_________
The world no longer felt the same.
Even the air had changed.
The seven resonance holders traveled silently beneath gray skies as cold wind swept across the ruined coastline.
Behind them—
Far beyond the horizon—
The ocean still glowed faintly crimson at night.
A reminder.
The Devourer was awake.
And now—
The world knew it.
Izumi walked near the front of the group, his cloak moving softly with the wind while the resonance fragments floated above them like dim stars.
The synchronization had weakened since Nerathis—
But it hadn't vanished.
Sometimes he still felt things.
Small emotional pulses from the others.
Faint thoughts.
Instincts.
It was unsettling.
Especially because nobody talked about it directly.
Mira suddenly appeared beside him lazily.
"…You're overthinking again."
Izumi sighed.
"…Can you stop reading my mood every five seconds?"
"No."
She smirked.
"…It's entertaining."
Despite her usual teasing tone—
Izumi could feel it through the resonance.
Mira was uneasy too.
She just hid it better.
Arrival at Velthorne
By sunset—
The group finally reached the outer walls of a massive city.
Tall silver walls stretched across the landscape while enormous towers overlooked the surrounding plains.
Flags carrying the symbol of a radiant lion fluttered in the wind.
Merchants.
Soldiers.
Travelers.
Crowds moved constantly near the gates.
Lior stared upward.
"…This place is huge…"
Dianara adjusted her hood slightly.
"…Velthorne."
"…The largest human trade city in the eastern territories."
Mira whistled softly.
"…Fancy."
Ravian's expression remained serious.
"…Which also makes it dangerous."
Seraphina looked toward the crowded gates.
"…Too many eyes."
Astra quietly observed the city from behind the group.
Her crimson eyes reflected the lights from the walls.
"…Civilization feels louder than I remember."
Mira blinked.
"…That sounded incredibly depressing."
"…It was not intended to."
Rumors of Disaster
As they approached the gates—
The atmosphere became obvious immediately.
Fear.
People whispered constantly.
Soldiers looked tense.
Merchants argued nervously.
"…The sea split open…"
"…They say thousands disappeared…"
"…A monster beneath the ocean…"
"…The Church is calling it a calamity…"
The rumors had already spread everywhere.
Faster than expected.
Izumi lowered his hood slightly.
"…We need to stay unnoticed."
Mira looked at the floating fragments above them.
"…Right. About that."
Dianara immediately forced a concealment formation around the fragments.
The glowing lights vanished instantly.
"…Better," she said quietly.
The Gate Problem
Two armored guards stepped forward as the group approached the entrance.
"Halt."
The older guard narrowed his eyes.
"…State your names and origin."
Ravian immediately answered calmly.
"…Travelers from the southern coast."
The guard frowned.
"…Bad timing."
"…Nobody from the coast arrives without trouble these days."
The younger guard suddenly froze.
His eyes locked onto Astra.
"…Wait…"
Astra looked back silently.
The guard's expression became pale.
"…Those eyes…"
Instantly—
The resonance between the group pulsed sharply.
Danger.
Izumi stepped subtly closer.
"…Problem?"
The younger guard hesitated.
Then quickly looked away.
"…N-No…"
But the older guard noticed immediately.
"…What is it?"
Before the younger guard could answer—
A loud explosion echoed somewhere deeper inside the city.
BOOM.
Smoke rose into the evening sky.
People screamed instantly.
The guards turned sharply.
"…What now?!"
Another explosion followed.
Closer this time.
The atmosphere near the gates shifted into panic.
Ravian's eyes narrowed immediately.
"…That wasn't normal."
Mira grinned slightly.
"…And here I thought we'd get one peaceful day."
Chaos in the City
Suddenly—
Several figures crashed through nearby market stalls.
Civilians screamed and scattered.
A man covered in dark burn-like markings stumbled into view while soldiers chased behind him.
His mana was unstable.
Violent.
Corrupted.
And floating near his chest—
Was a fragment.
Dianara's eyes widened.
"…Another resonance holder?!"
The corrupted man looked terrified.
Desperate.
"…Get away from me!"
Dark mana exploded outward from his body uncontrollably.
Several soldiers were blown away instantly.
The fragment pulsed violently.
Unstable.
Broken.
Astra's expression darkened immediately.
"…No…"
Izumi looked toward her.
"…What is it?"
Astra stared at the corrupted resonance holder quietly.
"…His synchronization failed."
Silence.
Then the man screamed.
And the fragment inside his chest cracked further.
End Build-Up
The corrupted resonance holder suddenly looked directly at Izumi's group.
At the hidden resonance within them.
And smiled unnaturally.
"…Found… you…"
The fragment exploded with black-red energy.
The entire street shook violently.
And somewhere deep within the city—
Something else awakened in response.
Black-red energy exploded across the street.
Civilians screamed as nearby stalls shattered instantly under the unstable mana surge.
