Three days later, Lucien stood at the edge of the Veil Rift.
The world around him pulsed with silent tension. Even the air felt thinner, as if it were holding its breath. Before him, a swirling tear in reality hovered just above the cracked earth — a spiral of darkness rimmed with violet light, humming like a dying star.
It wasn't a portal.It was a wound.
The Veil Rift didn't just lead to another place. It led to another truth — one that Hollowspire dared not speak about in public. It was said to be where dreams, nightmares, and memories bled together… where time didn't follow rules, and monsters wore the faces of people you loved.
[System Alert: Rift Entry Detected][Survival Odds: 23%][Bonus Condition: Bind a Riftbeast][Warning: Rift Realm destabilized]
Lucien's silver collar was temporarily deactivated, a show of "good faith" from the High Council… or more likely, their confidence he'd never return.
He turned to Elira, who stood just behind him, arms crossed.
"You don't have to follow me," he said.
"I know," she replied. "That's why I'm coming."
Lucien smirked. "You're becoming hard to predict."
"I learned from the best."
A dozen other students stood nearby — all chosen for the expedition, all marked as expendable. Most of them had never spoken to Lucien before. Now, they couldn't stop glancing at him.
He was the wild card. The rumor. The boy who had tamed a dragon shadow.
A tall girl with braided hair and a thunder symbol on her collar stepped forward.
"Name's Selka," she said. "Try not to die. I like competitions."
Lucien nodded. "Try not to scream when the Rift shows you your dead relatives."
She blinked. "...What?"
Too late.
The instructors activated the ritual, and the Veil Rift roared open.
A gale of cold, twisting wind sucked them inside.
[Entering Rift Realm…][Stabilizing Mental Shield…][Error: Environment Unknown – Soul Interference Detected][Time Flow: Fragmented]
Lucien landed hard on ash-covered ground.
When he stood, the sky above him was fractured — pieces of memory and shadow floating like islands. Lightning struck sideways. Screams echoed from nowhere. The sun blinked in and out of existence.
He looked around.
Half the expedition was already scattered.
"Perfect," he muttered.
Elira appeared nearby, clutching her head.
"This place… it's wrong."
"It's not real," Lucien said. "It's the Rift's illusion field. It wants us disoriented."
[System Notice: Shadowbrand Sync at 67%][Unlocking: Dragon Vein Instinct – Danger Sense Enhanced][New Detection: Riftbeast Signature – 700 meters]
Lucien's gaze shifted toward the east, where the ground sloped into a misty forest of thorned trees.
"Come," he said. "There's something worth killing over there."
As they moved deeper, the Rift began to play its games.
Ghostly figures appeared in the mist — Lucien's past enemies, old faces twisted in agony. One of them took the form of Seraphine again, her voice soft.
"You could've stayed with me…"
Lucien didn't stop walking.
"You were never real," he said coldly. "Not even the real you forgave me."
The illusion faded with a hiss.
Elira said nothing, but her knuckles whitened.
"Are you seeing things?" Lucien asked.
She nodded. "My sister. She died when we were kids. This place… it knows."
"It always does. Just don't listen."
They reached a clearing where the ground had been scorched black.
In the center stood a creature — tall, skeletal, cloaked in chains and veils. Its eyes were twin blue fires, and its voice echoed like metal scraping across glass.
[Riftbeast Identified: Veil Specter][Type: Emotion Eater][Weakness: Soulflame / Divine Light][Danger Rating: A+]
Lucien's hand tightened on his spear.
"I'll handle this," he said.
Elira stepped back. "You sure?"
"Watch and learn."
He stepped forward as the creature screamed, and waves of despair rolled across the field.
[Skill Activated: Dragon's Whisper][Boosted: Soul Flame Infusion][New Command: Flame the False]
Lucien exhaled.
A line of purple-black flame shot from his mouth, cutting through the mist and striking the Specter square in the chest. The creature shrieked as its veils burned, revealing a half-human face beneath.
Lucien's spear followed — a blur of movement powered by instinct and rage.
He struck the Specter in the heart.
But it didn't fall.
Instead, it lunged forward — its skeletal hands grabbed Lucien's head, and a burst of nightmare images poured into his mind.
You are still weak. You killed her. You will never become more than a shadow.
Lucien screamed.
[System Warning: Mental Corruption Imminent][Activating Passive: Immortal Will][Corruption Blocked]
Lucien's eyes burst with light. His soul burned like a star.
"No," he growled. "I've already faced worse."
He reached deep into his core.
And unleashed Astral Corruption Flame.
The Specter exploded in a column of soul-searing fire.
When the smoke cleared, Lucien stood shaking, breath ragged, eyes glowing.
[Riftbeast Defeated][You have unlocked Binding Eligibility][Do you wish to bind: Veil Specter (Soul Fragment Form)]
Lucien smiled.
"Yes."
The chains around the fallen Specter slithered toward him. Shadows wrapped around his wrist, forming a mark — a flame-touched chain coiling into a spiral.
[New Companion: Veil Specter – Bound]Abilities: Soul Drain, Illusion Break, Emotion DetectionPassive Synergy: Amplifies Dragon Vein Instinct by 15%
Elira approached slowly.
"Lucien… your eyes are different."
He turned to her, voice low.
"So is everything else."
That night, they rested beneath a dead tree in the Rift realm. Above them, stars flickered in impossible directions.
Elira leaned against a rock, silent for a while.
Then: "You don't trust anyone, do you?"
Lucien looked at her. "I trust… what I control."
"And me?"
A pause.
"Not yet. But you're close."
She smiled — barely. "Fair."
They didn't speak again. But the silence between them had changed. It wasn't cold anymore.
It was waiting.