PEARLIE and Tiedus quickly manipulated the air bubble to break into pieces as soon as their safety was guaranteed after the gate closed in the passageway. Blue runes suddenly appeared, glowing at the back of the entrance—a sign that only a certain person with distinct blood could open it.“How is Izora?” Jie peeked at the face of the little elf, who was starting to get pale and breathing unevenly.“Getting worse.” Kafle exhaled sharply.As they strolled the long and winding underwater alley, the wall gleamed in blue light. It was a series of fish patterns that would be activated when someone was there to give direction and lighting.“I never knew this place existed. I’ve been in Hanum almost my entire life.” Bucca held the patterns on the wall before he gazed at Kafle with a dumbfounded face. “Unless you are a—”“Walk faster.” Kafle immediately interrupted him, obviously avoiding Bucca’s inquiries.Jie had witnessed Kafle’s sudden change of expression. He knew he was hiding something,
NIRVANA METROPOLIS THE second full moon had brought panic to the remaining Ardhians on the surface. Aelec and the hunting team ensured the safety of their people when Ethros and Nyssa were taken away. It had been months since they left, and they had no way of knowing if they were safe. All of them would be forever stuck on the island, isolated from the rest of the world. “We are under attack!” Finn came running from the wooden watchtower they made a few days ago. “The enemies have come back!” “Everyone, hide back in the cave!” Alec ordered. “I know they'll return. What do they want from us?” Kali gritted her teeth as she helped the people hide. “We can't go back underground now. The monsters will feast on us, and this time I’m sure our people will be extinct.” “A swarm of dragon riders, just like before. What are we going to do, Chief? We can't fight back. We're just too few.” Finn held his bow tight. “First, we need to ensure the safety of the kids. You, Kali, and Amri, secure F
TARIAN attempted to attack using a dagger, but Jaeger stopped her. “Hold your ass, Tarian! Didn’t you see what happened to Aelec? I can’t deal with another corpse!”Tarian wept, looking at Aelec lying motionless. “How can you stand still when Aelec is killed before your eyes?”Jaeger held onto his weapon tightly. He breathed in and out repeatedly to control himself. Because, like Aelec, he was willing to sacrifice his life for his people. But he could not be this careless, especially since Aelec had left him with the burden of looking after the surviving Ardhians. He couldn't believe Aelec would trust a nobody like him. He was just a simple villager in Ardhi, but he could not stand this kind of persecution from their former leader.“This is not the time for that, Tarian. Can't you see we're surrounded?” Jaeger motioned his head to the men behind him to give up. Everyone lowered their weapons. Saxan chortled. “Good, you made the right decision. Your lives are all spared. Well, I heard
IT CAME as a shock to Jie to watch all his companions pay their respects to the female elf meditating under the moon’s light below the altar. The crest of the royal family, which was an intricate pattern of a silver dragon, gleamed steadily.“Wait, Grandma? Is that your true form? But how?” No words could ever describe how perplexed he was. Realizing that Izora was a princess was so mind-blowing. Not just any princess, but the sole surviving royalty of Hanum!“All of you may raise your heads.” The princess's voice was soothing in Jie’s ears. She met his gaze afterward. “Yes, brat. I was forced to take that child form when my mother was murdered. I am Princess Baharini, and I will reclaim Hanum from the empire!”Jie felt a shiver down his spine when the princess declared it. Although it wouldn’t be easy, he admired her tenacity.“Wait, you being the princess of Hanum…” He stopped midsentence, trying to grasp the idea, “Then that makes you the holder of the Agua! Isn’t it?” Jie’s eyes w
THE delegates from the two kingdoms gathered in the Winter Palace of Firth. The security was tight because the aristocrats and royals present in the Avancie were the lifeblood of the Learaf archipelago.King Malik, who had just been crowned after his elder brother’s demise, spearheaded the long processions of royals on the thick blue carpet going to the palace. Behind him were the representatives of all seven houses of Vatre.“Why can I see only six flags here? Who dares not attend the Avancie, knowing it’s the most important event of the Imperium?” King Malik whispered to General Drax beside him.“The House of Vaughn unfortunately cannot attend. I confirmed that an unknown plague hit their estate. It could be contagious, Your Majesty. It’s better to take extra precautions.” The general thought was that the king would not notice because there were a lot of delegates. But his keen eyes did not miss a thing.“House of Vaughn...” King Malik muttered. He heaved a deep sigh afterward. “Wel
