The stone door closed with a deep echo.
Silence followed.
Kael lay on the cold floor, breathing heavily. His chest rose and fell as he tried to calm his racing heart.
For a moment he simply stayed there.
Alive.
The bounty hunter was outside.
But the ruin had saved him.
Slowly, Kael pushed himself up.
Blue flames flickered along the walls, lighting the narrow corridor ahead. The fire didn't burn like normal flames. Instead, it glowed softly, almost like moonlight.
Kael stared at them.
"Magic…"
He had never seen real magic before.
Not like this.
In the Lowlands, magic was something distant—something the Highland magicians used in the sky.
But here…
It felt ancient.
Quiet.
Forgotten.
Kael tightened his grip on the silver pendant.
"This place… Father knew about it."
The thought made his chest ache again.
He forced himself to move.
The corridor stretched deeper underground. The stone walls were covered with strange carvings—symbols of dragons, circles of magic, and figures wearing long robes.
Magicians.
Kael traced one of the carvings with his fingers.
A group of robed figures stood together, their hands raised toward the sky.
Above them, a massive dragon dissolved into light.
His eyes widened.
"Is this… the spell that erased the dragons?"
If his father was telling the truth, one hundred magicians had worked together to remove the dragons from the world.
And yet the Highlands continued to pretend they were still fighting them.
Kael clenched his jaw.
"They lied to everyone…"
His voice echoed softly through the corridor.
The deeper he walked, the colder the air became.
Eventually the tunnel opened into a large underground chamber.
Kael stopped.
His breath caught in his throat.
The room was enormous.
Stone pillars held up a massive ceiling carved with glowing symbols. Blue torches lined the walls, and in the center of the chamber stood a circular platform surrounded by ancient runes.
Bookshelves filled with dusty scrolls covered the sides of the room.
Broken magical tools lay scattered across long wooden tables.
It looked like an old laboratory.
Or a hidden sanctuary.
Kael slowly walked forward.
"This place… belongs to the magicians."
The pendant in his hand began glowing again.
The light guided him toward the circular platform in the center of the room.
As Kael stepped onto it—
The runes suddenly lit up.
A deep humming sound filled the chamber.
Kael jumped back in surprise.
"What did I do?"
The light grew brighter.
Then a figure appeared above the platform.
A ghostly image made of pale blue light.
Kael froze.
It was an old man wearing long magician robes.
But he was transparent, like a spirit.
The figure looked down at Kael calmly.
"Welcome," the voice echoed through the chamber.
Kael stumbled backward.
"W-Who are you?!"
The glowing figure studied him carefully.
"Strange… you are not one of the hundred."
"The hundred?" Kael repeated.
The figure nodded slowly.
"The magicians who cast the Dragon Erasure spell."
Kael's heart raced.
"My father was one of them."
The glowing man's expression changed slightly.
"Your father?"
Kael lifted the pendant.
"He gave me this before he died."
The spirit's eyes focused on the silver pendant.
"I see…"
The man's voice softened.
"Then you are the son of one of our brothers."
Kael swallowed nervously.
"What is this place?"
"This sanctuary," the spirit replied, "was built by the one hundred magicians."
"A place where our knowledge would remain hidden."
"Hidden from the Highlands."
Kael's fists tightened.
"So they knew the king would betray them?"
The spirit's eyes darkened.
"We suspected it."
"But we underestimated his fear."
The chamber grew quiet.
Kael felt anger rising inside him again.
"They killed my father."
"Yes," the spirit said calmly.
"The Highlands have been eliminating anyone who knows the truth."
Kael stepped closer.
"Then help me stop them."
The spirit was silent for a long moment.
"You are still just a child."
"I don't care," Kael said.
"They burned my village."
"They killed my father."
His voice trembled with rage.
"I won't run anymore."
The glowing figure studied him carefully.
Then he asked a simple question.
"Do you hate the Highlands?"
Kael thought about the soldiers.
The bounty hunters.
The lies about dragons.
The burning village.
"Yes," he said quietly.
The spirit shook his head.
"Hate alone will destroy you."
Kael frowned.
"Then what should I do?"
The spirit raised one glowing hand.
"If you truly want to fight the Highlands…"
"You must become stronger."
Suddenly the runes on the platform flared with light.
Ancient magical symbols surrounded Kael.
He stepped back in alarm.
"What's happening?!"
The spirit spoke calmly.
"This sanctuary contains the knowledge of the hundred magicians."
"Magic that the Highlands tried to erase from the world."
Kael stared at the glowing symbols.
"You're saying…"
"Yes," the spirit replied.
"You can learn magic here."
Kael's eyes widened.
"But only if you survive the trial."
"Trial?" Kael asked.
Before the spirit could answer—
A loud BOOM echoed through the chamber.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
Kael's heart dropped.
Another explosion shook the ruin.
From somewhere above, stone began cracking.
The spirit looked toward the ceiling.
"They found the entrance."
Kael's face went pale.
"The bounty hunters?"
"No," the spirit said.
"Highland soldiers."
The ceiling trembled again.
Pieces of rock fell onto the floor.
"They're coming," the spirit said.
Kael looked toward the glowing platform.
"What do I do?!"
The spirit's voice became serious.
"Step into the circle."
Kael hesitated.
"If you fail the trial, you will die."
Another explosion thundered above them.
Kael clenched his fists.
The Highlands had taken everything from him.
He stepped into the glowing circle.
"I'm ready."
The spirit nodded slowly.
"Then let the trial begin."
The runes erupted with blinding light.
And Kael's first step toward becoming a magician had begun.