The news did not arrive gently.
It crashed into Zephyr like a storm without warning.
Messengers rode through the capital with horses lathered in sweat, armor still dusted with the ashes of battle. Their faces carried the unmistakable mark of disaster — pale, shaken, burdened.
By the time they reached the military citadel…
Silence had already begun spreading.
General Rael stood at the center of the war chamber when the doors burst open.
A soldier stumbled inside, breath ragged.
"My General—!"
Rael turned sharply.
"What is it?"
The soldier fell to one knee.
"…They are gone."
The air changed.
Rael's gaze hardened.
"…Who?"
"…Lylan and Lucas."
The chamber froze.
Rael stepped forward slowly.
"…Explain."
"Kidnapped, my General."
Rael's jaw tightened.
"By whom?"
"Vardok's wizards."
A second soldier entered, voice trembling.
"The giants… they overwhelmed the battlefield. Three hundred men fell. The survivors retreated."
Rael did not blink.
But something behind his eyes darkened.
"…Three hundred."
"Yes, my General."
"And the boys?"
"…Taken alive."
Rael's fists clenched.
Alive.
Which meant—
They were suffering.
Rael stormed into the barracks courtyard like thunder given human form.
Thousands of soldiers turned instantly at his arrival.
"They took them," Rael roared.
Murmurs spread.
Confusion.
Whispers.
A captain stepped forward cautiously.
"My General… forgive me, but—"
Rael's glare silenced him.
"…Speak."
"With respect, sir… they are only two soldiers."
The courtyard shifted uneasily.
Rael's voice dropped — cold, dangerous.
"Only?"
The captain faltered.
"I meant no insult—"
Rael's fury erupted.
"ONLY?!"
The entire courtyard recoiled.
Rael's voice thundered across stone walls.
"Those 'two soldiers' are worth more than a hundred men who lack discipline!"
Silence fell like a blade.
Rael stepped forward, eyes blazing.
"They are not merely soldiers."
His voice shook with conviction.
"They are the FUTURE of Zephyr's army!"
No one breathed.
"I trained them myself," Rael continued. "I forged their instincts, sharpened their minds, tested their endurance. Their potential surpasses anything this kingdom has seen in decades!"
His gaze swept across the ranks.
"And you dare call them 'only'?"
Shame rippled through the soldiers.
Rael pointed toward the gates.
"Prepare two thousand men."
Gasps echoed.
"We march for Vardok."
The March
Zephyr's army moved like an avalanche of steel.
Two thousand soldiers.
Banners raised.
Armor gleaming beneath war-torn skies.
Rael rode at the front, his presence alone enough to stiffen spines and silence fear.
Behind him, soldiers whispered.
"All this… for two men?"
"He must truly value them…"
"No. He believes in them."
And belief…
Was a terrifying force.
Vardok's fortress loomed like a wound carved into the earth.
Dark stone.
Jagged towers.
Walls steeped in dread.
Rael's voice rang clear:
"Advance!"
Zephyr surged forward.
Arrows darkened the sky.
Steel clashed.
Magic erupted from the battlements.
The battlefield exploded into chaos.
Yet Rael carved through resistance with ruthless precision. His sword sang death, his commands cut through panic, his presence ignited ferocity in his troops.
Zephyr did not merely fight.
They overwhelmed.
Against expectation…
Against fear…
Against Vardok's arrogance…
Zephyr won.
The Rescue
Deep within Vardok's prison halls—
Chains rattled.
Doors shattered.
And two battered figures lifted their heads.
Lucas blinked through haze.
"…General?"
Lylan's breath caught.
"…Rael."
Rael stood in the doorway like salvation itself, armor cracked, cloak torn, eyes burning with relief.
"You idiots," he growled softly.
Lucas laughed weakly.
"Took you long enough…"
Rael sliced through their restraints.
"Can you stand?"
Lucas staggered upright.
"Barely."
Lylan rose slower.
But his eyes…
Were alive.
Rael nodded once.
"Good."
Footsteps thundered behind them.
"Move!"
The Cost
They almost made it.
Almost.
But war is cruel.
And destiny, unforgiving.
As Zephyr's forces retreated from Vardok's crumbling gates—
A final surge of enemy magic erupted.
Rael turned.
Too late.
The blast struck.
Lucas shouted—
"GENERAL!!"
Rael was thrown violently from his horse.
Lylan ran.
"RAEL!"
But even as he reached him…
He knew.
Rael's breathing was shallow.
Blood stained his armor.
His strength… fading.
Rael's trembling hand reached toward Lylan.
"…Come closer."
Lylan fell to his knees.
"…No. No, no, no—"
Rael's voice was weak but steady.
"Listen to me."
Lucas stood frozen, horror etched into his face.
Rael slowly unsheathed his sword.
The blade that had led Zephyr through decades of war.
The blade of a legend.
He pressed it into Lylan's shaking hands.
"Carry… my legacy."
Lylan's eyes flooded.
"My General… please—"
"You are ready."
"…I am not!"
"You are."
Rael's gaze softened.
"…My greatest student."
Lylan's voice broke.
"I can't lose you…"
Rael's breath faltered.
"You will not lose me."
His fingers tightened weakly over the sword.
"I will live… through you."
Tears streamed down Lylan's face.
Rael whispered,
"Protect Zephyr."
"…I will."
"Grow stronger."
"…I will."
"Lead them."
"…I swear it."
Rael's eyes dimmed slowly.
"…Good."
And then—
Stillness.
Lucas fell to his knees.
"…No…"
Lylan did not move.
Could not.
The sword trembled violently in his grip.
His mentor.
His General.
His second father.
Gone.
The Cry
That night, Zephyr did not celebrate victory.
They mourned.
And somewhere far away—
Princess Aeloria stood pale as moonlight.
"…Rael is dead?"
"Yes, Your Highness."
Her hands trembled.
"…And Lylan?"
"…Alive."
Her breath shook.
But fear took root.
Because war had just reached into her world…
And stolen someone she respected.
Someone Lylan loved.
Which meant—
Next time…
It could take him.
Alone beneath Zephyr's midnight sky—
Lylan stood gripping Rael's sword.
Tears silent.
Eyes burning.
"I swear…"
His voice cracked.
"…I will avenge you."
The wind howled softly.
As though the fallen General listened.