At the horizon, the sun rose over the blessed land between the crossroads—also known as the border—smoke, broken flags, soldiers' bodies, a river stained red, and the smell of blood and iron filled the air.
On the stone bridge stood alone, a woman, injured, coated in a red, orange, yellow flame, standing tall , long black with mixed orange hair matching the color of the sun, holding a spear in both hands, beauty yet deadly.
"Am completely…exhausted, when will the reinforcement arrive, dangit!", she panted.
As footsteps started roaming closer, a deep voice rang into her ear, "Tell me thy name, warrior", the woman looked up to see a dark plated knight with fur coat.
As she widened her view, behind him were a hundred troops.
"Should I… even care now?", she panted, no fear in her eyes with a smirk on her face and a sharp eye
"Heh…thou traitor and heretic, here I am standing alone", said softly, then the woman started bursting out a laugh, pointing the spear at the dark knight.
"Hahaha!,,,hear my name loud and clear, as I am…Ingres Nevaz Strom! shall achieve glory for my kingdom and banish you, heretic beast!".
The dark knight looked calmly, "Very well, you earn my respect", raised his hand and ordered the soldier to attack.
Before the first soldier could even strike, he suddenly got split in half, the troops shocked, still keep ongoing. Another one, then another one and another one, got cut and split in half, each meeting the same fate as flames healed her wounds.
While defending against the troops, she glanced at the leader, "He is just standing there, analyzing?...no he is perhaps waiting for a chance to strike", she thought.
"That's all you got, you filthy beast!", Ingres shouted, hand gripped tightly on the spear handle swinging across hundreds of soldiers.
CLANG!
A massive board sword came down, as the dark knight dashed in, "Oh my, you got strength there",
Ingres said, blocking the attack.
"Knew it", she whispered.
Both leap back, "Shadow Distorted!", the knight cast, sending a fiery ball of dark smoke toward her, a spell that can disintegrate everything in its path.
It struck, taking part of her body… but in shock, the knight watched as she regenerated her fatal injury from the flame that sparked right where she got hit.
"Ooooh, cool spell", Ingres smiled at the dark knight spell.
CLANG!
They both dash in, starting a clash, spark fly everywhere as both parry and counter each other strike back and forth.
"Dark Edge!", the dark knight casted on his weapon, enhancing the sharpness and power of each strike.
Ingres tried to parry one of the attacks just only led to one of her spears broke and shattered, the swing cut right through and severing her left arm, she didn't scream, simply stepping back.
"Interesting", Ingres replied to the cut, with half her arm now bursting in flame, the dark knight waited no chances, stopping her from regen.
Raised his sword to the sky, "DARKNESS ENHANCED: EXCALIBUR!" the sword turns into a big dark and long sword, warping the sky into darkness.
Before the dark knight could swing down his massive blade, he froze mid-motion, a shiver running through him. The air seemed to thicken, and time itself stop.
"Vermillion: Sky Splitter…", Ingres yelled, her voice steady but breathing heavily with exhaustion.
Her eyes burned with a mixture of fury and determination.
In a sudden, an upward slash, her double-blade spear now fully awakened, flame wrapped around the blade—sliced through the darkness.
The blade split the knight clean in half, the force so precise that even his own shadow seemed to confuse its own death.
For a moment, silence filled the atmosphere.
The remaining soldiers froze, unable to comprehend what had just happened. Their commanders crumpled to the ground as the body splitted in half, and an unsettled stillness settled over the bridge.
Ingres staggered, one knee touching the cold, cracked stone. Her chest heaved, each breath tasting like molten ash. The fire that had healed her now began to consume the deepest fragments of her soul.
She gripped her spear tightly with one arm, trying to rise, yet every motion burned like a thousand suns against her.
Far in the distance, the faint echo of reinforcements—her kingdom's alliance—reached her ears.
They arrived too late, smoke and embers twisted in the wind, carrying the smell of blood and iron.
Through the haze, they saw her alone, side by side the sinking sun, the flames clung to her form like a second skin, rising slowly but not consuming her entirely—just enough to mark the victor.
Ingres slowly lowered herself to the bridge, the spear still clutched tight. Her black hair streaked with orange and firelight, cascaded over her shoulders, mirroring the dying sun behind her.
As she knelt, the world seemed to bow in quiet respect—or perhaps fear—of the woman who had just split the darkness...No! the sky itself in two.
And as the first embers of her soul began to turn to ash, a soft whisper escape her mouth.
"Glory… to the…Kingdom".