“KAFLE, we need to return to the palace!” Princess Baharini clasped her crystal flute tightly. He was looking at the vast sea, going in the direction of Firth. But the thick fog hindered her elf's sight. Kafle refused to look back. “We can't do that, Princess. Your mother had meticulously planned this for your safety.”“How can we cross that fleet? We'll be slaughtered like they hunt a whale in the sea!”“I am strong enough to get us through. We'll get to Mora unscathed.” Kafle sounded confident. He knew his power was at its strongest when he was in touch with the water. And with the surrounding ocean, he could weaponize it.“No, I can't let them harm my mother!” She gazed around. “I can't believe they put down thousands of our warriors securing Firth! My sense of smell is so strong that I know the blood of our kind has been spilled on this water.”“And that's one of the reasons why you need to survive, Princess. Firth is surrounded, and who knows what type of sorcery they did to eli
DESPITE everyone doing their usual activity in Firth, unaware of the catastrophe that was about to happen, Kafle and the princess had told some Hanumese elves to start evacuating as soon as possible as they scurried to return to the Winter Palace. Unfortunately, only a few obeyed while the others looked at them weirdly, especially since their peasant clothing could easily be identified as one because most of them had not seen the princess in person. “Everyone is calm around the city. We can’t even be sure now if our armored soldiers are real.” The princess started to panic again. They were taking the southern path so they could sneak in at the back of the palace.“Kafle, I think we should make a quick evacuation plan without alerting the forces of the empire. I can't think that our kind will cease to exist if we don't do something!” Princess Baharini suddenly paused as they got closer to the southern walls. Kafle nodded. “Let’s do what you think is right. We're already here, I’ll b
KAFLE returned to the queen’s chamber and found the princess sobbing as she tightly hugged her mother. “Mother, don't leave me this way!”“Forgive me for wanting to reunite with your father and brother too soon, leaving you here alone to carry all the burden of this decision.” Queen Zotza’s tears kept cascading down her cheeks.“Mother, no. Please… I can't do this without you.”The queen gazed at Kafle from a distance. “He will take good care of you.”“No!” Princess Baharini strengthened her embrace. “Why does this have to happen?”“We cannot escape fate. This is bound to happen so that another era will be born.” Queen Zotza had a hard time catching her breath. The poison was slowly taking her heart, and even though she could stop it using the power of the Agua, she chose not to do it—for the sole reason she’d take with her in death.“Fate? You call this fate? I’ve always admired your brilliant strategies, Mother. That is why Hanum is standing strong against our enemies. But how come
CRISTON’S dumbfounded expression turned into awe as a series of flickering blue lightning countered the attackers. It was not long until it was revealed that a platoon of military elves consisting mainly of mages was positioned in proximity of the border for defense.“Indeed, the military might of the Southern Hanum is state of the art. Look at that? In just a blink, the aggressors retreated. That’s the famous Starlight Regiment, stationed on the borders. Their sole task is to kill all enemies on sight.” Xylas shook his head as he chuckled, and he added, “General Ibri is surely ruthless. Rumors had been circulating that he secretly trained private elite armies of mages defying the order of the late queen.”“That’s why Advani remained untouched. General Ibri is the head of the war council after all. The Supreme General of Hanum. We’re lucky; even though they vetted on us, General Mord did everything so we could have easy access in this territory.” Criston stared at the magnificent view
ON THE rocky shore of West Advani, Pearlie crawled with her severely injured body while carrying Nyssa on her back, while Damien remained unconscious near them. The huge waves had helped them reach the island.The dawn was breaking, but the sounds of the night insects could be heard around, along with the turbulent splash of the waves and lightning piercing from the sky.“We are safe now.” Her tears kept falling from her eyes and turned into pearls as she recalled Tiedus’ heroic sacrifice for everyone to reach the shore of Advani.“Captain, wake up. We’re here,” Pearlie whispered through her dried throat. She felt her body was on fire.Pearlie fought hard not to lose consciousness, knowing they might meet their demise with the wild animals around if no one could rescue them. Fortunately, as her vision started to get blurred, she witnessed two gigantic birds—a falcon and a raven hovering above them.“It’s them!” said the man riding the giant falcon. It was Criston holding his golden gr
AS TZEITEL scurried to return to her villa to check on Izvern, she was not expecting to see his brother waiting on the entrance without his usual two guards. Agni seemed agitated.“Brother, what are you doing here? I thought you left since I haven’t seen you in the banquet hall.” She turned to her ladies-in-waiting behind her, headed by Marina. “Leave us. I need some time alone with my seventh brother.”“Yes, Princess.” Marina stepped back before she turned along with the other four maids.“What are you up to?” Agni stared at her eyes as if he saw through there the dangerous things she did.Tzeitel looked down. “What do you mean? Come in. So many prying eyes around.”“Do you think I will not notice how restless the imperial armies are around the estate? I sneaked to the nearest military camp; everyone seemed to be in chaos searching for something. I know how schem
