It felt like a cold, snow-covered expanse—endless white, but touched with a faint silver glow, as though the world itself was woven from moonlight.
"How do you feel?" Argyran asked, her white fur rippling as the wind whispered through the emptiness.
Selene turned to her slowly. "Did we come here again?"
A small nod. "We did."
Selene's gaze softened, though her voice carried the weight of ages. "How long have we been sleeping this time?"
"Too long, it seems." Argyran's tone was calm, but there was something beneath it—a faint tremor, quickly hidden. "At least I can feel you again. For a moment, I thought you were gone."
"Not yet, it seems…" Selene murmured, her hand brushing through the silver-tinged air. "Did you see what happened outside?"
"I remembered everything until Icarus appeared," Argyran replied. "Then—nothing. Only silence."
A deep rumble echoed across the whiteness. Cracks spiderwebbed across the silver walls of their sanctuary.
Argyran tilted her head, eyes narrowing. "Looks like it's time to wake up."
Without hesitation, she stepped forward into the crumbling light. Selene followed, her presence steady, though the air itself seemed to shiver as reality began to return.
A cold drop of water splashed against her cheek. Then another.
Aria stirred with a groan, wrinkling her nose as she tried to swipe the annoyance away. But the movement sent a sharp wave of pain lancing through her body.
"Ughhh…" she hissed, her breath ragged. Every inch of her ached as if she had been broken and buried alive.
Slowly, her eyes adjusted to the suffocating dark. Panic tightened her chest. Underground… I'm trapped under…
Her pulse quickened as her mind screamed for escape.
"Aura…" Her trembling lips formed the word like a prayer. "Please—just this once."
For these times she had trained, fought, and bled to awaken her power. She had pushed herself beside Abigel, endured his relentless methods to provoke her strength. Every failure had carved doubt into her heart. Even during the most desperate moments, even when her life had been at the brink—nothing. No golden aura. No familiar's call.
Am I not good enough?
Or is it still not time?
Even the system—the mysterious voice that had once guided her—had abandoned her. No answers. No help. Nothing but silence.
Her chest tightened as her conversation with Oban echoed in her mind, leaving her with more questions than truths. Still, a fragile spark shimmered against the void.
A thread of gold flickered to life at her fingertips, faint but warm—enough to push back the shadows. Her heart leapt.
Then she wished it hadn't.
Dozens of small, writhing creatures stirred around her, pale shapes scuttling in the glow.
Her breath caught. With a sharp jerk, she smothered the light back into nothingness. The darkness returned, heavy and suffocating—but safer.
Her body trembled violently as the chill seeped into her bones.
"How… am I going to get out of here…" she whispered, her voice breaking, swallowed whole by the earth.
She closed her eyes and pressed her hand to her chest the way she always did when fear threatened to swallow her—seeking the steady, stupid comfort of a heartbeat. Warmth flooded her palm, and somewhere inside the dark the familiar tug of Icarus found her. The soul-thread hummed to life.
"Aria." A voice, close and raw.
"Icarus," she breathed.
"Good—you're awake." His voice carried relief and panic braided tight together. "Stay with me."
"Yes… I'm—underground. It's so dark…" she couldn't finish; pain stole the words.
"Hey. Don't worry. I'll get you out. Don't be scared." He sounded fierce now, a corner of steel beneath the tenderness. "Listen—this is a double trap. The seal has to be unlocked in the right order or the whole forest could collapse."
"Double lock? Who could get into the forest other than royals?" Her voice trembled with the question.
"No one should. But someone did. And they wanted someone specific in this trap." Icarus' tone hardened. "You're first. After I pull you, we'll find the rest."
"Okay," she said, clutching the promise like a talisman.
"Don't fall asleep, my love. If you lose consciousness, I won't be able to find you." His plea was small and urgent.
"I won't," she promised, and clung to the sound of him like a lifeline.
She is awake," Icarus said, his voice steady but carrying the weight of urgency.
"How should we proceed?" Alwin asked, scanning the area with sharp eyes.
"It would be better if Sir Alwin gets inside and keeps Aria safe until I destroy the trap," Icarus said, his gaze fixed on the sealed ground below.
"But how can I get inside?" Alwin asked, concern tightening his jaw.
"I can manipulate the dark magic for a few seconds," Kirael said, peeking from behind her wings, the faint shimmer of her aura brushing the shadows.
Icarus didn't reply—he already knew it was possible. "But we still need one more help… someone who can manipulate the earth."
Alwin's eyes flicked toward the forest floor, and he understood immediately—the only one with a green aura