The Marble Hall was vast and cold, supported by columns carved with imperial runes and shields from ancient battles.
Pale crystal chandeliers hung from the vaulted ceiling, reflecting the bluish light of floating enchantments that illuminated the hall—as if the stars had been hoisted inside the castle.
Ziek leaned back in the carved wooden chair, his eyes sharp, exchanging glances with Eira and Lino.
Mireya remained silent, arms crossed.
Tolen, standing by the window, gazed at the starless sky.
Kaellia, hands on the table, maintained a steadfast expression.
Lyn and Allan, seated near the wall, shared discreet looks.
In the opposite corner of the hall, Princess Eriane and Saphira conversed in low voices, with restrained smiles and curious glances.
Saphira seemed more animated than usual, but something in her posture hinted at nervousness.
On the throne, King Aserion murmured something to Queen Lyssandrel. She nodded slightly, her eyes fixed on the folded map before them.
Finally, the king's firm voice cut through the air:
"Well then… let us get to the matter at hand."
The queen tilted her head slightly, maintaining her impeccable posture.
"All the groups in the capital are already aware. Their representatives arrived a few hours ago. You are the last."
Ziek leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table:
"What could be important enough for the royalty to request the help of every group in the capital?"
Aserion's eyes settled on him, but before responding, he tilted his head slightly toward the queen.
"Before anything else…"
"Who is this lost friend?" the queen interrupted. "Where would we find him? How strong is he? What are the chances he's still alive?"
Kaellia raised her hand slowly.
"Calm down… that's a lot of questions."
Saphira stood up.
"Jin is our friend."
She remained standing for long minutes, her voice sometimes wavering, sometimes steady, recounting parts of their adventures with Jin: missions, villages freed, the shadowy wolf who fought with silence and determination.
The sacrifices, the laughter shared on cold nights. Her words were heavy, but her voice was clear. At last, she sighed and concluded:
"Then a demon named Lorn took him and Marcus… to hell."
The king furrowed his brow at the name.
"Marcus? Ashen Wolf?"
Kaellia nodded, her voice almost nostalgic.
"You know him? Before I became deputy leader… we formed a group a few times."
Prince Kaeron, leaning arrogantly against the back of his chair, laughed with disdain.
"Formed a group with Ashen Wolf?" he said, as if it were a poorly told joke.
Saphira glared at him.
"Yes. He's Jin's grandfather."
The king raised his hand, halting the growing argument.
"They were taken to hell, you said?"
A faint smile curved Aserion's lips. It was an odd smile. Calm. Almost… amused.
Lyssandrel then murmured with a slight smile:
"I doubt even that old man survived that."
Everyone exchanged glances. The shock was palpable.
"We know Ashen Wolf, but…" the king's tone hardened, and the air seemed to grow heavier, "what would be the value of this Jin in a war?"
Silence fell like a blade. Heavy. Cutting.
Lino clenched his fists. His voice came low, but laced with fury.
"So the war is coming."
Eira leaned forward.
"That's what infuriates me about you nobles…"
Ziek ran a hand over his face and shot her a quick glance, as if pleading for calm.
But Eira pressed on.
"Everything comes down to value. Battle points. Influence. You don't even see us as human."
Princess Eriane began to laugh, surprising everyone with her light tone. She approached Eira with a curious smile, her eyes gleaming with something unreadable.
"I like your personality," she said, walking up to Eira. "The war is coming. It's not worth risking our lives to save someone who won't help us."
Eira clenched her fists, lowering her head slightly.
The king leaned forward, smiling again.
"What would be his value?"
Saphira took a step forward, her eyes blazing:
"He's strong. Very strong. Stronger than that idiot brother of mine!"
Kaeron gritted his teeth, smiling with restrained fury.
"Alright… let's see."
"You can argue all you want," Kaellia said firmly. "But as deputy leader, I guarantee: his strength is pure and true."
Allan raised his hand.
"And as captain, I can say: I recognize the boy's strength."
The king nodded, thoughtful.
"Eriane, gather all the researchers in the capital."
The queen furrowed her brow slightly.
"You're thinking what I'm thinking?"
Aserion responded with a sharp look.
"Yes. There's no demon named Lorn in the records."
Everyone exchanged startled glances.
Lyssandrel narrowed her eyes.
"A personal domain…? That would be problematic."
Kaeron chuckled softly.
"Problematic will be finding him. The rest is easy."
He and Lyssandrel smiled, complicit.
"Ashen Wolf is a necessary force for the war," Kaeron said. "If this Jin is as strong as they say… we'll need him too."
The king then pulled out an ancient map and spread it across the large stone table.
"Strange energies have been reported to the guild multiple times coming from this place."
His finger pointed to an isolated region, far from the Muni Islands.
Allan approached, attentive.
"So we were heading too far…"
Kaellia lowered her head, thoughtful.
The queen pointed delicately to another spot on the map.
"We've had reports from here as well. The Muni Islands."
The king nodded.
"We'll go to Verdanf first, where the first report came from."
Ziek raised an eyebrow.
