Kingdom of Yarum – The Holy Capital of Ethelas – King Yarum Adalos IV's Palace
The place was breathtaking, with the sun shining gently and a tall palace rising high above. But far from the palace's peak, in one of its vast gardens, several people had gathered, and the sound of clashing swords could be heard from afar. They were teenage humans. The first was a girl with short black hair, holding her spear and blocking the attacks of a short blond boy wielding a short-bladed black sword—Susan and Tom.
A little farther away, John was swinging his massive sword while sweating under light clothing suitable for summer heat. Not far from him, Malin was aiming his bow at a red apple placed on Kevin's head. Kevin looked terrified as he muttered: "If you hit me, I'll kill you!"
"Are you sure you can kill me?" Malin replied challengingly, shifting his aim directly at Kevin's head.
Suddenly, in a swift motion, Kevin vanished, and Malin could do nothing but hear the sound of wind pierced by an invisible body. Then, Kevin reappeared—this time behind Malin—grabbing him tightly by the neck and muttering: "What did you say?"
"I said… you can't kill me without using the rune!" Malin replied with difficulty, patting Kevin's hand to let go.
It seemed the heroes were spending their time in one of the royal palace gardens—training, playing with their powers, and having fun. But away from them sat two girls. The first had short green hair, and the second was a blonde with long hair. Both were seated on one of the garden benches—Linda and Stephanie. Yet what drew the most attention was the person sitting with them: an old man in a dark blue robe embroidered with golden threads, his beard reaching down to his chest, and his eyes nearly closed.
"Well, the reason is that there are three types of demons. The Nardiss demons—they don't have a defined gender, neither male nor female. The second are the Crossif demons, who have races and can reproduce. And lastly, the Versin demons—we know nothing about them, except that they can change their forms into various races," the old man said. Apparently, he was explaining something important to Linda and Stephanie.
"Dangerous… there's a high chance that someone in this kingdom is a Versin," Linda said.
"It's not a chance—it's a fact. We've discovered that Diablos Island has a large amount of information about us… which led us to one conclusion: there is a Versin among us. And maybe not just one," the old man murmured.
"Thank you, Sir Velmhor, for the lesson," Linda said respectfully, bowing.
"No thanks necessary. I used to be a sage who passed on knowledge, so I should be thanking you for bringing back nostalgia to an old man like me," Velmhor finished, withdrawing.
"I heard he's the strongest mage in the kingdom," Stephanie muttered, staring at him as he walked away.
"He's the one who taught us the rune, but I've never seen his magical power. Still, I'm sure that the title of the kingdom's strongest mage doesn't do him justice," Linda replied coolly.
◆ ◆ ◆
In a grand hall, on a majestic throne, sat Adalos with his black beard and stern gaze. In front of him stood a knight, and to the right of the throne stood Archbishop August, while to the left was Queen Vinea. Their presence together could only mean one thing—something important, a matter carried by this knight on his tongue.
"Your Majesty, our second move must be at Pascal Port without delay. The demons are growing stronger there, and if we hesitate any longer, the Myria incident may repeat," the knight said, kneeling.
"Then our next destination is Pascal. Summon the heroes!" Adalos commanded in a loud voice.
At that moment, the knight immediately left the hall, hurrying to another place outside the palace, searching for the great warriors—or rather, the teenagers… the heroes from another world. Just then, the faint expression on Adalos' face vanished, replaced by a blank and suddenly sorrowful look. Of all those present, the only one who noticed that sadness was his wife, Vinea.
"Don't worry. Everything will be fine. The connection hasn't been cut off yet," Vinea whispered as she placed her hand on his.
"This is a terrible disaster. After surviving the Myria incident, we now find that Deryal attacked my daughter's palace and kidnapped one of the strongest individuals in my kingdom… Things are far from fine," Adalos murmured weakly.
"We must bring Tiana back to the capital. It's safe here, and trusting Deryal was a mistake," Vinea said.
"But that would cause an uproar in the kingdom… no one knows about the incident except us and those living in Tiana's palace… I don't want the matter to leak!"
"Then what will you do?! I told you trusting Deryal was impossible… but what's done is done. Listen to me, Adalos, we must bring Tiana back to the palace—hear me! Don't act on your own again!" the queen said more firmly this time.
"You're right… we need to bring Tiana back," Adalos murmured.
After a while, the heroes finally arrived. They wore their heroic armor, their eyes fixed on the king—but their number was incomplete. Only seven had come, which sparked suspicion in Adalos and his advisors. Even after searching around the palace, the eighth was nowhere to be found, and it seemed the king had given up hope of finding him.
"Sebastian is late again?" Adalos asked.
"Our apologies, Your Majesty. He never learns," Linda replied politely.
"Well… I'll begin," Adalos said, standing from the throne.
At that moment, the heroes rose from their kneel and stood in a line, staring at the throne and the majestic king. To them, it was clearly just another speech before yet another battle—a familiar moment, one that stirred many emotions: the sadness of break time ending, the fear of battle, and the suffering that had become part of them.
"I've received word that Pascal Port is under heavy attack from demons, and their forces are growing stronger there. So the next battle will be in Pascal. Prepare yourselves, heroes. We'll discuss the preparations later," Adalos announced loudly as he returned to his throne.