DESPITE the current predicament of the Elsher Estate losing their precious captive, the marriage alliance between Cariux and the third princess still pushed through. The noble feast was held a day before the wedding, and several members of the imperial family had come to Kaitseri, including King Malik.Princess Tzeitel pretended to warmly welcome her family. Her two older sisters came to her just to assert their dominance since, just like her, they were married off to the powerful families to support the empire.“I can’t believe our youngest legitimate sister is getting married now,” Princess Gweyr giggled. She was the first princess. She came along with their second sister, Princess Eletha.They were in the receiving hall, and all the ladies from aristocratic families had gathered there, and some of them showcased their music skills. The festive sounds reverberated around.Eletha playfully touched Tzeitel’s hair. &ld
SURV Elsher gathered all the members of the family in the private hall of his residence to discuss their current dilemma. His old face was fuming in anger and scolding everyone.“Father, calm down!” Lord Filus tried to pacify the Elsher patriarch. “It already happened. An ordinary person could not even set foot in this estate, let alone abduct our source of healing power.”“What are you trying to say, Filus? If you were not so lax around here, this would not have happened!” Surv pointed his finger to his eldest son. “If that creature managed to return to Hanum, how would we answer to the empire?”“We control a military might in the North, we have the strongest armies. Who would dare to provoke us? I heard the intruder used an advanced technique of portal magic. Only Iridessa is capable of doing it.” Lord Filus sounded calm.Surv gritted his teeth. “A mere rebel dared to trespa
TZEITEL observed the three of the Elsher siblings gathered in the courtyard of the main house, drinking in celebration for the upcoming wedding, which would be held in two days. Using her portal magic, she could hear their conversation from a distance. Hidden on the roof of her villa, she prepared to return to the forbidden dungeon.“How’s the feeling of tying the knot, little brother? I heard Grandfather punished you the other day for having a tryst with your lover. How brave you are to disobey our elders while you're with the third imperial princess!” Fenton laughed as he teased Cariux. He raised his wine glass and clicked it to Halix’s glass.Halix chuckled upon hearing the words of their oldest brother. “I can’t believe you’re this immature, brother. You're carrying this duty, a task specifically given to you. You can’t mess this up.”Cariux chugged his wine. “Am I not fulfilling my du
TIEDUS reinforced the water bubble while Pearlie tended to Damien, who was still unconscious. They were traveling southward, holding out not to use their last resort to swim, as it could easily lead to their demise. “Captain Winward will kill us if he finds out we left the lieutenant to die,” Pearlie’s body trembled, remembering Hisila’s sacrifice. “The dead will remain dead. Why would we drown ourselves in regret? It’s useless! This is war, Princess. Thousands of lives will be the collateral. And now we have no choice but to cross the Lightning Sea. Maybe it’ll be our turn to die next.”“I know,” Pearlie gazed down. “Perhaps I’m too young to understand these things.”“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you reach Advani safely.” Tiedus strengthened his resolve, knowing the very low probability of survival. Crossing the Lightning Sea was a suicide.The water bubble came to a halt for a moment as they witnessed the sudden change of turbulent rift in the water from a distance. The roar of thu
BAHARINI quickly checked Hisila’s pulse, praying that she could feel even a faint throb, but there was none. It was difficult for her to accept that the lieutenant had already passed away. Silently, she blamed herself for her immaturity; had she heeded Kafle's advice to avoid wasting time in the pit, she might have avoided capture. This tragedy may not have fallen on Hisila if they had followed their plan.“She’s gone,” Baharini’s voice cracked. “It's my fault.”Kafle did not say a word. He looked around to check if he could find Damien and the others, but they weren't there. “We need to keep going,” Kafle said as his face was void of expression. Baharini turned to wipe her tears. She gazed down at Ethros, who seemed frozen on the ground. “Can we give her a proper send-off?” The princess suggested. “I'm afraid we don't have time. Our enemies are approaching. I can't risk your life.” Kafle had to make a hard choice, knowing time was of the essence.Jie finally came to his senses. H
ISLAND OF ASTRAEAIRIDESSA kept pointing to the island of Kaitseri on the map as she conversed with her deputy chief inside the war room. They had just finished discussing war strategies with other officials a while ago since the grand fleet of the Empire initiated an attack on the West Astraean shore.“Aren’t you worried we might lose this main base?” Nacht mused. He crossed his arms as he studied the cold expression of the liberalist chief.“You’re not helping, Nacht.” Iridessa heaved a sigh.“Take it easy, Chief. We’ll find a way to save your adoptive daughter.” Nacht teased her again.Iridessa rolled his eyes. “Tzeitel can fend on her own. I’m just waiting for her report.”“Her wedding is approaching. With the Elshers keeping her hostage, how can we guarantee her safety?”Iridessa scoffed. “Worry about your kids, Nacht. If you are not too foo