The late-autumn sun dipped low behind the jagged cliffs of the Ember Range, casting golden firelight over the spires of Solaris. At the outer gate of the adventurer district, the guards exchanged bored glances, watching the last few travelers trickle in.
Then the wind shifted.
A cloaked figure approached, moving like liquid steel—graceful, deliberate, utterly unafraid.
Her long coat was ash-gray, stained with travel and battle. A massive sword was slung across her back—not decorative, not ceremonial. A real blade, worn by use.
Her presence drew the eye, not for beauty or wealth, but for sheer quiet danger.
---
The Arrival
Inside the Blazing Dawn quarters, Kael, Mira, and Korin were gathered around a map, discussing recent dungeon patterns and the rising threat of abnormal beast concentrations in the Ember Scar region.
Aira stood by the window, fire gently flickering across her fingers. Since mastering Scorchstep, her control had grown precise. Measured.
The knock at the door was not loud—but it silenced the room.
Korin opened it and blinked.
"Uh… guys?"
The swordswoman stepped inside. She removed her hood.
Dark hair, storm-gray eyes, a long scar down her cheek. Calm. Watchful. Dangerous.
"I am Seris Vale," she said. "I was told Blazing Dawn is taking on the Molten Colossus contract."
Aira narrowed her eyes. "That's not public yet."
"I was told by someone in the Guild. Off record."
Kael frowned. "Why would they tell you?"
"Because I've faced the Colossus before," Seris said, walking over to the map. "And I survived."
---
The Ruined Fire Temple
Aira motioned for her to continue.
Seris pointed to a deep chasm north of Ember Scar. "It sleeps here. In the Temple of the Sun-Kin. Ancient structure. Collapsed long ago. When I was part of the Vanguard Guild, we went in half-cocked."
She paused. "Only three of us came out. It killed the rest in less than ten minutes."
Everyone went quiet.
"Why do you want to go back?" Mira asked softly.
"Because it's waking up. And no one else knows how to kill it."
Aira stared into her eyes. There was no ego there. Only a quiet, relentless certainty.
She nodded. "Welcome to Blazing Dawn."
---
A Trial of Trust
Seris wasn't welcomed easily. Korin challenged her to a duel the next morning. She won without drawing her sword.
Kael remained suspicious, casting detection spells while pretending to practice. She dispelled them casually.
Mira, though, warmed to her quickly, especially when Seris quietly fixed the roof in a rainstorm without asking.
Aira trained with her twice. Her style was brutal—every movement wasted nothing. Seris called it Ashblade form, a martial path said to be born during the Age of Cinders.
"I don't rely on elements," Seris said. "Just steel. And pain."
---
Guild Briefing
Aira brought Seris to the Dungeon Guild herself. Lyria Vale met them with narrowed eyes.
"You vouch for her?"
"She has the experience we need," Aira replied.
"Then we'll officially list her as a Blazing Dawn auxiliary. The Colossus contract is yours. But be warned—this is a death trap. Even by Guild standards."
"We don't need warnings," Seris said. "Just clearance."
---
Into the Ember Scar
By week's end, they were on the move.
The journey to the Temple of the Sun-Kin was harrowing. Even before reaching the dungeon, they encountered unstable mana zones, roaming flamebeasts, and a pack of mind-twisted fire elves—remnants of the temple's long-forgotten curse.
Each fight was a test. Aira's Scorchstep let her rescue Mira and reposition Kael more than once. Korin's brute strength broke formations, and Seris—Seris moved like a shadow with edges.
She didn't shout. She didn't hesitate. When a fire ogre ambushed them, she cut its legs out from under it with a single arc of her blade before it could even roar.
"Remind me never to spar with her," Kael muttered.
---
The Temple Breach
They reached the outer ruins of the fire temple at dusk.
The air trembled with heat. Molten rivers ran through cracks in the earth. Black stone towers, half-collapsed, leaned like charred skeletons over the landscape.
The entrance was sealed by an arcane lock. It pulsed with ancient fire runes.
Aira stepped forward, feeling her SSS-level flame resonate with it.
She raised her hand. Flame surged from her palm and melted through the sigil. The gate responded—cracked, hissed—and groaned open.
The Temple of the Sun-Kin had awakened.
---
Foreshadowing the Colossus
The air inside was different. Thicker. Older.
They stepped into an antechamber where murals showed the worship of a great flame god—a being with many eyes and limbs of magma.
Kael deciphered some of the inscriptions.
"It's called the Ember Titan. The last guardian of the flameblood line. It wasn't just built to guard the temple—it is the temple."
Seris nodded. "Told you."
Aira loo
ked ahead, where the corridor descended into flame-lit darkness.
She clenched her fists.
"Then we'd better prepare. We raid tomorrow."