crown of shadow

Velucia Academy – Midnight

The moon hung high, casting its silver light over the quiet dormitories of Velucia Academy. A hush had fallen over the campus, but sleep did not reach Kaen.

He sat at the edge of his bed, the black slime perched on his shoulder, purring softly like a living shadow. His thoughts were far from the Academy—far even from Zian.

They were back in the Abyss.

The feeling of the gate, of the pulse of raw ancient mana, still echoed inside him. That wasn't just a gate.

It was a message.

He closed his eyes, and for a moment, his mind slipped.

---

A Vision – The White Tree

Kaen stood in a barren expanse, a place where time bent and mana thinned to threads. Before him rose a colossal tree—its bark pale as bone, its roots burrowed into a black void.

Above, where stars should have been, only eyes blinked.

And beneath the tree... she stirred.

The silver-eyed woman. Her hair was white, flowing like water, and her presence was neither warm nor cold—but inevitable.

> "You're getting too close," she said, voice like silk over shattered glass.

Kaen didn't speak.

She looked up at him, her lips forming the ghost of a smile.

> "So, the little shadow walks among the mortals again."

> "And the sleeping god stirs," Kaen replied quietly.

> "Will you break the cycle?"

> "I'm not here to follow it."

The woman tilted her head, intrigued.

> "You carry the stain of the void, Kaen. But the light clings to you, too. Why protect her?"

> "Because she was always meant to ascend," Kaen said. "I just have to make sure she survives long enough to realize it."

The woman reached out with a hand formed of smoke and light.

> "Then I will test her. If she fails… I will take her place."

And with a pulse of blinding white light—Kaen woke.

---

Morning – Academy Lecture Hall

The sunlight streamed through stained-glass windows as students gathered for a special announcement. Zian sat near the front, her eyes distant, tracing shapes in her notebook. Kaen arrived moments later, his usual blank expression unreadable.

Professor Draeven entered with another instructor behind him—one Kaen hadn't seen before.

She had piercing light blue eyes, like the ocean before a storm, and deep navy-blue hair that cascaded like a waterfall. She wore a combat mantle, not a scholar's robe.

She radiated power—dangerous and precise.

> "Class A1," Draeven announced, "meet your new Combat Strategy Instructor—Serin Elowyn."

A murmur passed through the room.

Zian sat up straighter.

Kaen narrowed his eyes.

Serin looked at the class, her gaze scanning each student, evaluating them like weapons rather than people.

> "I'm not here to babysit," she said. "I'm here to teach you how to stay alive. Because most of you won't."

Silence.

> "There's a storm coming. The gates are acting up. More ancient ones—like Eclipse Abyss—are stirring. And soon, they won't be sending students. They'll send you because no one else will go."

She turned to the board and flicked her fingers. Runes flared to life, creating a map of the continent.

> "Your next mission will not be in the field. It will be in the city of Kareth, near the Fallen Spire. We've detected unstable rifts near an ancient monument. You will go in teams of four."

Students whispered.

> "Kaen, Zian," Serin said, "you'll lead two teams. Choose your third and fourth by tonight. Dismissed."

As students filed out, Kaen and Zian remained seated.

> "She's strong," Zian whispered.

> "More than that," Kaen murmured. "She's not from this side."

Zian blinked. "What?"

> "She's seen the Abyss. Maybe more."

---

Later – Courtyard Fountain

Kaen leaned against a marble column, watching the rippling water.

Zian approached with two papers in hand.

> "Potential teammates," she said. "I asked around. These two ranked just below the top ten. One's a tamer, the other a support mage."

Kaen nodded, barely glancing at the names.

> "We'll test them tomorrow."

Zian hesitated, then looked at him.

> "About what you said… about making me a god."

Kaen looked at her now, fully.

> "Do you think I can be one?" she asked.

Kaen stepped closer.

> "No," he said. "I know you already were."

> "Then why don't I remember?"

> "Because something or someone shattered your soul."

Zian felt a chill pass through her.

> "And if I remember too much?" she asked quietly.

Kaen didn't blink.

> "Then the world will tremble."

---

Far Away – Beneath the White Tree

The silver-eyed woman stood, finally awake. Her body shimmered like mist. She stared toward the mortal world.

> "The last god failed," she whispered. "Let's see if this one breaks the pattern."

She took a step into the void.

And the ground screamed in silence.