Those gathered in the Grand Hall were shaken to their very bones. First, the last Dragon Guardian had fallen. Now—because fate apparently enjoyed bad timing—the city was under attack.
Perfect.
Tension thickened like poorly cooked stew, heavy and impossible to swallow. The crowd erupted into panic.
"Fuck," Kiel muttered. "Today seems to be really full of only downs."
The Kingdom of Vampires had been pressing their assault against the humans for weeks. Neighboring cities around Kale had already fallen—burned, breached, humiliated. And now the capital itself stood invaded. The Kingdom of Everest had become a public joke.
Russell's death had done that.
Russell—Ezekiel's father, Dragon Guardian, and the kingdom's biggest warning sign—was gone. For a brief moment, his death had sparked hope. Foolish hope. The kind that whispered maybe we still have a chance before getting crushed under reality's boot.
Greta didn't allow despair to linger.
As the Commander of the 1st Division of the royal army, she stepped forward and took control without ceremony. "Prepare to fight," she ordered. "I won't let those blood-suckers turn our home into a feeding ground."
The soldiers moved instantly. Armor clashed. Weapons rang. Fear remained—but it was shoved aside by rage and adrenaline.
"To the eastern border!" Gideon shouted.
War had officially arrived.
---
Kiel didn't linger. As the soldiers scattered, he turned and ran toward his mother.
Greta barely had time to breathe after talking briefly with the king before he was in front of her.
"You'll have to go," she said softly, cupping his cheek like this wasn't the beginning of a nightmare. "The king's orders. He believes you might unlock your gift… maybe on the battlefield."
'Pffft..' Kiel scoffed inwardly . He was the first dragon to not successfully unlock his gift .The chances of him still unlocking it was slim.
Greta knew the truth. If Kiel failed to unlock his gift out there—truly failed—he would never unlock it again.
"Okay, Mom," Kiel said, nodding like his heart wasn't trying to escape his chest.
They moved quickly to the stables. No dramatic pauses. War didn't wait.
Kiel mounted his horse, then turned back. Greta hadn't followed.
"Mom, aren't you coming?"
She shook her head. "The king says it's too dangerous."
Before Kiel could argue, she pulled two silver daggers from her pouch and pressed them into his hands.
"I personally reinforced them with poison," she added.
Of course she had. Greta didn't believe in half-measures.
"Son," she said quietly, meeting his eyes, "your gift isn't about power. It's about who you really are."
The horn sounded.
Kiel turned, rode forward, and didn't look back.
---
Greta turned away quickly—like a woman who absolutely did not want to cry in front of soldiers.
Kiel urged his horse onward, twin daggers secure at his sides. I don't have a gift, he thought grimly. But dragon blood still ran through his veins, and today, that would have to be enough.
As he neared the eastern border, chaos came into view. Kale's forces clashed violently with the vampires—steel against fang, screams against laughter that really shouldn't sound that cheerful. Fires burned behind them like bad memories refusing to fade.
But Kiel had a different mission.
Reach the eastern border.
Stop Cody—the infamous Fifth Vampire Knight
Hooves thundered beside him.
"Kiel!"
He turned to see Kara—his childhood friend—riding alongside him, smiling like this was a festival and not an apocalypse.
"I unlocked my gift!" she shouted over the wind.
Of course she had.
"That's great!" Kiel yelled back. "What is it?"
"Some sort of healing power!"
Kiel blinked. Then laughed. At least someone had gotten a useful miracle.
They rode at full speed as the sound of battle grew louder—closer—hungrier. Kiel looked ahead, and his smile faded.
The field was a disaster.
Human soldiers were losing ground fast. Vampire troops advanced with terrifying coordination, clearly intending to break through and invade the capital completely.
This wasn't just a battle.
This was the breaking point.
Kiel tightened his grip on the daggers. His heart pounded.
If his gift was ever going to awaken—
It had better hurry.