"The Morning After."
The morning after the Trial came quietly, like the world was afraid to breathe too loud.
Pale sunlight filtered through Faelinor's thin paper shutters, casting gold ribbons across the wooden floor. The air smelled faintly of ash and damp earth — a ghost of yesterday's storm still lingering in the walls. Somewhere in the village, a bell chimed three times. Peace, not warning.
Kiyoshi woke to that sound.
He blinked at the ceiling for a long while, the faint ache behind his eyes pulsing in rhythm with his heartbeat. His body felt heavy — not from wounds, but from drain. Every muscle ached, restless. When he exhaled, the air around him shimmered faintly, like heat haze on a summer road.
He raised a hand, watching the faint light ripple off his skin. "Still there..." he muttered. His voice was low, hoarse. "Still moving on its own."
The door slid open with a soft wooden sigh.
"Still alive," came Celosia's quiet voice.
She stepped inside, carrying a shallow basin of water and a folded cloth. Her presence filled the space gently, like rain touching dry soil. The sunlight caught in her hair, making it glint the colour of late autumn wheat. She didn't smile, but the small crease between her brows softened when she saw him awake.
"Barely," Kiyoshi said, trying for a smirk. "Feels like I got run over by a stampede."
"You nearly did," she said flatly, kneeling beside him. The water rippled as she dipped the cloth and wrung it out. "Ceng-tae said your body tried to contain more mana than most mages touch in a lifetime. You're lucky you didn't tear yourself apart."
"Lucky, huh..." He leaned back, eyes distant. "Feels more like cursed."
She pressed the cool cloth against his forehead, her touch steady. "You sound like Rajieru."
He chuckled softly — then winced. "Guess he's rubbing off on me."
Silence stretched. Outside, the wind brushed through the trees, carrying faint birdsong. But beneath the calm, there was tension — a quiet hum that neither of them could ignore.
Finally, Celosia spoke again. "The villagers are talking."
He raised a brow. "That bad?"
"Some say you saved Faelinor's honour. Others think you're the reason we'll need saving again." Her eyes flicked to the window, voice low. "They saw what you did — what you are. It scared them."
Kiyoshi stared at the ceiling, jaw tightening. "Can't say I blame them."
"Don't do that," she said, sharper than he'd expected.
He turned his head toward her. "Do what?"
"Pretend you understand why they fear you." Her gaze locked with his — calm, but unyielding. "You don't. They don't fear you because you're dangerous. They fear you because you change things. Because the world doesn't stay still around you. People tend to fear what they can't comprehend; it's basic human nature."
Kiyoshi didn't reply. Her words lingered, heavier than the silence that followed.
Then, a soft knock interrupted them. The door slid open again — this time with intent.
Ceng-tae stepped inside, robes still dusty from travel. He carried a small crystal sphere that pulsed faint blue with every step he took. His expression was grave, but not surprised — like he'd already expected what he came to say.
"You felt it too, didn't you?" he asked.
Kiyoshi sat up slowly, his tone guarded. "Felt what?"
Ceng-tae placed the crystal on the low table. It pulsed violently, light flickering like a heartbeat out of rhythm.
"The Trial," he said quietly. "It didn't just prove your worth. It disturbed the leylines beneath Faelinor."
Celosia's brows furrowed. "Disturbed?"
"The mana flow across Ethera is unstable," Ceng-tae continued, studying the sphere. "The surge during your Trial rippled far beyond this village. It's as if... the world itself woke up to your presence."
The room seemed to shrink around them. Celosia's voice softened. "You mean..."
"The Veil," he said. "The barrier between the realms. It's thinning. Whatever lies beyond — it's starting to bleed through."
Outside, the wind shifted. A flock of ravens burst from the treetops, their cries slicing through the calm.
The sound made Kiyoshi's skin prickle. He looked down at his hands — faint traces of mana still flickering beneath his skin like tiny stars trying to break free.
He clenched his fist.
"So," he said, almost to himself, "I woke something up."
Ceng-tae's gaze was steady. "Yes, Kiyoshi."
