The door shut behind them with a soft sigh, as if the building itself exhaled after welcoming them inside. The air in the narrow hall felt cool and strangely clean, untouched by the busy noise of Solari Crest outside.
Faint silver light lined the walls in thin streams, flowing like quiet rivers. The floor was made of polished stone, smooth enough to reflect faint outlines of Zyren and Selene as they walked.
Selene stayed close to him, her steps soundless.
Her posture was relaxed, but her eyes stayed sharp.
"Does this place feel wrong to you," she whispered.
Zyren studied the hall.
"It feels old."
"Older than the town," she said.
Zyren nodded.
The hall turned slightly toward the right. As they reached the bend, the light dimmed for a brief moment. The shadows deepened, forming shapes that looked almost human before breaking apart into darkness.
Selene reached back and touched the bow on her back.
Her voice lowered again.
"This place is not in the guidebook," she said. "I read everything before the launch. Nothing mentioned a building like this."
Zyren continued walking.
"The world is hiding things."
Selene released a quiet breath.
"I do not like hidden things."
Zyren did not answer.
At the end of the hall, the walls widened into a circular room. The room had no furniture. No doors. No windows. Only a single pedestal stood in the center.
The pedestal held a crystal orb the size of a small melon.
It glowed with gentle white light.
Light that felt alive.
Zyren approached it slowly.
Selene followed, but she kept a small distance behind him as if instinct told her to avoid touching whatever lay ahead.
The orb flickered softly when Zyren stepped close.
And then something unexpected happened.
A line of text formed in front of his eyes.
System anomaly detected
Reading user presence
Adjusting parameters
Selene frowned.
"What is it"
Zyren kept his eyes on the orb.
"A system message."
"What does it say"
Zyren read the next words as they appeared.
Error
Bearer detected
Override required
Selene's expression tightened.
"Bearer of what"
The orb brightened.
A faint voice drifted from it, soft and broken, like a whisper through cracked glass.
You stepped into a world that no longer sleeps.
The silent crown follows you.
You should not be here yet.
Zyren clenched his jaw slightly.
"Who are you," he asked.
The orb pulsed.
Light rippled across its surface like breath.
Watcher.
Fragment.
Nothing more.
The voice grew clearer.
Your presence opens old doors.
Your path bends the world.
This town feels your arrival and trembles.
Selene stepped beside Zyren now, unable to stay back any longer.
"Why him," she asked. "He only arrived today."
The orb flickered again.
The glow dimmed, then brightened, as if thinking.
Some are chosen by history.
Some by mistakes.
Some by fate.
He is chosen by silence.
Selene looked at Zyren with worry.
"What does that mean"
Zyren remained calm.
"Why did you call me bearer"
The orb pulsed one more time.
Because something ancient claimed you.
The cracked crown inside him stirred.
A faint pressure moved across his chest.
The orb changed again.
A stream of text appeared.
Warning
Divine detection rising
Location compromised
Selene stepped back quickly.
"What does that mean
Who is detecting us"
The orb vibrated.
White light burst outward, forming a thin veil that spread across the room like a shield.
A new voice echoed through the hall.
A voice that sounded like shifting air.
Cold.
Soft.
Calm.
You should not have entered this place.
Zyren looked up sharply.
The shadows along the walls gathered slowly into one shape.
A silhouette walked forward, forming legs, arms, and a head from pure darkness. Only a pair of glowing white eyes appeared within.
Selene took a step in front of Zyren, bow half drawn.
"Who are you"
The figure ignored her.
Its gaze was locked entirely on Zyren.
You carry the mark of the broken sovereign, the shadow said. That alone distorts the flow of this town.
The orb trembled lightly.
Its voice returned in faint whispers.
Leave him.
He is not ready.
The bond is incomplete.
The shadow stepped closer.
He is chosen.
He must be tested.
Zyren took a slow breath.
"What test"
The shadow extended a hand.
From its palm, a burst of dark mist formed, swirling like smoke.
Prove that the crown did not break you.
Prove that the weight of its memory did not crush your mind.
Prove that you can carry what it awakens.
Selene raised her bow fully now.
"He does not need to prove anything to you."
The shadow did not look at her.
Mortals cannot stop the path of a bearer.
Selene's eyes sharpened.
"I am not trying to stop him," she said. "I am protecting him."
Zyren touched her arm gently.
"It is fine."
Selene blinked and looked at him in confusion.
"You cannot fight that. Not now. Not with nothing equipped."
Zyren felt the faint aura of the crown pulse once under his skin.
Something cold.
Something quiet.
"I can," he said.
The shadow lowered its hand slightly.
Very well.
Step toward me.
Zyren stepped forward.
The ground beneath him shook in response.
Light from the orb dims.
Selene's breath hitched softly as a faint shockwave passed through the air.
The shadow spoke.
You carry a power that opposes everything divine.
But the question remains.
Does it obey you
Or will it use you as its vessel
Zyren stood still.
"I do not want to be used."
Then show me.
Open the gate within your chest.
Let the presence inside you answer me.
Zyren exhaled.
His heartbeat slowed.
A faint pulse of cold ran across his spine.
The room dimmed.
The silver lines on the walls flickered.
Selene whispered in fear.
"Zyren… something is coming."
Zyren closed his eyes.
He reached inward.
Not toward his mind.
Not toward his thoughts.
Toward the quiet place where the crown had sunk itself inside him.
A cold voice answered.
You call.
I respond.
The ground cracked beneath Zyren's feet.
A faint burst of black and silver light surged from his chest, swirling around him like a quiet storm. Selene stumbled back in shock, her eyes wide with awe and fear. The orb flickered wildly. The shadow stepped back.
Good, it whispered.
Zyren opened his eyes.
They carried a faint glow.
Silver.
Sharp.
Cold.
Not his own.
The shadow spoke quietly now.
So it wakes for you.
Then you truly are the bearer.
The glow faded.
The room steadied.
Zyren's breathing returned to normal.
Selene touched his arm with shaky fingers.
"Are you alright"
Zyren nodded.
"Yes."
The shadow stepped back into the dark.
Your path begins now.
The gods will sense you soon.
Their eyes will turn.
Their whispers will spread.
And before long they will come for you.
Zyren remained silent.
The shadow lifted its hand one last time.
Seek the towns in the north.
There you will find the next fragment of truth.
And someone who remembers Othrenis.
The hall began to fade.
The orb dimmed into darkness.
Selene stepped closer to Zyren, her voice trembling.
"That thing knew you."
Zyren walked toward the door.
"I know."
The hall dissolved behind them as the door opened on its own.
They stepped out into the sunlight of Solari Crest.
The world outside continued as if nothing had happened.
Players laughed.
NPCs smiled.
Birds sang.
But Selene looked at Zyren with a new expression now.
Fear.
Curiosity.
And something else.
"You are not normal," she whispered.
Zyren looked ahead at the path leading north.
"I know."