Early Spring, Year 01 - Eryndor's Cradle
The empire's dawn smelled of silver rain and molten iron.Mist slid along the cliffs of the floating isles while the first sun, pale and new, burned a halo behind the second. Far below, the shadow of Eryndor glided across the clouds like a dark continent.
In the courtyard of House Machiavelli, two brothers faced each other barefoot on the flagstones.
Their wooden blades clashed—one stroke bright as lightning, the other silent as falling ash.
"Come now, Kain," Daniel said, laughter flickering behind his grin. "Even your sword hesitates to hit me."
"Maybe it respects silence," Kain answered, pivoting lightly. "You could try that sometime."
The twins moved like mirrored fire and water—Daniel's strikes darting and deceptive, Kain's steady and shaping. Sparks of Nihility Flame trailed their blades: silver-black light that didn't burn but devoured sound, leaving the air briefly weightless.
From the porch, Klaus Machiavelli, their father, watched with folded arms. His crimson eyes, relics of the Blood Dragons, glimmered with pride.
"You two," he called, voice low but carrying, "remember the creed of our blood. Strength is not destruction; creation is not weakness. The Aeons forged us to balance both."
Daniel saluted lazily with his blade. "So if I balance while beating him, that still counts, yes?"
Kain laughed, sweat running down his neck. "Only if you manage it without bragging."
"Which would defeat the purpose," Daniel said—and ducked just in time as Kain's next swing cut the air above his head.
Klaus chuckled, turning back toward the forge. "Dawn and dusk indeed."
The day passed in the hum of metal and song.Below the courtyard, Laora stood among rows of alchemical glass, humming softly. Her voice carried through the open windows, weaving into the rhythm of Kain's hammer. Each strike rang with a faint harmonic echo.
When the ingot cooled, the twins leaned close. Threads of silver-black shimmered beneath its surface like veins of starlight.
"It's singing," Laora whispered.
Kain smiled. "Your melody tempered it."
Daniel rolled his eyes. "If she starts selling lullabies as potion ingredients, I'm taking a cut."
"You already do," Laora said, flicking his ear.
That evening, the family gathered in the glass hall. The suns had set, and moonlight flooded the long table. Lumiel recited trade forecasts, Laora served crystal cups filled with her latest shimmering draught, and Klaus raised his hand for silence.
"To House Machiavelli," he said. "May shadow and light sit at the same table forever."
As their cups touched, the air rippled. A pulse—faint, like a heartbeat behind the sky—passed through each of them. Kain's breath caught. He felt something ancient stir inside his veins, heavy as eternity yet gentle as breath.
The world blurred, and a voice—vast, cold, familiar—spoke within.
"So this is where My fragments fell."
The room dimmed to twilight. Silver mist coiled around Kain and Daniel; time slowed.Their father and siblings froze mid-gesture, glass droplets suspended in the air.Only the twins could move.
A shape unfolded behind them—neither male nor female, vast wings made of empty constellations. Its face was a mirror that reflected only the void.
IX - The Aeon of Nihility.
"Children of silence," the being said, its voice echoing inside their thoughts, "you are the echo I left behind when the worlds were young. Through you, My flame learns mercy, and My void learns purpose."
Daniel's throat tightened. "Are you… our god?"
"Not god. Merely Beginning."
Kain stepped forward, trembling yet calm. "Then what do You want from us?"
"Nothing.""Create. Destroy. Choose.""But when the Tree calls, remember this: every shadow seeks its twin light. Every light, its shadow."
A pulse of silence spread outward. The brothers saw memories not their own—dragons of pure thought circling galaxies, angels burning into seeds of worlds.Then, just as suddenly, the vision fractured. The hall brightened. Time resumed.
Wine spilled; laughter continued as if nothing had happened.
Only the twins sat frozen, eyes still glowing faint silver and gold.
Klaus noticed and frowned faintly, but said nothing. He'd seen that look before—the mark of awakening. He only nodded once, as if confirming some old promise.
Later, beneath the moons, the twins stood at the forge's dying fire.Kain broke the silence first. "That… was real, wasn't it?"
Daniel tossed his coin, catching the reflection of twin moons in its spin. "If it wasn't, we're both insane in the same way."
They watched the coin arc, silver and gold blurring into one streak.Kain whispered, "Ix said every shadow seeks its light. I think that means us."
Daniel grinned. "Then let's make sure neither side gets lonely."
They clasped wrists; light burst between their palms—half black, half gold—twisting into the sigil of a double dragon encircling a single flame.The mark seared itself onto the stone at their feet, humming softly.
"By blood of dragon and breath of Aeon," Kain said, voice steady,"we forge our oath."
"And by shadow and flame," Daniel replied,"we guard it."
High above, Ix watched from beyond the veil, silent and amused.
"Good. Even My fragments still dream."
[Status Update]
Name: Kain Machiavelli
Race: Half Nihility Aeon • Half Blood Dragon
Level: 1 Exp: 0 / 100Tree Rank: Malkuth (10th Sphere
)Spirit Invoked: Van Helsing – First Dragon of Blood
Guiding Aeon: Ix – Aeon of Nihility
Life Skills: Blacksmithing Lv 1 | Alchemy Lv 1Bond: Daniel Machiavelli (Shared Oath of Twins)
Objective: Enroll in the Academy of Life and Magic and uncover the meaning of the Aeon's words.
End of Chapter 1 – The Dragon's Oath