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The ruins of Nerathis were no longer silent.
Ancient pillars that had slept beneath the ocean floor for centuries now stood tall again. Faint blue light flowed through the cracks in the stone streets like glowing veins.
The entire city felt… awake.
Izumi floated above the broken road, staring around in amazement.
"This place looks completely different now."
Dianara nodded slowly.
"The fragment activated something."
Her eyes carefully scanned the glowing structures around them.
"Ancient defensive systems… magical circuits… and something much bigger beneath the city."
Mira stretched lazily nearby, resting one foot against a broken statue.
"Yeah, yeah."
She spun one of her daggers around her finger.
"All I know is that Architect guy ran away."
Her golden eyes shifted toward the deeper ruins.
"And that usually means bigger trouble is coming later."
Behind them, the Ruin Guardian slowly rose again.
The enormous creature now stood silently near the edge of the street.
But it was no longer hostile.
Its glowing eyes remained fixed on Lior.
The fragment bearer.
The young boy looked extremely uncomfortable being stared at by a twenty-meter stone monster.
"…Why is it looking at me like that?"
Izumi scratched his head.
"Because you're basically its boss now."
Lior blinked.
"…What?"
Dianara stepped closer and studied the fragment floating above his hand.
"It seems the fragment has authority over the city's ancient guardians."
She looked at the giant creature.
"The Ruin Guardian recognizes you as the fragment's host."
Lior looked even more nervous now.
"I don't want to control a giant monster!"
Mira laughed.
"Too late."
She pointed at the guardian.
"Congratulations. You just became the mayor of a ruined city."
Izumi sighed.
"This isn't the time for jokes."
He turned to Dianara.
"So what do we do now?"
Dianara looked toward the deeper ruins.
"The Architect already knows about this place."
"And if Kareth returns with reinforcements…"
Her voice became serious.
"…this city will become a battlefield."
Mira shrugged.
"That was already happening."
Dianara ignored her and continued.
"But before that happens, we need to understand something."
She looked at Lior again.
"Why did the fragment choose you?"
Lior looked down at the glowing object floating above his palm.
"I don't know."
His voice was quiet.
"I was just exploring the ruins…"
"…and then the fragment suddenly appeared."
Izumi frowned.
"You came here alone?"
Lior nodded slowly.
"My village is nearby."
"Or… it used to be."
Dianara's eyes narrowed slightly.
"What happened?"
Lior hesitated.
"…Monsters."
The word echoed quietly in the glowing ruins.
Mira stopped spinning her dagger.
"What kind of monsters?"
"Big ones."
"Strange ones."
Lior swallowed nervously.
"They started appearing a few days ago."
Izumi looked at Dianara.
"Could that be related to the fragment?"
Dianara nodded.
"Very likely."
"The fragments are ancient artifacts connected to powerful magic."
"When one awakens…"
She looked around the glowing ruins.
"…it can disturb the balance of the surrounding area."
Suddenly—
A loud cracking sound echoed somewhere deeper in the city.
Everyone froze.
Another rumble followed.
The ground beneath the ruins shook slightly.
Mira's ears twitched.
"…And speaking of monsters."
From the darkness between the distant buildings—
Several shapes slowly emerged.
Creatures crawled out from broken streets and collapsed towers.
Their bodies looked like twisted combinations of sea beasts and stone.
Glowing blue cracks covered their skin, just like the Ruin Guardian.
Izumi frowned.
"Are those also guardians?"
Dianara shook her head.
"No."
Her voice became tense.
"They're Corrupted Ruin Beasts."
Mira grinned.
"Finally."
She pushed off the statue and landed on the street.
"Something easier to fight."
The creatures began surrounding them.
There were at least ten of them now.
Each one the size of a horse.
Their glowing eyes locked onto Lior.
Dianara realized the problem immediately.
"They're attracted to the fragment's power."
Izumi raised his sword.
"Then we just have to stop them."
Mira cracked her neck slightly.
Shadow mana began spreading across the street again.
"Try not to slow me down."
The first beast lunged forward.
Its claws slashed through the water toward Lior.
But before it could reach him—
The Ruin Guardian moved.
The giant stone creature stepped forward and slammed its massive arm down.
BOOM.
The beast was crushed instantly.
Everyone stared.
Lior looked shocked.
"…It's protecting me."
Dianara nodded.
"As long as the fragment recognizes you as its host…"
"…the city's guardians will defend you."
Mira smirked.
"Well that makes things easier."
She vanished again.
A second later—
SLASH.
One beast's head separated from its body.
Shadow magic flickered across the battlefield.
Izumi rushed forward as well.
Ice formed around his sword.
"Frozen Edge!"
His blade cut through another creature's armor.
Dianara raised her staff behind them.
Water currents twisted into powerful blades.
"Hydro Cutter!"
Three beasts were thrown backward by the attack.
The ruined street became a chaotic battlefield again.
But something felt wrong.
Even as the monsters attacked—
More shapes continued appearing in the distant ruins.
Mira noticed it first.
"…Hey."
She pointed toward the deeper parts of Nerathis.
"That's a lot of monsters."
Izumi turned.
His eyes widened.
Dozens of glowing eyes were watching them from the shadows.
The awakening of Nerathis had attracted something far worse than a few beasts.
And somewhere deep within the ruins—
Something ancient was still waking up.
The ruins of Nerathis had become a battlefield.
Dozens of Corrupted Ruin Beasts crawled out from the shadows between broken towers and collapsed streets. Their bodies were twisted combinations of stone, coral, and monstrous sea creatures, all covered in glowing cracks of ancient magic.
