The night slowly descended over the kingdom of Valencrest.
From the highest towers of the palace, the city looked peaceful. Thousands of warm golden lights glowed across the streets, taverns echoed with laughter, and musicians played soft melodies in the marketplace squares.
But high above the kingdom, the sky told a different story.
The comet burned brighter than ever.
Its pale silver light stretched across the heavens like a scar in the darkness.
Inside the royal palace, most of the halls had already grown quiet.
Guards stood at their posts. Servants finished their duties. The royal council had long since dismissed for the night.
But deep within the palace, one room still glowed with candlelight.
The royal library.
Ancient shelves towered toward the high ceiling, filled with scrolls and books older than the kingdom itself.
Aerion stood near one of the long wooden tables, carefully examining a fragile parchment.
Across from him sat Lyria, surrounded by stacks of ancient texts.
"You've been staring at that same scroll for ten minutes," she said.
Aerion didn't look up.
"I'm thinking."
"That scroll doesn't say anything new."
"I know."
"Then why are you still staring at it?"
Aerion finally sighed and leaned back slightly.
"Because something about this prophecy doesn't make sense."
Lyria raised an eyebrow.
"That's the first time you've said that."
"I know."
She leaned forward, resting her chin in her hand.
"Explain."
Aerion tapped the parchment lightly.
"The prophecy says the union between royal blood and the chosen warrior will awaken the shadows."
"Right."
"But it also says something else."
Lyria glanced down at the scroll.
Her eyes moved slowly across the faded text.
Then she frowned slightly.
"You mean this line?"
She read aloud quietly.
"When the blood of the forgotten king awakens, the gate between shadow and light will open once more."
Aerion nodded slowly.
"That line."
Lyria leaned back slightly.
"What about it?"
Aerion crossed his arms.
"The forgotten king."
"Yes?"
"No one knows who that is."
"That's true."
"Every historian we asked said the same thing."
Lyria thought for a moment.
Then she shrugged slightly.
"Maybe it's just symbolic."
Aerion shook his head immediately.
"No."
"You sound very sure."
"I am."
"Why?"
Aerion looked down at his hands.
"Because something strange happened during training earlier today."
Lyria sat up straight.
"What happened?"
Aerion hesitated.
"Remember when we sparred in the garden?"
"Yes."
"Right before we stopped… I felt something."
"What kind of something?"
He struggled to explain.
"It was like… heat."
"Heat?"
"Not outside."
He placed a hand over his chest.
"Inside."
Lyria frowned slightly.
"What does that mean?"
"I don't know."
"That's not comforting."
Aerion chuckled faintly.
"I didn't say it was."
The candles flickered softly in the quiet library.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then suddenly—
Aerion froze.
Lyria immediately noticed.
"What?"
His eyes were fixed on the parchment again.
"What is it?"
Aerion slowly stood up.
"The text…"
"What about it?"
"It's changing."
Lyria blinked.
"That's impossible."
But when she leaned closer to the parchment—
Her eyes widened.
The faded letters on the scroll were glowing faintly.
New lines of text slowly appeared across the ancient page.
Neither of them moved.
The glowing words slowly formed.
Then stopped.
Silence filled the room.
Lyria read the new text slowly.
Her voice barely above a whisper.
"The blood of the forgotten king will awaken when shadow touches the heir of the ancient line."
Aerion's heart pounded.
Lyria continued.
"Only then will the truth of the crown be revealed."
The glow faded.
The parchment returned to normal.
But the new words remained.
Neither of them spoke for several seconds.
Then Lyria looked up slowly.
"Aerion…"
"Yes?"
"I think the prophecy just updated itself."
"That seems… bad."
She stood up.
"No."
"What do you mean no?"
"This means the prophecy isn't finished."
Aerion frowned.
"You're saying it's still unfolding?"
"Yes."
"And the 'blood of the forgotten king'…"
Her eyes moved slowly back to him.
"…might be someone alive."
Aerion felt a strange tension in his chest.
"Who?"
Before Lyria could answer—
A deep rumble shook the palace.
The candles flickered violently.
The library windows rattled.
"What was that?" Lyria asked sharply.
Another rumble echoed across the city.
Aerion immediately ran toward the balcony doors.
He pushed them open and stepped outside.
Lyria followed.
What they saw made both of them freeze.
Far beyond the city walls—
At the dark edge of the distant mountains—
A massive pillar of black mist was rising into the sky.
The shadows.
But something about them was different tonight.
They weren't just spreading.
They were gathering.
Condensing.
Forming something.
Lyria's voice was tense.
"That wasn't there earlier."
"No."
Another rumble echoed through the air.
The ground trembled again.
Aerion suddenly grabbed the balcony railing tightly.
A sharp pulse of heat surged through his chest.
Stronger than before.
Much stronger.
He staggered slightly.
"Aerion!"
Lyria grabbed his arm.
"What's wrong?"
"My chest… it's burning."
"What?"
Before she could say anything else—
A faint golden light suddenly appeared beneath Aerion's skin.
It spread across his arm like glowing veins.
Lyria stared in shock.
"Aerion…"
He looked down at his hand.
The light pulsed again.
Stronger.
Then suddenly—
The comet in the sky flashed.
At the exact same moment—
The golden light in Aerion's veins blazed brighter.
The palace balcony trembled.
Wind exploded outward across the city.
Lyria stepped back in shock.
"Aerion… what is happening to you?"
Aerion's eyes widened as another wave of energy surged through him.
And then—
For a split second—
His pupils flashed gold.
The light faded quickly.
The wind died down.
The trembling stopped.
Silence returned.
But the air felt different now.
Heavy.
Awake.
Lyria stared at him carefully.
"Aerion…"
He slowly looked at his hand again.
The glow was gone.
But the warmth remained.
Then he remembered the line from the prophecy.
When the blood of the forgotten king awakens…
Lyria spoke quietly.
"I think…"
She hesitated.
"…we just found out who the prophecy was talking about."
Aerion slowly exhaled.
"Yeah."
Far beyond the kingdom walls—
Inside the growing pillar of shadow—
Something ancient stirred.
And for the first time in centuries—
It had felt a familiar presence.
The bloodline it had once feared.
The blood of the forgotten king.
And it had finally awakened.