And for the first time since the Trial, Kiyoshi felt something deep in his chest — not pain, not fear, but a quiet, hollow resonance. Like an echo beneath the sky had finally answered him back.
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"Uneasy Village."
By midday, Faelinor didn't sound like home anymore.
The markets still opened, but the chatter had changed — softer, shorter, every laugh half-forced. Smoke rose from cooking fires, yet even the smell of stew couldn't hide the scent of something burnt in the air. The Trial might've ended, but its shadow still walked between the streets.
Kiyoshi noticed it in every glance that lingered too long. Every whisper stopped when he passed.
He kept his hood low, hands tucked into his sleeves as he crossed the square. Celosia walked beside him, basket in hand, her posture steady — though he could tell she felt the tension too. A few villagers nodded respectfully. Others pretended not to see them.
"Feels like the whole village's holding its breath," Kiyoshi murmured.
"They are," she said softly. "They don't know if they should thank you or fear you."
A group of younger villagers paused mid-conversation as the two walked by. One of them — a farmer's son — whispered something sharp. The others laughed nervously. Kiyoshi caught the word demon before Celosia shot them a look so cold it froze the air between them.
The laughter died instantly.
When they turned a corner, Kiyoshi sighed. "You didn't have to—"
"Yes, I did," she interrupted quietly. "They need to remember you're not some story told to frighten children."
He gave a faint, tired smile. "You sure about that?"
Before she could answer, the ground gave a faint tremor — subtle, but wrong. The water in her basket rippled as if disturbed by a distant drumbeat. Both of them stopped.
Ceng-tae's voice echoed faintly from behind. "It's happening again."
They turned to see him jogging toward them, robes fluttering, the same blue crystal from earlier strapped to his arm. It was pulsing erratically — brighter than before. His expression was grim.
"The leylines?" Celosia asked.
He nodded. "Spiking again — stronger this time. Something beneath Faelinor is stirring."
Kiyoshi frowned. "I thought you said I stabilized."
"You stabilized yourself," Ceng-tae corrected. "Not the world around you. Whatever your magic did during the Trial — it woke up dormant channels of mana that haven't been active in centuries. The balance is breaking faster than I expected."
Celosia set down her basket, concern darkening her face. "Can it be contained?"
Ceng-tae hesitated. "If we move fast — maybe. But..." His gaze flicked toward Kiyoshi. "There's something else."
They followed his eyes to the edge of the village, where smoke was curling faintly above the trees. Faint but visible, rising from the forest like breath from an unseen mouth.
Kiyoshi's expression hardened. "That wasn't there before."
Ceng-tae's crystal flickered violently in response. "No. And it's not natural fire."
Celosia took a slow step forward. "Then what is it?"
He didn't answer immediately. The wind shifted — carrying a low, distant sound. A scream. Then another. Faint, distorted by the trees, but unmistakably human.
Kiyoshi didn't wait. His feet moved before thought caught up.
Celosia reached out instinctively. "Kiyoshi—!"
"I'll check it out!" he called back, voice cutting through the noise.
Ceng-tae caught her arm before she followed. "No — let him. If it's what I think it is, he's the only one who can survive the first contact."
Celosia froze, torn between fear and instinct. "You think it's—?"
"Yes," Ceng-tae said quietly. "The first echo."
The word hung heavy. Even the wind seemed to stop.
Out by the treeline, Kiyoshi slowed, the forest ahead rippling with heat. His pulse quickened as he reached for the small blade at his waist — one he'd materialized earlier.
The smell hit first. Burnt wood... and something else. Wrong. Metallic.
When he stepped into the clearing, he saw it.
A creature — like a wolf made of glass and ash, its veins glowing faint blue as if molten mana flowed through them. It was feeding on the charred remains of a deer, its body glitching — flickering in and out of solidity. Like reality couldn't fully contain it.
Kiyoshi's grip tightened. "Guess you're what I woke up."
The creature turned toward him. Its eyes burned with an alien light. It opened its mouth — not to snarl, but to scream. The sound split the air like breaking glass.
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