing streams. But instead of the usual calm, the air carried a foul, suffocating weight. A low hum—like whispers carried on the wind—crept into their ears.
Kaedros' eyes sharpened the moment he stepped down from the front. His hand went to the hilt of his blade.
From the fog ahead, shapes twisted and writhed, shadows with hollow eyes and bodies that bent like broken marionettes. Their mouths opened in noiseless screams, dripping with black ichor.
Kaedros' face darkened.
"Bastards!!"
The rookies froze for a moment, then—
Khael narrowed his eyes, his voice calm but taut.
"...A Voidborn."
Kaen's fists ignited with flickering embers, his heart already surging.
"Let's help them!"
Rael's jaw tightened. His hand brushed the hilt of his Lumen Blade as his eyes flared green with the Verdant Mirror spirit.