The corrupted resonance holder convulsed violently, dark cracks spreading across his skin like living fractures.
"…Everyone back!" Izumi shouted.
Seraphina moved first.
Her blade flashed through the air—
A barrier of light formed between the civilians and the eruption.
BOOM.
The shockwave slammed against it hard enough to crack the ground beneath her feet.
Mira whistled softly.
"…Yeah, he's definitely unstable."
The corrupted man laughed painfully.
Not normally.
Broken.
Distorted.
"…It hurts…"
The fragment embedded near his chest pulsed uncontrollably.
Dianara's expression tightened.
"…His resonance collapsed completely…"
Lior looked horrified.
"…Can that happen to us too?"
Nobody answered immediately.
Because everyone already knew the answer.
The Corrupted Holder
The man suddenly looked toward Izumi again.
His eyes twitching unnaturally.
"…Primary…"
Izumi froze slightly.
"…How does he know that?"
Astra stepped forward slowly.
"…Because corrupted holders can sense deeper resonance."
The man staggered toward them.
"…Help me…"
For a brief moment—
He sounded normal.
Human.
Terrified.
Then the fragment cracked again.
Dark tendrils erupted from his body violently.
"…Too late," Astra whispered.
The soldiers nearby panicked immediately.
"Kill him!"
Several mages fired spells instantly.
Fire and lightning crashed toward the corrupted holder—
But Izumi stepped in.
"WAIT!"
His blade deflected the attacks before they landed.
The soldiers stared at him in shock.
"…What are you doing?!" one shouted.
Izumi looked toward the corrupted holder.
The resonance between them pulsed painfully.
He could feel it.
Fear.
Agony.
Isolation.
The same thing could happen to any of them.
The Church Arrives
Before anyone could react further—
The atmosphere changed.
Cold pressure spread across the street.
Not monstrous like the Devourer.
But authoritative.
Heavy.
The crowd suddenly moved aside.
A group wearing silver-white cloaks approached through the ruined street.
Church knights.
At their center walked a tall woman with pale silver hair and golden eyes.
Her aura was sharp.
Controlled.
Dangerous.
A massive spear rested against her shoulder.
The moment she arrived—
The corrupted holder began screaming louder.
"…No… NO!"
The woman's golden eyes narrowed.
"…Corrupted fragment resonance confirmed."
Her voice was calm.
Emotionless.
Then—
Her gaze shifted toward Izumi's group.
And paused.
The resonance pulsed instantly between all seven members.
She felt something.
"…Interesting."
Mira quietly muttered—
"…I don't like her already."
Execution
The corrupted holder suddenly lunged wildly toward nearby civilians.
The silver-haired woman moved instantly.
One step.
One strike.
Her spear pierced directly through the corrupted fragment.
Silence.
Then—
The black-red energy stopped.
The man's body collapsed lifelessly onto the broken street.
Everyone froze.
Lior looked shaken.
"…She killed him…"
Astra's expression remained unreadable.
"…There was no saving him anymore."
The silver-haired woman slowly removed her spear.
Not a single emotion crossed her face.
Then she looked toward Izumi's group again.
Directly at Astra this time.
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"…Those eyes…"
Ravian stepped subtly forward.
Protective.
The woman noticed immediately.
"…Paladin."
Silence.
Mira sighed dramatically.
"…Can one day pass without someone recognizing us?"
The Saint of Judgment
The woman rested her spear against the ground calmly.
"…I am Eleanor Valeris."
The surrounding soldiers immediately lowered their heads respectfully.
Even nearby civilians looked terrified of her.
Dianara's expression tightened.
"…One of the Church's strongest enforcers…"
Eleanor studied the group carefully.
Too carefully.
"…You arrived from the southern coast."
Not a question.
A statement.
Izumi answered cautiously.
"…And?"
"…And shortly after your arrival…"
She glanced at the dead corrupted holder.
"…A fragment resonance loses control."
The atmosphere became tense instantly.
Seraphina's hand slowly moved toward her blade.
Mira's shadows deepened beneath her feet.
Ravian's mana sharpened.
Eleanor noticed all of it.
And smiled faintly.
"…Relax."
"…If I intended hostility…"
Her spear glowed softly.
"…You would already know."
That somehow wasn't reassuring at all.
Final Scene
The wind moved quietly through the ruined street as civilians watched nervously from a distance.
Eleanor's golden eyes remained fixed on Izumi.
Not with hatred.
Not with fear.
Interest.
"…The world is changing."
She said calmly.
"…And I believe all of you are standing at the center of it."
The resonance inside Izumi pulsed sharply again.
Warning him.
Not of immediate danger.
But of something worse.
Attention.
Far above the city—
Dark storm clouds gathered once more.
And hidden somewhere within Velthorne—
Another fragment bearer watched silently from the rooftops.
Smiling.