The light from the Throneforge dimmed the moment the boy stepped in.
His presence felt wrong—not heavy, not loud, just... off. Like a broken tune playing under your skin.
He stood at the edge of the hall, golden eyes locked on mine, hands relaxed by his sides. But the two shadows behind him twisted and moved as if they were alive—one sharp and violent, the other slow and creeping like poison.
"I'm your brother," he said again, calm and sure, like he believed it more than I ever could.
I stepped forward slowly. Rin stayed behind me, hand on her blade. Her ears twitched with alert tension.
"My name's Kael," I said. "And I don't have a brother."
The boy tilted his head. "You do now."
I looked at the shadows behind him. "What are those?"
He smiled slightly. "Memories."
That answer didn't help.
He took one slow step forward. The shadows followed, dragging like chains across the floor. The air grew colder.
"You woke up in the Pit, didn't you?" he asked.
I nodded.
"So did I. Except I didn't crawl out. I was pulled out."
I didn't like the sound of that.
"By who?"
"The same thing that whispered to you under the Sanctum." His eyes gleamed. "The one watching from the flame. It called to both of us. It gave you a spark. It gave me... a choice."
System Alert:
Warning – Unknown Entity Interference Detected
Analyzing presence… Failed.
Status: [Unknown Class – Unknown System]
His system wasn't readable.
That had never happened before.
"You're lying," I said, voice tight. "If we're connected, why do you feel so... wrong?"
"Because you resisted it," he said softly. "And I didn't."
One of the shadows behind him uncoiled, stretching like a whip, then snapping back into place.
"Who are you really?" I asked.
"My name was Lyric," he said. "But names don't matter anymore. Not when we're both monsters now."
His voice was sad. Almost gentle. But the power around him pulsed with dark hunger.
"You came here for a reason," I said. "What do you want?"
He looked at the forge. At me. At Rin.
"I came to warn you," he said.
Rin raised an eyebrow. "You don't look like the warning type."
"You're being hunted," Lyric said. "By something worse than the Church. Worse than the Silver Order."
I frowned. "The Trial?"
He shook his head. "No. This is older. This is personal. You took something from it when you survived the Grave King's trial."
"What did I take?"
"A piece of his throne," Lyric said. "A claim."
He looked at me with something close to pity.
"That wasn't a gift. It was a curse."
System Alert:
New Event Branch Unlocked – "Thrones of the Fallen"
Warning: Competing Sovereigns Detected
Player has been marked by two Rival Paths
I didn't know what that meant yet—but it didn't sound good.
Lyric stepped back.
"I'm not here to fight," he said. "But when the Trial begins... I'll be part of it."
"What?"
He looked away. "I can't stop it. I already made my deal. But I wanted to see you once before we met as enemies."
Rin moved beside me. "Why bother warning us if you're going to try to kill him later?"
He didn't answer.
Instead, he reached into his cloak and pulled out a small scroll, sealed with a black thread.
"This will show you where the first fragment is," he said, placing it on the floor. "Of the true Sovereign's crown."
"Why help me at all?"
"Because you're still human," he said quietly. "And I wanted to remember what that felt like."
Then, without another word, he turned and walked back into the shadows.
The two shadow-creatures followed him, whispering sounds in a language I couldn't understand.
And then—
He vanished.
Not faded. Not ran.
Vanished.
Like he'd never been there at all.
System Alert:
You have encountered: Sovereign Fragment Seeker – Lyric
Threat Level: Extreme
Affiliation: Bound to the Broken Flame
Current Alignment: [Unknown]
I walked forward and picked up the scroll. It felt cold. Too cold for paper.
When I unrolled it, the map inside showed a place I'd only heard of in ruins and legends—
The Black Staircase, a hidden ruin at the edge of the burning sea. A place swallowed by the Abyss long ago.
"That's suicide," Rin whispered.
"Maybe," I said. "But we don't have a choice."
Because a timer was already ticking.
System Notification:
Trial of the Lesser Prince Begins In: 32 Hours
First Trial Location: Sanctum of Ash
Hostile Forces Incoming
Elite Challenger: [Lyric] Confirmed
And below that:
Optional Objective Unlocked – Reach the Black Staircase before the Trial ends
Reward: Sovereign Crown Fragment [1/6]
Warning: All Crown Fragment Seekers are enemies
So that was it.
We were being forced into a race against other half-dead monsters like me.
Each one stronger than the last.
Each one chasing a throne built on ash, flame, and ancient death.
I looked at Rin.
"We need to prepare."
She nodded. "I'll set traps. Secure the outer Sanctum. We'll make them bleed for every step."
"And I'll forge new gear," I said. "If we're going to survive the Trial... we need power. Real power."
But even as we spoke…
I felt it again.
That gaze.
Far beyond the Sanctum.
Watching.
Waiting.
Smiling.
And this time…
It wasn't Lyric.
It was something else.
Something deeper.
Something older.
System Alert:
???: "He stirs, the Third Flame. Tell the Firstborn… His time is almost up."
I didn't know what that meant.
But I knew this:
The Trial was just the beginning.