In the Crown Prince's chamber, the light-hearted atmosphere that had filled the banquet just a day ago was nowhere to be found.
The room was heavy with tension as Kyle entered, expecting a brief farewell before his return to the village.
Instead, Prince Mikalius greeted him with a grim face and a curt nod, gesturing for Kyle to take a seat.
"We have a problem."
The crown prince said, sliding a report across the table toward him.
Kyle didn't reply. He simply picked up the stack of papers and began scanning them with his sharp gaze.
Inside the report were detailed accounts from multiple villages—scorched land, corrupted wildlife, crops that rotted in minutes, and victims who had simply vanished.
At the center of every incident was one shared detail: a spreading black mass of formless mana, devouring everything it touched.
