Chapter 63: Trial of blood
The message burned itself into the earth—a circle of blackened ash and crimson symbols that pulsed like a heartbeat.
Selene stood behind Cain, her hand tightly gripping the edge of his sleeve. "This isn't just a summons," she said softly. "It's a challenge."
Cain nodded. "A trial. One only blood heirs can answer."
Behind them, Leo stared at the circle with narrowed eyes. "He finally wants us close enough to kill... or crown."
Eren kicked at a stone, frustration radiating off him. "Why now? After everything—Eira's death, the attacks—why lure us in now?"
Cain didn't answer right away. His eyes were locked on the glyphs, watching as they pulsed with a slow, malicious rhythm. "Because we've changed. He feels it."
Leo frowned. "Changed?"
"We're not afraid anymore," Cain murmured. "We've buried. We've bled. And we're still standing."
The wind shifted. The circle flashed.
Then, the world tilted.
They were no longer standing in the forest—but in a throne room carved from volcanic glass. Pillars of bone. Ceiling vanishing into black smoke. The floor beneath their feet shimmered with magic, and at the end of the long hall sat a throne of obsidian fire.