The darkness did not merely surround Lilithia—it stirred deep within her,
like an ancient entity that knew her as if she had been born from its name, waiting for the moment to be summoned.
The air around them pressed down, and the sky gradually shifted, becoming like a black hole that swallowed everything.
The Ravagers of the Vein crept toward them slowly,
their screams rising like tormented souls.
Their numbers swelled, their rage suffocating, carrying a stench that choked the breath.
Lilithia, alongside Ragen, Daemon, Skyler, and the soldiers, stood in silence, staring at the sky, sweat streaming down their foreheads.
Lilithia clenched her fist without realizing it, as if the omen had spoken her name.
Only Ragen and Daemon grasped the full extent of the danger; the others remained oblivious.
The creatures drew closer, their features sharpening with every step. At that moment, a sharp alert rang from their wrist devices:
"Blood Guard squad down…
Kai critically injured — Deputy Commander of the Blood Guards…
Enemy: Unknown."
"All units, proceed to the location immediately.
Data transmission in progress."
The silence that followed was unnatural… as if something waited for permission.
Then everything collapsed.
Skyler jerked his head up, breath catching:
"Kai…"
He stepped forward, but Ragen's voice cut through the air:
"Watch out!"
The Ravagers surrounded them from every direction.
Skyler gripped his sword, lunged, and struck—
cleaving one in two.
But the halves continued to crawl.
Their numbers doubled.
Daemon shouted, panic bleeding into his voice:
"Impossible… normal attacks won't work! The more we cleave them, the more they multiply!"
The Ravagers let out a collective scream:
"Why have you awakened us…?"
The air trembled, and from their featureless bodies, sharp, rusted fangs emerged,
rushing toward them like an unstoppable black torrent—
And beneath this onslaught…
they attacked everyone.
Except Lilithia.
—
Meanwhile, in the Drakhaens Kingdom, something opened its eyes.
It was not a shadow… but the Lord of Shadows.
His eyes glowed like embers, his outstretched wings stealing the horizon from the sky.
As he descended onto the palace roof, the darkness around him receded,
his form shifting into a man of majestic beauty—blazing red eyes, long black hair flowing behind him.
He walked with his head held high; all who met his gaze bowed unconsciously. It was not fear…
but an ancient acknowledgment they could no longer remember.
He entered a room teeming with ancient books and forbidden tomes.
He reached for one—
and before he could open it,
a knock came at the door, apologetic in its presence.
"Enter," he commanded.
Two men stepped inside, bowing deeply, unable to lift their heads.
"My lord… we apologize for disturbing your solitude, but there is an urgent matter," one said, trembling.
A heavy silence fell.
"The Third seal of the Arkam Covenant… has been broken."
His gaze shifted toward them, unreadable.
"I am aware," he replied coldly.
Their shaking worsened.
"The Ravagers of the Vein have been unleashed," the other blurted out. "They are on the eastern bank… attacking our soldiers."
He cut them off with calm, unsettling warmth:
"Inform Commander Kisho to proceed immediately.
For the Ice alone… still remembers how the Vein is buried."
—
The moment the order was given…
the forest, worlds away, burned with blood and shadow.
Kaguchi did not retreat.
The shadow reshaped itself around him. His smile widened, his tone calm—provocatively so:
"You truly deserve praise… only a few survive my deceit."
From the dense darkness between his palms, a sword of blood formed, its shadow stretching across the ground like an open wound.
He regarded Kaelina with cold, predatory eyes.
"You know… I do not favor close combat. Since your presence matters to someone who dislikes disturbances, I will grant you the honor of facing me."
Kaelina's foot bled. Her body was weighed down by the marks left by the constricting membrane.
Pain gnawed at her. Her breaths came ragged.
Then—she felt nothing.
The silence within her was fiercer than any scream.
Her sword moved before thought.
She clenched her grip and lunged forward, instinct bare of hesitation.
At the same instant, Kaguchi's shadow bent slightly, a deeper smile carving across his face—
as though he had been waiting for that exact move.
They moved together.
Swords clashed.
A crimson spark erupted, the sound ripping through the forest like living metal breaking.
Her arm shuddered—the weight of his strike was inhuman.
The ruby pulsed in her grip.
She whispered :
"Stone art - Ruby Stone - Level 1 : Ruby Resonance "
She sensed the threat before it was born.
She sidestepped—
The shadow swallowed Kaguchi's feet.
A dark, blood-soaked claw burst from the ground.
"Coincraft — Shadowblood Weave."
It tore through the air where she had stood a heartbeat earlier.