"With 'we'll go'… you mean…"
"We'll go together," the king replied, with a faint smile.
The queen added:
"Don't worry. I assure you we won't get in the way."
Kaellia gave an ironic smile.
"I think we'll be the ones getting in the way."
Aserion looked directly at her.
"If he has a personal domain… he's strong. We don't have time."
Lyssandrel concluded firmly:
"Be ready. We leave tomorrow at dawn."
Everyone exchanged glances in silence. Then, as one, they bowed, turned, and left the hall, the weight of the decision echoing with each step.
---
A muffled silence enveloped the purple sky of hell. The ground around was dry, cracked, and the air seemed still, as if time itself hesitated to move forward.
Jin opened his eyes slowly, his lashes heavy as lead. His skin stuck to the hot ground. The light was scarlet, strange, and everything around was distorted—like a dream he couldn't wake from.
He took a deep breath.
Nothing.
No pain.
No weight in his chest.
No urge to cry.
No guilt.
Just silence.
"Finally awake," said a deep voice, tinged with mockery.
Bouros leaned casually against a black stone, as if he were part of the landscape. His gleaming eyes watched Jin with calculated calm.
"You're a wreck, kid."
Jin propped himself up on his elbows, rising with difficulty. He looked around.
The corridor was gone.
Now they were in a dry, ochre valley, the sky still streaked with red. He looked at Bouros and let out a faint, almost ironic smile.
"You seem less scary now."
Bouros narrowed his eyes, suspicious.
Jin lowered his gaze to the ground. He felt the warmth of the earth under his hands.
Then he noticed the absence—not of something physical, but of everything that used to crush his soul. No pain. No sadness. No regret.
His mind was clear. Silent as the landscape around him.
Bouros smiled, as if he'd been waiting for this exact moment.
"I know what you're thinking."
Jin stared at him, eyes wide.
"Your emotions haven't returned to normal…" Bouros continued, stepping away from the stone. "They're with me."
Jin frowned.
"But you…"
Bouros raised a hand, cutting him off:
"I'm outside you? Well, for now… yes."
He rolled his shoulder as if testing his body.
"That bastard sealed me out of you… but I'm still sealed in you."
Jin tilted his head slightly, confused.
"Have you always been this cryptic?"
Bouros let out a hoarse laugh.
"You're terrible at jokes, kid."
He turned his back, looking at the cracked horizon.
"Take this time to think. As soon as I return… all your emotions will come back. All at once."
Jin closed his eyes, his face expressionless. A whisper escaped his lips:
"Again."
…
A few meters ahead, on a hill of broken stones, two bodies lay sprawled, nearly motionless. Marcus and Kael. Covered in soot, their eyes half-closed, their muscles trembling with exhaustion.
Kael let his arm fall to the dry ground and let out a sigh.
"I think we're gonna die here…"
Marcus rolled his eyes, his voice hoarse:
"Didn't want my last moments to be with you."
Kael laughed weakly, his head tilting to the side.
"Sorry about that," Marcus replied, dragging himself until he could sit up. Sweat dripped, but wiping it was pointless. The heat didn't come from his body. It came from the ground. The air. Everything.
Kael narrowed his eyes and pointed with his chin.
"You didn't see… or are you pretending not to?"
Marcus followed his gaze and widened his eyes. A figure stood at the base of the hill, still as a statue: Bouros.
"That thing's been standing there for a while…" Marcus murmured.
"He seems… smaller," Kael said. "Less intimidating."
…
Meanwhile, Jin stood, gazing at the broken horizon. Bouros, beside him, watched something in the distance.
"Your friends are around here."
Jin turned his head slowly.
"Gave up on looking for them?"
Jin hesitated. Then answered in a low, emotionless voice.
"I only remember Marcus coming with me."
Bouros sighed, bored.
"There's another idiot with him. Some guy named Kael."
Jin frowned, confused.
"Kael?"
Bouros pointed to the top of the hill, where two silhouettes struggled to stay seated.
Jin remained still.
The figures took shape: dark hair, broken armor, steps too slow to be human—yet too familiar to be demons.
Jin's hand went to the hilt of his sword.
His eyes, once unfocused, became cold.
Empty.
Alive.
"It's not the first time they've appeared in illusions," he murmured, as if speaking only to the ground.
Marcus stopped a few meters away.
"He seems… different in this form."
Kael sighed silently.
Then shifted his gaze to the broken sky.
"His presence feels so… real."
No warning.
Both moved at once.
Scarlet sand was kicked into the air with their hurried steps.
Swords raised.
Collision imminent.
But before metal met metal—
Two hands appeared between the three.
A movement that stopped all three attacks.
"Calm down," Bouros said, his voice like a rock dragging through the silence.
His gray gaze fixed on them with indifference.
"This isn't an illusion."
The weight of those words didn't land as truth.
It landed as doubt.
As if even reality needed proof.
For the first time in days—perhaps weeks, perhaps centuries—Jin saw familiar faces.
In the real world.
