Chapter 79: The Dream Encounter - Part 2
"Yes," Eren confirmed. "She calls herself the ’First Eternal.’ She claims to understand elements not as separate forces but aspects of a single power."
The queen’s face drained of color. "The First Eternal... a being who existed before the Great Three, before the Sundering of the kingdoms. Those legends are so old they were already considered myths when I was a child." She stepped closer to Eren. "Tell me everything."
"It’s not an alliance," he began, deciding to trust her. "It’s coercion. Kaida holds my mother, Queen Elysia, captive. She threatened to kill her if I don’t complete more TUNA rituals under her control."
"TUNA rituals?" Elizabeth’s alarm was evident. "So she knows of the ancient ways."
"She’s taken us to this place—this chamber with seven alcoves and pedestals—because she claims it will allow for a different kind of elemental transfer," Eren continued. "She has seven warriors, each possessing a different element. She wants me to perform TUNA with each of them, claiming that the energy will transfer to me without my notice."
"That’s impossible," Elizabeth said sharply. "The TUNA ritual cannot be so easily manipulated."
"That’s what I told her," Eren agreed. "But she claims the rules don’t apply to her—that as the ’First Eternal’ she understands the true nature of elements better than anyone."
The queen looked deeply troubled now. "If she truly is the being from those legends, then we face a greater threat than I imagined."
"What do you know of her?" Eren asked urgently.
Elizabeth’s expression grew distant, as if retrieving ancient memories. "Only fragments. Stories of a being who understood elements as a unified force, who could wield multiple elements when such a thing was thought impossible."
"That’s exactly how she described herself," Eren said, cold dread settling in his stomach.