Stonewake City did not keep secrets for long.
By the time the sun rose the morning after their dungeon clear, whispers had already spread through the guild halls.
A Bronze-ranked party clearing an evolving dungeon.
A Guardian subdued by pressure alone.
A boy with no visible summon standing at the center of it all.
Kaze, blissfully unaware, sat at a guild table devouring a plate of bread and roasted meat.
"This city is amazing," he said through a mouthful. "The food alone makes adventuring worth it."
Lira slapped his hand away from her plate. "Slow down. People are staring."
Kaze looked around.
Indeed, several adventurers had turned their heads. Some whispered. Others openly stared. A few eyes held something sharper—calculation.
Astra leaned back in her chair, smirking. "Told you. Big moves get attention."
Riven remained silent, gaze fixed on the guild board where new quests were being posted. His hand never strayed far from his sword.
Attention was not always friendly.
Guild Examiner Mira Valen approached their table, accompanied by two assistants.
"Party Kaze Veyron," she said calmly. "Follow me."
Kaze perked up. "Promotion?"
Astra grinned. "Better be."
Mira did not smile.
They were led into a private chamber lined with glowing crystals. The door sealed behind them with a dull hum.
Mira turned.
"You four have caused a ripple," she said plainly. "Both within the Guild… and beyond it."
Lira's posture stiffened. "Meaning?"
"Meaning," Mira continued, "that factions outside the Guild have begun to take notice. Noble houses. Religious orders. Underground organizations."
Kaze blinked. "All from one dungeon?"
"No," Mira replied. "From you."
Her gaze locked onto him.
"The pressure you released was not elemental. Not summoning-based. It resembled… sovereignty."
The room felt colder.
Astra frowned. "Sovereignty? Like—"
"Like those who bend others through sheer spiritual will," Mira finished. "Such individuals are rare. And hunted."
Kaze scratched his cheek. "I didn't mean to do anything special."
"That," Mira said quietly, "is what concerns me."
They were dismissed with a warning.
Outside the chamber, Lira grabbed Kaze by the shoulders.
"From now on, you don't do anything reckless without telling us."
Kaze laughed nervously. "I always do reckless things."
"That wasn't funny," she snapped.
Riven finally spoke. "Attention draws predators."
Astra cracked her knuckles. "Good. Let them come."
Riven shot her a glance. "That confidence gets people killed."
She scoffed but said nothing.
The first sign of trouble came that night.
Kaze woke suddenly, heart pounding.
The room was dark. Silent.
Too silent.
He sat up.
That was when he felt it.
Hostility.
Not directed at him personally—but at his existence.
He slipped out of bed and moved toward the window.
Below, in the alley beside the inn, three figures stood cloaked in black. Their faces were hidden, but their Soul Cores burned unnaturally bright.
Cultivators.
Not guild adventurers.
Hunters.
Kaze swallowed.
Why do they feel… wrong?
A voice echoed faintly in his mind—not words, but warning.
He stepped back—
The window shattered.
"TARGET CONFIRMED!"
The room exploded into chaos.
Riven reacted instantly, blade flashing as one attacker burst through the door. Astra summoned Pyra in a burst of flame, illuminating the room in red.
Lira ducked behind a table, already shouting commands. "Kaze! Stay back!"
One of the attackers locked eyes with him.
A pressure surged—dark, invasive.
Kaze felt his breath hitch.
No…
Instinct took over.
He stepped forward.
The air trembled.
The attacker froze mid-stride, blood trickling from his nose as his knees slammed into the floor.
"What—what is this—?!"
Kaze didn't understand.
He only knew one thing.
He refused to be pushed down.
The pressure snapped.
The attacker collapsed unconscious.
Silence fell.
Astra stared. "You did that… without thinking."
Riven looked grim. "They weren't ordinary assassins."
City guards arrived moments later, drawn by the noise. The attackers were taken away, but Mira arrived soon after, expression darker than before.
"It's begun," she said.
"Begun?" Kaze asked.
"You've been marked."
The next day, rumors exploded.
Some called Kaze a prodigy.
Others whispered darker things—demon-blooded, cursed soul, false Primoria.
A cloaked man watched from a distant tower, fingers tapping a staff carved with sigils.
"So the heir awakens," he murmured. "Interesting."
Far deeper, beneath the city, something ancient stirred within sealed stone.
And far, far away—
A Primoria opened his eyes.
"…Not yet," he said softly. "Endure a little longer, my son."
Unaware of any of it, Kaze stood atop the guild balcony, staring at the horizon.
"Hey," he said to the others, smiling. "Whatever comes next… we'll handle it together, right?"
Lira sighed. "You really don't understand how dangerous you are."
Astra grinned. "That's what makes it fun."
Riven nodded once. "Then we move forward."
Above them, unseen eyes watched.
And the world began to turn.