Far from the noise of the cities, inside a dim chamber filled with swirling mana crystals, a group of cloaked figures gathered around a round table.
The air was thick, humming with energy and malice.
A tall man in the center slammed his hand on the table.
"That boy," he said, his voice sharp as steel. "The one who defeated Jugar."
A woman beside him smirked, her violet eyes gleaming behind her mask. "So young… yet his magic potential is already breaking limits. Perhaps he's the one connected to the lost relic?"
The man leaned forward, the light from the crystals flickering against his hood.
"If he is, then the Order cannot afford to ignore him."
A low voice from the shadows added, "Should we eliminate him?"
Silence followed,then the leader's grin widened beneath his hood.
"No… not yet. Let him grow stronger. Let the world praise him. The higher he climbs…"
His tone dropped to a cold whisper.
"…the harder he'll fall."
The world was buzzing with the name Surya, but far from the noise of fame, Kael and Thriller moved in silence.
In the north, snow drifted like ash over the rooftops of Velliz.
Kael stood on a frozen balcony of an inn, eyes fixed on a figure walking below ,a cloaked man carrying a strange sigil stitched on his sleeve.
The mark of the Order.
He had been watching him for three days now.
Never approaching. Never letting his aura slip.
The man didn't act like a warrior ,he blended among merchants, selling "blessed charms" and "mana dust," but Kael could tell. The energy inside those trinkets was wrong.
Corrupted.
Meanwhile, far south, Thriller sat on the edge of a stone tower, the night wind brushing against his coat.
Below him, in the crowded alleys of Pamo, another member of the Order was moving quietly between taverns, spreading whispers, gathering coins , and followers.
Thriller adjusted his chain, eyes glowing faintly under the moonlight.
"Seems like they're building something big," he murmured. "Recruiting even here."
He opened a small crystal communicator ,Kael's voice flickered faintly through.
"They're spreading faster than we thought. Keep your distance. We just observe, no contact yet."
Thriller smirked.
"Relax, I know the rule. Just watching… for now."
Both of them, though miles apart, shared the same unease ,
The Order wasn't hiding anymore.
It was moving.
That night, Thriller stayed hidden on a rooftop, watching the Order's member as usual. But this time, something felt different.
The man stopped under a lantern's glow , in his hand was a poster.
Surya's face.
Thriller narrowed his eyes.
"Why are they… interested in him?" he whispered.
Before he could move, the man's head turned sharply - right toward him.
"Crap!-"
In an instant, the figure vanished from sight. A sudden gust of air followed, and before Thriller could react, cold chains of magic wrapped around him. His own weapon turned against him.
"What the, how-" was all he managed to say before everything went dark.
Far north, Kael sat in his inn room, staring at his communicator crystal. He'd been trying to reach Thriller for hours ,nothing but silence. Then, the link broke completely.
"Thriller?" Kael said again. No answer. The glow faded away.
He clenched his fist.
"Damn it… they got him."
Without wasting another second, Kael grabbed his cloak, summoned his wind vessel, and took off into the night sky.
"I have to find Surya," he muttered, wind rushing around him.
"The Order made their move."
- Surya's POV-
I was half asleep when I heard a knock on the window.
It was already midnight. Who would even—
Knock, knock, knock.
I got up, still half tired, and pulled the curtain aside.
Outside, floating just above the balcony rail, was Kael, his cloak fluttering from the wind vessel's glow.
"Kael?!" I whispered, quickly opening the window. "What are you doing here this late?"
He jumped inside without a word. His face—serious, tired, and worried.
"It's Thriller," he said, voice low.
I blinked, confused. "What about him?"
Kael looked straight at me.
"He's gone. The Order took him."
The room went silent.
Only the sound of the wind outside filled the space.
"What do you mean, took him?" I finally said.
Kael clenched his fist. "He was spying on one of their members. They found him—and captured him before he could fight back."
I felt my chest tighten. Thriller… captured?
That guy was strong. If they got him that easily, then...
Kael looked down. "I don't know where they took him, but I'll find out. We can't let the Order use him."
I nodded slowly. "Then we go together."
He raised his head, surprised. "Together?"
"Yeah," I said. "He's one of us."
Outside, the moonlight cut through the window, shining over the desk where the poster of 'The Boy Who Beat the Gambling King' lay folded.
The fame, the quests, the gold,none of it mattered now.
It was time to face the Order.
The room stayed quiet for a long time after that.
Neither of us said a word.
Kael sat down on the floor, his head low.
"We're just kids, Surya," he said softly. "We couldn't even stop them from taking Thriller. How are we supposed to fight an organization like the Order?"
I didn't answer right away. My hands were shaking a bit.
He was right.
We might've beaten the Moon Dragon, but that was different.
A monster you can see, a creature you can hit with magic,that's simple.
But the Order… they're people who think, plan, and hide in shadows.
I sighed and sat beside him. "Yeah. We're only ten. Not even a year since we started traveling."
Kael gave a small laugh. "Feels like we've done too much already."
"Yeah," I said, smiling weakly. "Maybe it's time to slow down for a while. Train harder. Learn more before we jump into another mess."
The moonlight shone faintly through the cracked window, falling between us like a quiet promise.
"Thriller's strong," I said after a pause. "He'll hold out. When we're ready, we'll find him."
Kael nodded. "Yeah. Next time… we'll be stronger."
And for the first time that night, we both felt it,
not fear, but determination.
We were still kids, sure.
But someday, the Order would see us again.
The moonlight flickered through the window.
Kael clenched his fists. "Hold on there, Thriller…"
I looked at him and nodded, my voice low. "Yeah… we'll save you. But not now."
We both stared out the window, toward the stars above the city.
"Please," I whispered, "have faith in us."
The night wind slipped through the cracks, carrying our words away,
a promise only the sky could hear.