The skeleton's robes were long decayed, and a rusted sword lay near one brittle hand. A pendant still hung from its neck, Ace vaguely remembered from the novel. A wandering alchemist. Exiled from the Imperial College. Laughed at for studying "miasma theory."
But he had found something.
At the base of the skeleton's ribcage sat a small, sealed vial.
Its liquid shimmered like moonlight trapped in glass — swirling faintly even though the air was still.
The Gloom draught.
Beside it was a piece of torn parchment, stained, brittle, and burned at the edges.
Ace knelt, picking only the potion up with care.
Ace's fingers tightened slightly around the bottle, then turned to his guards.
"Seal the chamber," he said. "No one enters it without my permission. Burn the moss outside. I want no one sniffing this place out after we're gone."
The warriors nodded and began the process immediately.
Ace stood there a moment longer.
Looking down at the skeleton, the potion… and the half-letter.
The hero had no idea what he found here.
But Ace did.
And he would not make the same mistake.
The air was still as death, but Ace stood tall beneath the jagged stone ceiling, the Gloom draught glimmering in his hand.
Its glow pulsed faintly now, almost like it was reacting to his presence.
He didn't hesitate.
With one smooth motion, he pulled the stopper and drank it in a single gulp.
The liquid was cold — unnaturally so — and slid down his throat like melting silver. For a moment, nothing happened.
Then came the shock.
A deep, burning surge erupted in his chest — not pain, but intensity — like his veins had been lit with arcane fire. He staggered slightly, closing his eyes as the magic coursed through his body.
Muscles tightened. Nerves screamed. His senses exploded outward.
It was as if the world had sharpened.
Even the air had weight now. His mana pulsed more clearly than ever, and a part of him could already feel the growth beginning. Like something dormant inside him had just been forcefully awakened.
"…As expected," Ace murmured, flexing his fingers. "Crude. But effective."
He glanced at the empty vial and dropped it beside the skeleton, letting it shatter into pieces.
"One year of accelerated growth. One year of surpassing even what this body was destined for."
The potion has fused with the outer layer of his mana core, further strengthening it.
He turned toward the cave's exit, his voice low and confident.
"And after a year… I already have a way to supply it with miasma"
He left without looking back.
The Master-ranked warriors followed him in silence, sensing something had changed — but knowing better than to ask.
The Next Morning
Ace's convey departed early, leaving the sleepy village behind. The villagers watched from windows and doorways, whispering prayers that the Thornevales never returned.
The road ahead was smoother now — long, winding highways carved through low hills and mist-draped forests.
For the next two days, the convoy moved without pause.
The air was different around Ace now — charged, magnetic.
The knights noticed. The sages noticed. Even Lucy noticed. She couldn't describe it, but something about her brother seemed… larger. More imposing. Like the world itself responded differently to him.
At noon.
The convoy had paused for lunch.
Thornevale banners fluttered in the light breeze as knights stood watch among the trees. Horses grazed nearby. A few low-ranking servants bustled between wagons, laying out meals under canvas tents.
In a quiet clearing not far from the main group, Ace and Lucy sat beneath a towering pine. A small spread of roasted meat, travel bread, and fruit was laid neatly on a cloth.
Lucy ate quietly at first, stealing glances at her brother between bites.
She had been watching him closely these last two days — not out of suspicion, but something closer to fascination.
Before, her brother always carried himself with aloof pride.
But now… it was more than pride. It was weight.
He walked among Master-ranked warriors and spoke to Sages as if they were merely servants. He didn't lower his head, didn't soften his tone, didn't even acknowledge the power they held. And the strangest part?
They accepted it.
They deferred to him.
It was as if they sensed something she couldn't see.
"Brother," she said quietly, breaking the silence.
Ace didn't turn. "Speak."
She hesitated, then: "You've changed."
Now he did glance at her — slightly.
"You've said that already."
"I know," she replied. "But I keep noticing it."
He raised an eyebrow.
"You walk like nothing in the world can touch you. You look at people like you're… above them."
"I am above them," he said, without the slightest hesitation.
Lucy flushed slightly but pressed on. "Even the Master-ranked knights treat you differently now. I saw one of them lower his gaze when you passed."
She shifted uncomfortably. "Did something happen in Ashenvale?"
There was a pause.
Then, Ace offered a faint smirk. "You ask too many questions for someone who used to speak in whispers."
Lucy looked away. "I just want to understand."
Ace returned his gaze to the window.
"Why bother? " he said. "Understanding me without being like me is impossible."
Two days later
As they crested the final ridge, the imperial capital revealed itself in all its glory.
Solis Regnum, the Sun-Crowned City.
Towering walls of white-gold stone circled the city like a crown. Sunlight gleamed off gilded spires and grand bridges. Magical wards shimmered faintly in the sky — massive defense arrays protecting the heart of the Empire.
At the city's center stood the Solar Palace, its towers piercing the heavens like divine spears.
Even from this distance, it radiated majesty.
But Ace didn't look up at the beauty of it.
He stared directly at the palace gates, where the Emperor awaited.
The imperial summons had been answered.
The heir of Thornevale had arrived.
By the time the convoy neared the outer gates, a crowd had gathered — citizens, merchants, low-ranking nobles, and curious knights all pressed against the plaza edges.
