The Forest, Midnight.
In the deep darkness where not even the cries of beasts echoed, two figures stood close together. In their hands, they held a faintly glowing crystal sphere. No, perhaps it should be said that it “used to be” a sphere. Once radiant with a dazzling light, the crystal had now split perfectly in two, and the weak glow was slowly being swallowed by the darkness of the night.
“I see…”
Albert muttered quietly as he looked down at the crystal, now devoid of its former brilliance and resting coldly in his palm. He spoke as though the sight before him revealed some deeper understanding.
“That old man carrying Leonora, known as Alir Ad, serves as the current regent of the Elrand. From what we heard, it seems he may have been using the power of dark spirits to seize control of Elrand. A scenario reminiscent of seven years ago. And it seems Leonora saw through it.”
The ice-blue eyes that had been fixated on the crystal seemed to hold the memories of the scenes that had played out within it.
“Leonora was taken by a thug according to the snow songbird, and it seemed to be in the same building as her room. The distance wasn’t far. Perhaps it was some hidden room in the cathedral’s underground.”
“I’m sorry the crystal didn’t last until the end,” Lena apologized shortly, seeing Albert lost in thought, his knuckles pressed against his lips.
The crystal, pushed to its limits, had shattered while showing Leonora being taken away and brought to what seemed to be a room underground. The crystal, as if choreographed, chose moments to show just enough to hide Leonora’s true nature and then shattered.
Lena wished it could have been more specific about the location, even if it meant the crystal breaking, leaving her slightly frustrated.
“Don’t worry,” Albert said with a serious expression, shaking his head. “If you hadn’t secured this crystal and used it as you did, we wouldn’t have been able to identify either the culprit or the general location. Thank you. Knowing the cathedral’s underground is enough. I’ll storm in if necessary.”
Lena gave a bitter smile at his choice of words. It was a tactic she and Albert had sometimes employed when magic was available. But now, without their magic, it seemed like an impractical plan.
Still, seeing the determination in his expression, Albert leaned forward, speaking firmly.
“Truly. While I can’t use magic now, I have other means such as power and wealth. I will wield my status as the empire’s first prince and even devalue Elrand’s currency if needed. I’ll make them open the cathedral’s doors.”
Lena laughed softly at the unexpectedly harsh tone. “That sounds like something a villain would say. Not the line of a pure prince.”
“The true nature of those deemed pure is often like this. Were you disappointed?”
“No. In fact, I prefer it this way.”
Lena responded honestly to Albert’s cynical smile, admitting she liked this side of him. It was a pleasant surprise for her, who had initially dismissed him as just another frivolous blonde aristocrat.
Cunning individuals didn’t bother her, especially those aware of their own slyness.
“In the capital Lurgran, I’m sure Gustav the guide will take action. With his help, we can combine our powers to force open the cathedral and rescue Leonora.”
Albert continued calmly, to which Lena added, “And use my wisdom.”
“Hmm?”
“Use my wisdom. While you take the lead and rush to Elrand, I’ll use my time wisely. By the time I arrive, I’ll have developed a strategy, perhaps a new use for the magic, to help save Leonora.”
Albert, impressed by Lena’s resourcefulness with the crystal under the magic restrictions, nodded in agreement. “Of course. Together, we’ll save Leonora.”
With that, he gracefully mounted his horse, looking down at Lena as he spoke. “Leonora… When I first saw you earlier, I thought you’d changed. But you’ve always been there for me. I’m glad we met here.”
“Wait, what?”
Lena was taken aback by his words, and before she could respond, Albert simply said, “Until later,” and spurred his horse away.
Lena, Kai, the coachman, and Bruno were left behind. Oscar had already ridden off, heading swiftly to Weitz.
As Lena collected herself, she immediately turned her thoughts toward what she should do next.
Kai planned to wait until dawn to move, but she felt a sense of urgency. She couldn’t afford to waste the night; she needed to act.
The broken crystal added to her sense of urgency, as it meant she could no longer track Leonora’s situation.
Despite the risks of navigating the unfamiliar forest at night, Lena felt a strong desire to reach the cathedral quickly.
(Bruno has keen night vision and can harness the darkness. If we push through the forest and travel swiftly, we should be there by dawn.)
With that conclusion, Lena turned her gaze to Bruno, who stood motionless, as if frozen in time, still in the same position as before.
Perhaps the shock of his friend’s crisis was too much for him to handle.
Despite avoiding a crisis before, it seemed that it had suddenly arrived. Lena was frustrated by his lack of movement and shook his shoulder.
“Hey, Bruno—”
But then she realized he was muttering something under his breath, so quietly it was nearly inaudible.
“Bruno?”
His words were in old Elrandic language, ancient and foreign. He continued chanting, his serious gaze fixed on the void.
“Don’t interrupt me. It’s almost ready. Just a little more, and I can trace the darkness and reach the ritual site.”
Understanding his intent, Lena watched Bruno in amazement. He planned to follow the darkness to the ritual site, likely where Leo was bound to the altar.
Water spirits could navigate any water source across the continent freely. Similarly, dark spirits could traverse shadows. The essence of dark rituals would be easy for them to access.
Bruno seemed to be attempting to use this ability.
While Lena found herself questioning why he hadn’t mentioned this earlier, she realized his origins would be problematic if revealed to Albert and the others. Additionally, Bruno’s skin glistened with sweat, indicating the significant strain he was under.