---
The sound of horses' hooves and the rhythmic march of soldiers filled the valley. The sky was clear, but the wind carried a strange omen, as if the earth itself knew something dormant was about to awaken.
The royal group advanced cautiously. At the front, Aserion guided his horse with serene posture. Beside him, Lyssandrel scanned the horizon, her eyes alert to the thinning vegetation.
"This is nostalgic," Aserion said, a faint smile on the corner of his mouth.
Lyssandrel raised an eyebrow and replied:
"We returned from Carno less than a week ago."
Allan, listening closely from behind, widened his eyes.
"You're talking about Carno… that city?"
Aserion glanced over his shoulder and nodded, almost amused.
"Yes. It was good exercise… after so long."
Kaellia, trotting further back, frowned, astonished.
"A rank S group would struggle to get out of there alive…"
Kaeron crossed his arms, impassive on his saddle, and merely muttered:
"Don't try to understand."
Silence hung for a moment, broken by Aserion's voice, now graver:
"Prepare yourselves. We're minutes from the site of the first report."
Everyone tightened their reins. The mood shifted. The group advanced into the unknown.
---
Back in hell.
A dull impact echoed through the broken hills.
Marcus narrowed his eyes, staring at Jin.
Kael arrived just behind, remaining still, his body still trembling with exhaustion.
"Jin!" Marcus exclaimed, his eyes wide with both relief and shock.
Jin merely nodded. A nearly imperceptible gesture, he leaned forward and smiled.
"You… okay?" Kael asked, knowing the question was futile.
Jin looked at both and answered with a sigh.
"Better than I look."
Marcus crossed his arms, frowning.
"First things first…" He pointed with his chin toward Bouros. "What the hell is that monster?"
Jin lowered his head slightly, his eyes still empty.
"Bouros. He's the one who attacked Eres village."
Kael clenched his fist.
"That's supposed to explain why he's here?"
Marcus took a step forward, sarcasm dripping from his voice:
"Sorry for my friend's dumb question." He stared at Jin. "But why the hell is he so friendly with you?"
A brief silence.
The kind that weighs heavy.
Jin let out an almost imperceptible sigh.
"Some things happened."
"I kinda… sealed him in me."
Marcus blinked, his expression torn between shock and disbelief.
Kael just lowered his face, as if trying to process the information.
Bouros let out a low noise, perhaps a laugh.
They didn't have time to say more.
A roar echoed in the distance—and then the red sky split into black fissures. Roars rose like inverted choirs. From the cracked ground and mist, dozens of glowing eyes, claws, and fangs emerged.
A swarm of demons.
"What the hell…" Marcus said, drawing his sword. "Any clue how to get out of here?"
Bouros crossed his arms, calm, and answered as if discussing the weather:
"I could destroy this space… if I unleashed all my power."
Kael's eyes widened.
"You're holding back? That's why we don't feel the same fear as before?"
Bouros nodded, his gaze sharp:
"Part of me is sealed. The rest… I'm controlling."
Marcus gritted his teeth.
"Then why not do it already?"
Bouros pointed toward Jin.
"Ten years."
Silence fell like a blade. Jin closed his eyes, weary, and murmured:
"Again with this talk of years… Care to explain?"
But before Bouros could respond, he noticed the lowered gazes of Kael and Marcus.
Both… understood.
Both knew.
---
Meanwhile, in the real world.
The forest began to thin. The sound of hooves and armor gradually faded until everything became silence—dense, heavy, as if the air itself resisted their presence.
In the center of the clearing, a massive tree, its trunk dark and twisted, stood alone. In its bark, a vertical, irregular crack, as if torn open from within. From it, a thick, red liquid oozed, staining the bark and dripping to the ground like pulsing blood.
Eriane stopped, her eyes fixed on the living fissure in the tree. A faint smile appeared on her pale lips.
"The energy coming from this place speaks for itself."
The king dismounted and walked slowly to the base of the tree. He stopped inches from the crack. The heat emanating from it was strange—not physical, but spiritual. Alive.
He turned, his royal cloak billowing with the movement.
Behind him, arranged in organized ranks, stood the best: Kaellia, with a serious expression; Tolen, in absolute silence; Allan, hand on his sword's hilt; Lyn, with attentive eyes; Saphira, arms crossed, assessing; Mireya, steadfast; Ziek, quiet and impenetrable; Eira, her gaze locked on the tree; Lino, still as a statue.
And behind them, over four hundred soldiers, armed, prepared, and silent.
Beside the king, Kaeron, Lyssandrel, and Eriane formed the vanguard of the continent's greatest living mages.
The king took a deep breath, and his voice rose, firm and grave, like a command that echoed in the core of each one:
"I cannot guarantee everyone's lives." He paused briefly. "You are strong. And only you know your own strength and capability."
The queen stepped forward, her white eyes glowing faintly.
"We don't know what we might face in there… we can't even imagine."
The king nodded, and his voice rang out one last time, with the resolve of someone who had no intention of turning back:
"Prepare yourselves. This will be the hardest battle you may ever face."
And then, the queen concluded, unwavering:
"Prepare for the worst."