---
The entire magical society shook at that moment. The Mirror of Truth... was shattered.
The only boundary separating the two worlds— the magical society and the natural world— no longer existed.
Shards from the Mirror of Truth—the gateway between worlds—scattered in every direction, as if carrying with them the curse of revelation.
In the High Council Hall, where the ten who pull the strings of this secret world sat, panic filled the air.
The eldest among them slammed the stone table hard. He was a large, old man with long braided white hair.
He roared:
> "Damn it! We've lost contact with the researchers at the Dawn of Orland center!"
The woman sitting beside him spoke in a soft, resigned tone:
> "It's useless, Arkeon... we all know what the destruction of the Mirror of Truth means."
He shouted angrily, cutting her off:
> "No! Our decades of effort can't be wasted just like that!"
Before he could continue, a cold voice came from the end of the table.
All eyes turned instantly toward the speaker... it was "Thanar", the silent elite assassin, finally speaking.
He said:
> "Dekia is right, Arkeon. What we feared has happened. Without the gateway, the two worlds will collide. Without it... there is no balance."
Arkeon wanted to respond, but when he saw who had spoken, he fell silent.
As for the rest of the council, they exchanged heavy glances, not a single word spoken.
A suffocating silence filled the hall... until it was broken by the voice of a young man sitting at one end.
The youngest council member stood up— a man in his twenties named "Elior", sharply dressed in a formal suit, with sun-blonde hair and freckles covering his face.
He stood nervously, then spoke with forced confidence:
> "We are the High Council… our responsibility doesn't end with the magical society. Even the natural world is now under threat. We must act. Any action is better than this paralysis."
The other nine members nodded silently, resolute.
Only Arkeon kept his head buried in his hands, as if he had taken a blow to his pride.
While the council sank into debate, the catastrophe had already begun.
The two worlds collided. Intertwined. Or rather… the veil was lifted.
The Mirror of Truth had been the only barrier, and now it was no more.
Hundreds of people poured out of their homes in panic, witnessing their world changing before their eyes.
In some places, the ground rose into towering mountains that appeared out of nowhere.
In others, floating islands drifted through the sky, as if gravity itself no longer applied.
Reality began to collapse.
As for the mages, though shocked, they managed to compose themselves. They knew what the common folk didn't:
This… was the result of "the shattering of the barrier between worlds."
The environment of the magical society, with all its strange laws, began to merge with the natural world… even geography was no longer the same.
---
In the heart of the chaos… there was a quiet corner.
In the ruined cave where the story began, the final stone fell upon Neron's body, buried beneath the debris. Only his head and right hand were visible amidst the scattered rubble.
A shadow stood above him, silently staring for a long time… then turned and began to walk away.
But suddenly… something grabbed its leg.
It was Neron's hand.
He raised his head with difficulty, breathing heavily, and said:
> "Where do you think you're going?"
He spoke the sentence while coughing blood.
The shadow responded with disdain:
> "What's it to you, freak? Are you going to stop me… cripple?"
Neron replied in a shockingly calm voice:
> "Yes."
A moment of silence.
The shadow laughed, then leaned closer and said:
> "Look at you… just a body tainted by magic. I'll come back and take your body for myself, and make you the shadow. Do you understand?"
Neron, in a faint voice:
> "I don't understand a thing you're saying."
The shadow sighed, then violently pulled Neron from the debris and tossed him aside.
Neron rolled for several meters before crashing into a large rock. He couldn't move.
The shadow approached him again and said coldly:
> "I'll take your body. And I'll make you my shadow. We'll switch places. Do you get it now?"
Neron, with half-closed eyes, asked:
> "Then why not do it now? Why wait?"
The shadow replied:
> "Because you're too weak. I want you to fix your body for me, so I can take it without resistance. The process will take time and effort, so I'll delay it."
And it began to fade away.
Neron shouted:
> "Wait! Don't go! I have questions… wait!"
But the shadow… had vanished completely.