"A Thornevale convoy is approaching. "
"Ten Master-ranked warriors…"
"Ten Sages too. That's a military force, not an escort! "
"Why is the heir here?"
"Why did the Empire summon him?"
And then… they saw him.
Ace Thornevale sat upright in a chariot-like black carriage reinforced with silver runes. He wore a high-collared noble coat of obsidian silk with frost-gray accents. No crest on his chest — but everyone knew who he was.
Before his carriage marched ten Master-ranked warriors, their black armor glowing faintly with embedded aura circuits. They moved as one, each step echoing power.
Behind and flanking the carriages were ten robed Sages, each carrying a wand encrypted with glowing runes. Their eyes glowed faintly. Their mere presence made the very air heavier with mana.
Not forgetting the first rate warriors and guards around them.
To the crowd… it looked like a war unit.
To the guards at the gate… they were baffled, froze in place, even forgetting what they had to do.
The carriage stopped just inside the main gate.
Silence fell like snow.
Ace stepped down slowly, each movement measured and deliberate. Even without magic, his presence rippled outward.
Whispers broke the stillness.
"That's him… The Thornevale heir."
"They say he's never bowed to the Emperor."
"Is that his sister? The lowborn one?"
"Yes, but why is she riding beside him. Like an equal."
Ace's gaze swept the crowd once, cold and unreadable.
Lucy, beside him, looked around nervously, but stood straight. Ace had made her walk beside him — not behind.
The palace carriage meant to receive them pulled up moments later, but Ace raised a hand, dismissing it.
"We'll walk."
The captain of the gate guard blinked. "My lord, the Solar Palace—"
Ace turned his head slightly. Just enough.
The captain swallowed hard and fell silent.
The Thornevales did not request permission.
They announced themselves.
And the heir had arrived — with the strength of an army, the silence of a storm, and the eyes of the Empire on his back.
The Thornevale procession advanced through the capital's grand avenue. Ace and Lucy walked at the center, flanked by ten Master-ranked warriors and ten Sages, moving in perfect silence.
The crowd parted like the sea.
Onlookers gasped, whispered, some bowed. Even high-ranking knights saluted instinctively.
Ace ignored them all, but Lucy's eyes darted to every tower, every noble banner, every spell-light carriage that zipped overhead.
The capital was a marvel — one she had only imagined through the writing in books.
Ace said nothing, but his pace slowed slightly — just enough for Lucy to match it without struggling.
Couple of Minutes Later – Near the Inner Ring
Ace's expression slowly began to shift. His eyes wandered over the buildings with disinterest.
The enchantments were clever… the mana flow clean… but he'd seen more interesting mechanisms in his territory.
"Boring," he muttered, almost disappointed.
Lucy blinked. "What?"
"We've seen enough."
He raised a hand, and his carriage immediately pulled ahead. With a short motion, he boarded again and reclined in his seat.
Lucy followed, still caught between awe and confusion.
The convoy picked up pace as the palace gates came into view.
Lined with sunstone statues and radiant glyphs, the palace's outer grounds shimmered with authority. Rows of palace guards stood at attention, their armor polished to a mirror finish, bearing the golden lion crest of the Solarian line.
As Ace's procession neared, a senior palace guard captain stepped forward, flanked by mage clerks.
He gave a sharp salute, though his posture was stiff.
"Lord Ace Thornevale, His Majesty awaits your presence inside the Solar Hall. However, I must inform you—"
He hesitated.
"Your personal escort may not proceed beyond the sanctum threshold. Only one may accompany you."
Ace stepped down slowly from the carriage.
The Master-ranked warriors and Sages stood in unbroken formation behind him.
Ace looked at the captain as if examining an annoying stain on the ground.
"No."
"Pardon, my lord?"
"I walk with my people."
"B-but protocol—"
"Doesn't apply to me," Ace said, voice smooth as steel.
The captain flinched.
Ace turned without waiting for an answer and walked forward — his boots clicking against the sunstone path, his cloak flowing behind him.
Behind him, the ten Masters and ten Sages moved in perfect silence.
The guards hesitated—then parted.
None dared stop them.
None dared even speak.
Inside the Palace – Toward the Solar Hall
As they approached the throne chamber, whispers echoed down the marbled corridors.
"He brought his guard in?"
"That's House Thornevale's heir?"
"Did he really ignore a direct palace order?"
Servants and nobles pressed against corridor walls, watching the procession march like a black tide through golden halls.
Ace's silver eyes remained forward, emotionless.
At the massive sun-forged doors of the Solar Hall, two imperial clerics opened them with trembling hands.
Beyond them, beneath a ceiling of glass suns and floating banners — the Emperor waited.
The golden double doors groaned open as Ace Thornevale strode inside, black-cloaked and flanked by ten Master-ranked warriors and ten Sages.
The Solar Hall, typically reserved for matters of state, was filled to its balconies.
The nobility of the empire — dukes, marquises, and even some barons — had abandoned their usual detachment. This was no longer a closed meeting of representatives. Word of Ace's arrival had drawn the true pillars of the Empire.
Every noble family that mattered was present, seated in grand tiers beneath glowing sun-lanterns and astral banners.
The throne, raised atop a sunstone dais, was occupied by Emperor Aurelius Solarian, clad in white-gold robes that shimmered faintly with divine glyphs. His golden eyes were unreadable as he watched the heir of Thornevale approach.