Their eyes burned with a dull blue light.
And every single one of them was staring at Lior.
Izumi tightened his grip on his sword.
"…There are way too many."
Mira stretched her shoulders slightly.
"Relax."
Shadow mana spread around her feet like a pool of darkness.
"We've got a giant bodyguard."
As if responding to her words—
The Ruin Guardian stepped forward.
The enormous creature raised its massive stone arm and slammed it down.
BOOM.
Three beasts were crushed instantly.
The remaining monsters roared and rushed forward.
Mira vanished into the shadows.
Her body appeared above one of the beasts.
"Blood Shadow Dance."
Her two short daggers flashed.
SLASH. SLASH.
Dark and crimson energy sliced through the monster's body. The beast collapsed into pieces of cracked stone.
Izumi charged forward as well.
Cold mana surged through his arm.
The forbidden magic he had learned from Lord Alba flowed through him.
"Glacial Break!"
A powerful wave of freezing energy exploded from his blade.
Ice spread across the battlefield, freezing several beasts in place.
Dianara raised her staff behind them.
Water currents twisted violently around her.
"Hydro Spear!"
Several compressed water lances shot forward, piercing through the frozen monsters.
The ruined street echoed with the sounds of battle.
But the beasts kept coming.
More and more of them crawled from the darkness.
Izumi frowned.
"This isn't stopping!"
Dianara noticed something important.
"Wait."
She looked toward Lior.
"The fragment."
Everyone turned.
The glowing fragment hovering above Lior's hand was pulsing faster.
Each pulse sent waves of ancient energy through the ruins.
And every time it pulsed—
More monsters appeared.
Mira landed beside them again.
"…That's not good."
Lior looked panicked.
"I'm not doing this!"
Dianara shook her head.
"I know."
She stared at the glowing ruins around them.
"The fragment is activating the city's ancient magic systems."
"But something else is reacting to that power."
Another loud rumble shook the ground.
This time it came from deeper within the city.
Even the Ruin Guardian turned its head toward the sound.
The beasts hesitated.
Then suddenly—
They all began retreating.
Izumi blinked.
"…What?"
The monsters ran back into the ruins.
Within seconds, the battlefield was empty.
Only broken stone and glowing ruins remained.
Mira frowned.
"Okay."
"That's weird."
Dianara looked toward the deeper city again.
"No."
Her voice was tense.
"That's worse."
Izumi followed her gaze.
"What do you mean?"
Dianara pointed toward a large structure in the distance.
A massive ancient temple had risen from beneath the ocean floor.
Its stone walls were covered in glowing runes.
Tall pillars surrounded its entrance.
And at the top of the temple—
A giant circular symbol was glowing with ancient magic.
Izumi stared.
"That wasn't there before."
"No," Dianara said quietly.
"It was buried beneath the ruins."
The fragment pulsed again.
The temple responded.
The glowing symbol brightened.
Lior looked down at the fragment in fear.
"…Is this my fault?"
Mira shrugged.
"Technically, yes."
Izumi elbowed her.
"Not helping."
Dianara studied the temple carefully.
"This structure… it looks like a control center."
"For the city?"
"Yes."
She nodded slowly.
"Nerathis was an advanced magical civilization."
"If the fragment activated the city…"
Her eyes narrowed.
"…then that temple might contain the key to controlling it."
Izumi looked at the massive structure again.
"You mean we should go there?"
Mira smirked.
"Well it's either that…"
She pointed toward the deeper darkness of the ruins.
"…or wait here for the Architect to come back with friends."
Izumi sighed.
"Temple it is."
Lior hesitated.
"You want me to go there too?"
Dianara answered calmly.
"The fragment is connected to the city."
"If we want to understand what's happening here…"
She looked directly at him.
"…you're the most important person in this situation."
Lior swallowed nervously.
"…Great."
The group began moving toward the temple.
The streets of Nerathis were quieter now.
But the glowing runes across the city continued pulsing slowly.
The ruins felt like a giant machine that had just started waking up.
As they swam closer to the temple, its true size became clear.
The structure was enormous.
Massive stone stairs led up to its entrance.
Ancient statues lined the pathway.
Each statue depicted warriors holding strange glowing artifacts.
Dianara studied them carefully.
"These aren't normal weapons."
Izumi frowned.
"What are they?"
"…Fragments."
Everyone went silent.
Mira raised an eyebrow.
"You're telling me this city had multiple fragments?"
Dianara shook her head.
"No."
"These are symbolic."
She looked up at the temple again.
"I think Nerathis knew about the Forbidden Scroll long ago."
Lior stared at the statues.
"…Then why was the city destroyed?"
Dianara didn't answer immediately.
Her eyes moved toward the glowing temple doors.
"…Maybe it wasn't destroyed."
The massive doors slowly began opening on their own.
Ancient mechanisms groaned.
A dark corridor revealed itself inside the temple.
Cold ancient mana flowed out from the entrance.
Izumi tightened his grip on his sword.
"Guess the city is inviting us in."
Mira cracked her neck.
"Finally."
"Let's see what secrets this place is hiding."
But far away—
Outside the ruins of Nerathis—
A dark portal opened briefly in the deep ocean.
Kareth stepped out of the shadows.
And behind him…
Several other powerful figures appeared.
Agents of the Architect.
Kareth looked toward the glowing city in the distance.
His smile slowly returned.
"Prepare yourselves."
"The real game has begun."