The capital Dale of Rivergate , blazed with torchlight.
Banners of crimson and silver draped from marble balconies. Trumpets rang across the upper terraces of the royal district. Nobles in polished attire crowded the ceremonial courtyard beneath the towering crest of Rivergate Kingdom the silver shield crossed with spear and sword.Tonight was a night of pride.An S-ranked beast had fallen and Rivergate's strength had proven itself once again. At the center of the courtyard stood three figures clad in platinum-plated armor,
Darien….Torin...and Selva...
Darien : tall, golden haired, charismatic raised a goblet as the crowd cheered.
Torin: laughed loudly beside him, recounting exaggerated details of the battle.
"Did you see its face when Darien split the spine?" Torin boomed. "It looked almost offended."
Laughter erupted,On the elevated throne, the King of Rivergate smiled broadly.
"My heroes," he declared, voice amplified by magic, "are the pillars upon which our nation stands!"
More applause…..
More cheers...
More pride....
And yet Selva did not smile.
Her silver hair shimmered under the torchlight like falling moonlight. Her armor was lighter than the others', elegant, engraved with faint celestial patterns. She stood perfectly composed, too composed.
Her eyes were distant the celebration felt wrong. She heard the whispers behind her. "That other boy didn't make it, did he?"
"The F-rank one?"
"Aragon? Hah….Weak."
"Dead weight from the start."
Her fingers tightened around the stem of her goblet.
Aragon....
They had declared him dead after the forest incident. A failed escort mission.
Unfortunate casualty,regrettable, but necessary. That was the official report. Selva had not argued. But something inside her had twisted the moment she read it. No body recovered ,No magical residue consistent with death.
Just… disappearance...
And she knew Aragorn,
He wasn't loud...
He wasn't flashy...
But he wasn't weak...
She remembered the way he used to look at the training grounds studying patterns, not boasting. She remembered how he once offered her a water flask during a heat drill without a word,
Small things...
Unimportant things...
But real....
Darien approached her, nudging her shoulder lightly.
"You look like you're attending a funeral," he joked. "We won."
Selva forced the faintest smile.
"Yes, We did….."
Torin leaned in,"Still thinking about that F-ranker?"
Selva said nothing…
Torin shrugged. "You can't save everyone."
The King raised his goblet once more,
"To Rivergate's future!"
The crowd roared, Selva lowered her gaze. For the first time since she had earned S-rank, she felt small,
Not powerless....
Just… wrong...
And in the deepest part of her heart she hoped he was alive.
Marsh
Far south, in the wetlands of Brightshore Kingdom, life was less glamorous.The town of Marsh was damp, wooden, and practical. Inside a modest guild assigned stone quarters near the Shore's Adventure Guild, Aragon sat across from Daren a single lantern flickered between them.
Daren leaned back against the wall. "So let me get this straight."
Aragon nodded
"The tunnel was corrupted, Not natural"
"Not natural," Aragon confirmed
"Cloaked men?"
"Yes"
"Mentioned Rivergate shipments."
Aragon nodded again
Daren exhaled slowly
"And they called it a 'Marsh Test'?"
"Yes"
Silence filled the room
Rain tapped against the shutters
Daren scratched his head, "You realize this is insane, right?"
"I'm aware"
"You're an F-rank"
"I'm aware of that too"
Daren studied him carefully
"You don't move like one"
Aragon didn't respond, He had grown used to that comment. After a moment, Daren sighed. "You're either extremely unlucky… or standing in the middle of something big."
Aragon leaned back against the wall
"I didn't ask for this"
"No one ever does"
They spoke a little longer about logistics, patrol rotations, and whether to file a partial or full report to higher command. Eventually, exhaustion overtook them. Daren rolled over onto his cot. Aragon extinguished the lantern.
Darkness…..and then…the dream began…..
The forest again but not as it was. The trees were taller the sky darker. And the three moons of Mythra loomed unnaturally close. A presence formed between the trunks.
Cloaked...
Faceless.....
Yet familiar.....
"You survived," the figure said
Its voice was neither male nor female. It felt… ancient.
"I didn't plan to die," Aragon replied.
A pause
"You were not meant to"
The air trembled slightly
"The board shifts. Pieces move without understanding the hand."
Aragon frowned, "What are you?"
"I am not your enemy"
"That wasn't my question"
Silence...Then,
"There is a dungeon beneath the old marsh chapel, Sealed, Forgotten"
Aragorn's eyes narrowed
"Why tell me?"
"Because it has begun to wake"
The ground beneath them cracked faintly
"Rivergate does not test blindly," the figure continued. "And Brightshore does not ignore anomalies."
The shadow leaned closer
"You are no longer invisible."
Aragorn felt a chill
"What's in the dungeon?"
"A truth older than the kingdoms"
The dream began to fade
"Go," the shadow whispered.
"Before someone else does"
Darkness swallowed everything Aragorn woke sharply. His heart was steady.
Not afraid....
Just aware.....
The dungeon beneath the chapel. He had passed that ruin dozens of times. And never once sensed anything,
Until now...
In the capital city of Rising Sun , the royal court of Brightshore was quieter than Rivergate's,
Refined...
Measured...
Strategic...
The King of Brightshore sat calmly upon his throne, robes deep blue trimmed with gold. A scout knelt before him.
"Your Majesty, confirmation has arrived"
"Proceed"
"Ravenholt, under Rivergate jurisdiction… has been destroyed."
Murmurs filled the chamber
"Survivors?" the King asked
"Yes, Your Majesty. They have taken refuge within our borders"
"Verification?"
"They are genuine refugees"
A pause....
"And among them?"
The scout hesitated
"One Ashrai male"
The chamber stilled….
The King's gaze sharpened…..
"Continue"
"He matches records of a summoned hero. Previously registered under Rivergate authority."
Whispers intensified…..
The King remained calm...
"Status?"
"Banished"
Now the room truly stirred…..
The King folded his hands...
"Rivergate summoned a hero… and discarded him."
"Yes, Your Majesty"
Silence lingered for several seconds
Then the King spoke quietly,
"Interesting , Is the boy dangerous?"
The scout hesitated….
"Unknown…."
"Is he useful?"
Another pause
"Potentially"
The King leaned back
"Rivergate grows careless."
A faint smile touched his lips not cruel, not mocking.
Strategic….!
"Extend protection to the refugees. Quietly observe the summoned one."
"Yes, Your Majesty…!"
"And one more thing"
The court leaned in….
"Send word to intelligence, I want to know why Rivergate is testing Marsh."
The air shifted...
Not war...
Not yet....
But movement....
On a continental scale....
And somewhere in a small damp room in Marsh…An F-rank adventurer unknowingly became the center of it all…..!