Night fell over the Academy like a velvet curtain stitched with stars. But deep beneath its ancient roots, far beyond the eye of even the most perceptive teachers, something stirred.
The Tomb of Forgotten Names.
Not written in any curriculum. Not charted on any map. A place whispered by shadows and erased from memory. Its entrance sealed by time and blood.
And yet—Auron walked toward it.
---
The system pulsed silently in his mind.
> Quest: Path to Divinity – Stage One Initiated.
Location: Tomb of Forgotten Names. Objective: Claim your first artifact.
Warning: Survival chance – 9%.
He reached a crumbling, vine-covered wall behind the abandoned spell-forging yard. The wall shimmered when touched—not with magic, but with remnants. Faded echoes of powerful lives.
He placed his palm against it. "I offer no prayer. Only purpose."
The wall melted away like smoke.
Behind it, a staircase spiraled downward into the earth. The air was stale. Heavy. And cold—not in temperature, but in memory.
Selene stood beside him, unsure. "You're really going in?"
"Yes."
"Then I'm coming with you."
He didn't object.
---
The tomb's walls were lined with stone faces—cracked and blind, each carved with different expressions: rage, sorrow, serenity, despair.
Names etched beneath them were illegible, scratched out by some ancient hand.
"Who were they?" Selene whispered.
Auron stared at the closest one. "The ones who were erased."
They descended in silence, and the stairs led to a circular chamber. In the center stood a monolith—tall, obsidian-black, humming with energy.
It had no markings, yet it whispered names into his mind. Names that didn't exist anymore. Names that had once defied gods.
He stepped forward.
The system responded:
> Touch the monolith to inherit a fragment of the Forgotten Flame.
He placed his palm on its surface.
Agony.
A scream tore from his throat, not his voice—but the echoes of hundreds who had died in this place. His skin burned. His mind fractured.
He saw a vision—
A battlefield. A woman with wings of stars. A sword made of screams. A god falling. Then silence.
And a voice.
> "You are not the first to walk this path. But you may be the last."
---
Back in the present, his eyes opened.
Selene stood over him, shaken.
"You passed out."
"No." He stood slowly, his silver eyes glowing. "I remembered."
Auron looked down at his hand.
A faint symbol now glowed in the center—an abstract flame curled in a spiral. It pulsed not with heat, but with memory.
> You have obtained: Forgotten Flame (Dormant).
Stage One Complete. Next Objective Unlocked.
He turned.
The chamber behind them rumbled.
Stone faces on the wall began to shift. Cracks sealed. Names began reappearing—only visible to Auron.
Selene watched him like he was no longer human.
"What are you?" she whispered.
Auron didn't answer.
---
Far above, within the gilded tower of the eastern wing, Prince Kaelion of Solairan stood before a mirror. His golden hair was tied back, his sword sheathed beside him, and his hawk rested on his shoulder—watching his reflection like a judge.
"I was meant to be the chosen one," Kaelion said coldly.
His attendant, a robed man with pale skin and runes on his hands, bowed.
"But he eclipsed your prophecy, my prince."
Kaelion's eyes narrowed. "No. He's an error in the pattern. A glitch."
He turned toward his table, where a sealed scroll lay.
"Activate the Sun-Fang Protocol. Bribe the Inquisitors. Spread the rumor that Auron's power is unstable. Dangerous."
The hawk let out a soft screech.
Kaelion smirked.
"And if that fails, we'll have the Demon Kingdom 'accidentally' take interest in him. Let chaos do the cleansing."
---
The next day, the academy buzzed with strange tension.
Two elite students were suddenly dismissed without reason.
Rumors whispered that a hidden dungeon had been opened. That Auron had survived something ancient.
Teachers avoided his gaze.
The principal watched from the Tower of Stars, more intrigued than ever.
"Let the players move," Zaerion murmured. "Let the godmarked fight among themselves… and see who stands in the end."
---
In the dining hall, students parted as Auron entered.
He said nothing. Walked with Selene behind him.
He sat.
And across the room, Kaelion stood.
He walked forward, all golden hair and polished charm.
The entire hall went silent.
"You're the one who stole my spotlight," Kaelion said, voice pleasant.
Auron stared at him, unmoved.
"I suppose congratulations are in order. You made history. A pity it won't last."
Still no reply.
Kaelion leaned in closer, his words now just for Auron.
"I don't care what marks you carry. You're in my kingdom. My academy. And when you fall, I'll be the one standing over you."
Auron's eyes flicked up. Silver met gold.
Cold. Eternal.
"Then you'd better hope," Auron said softly, "that gods protect you better than they protected the fools I buried."
Kaelion froze.
The silence cracked like thunder.
Then he smiled—but it was a thin, angry thing.
"Enjoy your meal."
He turned and walked away.
---
That night, Selene confronted him again.
"You knew he'd challenge you."
Auron nodded. "He's only the first."
"Why not just destroy him now?"
"Because rats don't die in sunlight," he replied. "They die in darkness."
---
Later, in the tomb, the monolith shimmered again.
> Next Stage Unlocked: Retrieve the First Name from the Abyssal Archive.
Location: The Broken Library beneath the old Imperial Ruins.
Reward: Namecrafting - Ability to erase or restore names from existence.
Auron stared into the dark.
The path to infinity was no longer a dream.
It had begun.
---
End of Chapter 7