The sun rose over Solmere not with the fury of war, but with a strange stillness—like the calm after a storm that had changed the land forever. Smoke still drifted in wisps from the broken tiles of the Grand Arena, where just days before, two princes had clashed under the blazing sky. One walked away a king. The other... vanished like a shadow at dawn.
Kaelith Solmere now wore the golden crown of his ancestors. Yet the weight it placed upon his brow was heavier than any blade he'd ever carried. He stood before the balcony of the Radiant Spire, looking over the kingdom. His kingdom. People cheered below, but their faces were thin, their robes worn, and their joy... strained.
"Long live the Sun-King!" they cried.
But even as they spoke it, Kaelith wondered: Can I live long enough to save them all?
---
Far beyond the celebration, deep in the cursed wilderness of Darkwood Forest, shadows curled like living snakes around a broken soul. Vaeron's body shivered as the corrupted magic of Bloodmaris pulsed through his veins like molten iron. His once-golden eyes now glowed with a crimson light—violent, empty, consumed.
He remembered nothing but the sting of betrayal. His brother's blade. His defeat. His shame.
Kaelith…
The name echoed in his mind like a spell gone wrong.
He screamed—a sound that sent flocks of darkbirds screeching into the sky—and the very trees around him withered, bark turning black. The Bloodmaris had fully awakened.
"I will take back what is mine," Vaeron hissed, his voice not quite his own anymore. "And I'll burn Solmere to the ground if I must."
---
Back in the capital, Kaelith was not basking in luxury. From the very morning after his coronation, he began his duties as king not with a feast, but with a plan.
His chambers had become war rooms. Scrolls, maps, ledgers—everything lay scattered as Kaelith stood surrounded by generals, scholars, and ministers. But his focus was soon interrupted by a gentle knock at the door.
"Your Majesty," came the soft voice of Lyriel, stepping in with her usual grace. Yet today, something was different about her.
Kaelith noticed it instantly. Her silver hair shimmered faintly—like threads of moonlight—and her eyes sparkled, not just with intelligence, but with something… otherworldly.
"I felt something awaken during the Sun Duels," she said, her tone calm but unsure. "A magic I didn't recognize. It came to life during the night. When I looked up at the stars, I could feel them speaking to me. I… I think I've awakened my Royal Magic."
Kaelith stepped forward, placing his hand gently on her shoulder. "Show me."
---
That night, under the moonlit courtyard of the palace, Lyriel stood with arms open. Her breathing slowed. The air grew colder—not threatening, but serene. And then, with a whisper, the stars responded.
Light erupted around her in delicate spirals, each thread of magic forming constellations in midair. A glowing bow formed in her hands, forged from starlight itself. Her arrows left trails of galaxies behind them as she fired into the sky.
Kaelith watched in stunned silence.
"This…" he muttered, "is Lunaris Magic. It's not from the Sun. It's from the Moon. Beautiful, elusive… and rare beyond belief."
"Can it be controlled?" Lyriel asked, lowering her weapon.
"With time. And training." Kaelith smiled. "We'll do it together."
Lyriel smiles and hugs kaelith,"I'm very glad. Now i can be useful to you."
---
For the next few weeks, as Solmere rebuilt its arena and cleaned its streets, Kaelith spent each night training Lyriel under the starlit sky. He guided her through the basics of control, channeling, and restraint. He had learned his own magic through pain and battle—but he vowed to teach her differently. Gently. Purposefully.
Lyriel's Star Magic became more than just power. It became hope. And with Kaelith's Light Magic beside it, Solmere now held dominion over the two purest royal forces known to the ancient world.
But not all battles could be fought with magic.
---
Kaelith knew that for a kingdom to truly survive, it needed more than glowing blades and sparkling auras. It needed food. Clean water. Jobs. Justice.
So Kaelith rode through the kingdom in disguise, wearing plain robes and walking among the people. He saw the slums behind the walls of nobility. Children without shoes. Old women without bread. Merchants forced to bribe corrupt guards just to set up stalls.
"This is not the Solmere I was born to rule," he whispered to himself.
He returned to the castle that same night and summoned his council.
"We are building nothing if we build only towers of gold and let our people starve," he said. "From this day, I declare these royal mandates."
"First—All slums will be surveyed and rebuilt with clean water systems and public kitchens."
"Second—Orphans and widows will be granted monthly stipends and shelter under the Crown's protection."
"Third—Market taxation will be reset to fair standards, and all corruption will be hunted without mercy."
"Fourth—A kingdom-wide reserve of medicine and food will be established, as a countermeasure in case of another pandemic."
"We cannot prevent curses. We cannot always stop wars. But we can be ready next time. And if I must spend every coin in the treasury to do it—I will."
Everyone in the council is amazed by their new king's intelligence, sense of justice and Decision making ability.
---
As days passed, the kingdom of Solmere began to change. The golden spires still shimmered, but now the streets below sparkled too—lit by lanterns in the hands of grateful merchants, laughter in the alleys where silence once ruled. People began to believe not just in Kaelith's power—but in his heart.
Yet beyond the borders, darkness stirred.
In the forests where no light touched the ground, Vaeron stood before a twisted altar, his body now fused with the black veins of Bloodmaris magic. Dark figures surrounded him—creatures from the rift that had once opened in the duel.
"Prepare," he growled. "My brother wears the crown. Let him polish it. Let him preach peace. But when the second eclipse comes…"
His voice grew lower, colder, more monstrous.
"…I'll return to claim not just the throne… but the soul of Solmere itself."