Vale moved toward Korin with quick, grounded steps, each one carrying a weight of relief he hadn't realized he'd been holding until now. The towering structure of the Royal Guard, the disciplined formations, the distant wingbeats of wyverns overhead, all of it faded into irrelevance as his focus locked entirely onto the man before him.
In that moment, nothing else existed.
Korin stood exactly where Vale remembered him, and yet, not at all the same. His frame was still immense, broad as a wall and rooted like a mountain, but the energy around him had changed. Before, Korin had always felt unstable, like a force barely contained, a storm threatening to break free at any second. Now… that storm was gone.
There was a stillness to him. A quiet, controlled strength that didn't need to announce itself.
And when he smiled, it wasn't strained or uncertain, it was genuine.
They stopped just within reach.
Korin extended his hand without hesitation.
Vale mirrored him instantly, and instead of anything formal, their palms met in a sharp, resounding slap that echoed faintly through the open chamber. The sound lingered for just a moment, bouncing off stone and steel, grounding the moment in something familiar.
Vale let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding, a small chuckle escaping him as he tilted his head up.
"Man… you look good," he said, voice lighter now, though still edged with disbelief. "No, better than good. You actually look like you belong here."
Korin huffed a quiet laugh, bringing a fist up to his chest and knocking it lightly against his armor. The gesture was casual, but there was pride in it, earned, not forced.
"Turns out," Korin replied, "when I'm not constantly on the edge of losing control, I can actually improve." He paused, glancing briefly at his own hand as if measuring something unseen. "My ability's weaker here. Not by a small margin either."
His gaze lifted again, steady.
"But I can control it now."
The sentence carried more weight than anything else he'd said.
Vale's expression shifted immediately, the humor draining as realization settled in. "Wait," he said, eyes widening slightly, "you mean completely? No snapping? No… losing yourself anymore?"
Korin shook his head once.
"Not anymore."
The words hit Vale harder than he expected. His shoulders relaxed, tension he hadn't acknowledged finally easing.
"That's insane," he muttered, then louder, "That's actually insane. Do you have any idea how big that is?"
A grin spread across his face, unfiltered and genuine.
"I can't believe it," he continued. "You're the one they were talking about, right? The new Royal Guard member?"
Korin raised a brow, a hint of amusement flickering across his features. "Ares told you already?"
Vale scratched the back of his head, suddenly looking far less composed. "Not… exactly," he admitted. "But come on, seeing you here? It's not hard to figure out. I mean, unless Nym somehow showed up and beat you to it."
Korin stared at him for a moment, then let out a low, genuine laugh.
"Sometimes I forget how sharp you are," he said.
Vale smirked slightly, about to respond,
but Korin had already shifted his attention.
His gaze moved past Vale, settling on Eskar first.
There was a pause. A subtle change in posture. Not defensive, nor guarded, just… deliberate.
"Eskar," Korin said, stepping forward slightly. His tone softened, but didn't lose its weight. "It's good to finally see you again. I've read the reports, Sir Drago's journey, the encounters and fights."
He inclined his head in a measured, respectful nod.
"And I mean this, thank you. For keeping Vale alive."
The reaction was immediate, though restrained.
Eskar stiffened, his expression tightening as if something in those words struck deeper than intended. His gaze dropped, jaw clenching faintly.
"I don't deserve your gratitude," he said quietly.
There was no hesitation in his tone, only certainty.
"We survived because we had to," he continued. "If one of us had died, the other wouldn't have lasted long. That's all it was. It was dependency, not protection."
His fingers curled slightly at his sides.
"So don't thank me for something I didn't earn."
The air shifted, tension creeping in,
and then Korin closed the distance.
A heavy hand landed on Eskar's shoulder.
Firm and grounding.
Eskar looked up at the tall boy.
Korin's expression hadn't hardened. If anything, it had grown steadier.
"You're wrong," Korin said simply.
"Maybe that's how it started," he continued. "But that's not how it ended. You could've left him behind, but you didn't."
