Aftermath of Shadows
The morning after the failed assassination attempt, the castle was in an uproar. Royal guards flooded the corridors, checking every hallway and corner with tense urgency. The king himself personally visited Ashborn's chamber, finding him seated at the edge of his bed—shirtless, wrapping a bandage around his side where Claude's blade had drawn blood.
"You encountered him?" the king asked, tone grave.
Ashborn nodded. "It was Claude. He was testing me… and he was stronger than I expected."
Lida barged in moments later, her silver hair tied back, armor half-worn, panic in her eyes. "You're hurt!"
"I'll live," Ashborn muttered, not meeting her gaze.
She knelt beside him, taking over the bandaging with trembling fingers. Rick leaned against the wall nearby, arms folded. "If Claude can phase in and out like that, no place is safe. Not even this palace."
The king agreed. "Then we must act swiftly. We've received reports from the southern front—entire villages have vanished. No destruction. No bodies. Just... gone."
Ashborn clenched his fists. "Claude is preparing for something."
---
Lida's Worry and a Moment Alone
Later that day, Lida found Ashborn alone in the royal gardens. He stood beneath a cherry blossom tree, petals drifting around him in the breeze. His eyes were closed, but his mind was far from calm.
"You should be resting," Lida said softly.
"I can't," he replied. "Not when he's out there."
She stood beside him. "You blame yourself, don't you? For letting him escape."
Ashborn remained silent.
Lida gently placed her hand on his arm. "You wounded him. You forced him to flee. That's not a failure—it's a warning. You're strong enough to face him."
Ashborn turned, his purple eyes meeting her blue ones. "But it wasn't enough."
Their gaze lingered for a moment too long.
"I... I'm scared for you," she whispered.
He stepped closer. "I'm scared too. But I won't run."
They stood like that for a while, in silence—until a shadow moved across the courtyard, and a royal scout sprinted toward them, breathless.
"They've found him. Claude."
---
The Phantom's Domain
The scout led them to a hidden valley on the outskirts of the kingdom. A place no one had dared enter for years—Whispering Hollow, a cursed forest shrouded in eternal twilight.
Local legends said that anyone who entered the Hollow heard voices—memories of guilt, pain, and regret—until they went mad. Ashborn didn't believe in legends. But Claude? He likely turned the myth into a weapon.
Rick joined them at the edge of the forest, his chains wrapped around his arms like coiled snakes. "Ready to enter the ghost's lair?"
Ashborn drew his blade. "Let's finish this."
They stepped into the forest.
Immediately, the air thickened. Whispers slithered through the leaves. Ashborn heard fragments—his sister's voice, his father's final cry, Lida's desperate pleas from years ago. He gritted his teeth.
"Don't listen!" he called out. "It's a trap!"
The deeper they went, the more real the illusions became. Lida screamed once—seeing her parents. Rick fell to his knees, haunted by the faces of girls he abandoned.
But Ashborn, guided by Raphael's mind barrier, pressed forward. He reached a clearing, bathed in unnatural moonlight.
And there he stood.
Claude.
Unmasked.
His face was calm—almost beautiful. But his eyes... were hollow voids.
"You came," Claude said. "Just as I predicted."
---
The Duel in the Hollow
Ashborn didn't wait. He launched himself forward, sword gleaming with energy. Claude met him halfway, blades colliding like thunderclaps.
Each strike was calculated, each movement danced between solid and spectral. Ashborn fought with fury, Claude with precision.
"Do you see now?" Claude said mid-combat. "War isn't won by strength. It's won by fear."
Ashborn gritted his teeth. "Then let me show you what it means to fight without fear."
He unleashed Soul Rend, a technique that burned through illusions and darkness alike. Claude staggered, his cloak torn, blood on his lips.
But he grinned. "Good. Now you're ready."
With a final surge of power, Ashborn used Reality Sever, slicing through Claude's shadow-form. The forest trembled.
Claude fell to one knee, defeated.
But he laughed.
"You think... this ends with me? Basara... has already begun."
Then he vanished into ash.
---
Victory or Warning?
Ashborn dropped to his knees, panting.
Lida and Rick reached him minutes later. "Is it over?" she asked.
"No," Ashborn said slowly, eyes fixed on the ash floating in the air. "This was just the start."
Claude had been the most elusive, most cunning of the generals. And if he was afraid of what Basara was planning...
Then the true war was closer than ever.
End of volume 1