After repeating his prayers several times, a warm breeze swept around Bruno. His gaze shifted upward, his eyes appearing to hold endless darkness.
“I’ve made contact. We’re going. The ritual isn’t complete, so we can’t travel directly. But we’ll reach there faster than using horses.”
“Wait, going there—”
Lena was taken aback by the swift change, but she quickly came to terms with it, seeing it as similar to magic.
She may not understand the mechanisms of spirit power, but she knew they would be able to reach Leonora swiftly.
That was enough for her.
“Okay. Take me there.”
Bruno offered his hand, and Lena took it without hesitation, agreeing in Elrandic language.
Kai called out from a distance, “Leo? Bruno?” catching them by surprise. Lena responded by simply tossing her words into the air.
“Sorry, Kai. We’re heading to Elrand before dawn. If you can meet us, great. If not, that’s fine. See ya!”
“Wait! Leo!? But without any torches…!” Kai’s voice echoed with concern as he trailed off.
As Kai’s voice faded behind them, the darkness around them twisted and dispersed like a breeze. At that moment, Lena and her companions vanished from the forest.
***
The darkness was chaos. There was no sense of direction, nor a sense of time.
This left Lena reeling. “Ugh, just, please…stop…”
“Lena, speak the Elrandic language while in the domain of the spirits,” Bruno’s voice instructed.
Lena barely managed to control her nausea, pressing her hands to her mouth as she shook uncontrollably, unable to sense time passing. If she let her guard down, she feared she might vomit.
“I heard it would take time, but I didn’t expect this kind of off-road experience…”
“If you must vomit, do so. The darkness will hide it,” Bruno replied indifferently.
“It’s not that kind of issue…” Lena’s voice was weak as she struggled to keep herself together.
“You should be grateful you don’t have magical power. It could have made the domain even more chaotic. At least you’re in Leo’s body.” Bruno’s words were no comfort.
It seemed that the long neglect of prayers to the spirit of light had allowed the power of darkness to grow uncontrollably. Bruno had been working to “stabilize” the domain, but it remained unsteady due to the imbalance.
“It’s more turbulent than I expected. The spirit jewel must be severely tainted. If the ritual to offer a sacrifice to the spirit of darkness succeeds, the growing power of darkness could shroud the dawn celebration, turning the sky into a dark cloud instead of a source of sunlight,” Bruno contemplated.
Bruno’s dark eyes revealed little emotion, but the responsibility he felt as a descendant of Norlius and concern for his friend were evident.
If the ritual succeeded, Leo would suffer and die.
This was something Bruno, both as an individual and as the beloved of the spirit of darkness, was determined to prevent.
“We won’t let that happen.”
“Agreed.”
Both fell silent. How long had they remained that way?
Suddenly, a red light flashed before them, and then a strong gust of wind assaulted their bodies.
Lena instinctively raised her arms to shield her face, and the wind quickly subsided. The space around her cleared, and she felt herself forcefully thrown to the ground.
They had arrived at their destination—the site of the ritual.
“Ow…” Lena winced as she landed hard.
Bruno, on the other hand, managed to land gracefully, quickly surveying their surroundings while in a crouched position.
Several suspicious-looking men stared at them in shock.
“Who are you—”
Before the man could finish, Bruno chanted, “Cover.”
The men groaned in pain, clutching their throats, and one by one, they collapsed unconscious.
Lena was taken aback by the strength of Bruno’s magic.
“What did you do?” she asked.
“I covered their consciousness with darkness. In other words, I knocked them out,” Bruno replied.
He quickly checked for other potential threats, then stood up and scanned the room.
Lena followed his lead, covering her nose as she glanced around.
The smell was overwhelming.
(The stench of blood…)
Having been in darkness for so long, even the flickering candlelight was blinding. Lena squinted, her eyes adjusting as she searched for Leo.
The room was eerie and suspicious.
There were no windows, only sturdy stone walls. The black-draped spirit cloth, the candles dripping with wax, and the pig’s carcass on the blood-stained floor…
(Where’s Leo?)
Lena’s eyes darted around, her heart starting to sink with a sense of dread.
Traveling through the timeless darkness made it impossible to know when they had arrived.
She hoped they had arrived much earlier than Albert, but she couldn’t be sure.
(No, that can’t be possible.)
Her gaze lingered over the scene.
Her mind resisted accepting the reality before her, preventing her from focusing on the altar.
“Leo…” Lena’s voice was weaker and more hoarse than expected.
She forced herself to shout, “Leo!”
There was no one on the altar. Only heavy chains lay on the ground.
So, where was he?
Her gaze fell on a goat’s head nearby, a pile of blood-soaked coins, and a trail of blood dripping from the gold coins.
Then she saw a girl lying on the floor, her eyes closed and her body limp. It was Leo.
Lena wanted to scream, but her throat felt constricted.
Her mind struggled to comprehend the scene before her.
Leo was dressed in foreign robes, his hands pressing against his abdomen.
Even in the dim light, Lena could see his abdomen stained a dark, reddish-black, the blood soaking through his clothes and pooling on the floor.
Between the bloodstained hands, she saw something red and black—a twisted, grotesque mass.
“No… no, this can’t be…”
Lena’s throat tightened.
Bruno, who had been moving toward the altar, stopped in his tracks, stunned.
“Leo?”
Leo lay there, his innards exposed, blood streaming from his body.
The hell?!
WHAT