Far from the glowing towers of Drakemount, beneath a fractured sky, the remnants of the Ruined Eclipsar Temple pulsed with forgotten power.

  “The Convergence begins…” whispered the dark seer of the Triad, her palm hovering over a hovering crystal that throbbed with unstable mana. “Their steps grow bolder.”

  From the jagged shadows stepped two figures.

  One moved with a hunter’s silence, long silver cws gleaming at his sides. His lupine form shimmered with dark fmes that hissed and vanished into smoke—Fenric Vargan of the Howlthorn Cn. Beside him walked a woman cd in radiant gsslike armor, her pale face bathed in a prism of shimmering hues—Shei D’Argent, heir of the Alvardein.

  “We wait in the Veins of Origin,” Shei spoke, her voice melodious yet sharp enough to cut bone. “The boy will come. He always does.”

  ---

  Drakemount Academy - Mission Briefing Hall

  A rge map of the continent flickered with magical lines across a floating interface. Headmaster Maeron Elowen Thalore stood before the four students, her elemental aura held tight but unmistakable—like a storm just beneath her robes.

  “Your target is an ancient ruin buried beneath the Barricade Ravine—what we believe is a Vein of Origin,” Maeron began, gesturing to a pulsing sigil on the map. “These veins feed the leylines that cross our world. Something is… disturbing them. Warping the elemental bances.”

  Kagami, his arms crossed, leaned forward slightly. “You want us to investigate the source?”

  Maeron’s eyes sharpened. “I want you to survive long enough to report it.”

  He nodded.

  Beside him, Elias adjusted the gauntlet over his wrist, nodding calmly. “Four of us?”

  Seraphina, standing at full posture, answered for her. “Better four prepared than ten reckless.”

  Minna, quiet but focused, nodded in agreement, her fingers tracing her mana ring.

  The four would make a compact unit—swift, versatile, and uniquely bonded through fire and history.

  ---

  Barricade Ravine - Duskfall

  The descent was steep. The deeper they went, the more unstable the mana grew—warped, like a dissonant chord in a symphony.

  Veins of glowing stone pulsed faintly beneath their feet. The ruins emerged from within the cliffs, overgrown with thorned vines and scorched glyphs.

  Kagami stepped forward, sensing the way chakra responded to the twisted mana. “Something’s been feeding off this pce…”

  Suddenly, the shadows bent unnaturally.

  A low growl echoed from behind a broken spire.

  Elias raised his staff. “Company.”

  They turned—too te.

  From the bckened corridor leapt Fenric Vargan, eyes glowing molten gold, his shadow-fire cws carving streaks in the stone. His form was lean and powerful, cursed fme licking around his fangs.

  At the same moment, light refracted violently behind them—Shei D’Argent descended, floating on a ptform of crystalline shards. Her smile was like cut gss.

  “You’ve grown, Kagami,” she said smoothly.

  Kagami’s eyes narrowed.

  “Three years ago…” he muttered. “You were at Whimwood. You attacked the gates.”

  Shei smiled coldly. “And now you’re strong enough to remember.”

  Fenric's voice was low and guttural. “We’ve come to test your resolve… and to see if the whispers about you are true.”

  Minna braced her stance. Elias began his incantations. Seraphina’s aura burned to life, crimson and electric.

  Kagami reached for the hilt at his back. “Then let’s not disappoint them.”

  ---