The heroes then left the grand hall. At that moment, Sebastian and Runari had finally arrived—but they quickly realized the speech was already over. They rejoined their companions and exited the hall as well. Yet the strangest part of all this was the look on the heroes' faces—faces that brought a gloomy atmosphere to the palace. Their expressions were cold and tired, as if they hadn't been on break at all.
Linda's POV
When I left the palace, a foul feeling overcame me. I felt overwhelming hatred and had absolutely no desire to head to the battlefield. It feels like I've had enough of this life—I can't take it anymore. The nightmares keep chasing me, and the exhaustion keeps knocking me down. Even so, there's still a goal I have to accomplish. I leveled up my stats in the last battle and during training, so I shouldn't have much trouble fighting… or at least I hope not.
Looking at the others, I don't see any difference. Every one of us is dealing with psychological torment. Especially… Stephanie. Poor girl doesn't even talk anymore. It's rare to hear her voice. She cries in her sleep and wakes up suddenly, screaming. This world isn't made for us. It seems like Malin was right—we're just teenagers. We can't handle what's happening in this world… but we're forced to do it. It's the only way. The only way to go back.
"Get fired up! Another battle is coming!" Tom shouted loudly, a failed attempt to hype us up.
"Shut the fuck up," Kevin muttered.
After that, a long silence spread. A silence I know all too well. We don't talk as much anymore like we used to. Everyone's imagining the battlefield—blood, corpses—and hoping they'll get used to it. But we can't. The most gruesome thing we'd seen before was a cat getting hit by a car. How the hell are we supposed to get used to this? I know it's hard, but it's not impossible. So maybe… just maybe, consistency will save us. Right, Dad?
Instead of firing up some motivation, I ended up sparking a bit of sadness. Shit! I can't take this life anymore. I want to go home. We split up and everyone went to their rooms. Suddenly, I felt an overwhelming weakness wash over me and I collapsed onto the bed, staring at my weapons standing by the wall. Looking at them gave me a terrible feeling, so I turned my eyes to the ceiling, where beautiful ornaments of multi-colored flowers were carved.
Those ornaments were my only refuge for happiness. They reminded me of the first day I actually felt happy in this world. It happened about a week ago, when I was walking around the capital with Stephanie. We passed a flower field and stopped to admire it. Suddenly, a little boy walked up, picked two flowers, and gave them to us, saying with a smile I'll never forget, in the most innocent voice: "Thank you for saving us from the demons."
Aww, it was the cutest thing I've ever experienced in my life. Ughh, I wish I had a video of it. I'd probably watch it a thousand times. I was so happy I found myself hugging my pillow and bouncing around on the bed like a kid. That's when a scream echoed in the hallway, followed by loud banging on my door.
"Linda! Stephanie is trying to kill herself!!!" Susan screamed from behind the door.
"What?!"
◆ ◆ ◆
Inside the grand throne hall, Adalos was seated on his throne as usual. In front of him stood a knight clad in majestic armor and wielding a legendary sword. His thick blond hair was pristine, his green eyes held a unique charm, and his features radiated courage and hope—Arthur Pendragon, the Sword Saint.
"I'm sorry, Your Majesty, but I can't," Arthur said confidently.
"But you're the only one I trust. Don't you see how important it is for you to oversee the heroes in this battle?" Adalos replied.
"I have an old promise. A promise that once I killed Zabus, I would return to the continent of Bardel… I'm not saying I'll return immediately, but I want to take time to think. Besides, there's no significant threat that requires my presence. And even if I leave, I promise, Your Majesty, that the moment any threat arises to the kingdom, I'll know—and I'll return as fast as possible. I apologize again, Your Majesty," Arthur said, kneeling.
"Well… you may go, Arthur," Adalos ordered.
With that, Arthur rose and left, leaving the king tangled in uncertainty. Adalos realized that winning one battle doesn't mean eternal happiness. It felt like he had just lost his grip on the thread of joy and instead was now bound by many threads—his thoughts, bringing his daughter back to the palace, the next battle, choosing a new overseer instead of Arthur. All these threads pulled him away from his favorite one—or rather, everyone's favorite.
"What about your daughter, August?" Adalos asked the archbishop sitting before him.
"I don't know if Kaily has the responsibility to oversee the heroes… but what do you think, Your Majesty?" August replied.
"She seems like the best option… Prepare Kaily!"
A knight then left the hall to bring the archbishop's daughter, Kaily—the second most powerful priest in the kingdom after her father. After some time, she arrived. Her black robe brushed the floor, and her beautiful gaze was fixed on her father's eyes. She was tall, and once she arrived, she bowed respectfully.
"Welcome, Priestess Kaily. It seems Arthur is busy and won't be able to oversee the heroes. So I ask you, Priestess Kaily, to take on that role in the battle of Pascal Port," Adalos said firmly.
"It would be my honor, Your Majesty. I gladly accept the task," Kaily responded with grace.
It seems the next battle is finally about to begin. Adalos has found a supervisor, and the moment of departure draws near. But far from Adalos and his concerns, not everything is going as planned. Events are unfolding in this palace that no one anticipated—events that may change everything. On a balcony of the palace, a girl with short green hair stood, the wind brushing through it gently. She stood on the edge—and one reckless step could send her plummeting from this great height… to her death.