His grip tightened slightly, not painfully, but enough to anchor the words.
"That is what matters."
Eskar held his gaze. On the surface, his expression barely changed, but something beneath it shifted, subtle and difficult to name.
Before the moment could deepen,
A sharp burst of laughter cut through the tension.
Silfur.
She stood a few steps away, one hand pressed to her stomach, clearly entertained.
"Damn," she said, shaking her head. "You really were a problem, huh?"
Eskar didn't respond.
Korin, however, turned his attention toward her, and paused.
There was recognition in his eyes. Not complete, but enough to give him pause.
"I… apologize," he said after a moment. "You seem familiar, but I can't quite place where I've seen you."
Silfur's grin widened instantly, confidence snapping into place like armor. She stepped forward and hooked a thumb toward herself.
"Silfur," she said. "Commander of the Third Exploration Unit of the Royal Library. And if you're wondering, yes, I'm exactly as good as that sounds."
Korin's reaction was immediate.
His eyes widened slightly, and without hesitation, he stepped back and dropped to one knee.
"My apologies," he said, voice sharp with formality now. "I didn't realize someone of your rank was accompanying him."
Silfur blinked once,
then broke into a wide, satisfied grin.
"Alright, alright, relax," she said, waving a hand. "You can get up. We're not that far apart in standing anyway."
Her eyes narrowed slightly as she looked him over, evaluating.
"If anything," she added, "we'd probably stalemate if we fought based on power alone."
She tilted her head, gaze sharpening.
"But that's not what sets you apart, is it?"
There was a pause.
Korin rose, scratching the back of his head with a quiet chuckle.
"No," he admitted. "It's not."
Silfur's grin deepened slightly.
"Yeah. Thought so."
Korin let the moment pass, then straightened, his demeanor shifting back into something more structured.
"Even so," he said, "respect between the Royal Guard and the Royal Library isn't optional. It's… necessary."
Silfur's expression flickered, less amused now, more thoughtful then before.
"…Yeah," she said after a moment. "Fair enough."
Then, almost casually, she added, "Maximus would probably be the one you'd want to bow to, though."
Korin didn't engage with that. Instead, he turned and began walking, his pace steady, clearly expecting them to follow.
"Come," he said. "I'll take you to the main chamber."
Vale fell in beside him, his earlier excitement giving way to curiosity.
"…Main chamber?" he repeated. "What for?"
"A test," Korin replied.
The word hung in the air.
Vale frowned slightly. "A test?"
Korin nodded once as they moved through the vast interior, their footsteps echoing faintly along the stone pathways.
"A combat evaluation," he explained. "It determines your clearance level within the Royal Guard's headquarters."
He glanced at Vale briefly.
"How much you're allowed to see. What you're trusted with. That sort of stuff"
Vale's brow furrowed. "But you said I'm already vouched for."
"You are," Korin confirmed. "Which is why the test won't be… standard."
There was a subtle shift in his tone.
"But it still needs to happen."
Vale exhaled slowly. "Why?"
Korin was quiet for a moment.
Then,
"Because someone thought they were stronger than they actually were."
Vale's eyes narrowed slightly. "That doesn't sound like a good story."
"It isn't."
Korin's voice flattened, losing all humor it had before.
"They accessed relics they weren't qualified to handle. The relics rejected them."
Korin paused briefly.
"Violently."
Vale's expression tightened. "How bad was it?"
Korin didn't look at him.
"Enough to remove limbs."
Silence followed that.
The weight of it settled in immediately.
"…I see," Vale said after a moment, quieter now. "So the relics… choose their users."
"Yes."
"And if you're not good enough"
"They make sure you don't try again."
Vale let out a slow breath, absorbing it.
"…That's one way to enforce standards."
"It's effective," Korin replied simply.
They continued walking, the atmosphere growing heavier the deeper they moved into the structure.
After a few seconds, Vale spoke again.
"So," he said, glancing sideways, "who am I fighting?"
Korin's lips curved slightly, not quite a smile, but close.
"You'll find out soon enough."