Smoke lingered in the air, tinged with ozone and ash. The battlefield had quieted, but the unease remained—like a storm waiting to return.
Valerian stood before the fractured seal where the First Ascendant had fallen. A jagged split cut down the center of the obsidian gate, revealing a pulsing red glow within. It hummed with power, low and hungry.
> [System Notification: Gate of the Seventh Seal – Status: Compromised]
[Warning: Further disruption may trigger a Tier V Cataclysm Event.]
[Administrative Override Recommended.]
Valerian's brow furrowed. "Administrative override?" he muttered.
Lira glanced up from where she tended to Umbra. "You've triggered something the old world buried. That wasn't just a boss. That was a key."
Umbra, kneeling beside a broken spire, nodded slowly. "A gate key... forged in flesh and bound to the Deep Court. Their power was never to guard—only to test those who would inherit what lies beyond."
Valerian clenched his fists.
Another trial. Another damn lock. But this one… it felt different.
It wasn't just about the system anymore. It was about what it was hiding.
He turned to the others. "We can't linger here. The gate's compromised and we're sitting on a fuse."
Lira rose, brushing soot from her armor. "What's the plan?"
"We move. Now. Back through the teleportation ring. We regroup at Blackfang Hall. I need time to think. And… we need to prepare."
Umbra cast a wary look at the glowing crack in the seal. "And if it opens before we're ready?"
Valerian didn't answer immediately. His system pulsed—lines of code flashing across his vision like anxious whispers.
> [Event Trigger Chain: 2/7 Seals Breached]
[Time Until Next Awakening: 192 Hours]
[Optional Objective: Preempt the Third Seal]
His voice dropped. "Then we strike first."
---
They returned to Blackfang Hall under nightfall. The skies above the capital shimmered with unnatural clouds, pulsing with reddish light. Even the commoners whispered of omens.
Inside the war room, the air was thick with tension.
General Kaine stood near the hearth, arms folded. The rest of Valerian's inner circle—Lira, Umbra, Seraphine, and Selene—were gathered around the table.
Maps were spread out, rune-marked, and glowing with territories disrupted by the first and second seal breaches.
Valerian entered in silence.
Kaine bowed slightly. "My lord. You've returned with... scars."
"We all did," Valerian replied, settling into the high-backed chair at the head of the table. "But we won. The First Ascendant is dead. And now we face the real challenge."
He gestured to the map. "This," he said, pointing to the corrupted valley west of the capital, "is where the next breach will occur. I don't know how I know—I just do."
Selene narrowed her eyes. "System intuition?"
"More like... memory. The deeper I go, the more I remember things I never lived."
Seraphine leaned forward. "You're merging with Alex again."
"No," Valerian said firmly. "Not merging. Competing. He left this path for me—hoping I'd follow his steps like a puppet. But I've already broken two of the seals and survived. That means I can choose how this ends."
Lira looked between them all. "So what's our next move?"
Valerian didn't hesitate.
"We strike preemptively at the Third Seal. Before it opens."
Umbra's voice was grim. "You're talking about the Tomb of the Hollow Stars. It's not just guarded. It's sentient. Anyone who enters risks losing themselves."
"Then I'll go alone."
"No," Selene said instantly. "Absolutely not."
"Valerian—" Seraphine began, but he held up a hand.
"I'm the only one marked by the System. I'm the one it speaks to. And if this Seal is like the others, it'll be tuned to my memories. My past. If any of you go in there... the tomb will twist you."
Lira stepped forward. "Then take me as an anchor. You don't go alone into your past unless someone can pull you back."
Valerian studied her. "You'd follow me into my own mind's nightmare?"
She smiled faintly. "We've done worse. Remember the Spectral Catacombs?"
His lips twitched. "We were twelve."
"You still cried."
"Only because you set my boots on fire."
Selene exhaled. "Then we all go. But we stay outside the seal until you call."
Seraphine nodded. "We'll form a holding circle. Buy you time."
Kaine stepped forward. "If this is your decision, my lord, then the Blackfang will stand ready. We'll keep the outside world blind while you descend."
Valerian stood. "Then we move by dawn. I won't let the next seal open on his terms."
---
The next day, before the sun rose, the party departed in secret. No banners. No announcement. Just shadow.
They arrived at the edge of the Hollow Stars by nightfall—a forgotten plateau at the edge of the continent where the stars were said to fall to die.
There, embedded into the ground like a sword plunged into flesh, was the entrance to the tomb.
It radiated pressure—suffocating, ancient, and sentient.
> [Tomb of the Hollow Stars – Entry Condition: System Host Recognition Verified]
[Warning: This Dungeon Adjusts Difficulty Based on Psychological Load.]
Valerian stepped forward. "This is it."
Lira moved beside him. "You're sure you're ready?"
"No," he said honestly. "But that's never stopped me before."
He placed his palm on the gate.
It opened.
---
The world twisted.
He stood in a version of the capital—but darker, redder, and silent. The sky bled stars. The city was in ruin.
"Valerian."
A voice echoed from the cathedral ruins ahead.
He turned—and saw Alex.
His original self.
Younger. Sharper. Smiling with a sorrow that cut like glass.
"Welcome," Alex said. "To the memory of your betrayal."
Valerian's eyes narrowed. "This isn't real."
Alex shrugged. "Real enough to kill you. But first... let's see what you're made of, shadow."
From the ground rose distorted figures—people Valerian remembered. Faces from the past. Victims. Friends. Ghosts of a life he no longer claimed.
Alex raised his hand.
"Let the third trial begin."