Before history was measured in years,
before academies and treaties,
before Pandemonium was divided into seventy-two dominions—
There was a rift between realms.
The sky itself tore open as two figures clashed within it.
Steel met steel, and the sound was not a clash but a cataclysm.
Each strike bent reality, each collision sent shockwaves ripping through both realms. Space fractured. Time trembled.
One blade burned with authority.
The other shone with judgment.
A light brighter than a dying sun consumed everything.
And then—
darkness.
---
1900 years later.
---
Pandemonium's western dominion was a land of iron spires and black stone cliffs, where rivers of dark mana flowed beneath the earth like veins. This was Sabnoryx territory, ruled by blade, discipline, and blood.
Here, weakness did not survive.
Inside the inner estate, a simulation chamber hummed to life.
A lone boy stood at its center.
Valier Sabnoryx.
He stood at just over five feet ten, his frame lean and honed, muscle packed tight beneath black training pants and a simple dark shirt. His skin carried a warm brown tone, sharply contrasted by crimson eyes
that gleamed with unnatural clarity. Short jet-black hair framed a calm, unreadable expression.
The chamber walls shifted.
Simulation: Hostile Encounter — Begin.
Valier exhaled slowly.
"Iron Bloom."
Dark mana surged.
From his forearms, blades erupted—sleek, blackened steel grown from his own flesh, extending longer than his arms, their edges humming with lethal intent.
Seven goblins materialized ahead of him, shrieking as they charged.
Valier smiled.
Long canines flashed.
He moved.
The world seemed to slow as he stepped forward, his body flowing into motion like a predator unleashed. The first goblin never saw the strike—its body split cleanly before it could scream. The second tried to retreat. The blade found its spine.
Blood sprayed. Mana crackled.
Valier didn't stop.
He weaved through them, blades carving precise arcs, each movement efficient, ruthless, practiced. There was no hesitation. No mercy. Only momentum.
Within seconds, the floor was painted dark.
The final goblin collapsed in two pieces.
Simulation terminated.
The blades dissolved back into Valier's arms as the room fell silent.
A door opened.
"Young Master Valier," a calm voice said. "The Matriarch wishes to see you."
Valier straightened.
"Alright. Let's go."
---
The halls of the Sabnoryx estate were carved from obsidian stone, lit by crimson sigils that pulsed faintly with mana. Valier stopped before a massive door.
"May I enter, Mother?"
"Come in."
He stepped inside and bowed.
Before him stood Duchess Visenna Sabnoryx, Matriarch of the house.
She was tall, her presence commanding the space itself. Jet-black hair fell down her back like a curtain of shadow, her crimson eyes sharp and assessing. She wore a crimson-and-black battle gown, its reinforced bodice etched with sigils of authority, a high-collared mantle draped over her shoulders like a crown made of fabric.
She did not need armor.
She was power.
"Son," she said calmly, "you turned one hundred and fifty last week."
"Yes, Mother."
"You know what that means."
Valier met her gaze without flinching.
"It is time for me to enter the academy."
A pause.
"Your sister enrolled four years ago," Visenna said. "Now it is your turn. Are you ready?"
Valier smiled faintly.
"I was born ready, Mother."
For just a moment, her expression softened.
"Very well. Prepare yourself. You depart at dawn. I'll have the airship readied."
"Yes, Mother."
---
The next morning, the engines roared.
Valier stepped onto the airship platform, his belongings secured. Visenna stood behind him, arms folded.
"You packed everything?" she asked, a trace of concern in her voice.
"Yes, Mother."
"Good. Then go."
As the airship rose, Valier turned back.
"I'll miss you. Take care of yourself."
Visenna smiled and waved.
Only after the vessel vanished beyond the clouds did her smile fade.
"I'm not worried about him," she said quietly.
Her butler hesitated. "Then… what troubles you, my lady?"
"I'm worried about what he is capable of."
A pause.
"He is my prodigy, after all."
"At least Lady Emrys is there," the butler said.
Visenna nodded.
"That is my only relief. He listens only to her."
She turned back toward the estate.
"Take care, my son."
And softly, to the world beyond—
Beware, Nox Dominion.
"I've sent a monster your way."
---
End of Chapter
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