Chapter 27 – Fractured Soul & the Promise Left Behind
Lumina lay unconscious. Her eyes were open, yet her soul hung suspended between two worlds—between Ilior and herself.
The voice within was no longer a mere whisper. It had become an ancient echo, resonating through the marrow of her bones.
"Your blood carries betrayal. I only want what should have been mine."
Ilior's voice—cold, impossibly close.
Patches of Lumina's body began to blacken. Symbols of spirits appeared, faded, then flared again.
In the distance, Enver stood unsteady. His hand burned in places from a separation spell that had failed.
"If she merges completely with Ilior… the world will not be able to bear it," Enver murmured. But there was no more time. Only one choice remained—hope, or ruin.
Raegar stopped before the ruins. Lumina's aura had just reached the edge of his perception.
He was silent. A memory of Enver during their old training surfaced in his mind.
"Sometimes, saving someone means holding back your own blade."
Raegar gripped his weapon.
Elsewhere, Amari lay weak. The last spell was ready. Serdyn stood beside her, holding a sheet of magic paper lined with blood trails and ancient letters.
The sky above them trembled faintly. But they did not see it.
Amari opened her eyes.
"Serdyn… my time is up."
Before Serdyn could answer, the air in their chamber shifted. It did not shake the ground—but it pressed into the chest.
From the corner of the room, a low voice emerged—not loud, yet it pierced through the ribs.
"I have come… right on time."
Amari and Serdyn turned. A tall figure in a black robe stepped from the darkness. His body did not touch the ground. Mist followed beneath his feet.
Yes—Maxcen.
Serdyn instantly raised a barrier, but Amari lifted her hand.
"Lower it… he will not harm me," she said weakly.
Serdyn looked at her in disbelief, not understanding.
Maxcen's gaze moved between them. It was not wrath, nor was it gentle—more like a creature that had carried something far too long.
"Fifty years," Maxcen said softly. "That was the limit."
Amari nodded faintly. "I knew you would come."
"To me, it was only a month. But to you, it was a lifetime," Maxcen continued. "You wanted a human life. You begged for it, and I granted it."
Serdyn looked at his wife. Slowly. "What does this mean?"
Amari turned to him, her voice barely a whisper.
"Long ago… I was not fully human. I was part of his world. I… was his wife."
Serdyn stepped back half a pace. "You…"
Amari looked back at Maxcen. "And as part of that bargain… I could not break the time limit."
Maxcen stepped forward. "But you did break it. You fell in love with a human. You bore a child. And you… hid it from me."
Amari closed her eyes. "Because I knew… if you knew, you would take it."
Maxcen drew closer. His face was now only inches from hers.
"And now, I have not come to claim what was owed. I came to see… if you still choose the same world."
Amari drew a sharp breath. Her voice trembled, but remained steady.
"If the time you gave me was only a month… then living with him was worth more than an eternity with you."
Maxcen was silent for a long moment. When he spoke again, his voice was low.
"Then… I will take back what I once allowed."
And he vanished—like smoke. No sound. No fury.
But the world felt colder after he was gone.
**
In the Ancient Spirit Land, chaos had not yet subsided. The Spirit Sovereign stood alone—his body soaked in the glow of bloodlight. Around him, spirits had turned to stone. Not shattered, but frozen like dead statues.
Ilior stood above the Sacred Sky. His form grew, then shrank, then burst and reformed—unbound by any shape.
"No one can stop me. Not even you," he said to the Spirit Sovereign.
"If you break free now… history will repeat itself," the sovereign replied.
Ilior gave a short laugh. "Then I shall finish the history that was never completed."
They clashed—blow for blow, with raw power unknown to the human world. And a portion of the sky cracked.
That crack… appeared directly above where Lumina lay.
**
Raegar stepped closer, his hands trembling yet his stride firm.
Enver looked at him.
"Have you come to kill her?" Enver asked weakly.
Raegar did not answer. His gaze was fixed on Lumina. The girl's body was wrapped in both Ilior's aura and a human one—twining like two coils of smoke, yet not fully merged.
Raegar turned to Enver. "I don't know if I should save her… or end her suffering."
Enver replied simply, "Then do neither."
Raegar lowered his head, then looked at Lumina again.
And Lumina opened her eyes.
One eye shone silver.
The other burned with deep violet—the eye of Ilior.