The morning air was crisp and cool as Vael opened his eyes on the quiet hill. Golden sunlight filtered through the scattered trees, casting long shadows over the freshly dug grave before him. He stood there silently for a long moment, staring at the simple wooden marker that bore his mother's name. A quiet ache lingered in his chest, but he pushed it down. There was no time for sentimentality anymore.
A new system notification hovered in front of him, glowing softly. Without a second glance, he dismissed it with a flick of his hand. Whatever it wanted could wait.
Without turning around, he spoke in a calm, decisive voice.
"We're going South."
Gruk, who had just landed heavily behind him, scratched the back of his massive head with one thick finger. "Boss, why South? Shouldn't we go the other way around? The Ironclad Kingdom is north. That's where all the action is."
Aamon stepped forward, his face serious and composed. "My king, it would be wiser to return to the city. Allow me to personally deal with Morbelith. I can handle her discreetly and efficiently."
Vael didn't even slow his steps. He continued walking forward as if their words barely registered.
"Then suit yourself."
In one fluid motion, he bent his knees and launched himself into the air with explosive force. His body rocketed upward like a cannonball, climbing high enough to survey the entire landscape below. The vast plains stretched out before him, and there moving like a black tide across the fields was the massive horde of undead. Thousands upon thousands of rotting figures sprinting northward with relentless hunger.
Vael's eyes locked onto them. Without hesitation, he blasted forward, breaking the sound barrier with a deafening sonic boom that rolled across the hills like thunder.
Gruk watched his boss disappear into the distance and let out a heavy sigh.
He turned to Aamon with a lazy, mischievous grin spreading across his face.
"Since you're the junior here, you get to stay behind and look after the house." Gruk's grin widened into something downright wicked. "Keep it nice and clean, yeah? And while you're at it, take this ring. Raise that useless undead Haldir from whatever hole he's hiding in. Let that worthless trash pull out every single weed in the garden… and mop the floors until they shine like mirrors. If I come back and find even one speck of dust, I'll use his skull as my personal soup bowl."
Aamon stared at him with a blank expression.
Gruk chuckled darkly, clearly savoring the idea. "Make him scrub every corner. Tell him it's character development for traitors. Maybe he'll finally learn some humility after spending the day on his knees scrubbing floors like a servant."
Then, without missing a beat, Gruk cupped his massive hands around his mouth and shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Boss! Wait for meeee!"
He crouched low, muscles bulging, and launched himself into the sky with another thunderous boom, chasing after Vael's trail.
Aamon was left standing alone on the hill, staring at the empty sky with a tired sigh.
"…Great," he muttered under his breath. "Just wonderful."
Near the hidden portal deep within the shadowed forest, Morbelith waited.
The longer she stood there, the more her patience frayed. Her fingers twitched with barely contained fury as she glared at the inactive portal. Haldir was late again.
"Pathetic," she hissed, her voice laced with pure venom. "These worthless humans can never be trusted. Weak, slow, cowardly, and utterly disposable. I should have skinned that sniveling fool alive the moment he proved useless. Maybe peeled his face off slowly while he begged for mercy."
Her lips curled into a cruel, sadistic smile at the vivid image. The thought of inflicting pain brought her genuine pleasure.
"Fine then," she whispered coldly. "If the dog refuses to come when called, I'll simply change my plans."
With a sickening, fluid ripple, Morbelith's body began to morph. Her elegant features melted away like wax over flame. Bones cracked and reshaped, her figure swelled slightly, into dusty, worn traveling attire. In seconds, she had become a plain, middle-aged merchant woman slightly overweight, with a tired but harmless smile fixed on her face.
She tested her new voice with a soft, meek chuckle that sounded completely ordinary.
"Much better."
Satisfied with her disguise, Morbelith turned away from the hidden portal and began walking toward the main entrance gate of the Ironclad Kingdom. Each step was calm and measured on the surface, but beneath the innocent merchant facade, pure malice burned in her eyes like molten steel.
She disappeared into the morning mist, her cruel smile hidden from the world.
As Vael shot through the sky like a dark comet, he finally descended toward the massive horde of undead sprinting northward across the open plains. He landed heavily in front of them, the impact cracking the ground beneath his feet and sending a powerful shockwave rippling outward.
The undead horde thousands of rotting orcs, elves, taurens, and decayed soldiers didn't slow down in the slightest. They continued charging straight toward him with mindless, ravenous hunger.
Vael calmly opened his system interface. A blue screen appeared before his eyes:
[Quest Pending]
[Collect the Souls of the Slain Corpses]
He raised one hand toward the oncoming tide and spoke in a cold, commanding voice:
"Proceed."
Just as Gruk arrived behind him in a thunderous boom, something truly terrifying unfolded.
All thousands of undead suddenly froze mid-stride. Their bodies began dissolving rapidly into thick black smoke laced with crackling purple lightning. The smoke swirled violently, forming a colossal vortex that screamed toward Vael's outstretched hand. The force was so immense that powerful winds exploded outward, flattening the grass for hundreds of meters and kicking up massive clouds of dust.
The entire horde was consumed in mere seconds.
Gruk's eyes widened like dinner plates. His jaw dropped, then stretched into a massive, gleeful grin.
"Boss… holy shit," he muttered, half in awe and half laughing hysterically. "That was the most beautiful necromancy I've ever seen! Thousands of them sucked up like cheap ale down a thirsty throat!"
He clapped his huge hands together excitedly, practically bouncing on his feet with joy.
"Oh man, I can already picture Valthar's stupid face" Gruk let out a loud, barking laugh. "That overconfident bastard is gonna get his ass whooped so hard he'll be coughing up bones for weeks! I almost feel bad for him… almost!"
Gruk wiped a tear from the corner of his eye, still grinning like a maniac.
"Boss, you're seriously too cool. Can we do that again? Maybe next time with some dramatic music and slow-motion effects?"
Vael lowered his hand, the last wisps of black smoke vanishing into his palm. His expression remained cold and focused.
Suddenly, a bright crimson system notification flashed before his eyes:
[Mission Completed]
[Soul Harvest: 100%]
Before he could react, another window appeared:
[New Quest Unlocked]
[Title: The First Step Toward Breaking the Narrative]
Then, without warning, a large blood-red countdown materialized in the air, pulsing ominously:
[Countdown Initiated]
5…
4…
3…
2…
1…
0…
Vael's eyes widened.
"Wait, what?!"
The moment the countdown hit zero, a blinding bright light erupted from the sky above them. It was pure white and intensely powerful, swallowing everything in its radiance. For a split second, the world seemed to disappear completely.
Then, just as suddenly as it had appeared…
To be continued.