Recap of Chapter 20:
Azarel, under his identity as Kayn, found Lyana during an interdimensional mission. A familiar aura, glances exchanged, fragments of memories… and the growing certainty that she is the Legendary Bride. As Dyrith's moon shone with a thousand lights, destiny offered them a gift: a pact sealed by moonlight.
**
"Do you feel it too?"
Her voice was a whisper, yet it tore through Kayn's soul like a blade of light. The silver glow from the twin moons bathed her face, and for a heartbeat, time itself seemed to freeze.
Yes, he wanted to say. I remember you in fire and blood. I remember your voice in the silence between stars.
But instead, Kayn only nodded. The past was returning. And it burned.
A Legend Beneath the Moon
The Silver Courtyard of the Academy was empty, save for the two of them. Lyana stood before the Moonlit Shrine, her silhouette radiant under the twin moonlight, cloaked in mystery. The petals of the Lunar Blossom tree danced in the cold air. Kayn—Azarel, reborn—stood motionless, his gaze locked onto hers.
She spoke first.
"Why do you always find me when I'm about to disappear?"
He didn't answer. Because the truth was cruel: he always found her—across lifetimes, across dimensions—and always too late.
This time, he would not let her slip through the cracks of time again.
The Forgotten Pact
Lyana held out a silver ring—the same that once belonged to the Celestial Marriage Pact, the sacred ritual for god-bound lovers. Its return should've been impossible… unless…
"Where did you get this?" Kayn's voice trembled.
She frowned. "It was in my room when I woke up today. I thought it was part of the Academy's strange quests."
System Notification: [Hidden Memory Triggered]
[Legendary Item: Moonlit Marriage Ring (Bound)]
Status: Reactivating Forgotten Contract
Compatibility: 98.7%
Linking Soul Data...
The System's message blinked behind his eyes, but he ignored it. His heart was louder than the interface.
Lyana, unaware of her true identity, placed the ring on the shrine's surface between them.
"Should we… seal it again? As a trial mission?"
She was teasing.
But the moment her fingers brushed his—flash.
Fragment: The Original Pact (Celestial Flashback)
The sky cracked open. A rain of silver fire. The war of gods had ended, and only scorched heavens remained.
Amidst the ruins, he knelt before her, bloodied and broken.
"If I fall, you must forget me. It's the only way you'll survive them."
She shook her head. "And if I refuse?"
He smiled bitterly. "Then we die as one."
They sealed the pact with a kiss under the First Moon. A bond meant to survive even the destruction of worlds.
Partial Awakening
Lyana stepped back suddenly.
"I—what was that? I saw... stars collapsing… and you were—"
"Don't fight it," Kayn murmured. "The truth is clawing its way back."
She pressed her palms against her temples. The memory was incomplete, distorted by time and dimensional interference. But one thing was certain now: the bond was real.
And the System agreed.
[Link Confirmed: Soulmate Identified]
[New Mission Unlocked: Protect the Legendary Bride at All Costs]
Kayn clenched his fists. "They'll come for you now."
Lyana blinked. "Who?"
He turned toward the shadows. "The Celestial Tyrant's Watchers. Varion knows… or soon will."
The Tyrant's Shadow
Far away, within a citadel floating at the edge of a collapsing dimension, Varion, the Multiversal Tyrant, stood before an obsidian mirror.
The mirror pulsed.
[Forbidden Soul Resonance Detected]
Target: Lyana El'Serra | Awakening Status: 42%
Risk Level: Critical. Memory Fracture Repair in Progress.
He gritted his teeth.
"So... the god dares remember."
His fingertips grazed the surface of the mirror, and a ripple of black flame spread outward.
"Initiate Protocol: Erase the Bride."
Quest Request – A Mission for Two
Back at the Academy, the System chimed again.
[Duo Mission Activated: Moonlight Pact – Defend the Shrine]
Objective: Survive the Wave of Celestial Assassins
Reward: Memory Fragment (Soul Merge Type)
The shrine lit up with ancient runes. A Trial Arena phased into reality, trapping them in a combat dimension.
Lyana looked around, stunned. "This isn't a game anymore."
Kayn summoned his Voidblade. "It never was."
Battle Beneath the Moonlight
Three shadows materialized—assassins with void runes etched into their flesh. Their movements were erratic, as if reality glitched around them. These were no ordinary enemies: they were Multiversal Reapers—killers who existed between timelines.
Kayn's movements were swift, calculating. His blade danced like liquid shadow.
Lyana hesitated... but then her hand glowed.
A flame of white light burst from her palm.
"I—I know this power..."
She launched a crescent of radiant energy that tore through the first assassin.
Her body remembered what her mind had forgotten.
Kayn caught her glance. "Welcome back."
The Broken Celestial Barrier
But victory came at a cost.
As the last Reaper fell, a rift cracked open above them. An Eye of Judgment, a divine surveillance protocol from Varion's citadel, locked onto Lyana.
Target Confirmed. Memory Sync at 51%.
Engaging Seal Reset Sequence…
A celestial chain emerged from the rift, snaking toward Lyana's chest.
Kayn stepped between them.
"No."
He activated System Override.
Warning: Forbidden Protocol Accessed
Consequence: [Penalty Imminent – Soul Decay Risk]
But he didn't flinch. He slashed the chain before it could touch her.
Soul Bond
The System's backlash hit him instantly. His knees buckled. Code bled from his skin in glowing patterns. Lyana rushed to him.
"You're dying!"
He smirked through clenched teeth. "Not yet."
He took her hand.
[Soul Sync Initiated – Temporary Fusion]
Duration: 6 Minutes
Effect: Shared HP | Shared Skills | Memory Echo Boost +35%
Their auras merged. For the first time in eons, their souls touched again.
The Call of the Oath
As the Eye retreated and the Trial Dimension dissolved, the Moonlight Shrine crumbled behind them.
Kayn collapsed, exhausted. Lyana held him.
"You risked your soul for me... Why?"
He looked into her eyes, half-lidded.
"Because you once gave yours… to save mine."
A tear rolled down her cheek. Her fingers brushed his forehead—an instinct from a forgotten life.
"I remember… fire… your voice… my oath."
He closed his eyes.
"Then we're not lost anymore."
[Quest Complete: Moonlight Pact]
Reward: Memory Fragment Gained – Title Unlocked: Legendary Couple
New Questline: The Tyrant's Bride – [Active]
**
But just as hope bloomed, a portal ripped open in the sky above them.
Varion stepped through, cloaked in divine armor woven from collapsed stars.
His gaze locked onto Lyana.
"So… you chose him again."
**
End of Chapter 21 – The Moonlight Pact
One-sentence summary: Kayn and Lyana reforge their ancient bond under the Moonlight Shrine, triggering a shared memory, soul fusion, and the wrath of Varion.
Varion appears in person, furious that Lyana is awakening—and not his.
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