Kaguchi smiled,
sliding a red coin into his chest. The color spread through his veins like living poison.
"Let's speed things up."
He charged.
Kaelina raised her sword. Sharp ruby edges ignited along the blade.
"Level 2 : Facets Edges."
A second clash.
The radiant facets slid along the Blood Sword—
not cutting metal…
but weaving the shadow itself.
Kaguchi stepped back half a pace, genuine surprise flickering across his expression.
"Hah… you're touching the thread."
The shadow behind him stirred.
Blood erupted around his body, twisting into a dark membrane that surged like exposed entrails,
wrapping around her, crushing her ribs, stealing her breath.
"Coincraft — Shadowblood Weave: Cocoon Form."
She gasped. Blood rose in her throat.
Pressure—
more.
He laughed near her ear.
"The shadow and blood… when they merge, no one escapes."
The ruby throbbed violently within her chest.
"Level 3 : Inner Prism."
A wave of resonance rebounded through her body.
The membrane cracked.
Its pressure reversed, tearing through the dark weave.
She staggered back—
then surged forward.
But—
A cold sting.
Something shifted inside her blood.
Her breath hitched.
Kaguchi pressed a hand to his chest. Black veins pulsed beneath his skin.
"Coincraft — Blood Seed."
"I planted it from the first contact."
Her leg twitched against her will.
Balance slipped.
The Blood Sword pierced her shoulder.
Blood burst forth.
The air tore.
A scream died in her chest.
She stumbled back, droplets of blood falling— then darkness closed in.
The shadow in her blood
was smiling.
Kaelina bit down on the pain and lifted her head.
In a single instant—
transparent ruby chains erupted around Kaguchi, coiling around his arm and blade.
"Level 4 : Crimson Chains."
"What is this—?!"
She pulled with everything she had left.
The ground split.
His body buckled—
She surged forward.
One strike.
Then another.
Then a third.
"Level 5 : Echo Strike."
Each blow sent delayed tremors through his body— internal tears detonating beneath his skin.
He bled.
Then bled more.
Kaguchi laughed.
He spread his arms.
Behind him, the air ruptured.
A dark void swallowed the light.
"Coincraft — Crimson Void Pact."
From it emerged a perfect replica of his shadow—
blood frozen,
eyes hollow.
Kaelina struck it.
One blow.
Her body smashed into a tree. Bark shattered. She fell hard to the ground.
The chains dissolved.
Her sword nearly slipped from her grasp.
Blood filled her mouth.
Kaguchi approached slowly, stepping over the remains of his broken shadow.
He leaned close.
"It's over."
But the ruby had not gone dark.
It flared.
"Level 6 : Gem Mirror!"
The next strike never reached her.
The energy fractured, reflected, and returned to him.
A crimson fissure split his chest.
For the first time—
his expression faltered.
Kaelina rose, unsteady, sword raised.
Blood streamed.
Her body screamed.
But her will—did not break.
Beneath the ruby's crimson light, their swords collided once more.
The impact thundered like metal screaming, red sparks scattering through the air.
Kaelina pressed forward, blade steady, resonance roaring.
Kaguchi parried—then retreated half a step.
For the first time… his breathing changed.
She advanced, shattered his defensive angle.
The blood membrane cracked.
One more step—
The finishing blow was within reach.
Then she saw it.
A shadow passed behind him.
A shadow she recognized.
Light flashed across a familiar blade.
He wasn't running.
He was being pulled.
Her breath caught.
"Y—"
No sound came.
Kaguchi smiled.
Wide.
Savage.
"Late."
Yun moved.
His sword drove forward—
not toward Kaguchi…
but toward her.
The blade tore into Kaelina's side, ripping flesh, shattering breath, ruby light drowning in blood.
Time froze.
Her body convulsed.
Her knees weakened.
Cold—unfamiliar, absolute—spread through her.
She did not fall at once.
She looked down.
At the blade embedded in her.
Then she turned.
Yun stood before her, eyes empty,
black veins crawling from his neck to his jaw.
"K… Kaelina…"
Her name left him soundlessly.
Behind him, Kaguchi stepped forward,
drawing the shadow out of Yun like a thread pulled from an open wound.
He whispered near her ear, his voice disturbingly warm:
"Betrayal… is always sweetest
when it comes at the moment of victory."
He withdrew his sword.
Kaelina collapsed to one knee, blood pooling beneath her.
And Kaguchi—
was smiling.
______
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© 2026 Lobna. All rights reserved.
-To be continued...-