Chapter 39: Crimson Veil Under Moonlight
Moonlight poured down across the quiet streets, silvering the rooftops and bathing the commoner district in a gentle glow. In its pale light, Noel's red hair shimmered like woven fire, the strands dancing in the breeze as she walked silently beside Zirak.
Then, without warning, a faint crimson ring of light pulsed out from her body.
Zirak halted, his eyes narrowing. The light was silent, almost breathless. The ring shimmered for a moment, then slowly drew inward, fusing into Noel's glowing red eyes before vanishing entirely. Her body trembled briefly, then stilled, the light gone as though it had never been.
Zirak exhaled softly. A dormant Essence Aspect? he thought.
He saw it clearly—how the moonlight had triggered the reaction, how it seeped gently into her being, slowly awakening. Unlike Zaara, whose dormant Ghost Monarch aspect remained hidden, as he had fully masked it with the artificial essence of Icy Crystalline Neblina. Noel was different, yet eerily similar. Both Zaara and Noel possessed dormant aspects.
And if his guess was right, this dormant essence wasn't ordinary.
They walked on in silence. The garden path rustled with the sound of night wind, and crickets chirped like a quiet rhythm in the dark.
"So," Zirak finally said, his voice low, "this is what you wanted to show me."
Noel nodded solemnly. "Yes … and this too."
She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small scroll. It was sealed with a sigil—a wolf curled around a crescent moon.
Zirak froze.
That sigil belonged to Hudaifah.
A name that echoed through years of memories. Hudaifah—his battle brother, friend, and one of the few people he trusted with his life. Although he couldn't speak, but he possess brilliant capabilities. Like him, he was loyal, and unwavering to Ghost Monarch. The trio—Ghost Monarch, Zirak, and Hudaifah—had once been the unbreakable core of Azure Village's elite forces during the Sixth Great World War. Later, they lay the foundation of the Empire of Turks.
Zirak accepted the scroll with trembling fingers, the seal still intact. He gently pressed his essence into it.
The sigil dissolved as the scroll unfurled.
**[Zirak, my brother—
If you're reading this, then I'm no longer in this world.
The Empire of Armain is moving in the shadows, just as our leader feared. But it's worse than we thought—another force is working behind the scenes. Something is hidden beneath the Battle Royal Academy in the Covert Empire of Armain's capital, and they're hunting for it.
There was a traitor among us. Someone working with them. I believe the Dark Monarch is tied to that same force—and may even be one of them.
And I fear they will strike Azure Village next.
Please get this message to our leader … do what you must do.
I leave the red-haired girl in your care. Please, take good care of her for me.
Your friend always,
—Hudaifah]**
Zirak didn't move. His expression remained composed, but a thin sheen of tears shimmered in his eyes.
First, the Ghost Monarch, whose death Ravi had confirmed weeks ago. Now Hudaifah, too, left him behind. His two best friends were gone, leaving only their memories.
Noel tugged gently at his sleeve. "Uncle Zirak, Are you … okay?"
Zirak blinked and looked down at her. The scroll had begun to dissolve into mist, its purpose fulfilled.
"I'm fine," he said with a soft smile. "It's just that my old friends seem to have disappeared one by one … without saying goodbye."
He placed a hand on her head gently. "Tell me—what happened? Start from what you remember."
Noel lowered her gaze. For a moment, she was silent, caught between memory and uncertainty. Her voice was barely above a whisper.
"I think … I lived with my mom and dad in a forest."
She paused, clutching her arms.
"I don't know how I got separated. One day, I just … found myself on a big ship. It was on water. Everything after that ..."
Zirak nodded slowly, listening—not just with his ears but with the instincts of someone who had walked through war and shadows. Something about Noel's presence felt heavier now. A puzzle piece of something much bigger.
He didn't press further.
Instead, he let the silence between them stretch out gently as they walked side by side under the moon's glow.