"You may have erased my authority, but…"
Eureka's voice rumbled, but it was already too late.
Will's fingers closed around the weapon.
"I, Eureka — Ancient Dragon — permit Will Sofner to form an equal pact with me."
Black mist burst from the blade, coiling around Will's body like living smoke. The air trembled, and even the space around them began to distort, as if rejecting the union.
[Ancient Dragon Pact — initiated]
[Awaiting counterpart's acceptance]
Then — a sound.
A faint echo inside Will's skull, soft yet impossibly heavy.
A single word that seemed to shake the world inside him.
No.
It was the Princess.
But for Will, it wasn't just a word — it was a flood.
Memories crashed into him.
Not his memories.
Scenes he had never lived, emotions he had never felt, moments belonging to someone else entirely — yet they pierced him as if they were carved from his own life.
In that instant, Will felt his breath catch.
Who… was he really?
And why did that one word feel like a truth he had forgotten?
"I… Will Sofner…"
The words left his lips — the final step before accepting the pact.
But then—
"Impossible."
Eureka's triumphant grin froze. He lifted his gaze toward the sky, expecting victory—
and instead felt reality shatter around him.
Even if Will accepted the pact, escaping this domain alive would become impossible.
A pact wasn't a simple agreement. It was a divine system, one that allowed the chosen to wield a power resembling that of its origin. Only superior beings could forge such a bond. Leaders used it to grant strength to their subordinates, bypassing years of training.
But such a gift had a price.
If the power granted was too enormous, it would tear the host apart from the inside. And even if the host survived, mastering those abilities required time — time Will did not have.
Eureka's panic deepened.
Above them, the sky split open.
Countless blood spears formed overhead, blotting out the very light of the domain as they aimed downward like divine executioners.
"Fools" her words – cold and ruthless.
What was before a hide-and-seek game, it started to be a live or die.
[Fallen class, Rank 15 Alexandrite: Yin Blood Vein art – Pulsar]
"What will it be, young boy? Either throw that sword away, or vanish here. It's your choice"
[Stealth — activated]
"What a foolish choice, young boy."
Her body language was easy to read. Her gaze shifted—from trust to nothingness.
It was his choice, something the Princess had failed to change. She could try to stall until Eureka's powers faded and the seal forced him back into slumber. But doing so would require her full strength and absolute precision to avoid striking the boy—something that would never work.
Once again, the boy vanished into the landscape, slipping beyond the Princess's field of vision. This time, she couldn't nullify his skill.
Why?
Because most magic users could maintain only one active skill at a time. That was how the world's laws functioned—laws that could only be broken by meeting very specific conditions.
After a brief silence, the blood spears began to paint the domain crimson.
Eureka struggled to evade the relentless assault due to his immense size, erecting countless barriers in a desperate attempt to avoid being pierced. The rain of attacks obscured his vision, and for a fleeting moment, he lost track of his enemy's position.
"[Hidden Class III, Rank 13: Obsidian — Yang Blood Vein Art: Karte]"
The instant he heard the chant, Eureka snapped his gaze toward the sound.
Too late.
The Princess stood directly behind him, leaving him no time to react.
The strike shattered his barrier, rendering him completely defenseless.
"[Hidden Class II, Rank 12: Onyx — Crimson Blood Vein: Arcento]"
The attack pierced his supposedly impenetrable scales. Purple droplets spilled from the wound.
"Weren't you a magic user?" Eureka asked, confused.
The question wasn't random. The blow that shattered his barrier hadn't been magic—it had been her fist, channeling Art Matter.
The Princess gave no answer.
She vanished once more from his sight.
The blood spears continued to fall endlessly, as if the spell itself had no limit.
Will remained hidden, waiting for the perfect moment to accept the pact.
The rules for sword users were similar to those of mages: to channel a new Art, they had to cancel their active skill.
"It seems you truly wish to walk a path that will leave you unable to protect anything, young boy," the Princess murmured, almost to herself.
"What I choose is up to me," Will replied. "It always has been."
[Stealth — deactivated]
"What are you doing?!" Eureka exclaimed, shocked by Will's decision to reveal himself.
He couldn't move. All he could do was maintain his barriers, desperately shielding himself from the Princess's unrelenting attacks.
"And you think acting like a child will change anything?" the Princess asked.
Her voice held no warmth — but for the briefest moment, it faltered.
"As I am now, I won't be able to protect myself — nor anything I find precious."
She let out a short laugh, hollow and sharp. "Accepting a pact with a being who is a world enemy… you truly believe that is the right choice for you?"
"It may not be the right choice," Will replied, "but we can't know that without even trying."
"What you must do now," she said, her tone steady once more, "is return to your life and live it as you wish. Do not accept power on a whim."
She paused. "A life is far more precious than you think."
"It's not a decision made on a whim," Will said quietly. "It's something I decided long ago."
"That's unfortunate, Will…"
Her words were calm — too calm — as if she were forcing them out.
A crimson ice spear shot toward him.
Her decision was made. She could not allow this boy to borrow power from an Unknown.
But—
"Good job, Will."
The spear pierced through, crimson droplets scattering through the air.
This wasn't how it was supposed to end. Someone was going to die because of his choice.
"WHY?!"
Will's vision blurred as tears streamed down his face.
"Ah… to thi—think you could fool me like this…"
The voice was weak now, uneven, struggling to form each word.
"That was… just a mere shell."
"So… you were ne—never sealed…"
The Princess's voice wavered, disbelief and pain intertwining.
"Magic… was never meant to be the mightiest," she continued, her breath trembling despite herself.
"As long as there is vision, magic will never bind what was never meant to exist."
Why did this happen?
How did that child appear out of nowhere — and how did he manage to teleport behind her?
Why would someone take another's life so mercilessly?
Questions flooded Will's mind, each heavier than the last.
"Will…"
"I'm… so… sorry…"
Will's voice broke as the words finally escaped him, barely louder than a whisper.
"To think… that a simple person would show concern for me… ha… ha…"
The Princess smiled faintly, her laughter hollow, fragile.
The blood wasn't Will's.
Nor was it Eureka's.
It was hers.
Crimson spilled from the Princess's chest, staining the air as the spear lifted her body upward. The ice forming around the weapon began to melt, and she slowly started to fall.
He could still save her.
He had to catch her.
But Will couldn't move.
His body was frozen in place by the presence before him.
The Princess descended like a falling star, crimson droplets trailing behind her — beautiful, tragic, unbearable to watch.
It was Eureka's victory. All that remained was for her to draw her final breath… or for him to strike the last blow and seal his authority.
"Now, Will," Eureka said, his voice echoing through the domain, "let us go and mark our existence upon this fragile world."
"Will…"
Her voice was faint now, but clear.
"You must never forget this:
A dream will never become reality, no matter how desperately we chase it. Hope binds us to the belief that we always make the right choice.
And just as reality fades into dream, no matter how tightly we cling to the past…
the march of time will always render it ephemeral."