The bridge remained silent, the battlefield, conquered and ruined, bore witness. A woman alone, standing in the dying light, had reshaped the fate of all who dared stand before her.
Moment closing her eyes, she thought, "Do I regret my life choices? None. Not a single one.".
Slowly, Ingres opened her eyes. She shivered as she woke, the memory of the battlefield lingering like smoke in her mind.
A young girl dozing in class during her lessons, wondering who the woman from her vision was.
"Young miss, are you still listening?", her teacher asked.
"Ye… yes, teacher,", she replied, sighing as the teacher started to explain to her again from the start.
Ingres blinked a few times, shaking off the remnants of her dream. As she focuses on the teacher's lesson.
"The land we lived in was known as the Blessed Land, a place divided by two major kingdoms: Avalon and Hevatus. Avalon, where the sun rises, was blessed by fairies and flourished under their protection. On the other hand, Hevatus had grown from those who had once served the king but abandoned his vision. These traitors left to build their own lands, lacking the vision of one that guided the king's.
Magic in this world was not rare—it was woven into every life. Every person was born with an attribute: flame, water, light, dark, spatial, wind, and more. Each attribute had specialized types: attack, defense, or support.
At near the age of twelve, children are required to gather at the church to undergo a magical attribute exam.
Ingres belonged to the noble Strom household, one of the pillars supporting the king's vision until the end, alongside with other 3 households.
Strom household possess flame attribute, Chandelier household possess light attribute, Verez household possess wind attribute, Unyze household possess water attribute, While the king bloodline, Unitar possess spatial attribute.
Her bloodline had always served the kingdom, loyal to the king's vision, and now it was her turn to learn, train, and eventually take her place as the next legacy of the Kingdom."
And "Clap!" the teacher clapped her hand, "Your lesson for today is done, please go rest for the day, miss Ingres".
"Yes, teacher,", she said, hopping from her chair, going out the door and started rushing down the hall, a smile bright on her face.
Still lingering in her mind, "who was that beauty knight from her dream holding a spear, she looked sad, yet… happy."
Back in the classroom, the teacher watched thoughtfully, "What kind of flame power will the future lady of the Strom household possess? Only a year or two until her magical examination."
"Careful there Ingres-sama.", a soldier warned as Ingres dashed past, a tap on the soldier's shoulder, "she was as joyful as usual" the maid said, smiled.
Arriving at the training ground, she waved at the soldiers.
"Good morning, Miss Ingres.".
"Good morning to you all!", she replied.
"You come to visit us again huh?, Ingres-sama", a tall, tan, muscular man approached from behind.
It the captain of the Strom household knight, he crouched down, patted her head, "come in, come in!", the captain said, laughing.
"Yes!", Ingres replied, following him to the bench. The captain held her hand gently as he looked down at her, her eyes wide with excitement.
A smile in his eyes, "The future of the Strom household will shine brightly once again,", he thought, pride swelling in his chest.
Sitting calmly at the bench, looking at the captain training the soldier, a few soldiers approached her "Dear Ingres-sama, i have a question?" a soldier asked.
"Go ahead", Ingres tilted her head, curious about the question.
"Why you always come here, watching us training?".
"It's all because I love the art of Arms, one can protect their self and kingdom, a Grand knight.".
A young boy squeezed in between the others, probably a new recruit, "Then… which weapon do you like best, Ingres-sama?".
She pondered for a moment, remembering the woman from her dream holding a spear, smiled. "I would like to try spearmanship.", the soldiers began chatting among themselves—one laughed, another smiled, and one sat quietly in the corner, crying. Ingres laughed at their antics.
"Oi! Yah, dumb bucket-heads!", the captain yelled, glaring at the soldiers surrounding her, "Back to your positions, now!", He walked over, having overheard the conversation.
"Ingres-sama, would you like to train with us from now on?", the captain asked, "Y…Yes please!", As young Ingres said, fill with joy.
"Great, I'll ask your father permission, alright", the captain said, smiling.
Later, while waiting for the captain, Ingres spotted her elder brother reading by a window.
As the captain walked back from the head office and saw Ingres looking at his brother, "wanna invite him down here too?, your brother.".
"No…leave him be", Ingres looks at the captain.
"Alright, now I will train you into the best knight in the kingdom, are you ready for my hellish training, young miss?", the captain asked.
"P...Please…I'll be in your care", Ingres, holding the spear in her hand, looking up to the captain, "I thought so," the captain said warmly, nodding.
"Me too, Ingres-sama."