The chair creaked.
The sound was small.
But in the training hall of Fort Knightfall, it carried.
Arielle Vane sat alone at the edge of the stone platform, back straight, hands resting on her knees. Her black blindfold was clean. Untouched by blood. Her long silver hair was tied tightly behind her head. No loose strands. No distractions.
At her feet, a grey puppy slept.
Its chest rose and fell slowly.
Around her, the inner training grounds were silent.
Not because they were empty.
But because no one spoke when she was present.
She had slaughtered one thousand, two hundred, and forty-five goblins.
Alone at the front.
Blind.
That was what people remembered.
Not the squad.
Not the formation.
Not the valley filled with corpses.
Just the blind girl who walked forward and never stopped cutting.
A knight across the yard whispered, "That's her."
Another replied quietly, "The Goblin Slayer."
Arielle did not react.
She never did.
Recognition
Maria the Death Whip stood behind her.
Arms crossed.
Leather whip coiled at her waist.
Her eyes followed Arielle's breathing. Steady. Controlled. No tremor.
"She didn't hesitate," Maria said to the elders beside her. "Not once."
One elder frowned. "A thousand goblins is excessive."
Maria turned.
Her stare was sharp enough to cut.
"She saved nineteen lives," Maria said. "Repeatedly. She fought until her muscles failed and stood again anyway."
The elder said nothing.
Maria stepped forward.
"Arielle," she said.
Arielle stood immediately.
Perfect posture.
"Yes, Master."
Maria placed a hand on her shoulder.
A rare gesture.
"You are promoted," Maria said. "Inner Circle Disciple."
A ripple moved through the onlookers.
Arielle lowered her head.
"I accept."
Maria's lips curved upward slightly.
Pride.
Pure and unhidden.
The Legend Spreads
Outside the fortress, the story mutated.
"She killed them without seeing."
"They say she smiled while doing it."
"No—she didn't blink once."
"Her wolf eats souls."
Every retelling sharpened her image.
A blind slayer.
A walking execution.
Enemies whispered her name.
Goblins fled when scouts mentioned silver hair and a black blindfold.
Fear learned quickly.
Hell Coordinates —to Astria
Deep beneath a burning sky, chains groaned as massive stone pylons locked into place.
Astria was awake.
Demons moved with purpose. hell sorcerers carved runes into obsidian ground. Mana flowed into structures shaped like inverted towers.
A commander barked orders.
"Dungeon anchors stable!"
"Coordinate lock confirmed!"
"Surface resistance pending!"
Astria was not meant to conquer.
It was meant to deal a mass destruction due to revenge of pseudo monarch vrizz.
To bleed the surface.
according to their analysis, the earth realm will weaken during an eclipse and that's when they will take advantage and rain blood to humans.
The Royal Palace
The throne room smelled of old stone and tension.
Armor plates shifted.
Boots scraped.
Wood groaned as generals leaned forward in their chairs.
One slammed his fist onto the table.
"Our men are losing value," he snapped. "No one respects them anymore."
Another added, "They look to Red Flags instead of the crown."
Connar Rachivoo remained silent.
He watched.
He waited.
When he spoke, the room stilled.
"You are angry," he said calmly. "Because you are ordinary."
The word hit harder than an insult.
"You want power," Connar continued, "but refuse the cost."
A chair creaked as one general shifted.
"You may choose," the king said. "Challenge General Daniel."
A pause.
"Or train until war strips you raw."
One general laughed nervously. "We could—"
"I advise against it," Connar interrupted.
His eyes were cold now.
"Those people are monsters."
Silence.
"If you fight Daniel," the king said, "you will die without meaning."
He leaned back.
"Make friends instead."
A breath.
"My daughter Bella is one of his wives. Use diplomacy."
The generals bowed and left.
When the doors closed, Connar sighed.
"You're all like me," he murmured. "Ordinary."
He smiled bitterly.
"And this war doesn't need us."
Fort Knightfall — The Domain
Deep beneath the fortress, reality bent.
Daniel stood inside his personal domain.
The air was thick.
Red crystals floated in a circle.
One lay cracked on the ground.
Another dissolved into ash.
Daniel's expression did not change.
"Again," he said.
A knight swallowed the crystal.
Moments later—
Nothing.
The knight collapsed. Dead.
Daniel waved his hand.
The body vanished.
A cocoon pulsed nearby.
Empty.
Failed.
Soul Recovery.
The theory was sound.
A dying soldier swallows the crystal. The crystal pulls the soul free. Daniel preserves it. Grows the body again.
But souls resisted.
They decayed.
They slipped.
None had returned.
Daniel clenched his fist.
"This should work."
Silence answered him.
Failure piled quietly.
A New Standard
Back above ground, Arielle trained.
Her katana moved.
Clean.
Precise.
Her wolf watched.
Her brother stood nearby, arms crossed.
Always guarding.
Always silent.
She did not seek fame.
But it followed her.
And far below—
And far beyond—
Enemies were preparing.
Because now the world had learned something terrifying.
A blind girl could slaughter an army.
And she was only one of Daniel's monsters.