The control dome trembled.
Owen stared at the monitors as four life-signs vanished simultaneously. Not flickered—not weakened—
vanished.
Alys. And her three subordinates.
"Impossible," Owen whispered. "That region isn't even the extreme boundary… what could erase four cadets
without a trace?"
Static washed over the screens where their signals should be. The Mist Forest had swallowed them whole.
Crimson Lake — Rebirth of a Bloodline
Far below, Alys walked alone.
Elegance wrapped in silence. Grace woven into danger.
The deeper she ventured, the heavier the air became. It pressed against the lungs, against the bones,
against the soul. Her followers struggled behind her—hands shaking, breath stuttering.
But Alys never slowed. She never even looked back.
The path opened.
A lake waited. Still. Silent. Painted in a floating veil of crimson mist. Like blood drifting through water.
Alys inhaled. A breath that shivered with something close to longing.
"How beautiful…" she whispered.
She stepped forward.
The mist reacted.
It struck her like a spear. A surge of raw, ancient energy tore through her body. Her back arched, her jaw
clenched, and her eyes blazed with agony.
Then—
The transformation began.
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A black rune carved itself into her forehead. Her sclera darkened. Her veins illuminated with crimson light.
She gasped—then steadied.
The lake recognized her. Accepted her. Claimed her.
Alys Virellis was no longer merely a talented prodigy.
Something old. Something royal. Something terrifying.
Had awakened.
She lifted her hand. A gem rose from the center of the lake—pure crimson, pulsing like a heart.
When she touched it— A beam of bloodlight drilled into her brow.
Behind her, her followers screamed as invisible shackles shattered inside their bodies. Their minds buckled
under the pressure.
Alys didn't turn. She didn't need to.
The forest shook. Trees cracked. The air wailed.
Alys smirked.
"It begins."
With newfound elegance—and terrifying calm—she stepped into the mist and vanished.
A queen crowned in crimson.
Core of the Mist — War for the Silver Nectar
Survivors gathered around a single radiant flower.
Its petals glowed silver. Divine. Untouched.
No one moved. The air was too sharp. The killing intent too thick.
Then the first attack landed.
Lightning. Fire. Earth. Wind.
Chaos exploded.
2
Lura darted through the battlefield, electric arcs dancing across her skin. She reached the tree—only to be
blasted back by a wall of earth.
"Lura!" Mark shouted. Frost surged from his palms—shards of ice hurtling toward their attackers.
The battlefield split. Cadets clashed. Screamed. Fell.
Then—
A line of sword aura tore through the air.
BOOM.
The explosion shredded the ground. Opponents tumbled like broken dolls.
Alys stepped through the dust. Her eyes were normal again. But her aura wasn't.
Dark. Crimson. Heavy. Ancient.
Lura stared. "Why… are you helping us?"
Alys never looked at her.
"We are from the same city," she said softly. "And the same team."
She stepped forward.
Her presence forced the battlefield to bend.
Opponents froze. Their instincts screamed.
Mark whispered, trembling: "I thought she was strong… but this—this is impossible. How did she grow so
powerful?"
Alys answered without words. Her blade descended once.
A crater formed. Bodies scattered.
Silence swallowed the battlefield.
And then the world cracked.
3
The Land Rises
Roots snapped like bones. Earth quaked.
A six-mile stretch of land tore itself free from the forest floor. Ascending. Rumbling. Glowing with a faint red
light.
In the control dome, Owen's voice rang with panic.
"Prepare the ships! NOW!"
But he was too late.
The Mist Forest had awakened.
Alys stepped to the rising cliff's edge. Crimson mist curled around her like a cloak.
She smiled.
"It's about time."
Beneath them, the trembling grew into a roar. The atmosphere thickened. The sky dimmed.
Every cadet—weak, strong, terrified, ambitious—felt the shift.
Because the battlefield was no longer a forest. It was a throne room.
A herald of something ancient. Something monstrous. Something hungry.
And Alys Virellis… Stood waiting. Like she'd been expecting this moment her entire life.
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