Later that same night, Riverfall village was quiet.
Most villagers had gone to sleep.
But Arian couldn't rest.
Something about the strange magical signal kept troubling his mind.
So he decided to walk outside.
The moonlight illuminated the peaceful village.
For a moment, everything seemed normal.
Then suddenly—
A loud crash echoed from the marketplace.
Arian immediately ran toward the sound.
When he arrived, he froze.
A dark creature stood in the center of the square.
It looked like a twisted shadow made of smoke and claws.
Its glowing red eyes scanned the village.
Arian whispered quietly,
"That's not a normal creature…"
The monster suddenly turned toward him.
It let out a terrifying scream and rushed forward.
Arian grabbed a nearby spear from a guard post and blocked the attack.
The creature's claws slammed into the ground beside him.
The stone pavement cracked instantly.
"This thing is strong!" Arian shouted.
At that moment, Lyra appeared beside him.
Blue magic gathered in her hands.
"Move!"
She fired a blast of magical energy.
The creature staggered backward.
Draven arrived seconds later, drawing his swords.
"What did I miss?" he asked.
"The beginning of trouble," Arian replied.
Draven charged forward.
His blade cut through the shadow creature, but the monster reformed again.
"It's made of dark magic!" Lyra said.
Arkon finally arrived and raised his staff.
Golden light exploded across the square.
The magical energy struck the creature.
This time, it screamed in pain.
The shadow form began dissolving.
Within seconds, the monster vanished completely.
Silence returned to the village.
But something strange remained on the ground.
A small black crystal.
Lyra slowly picked it up.
Her face turned pale.
"This…"
"It's an Abyss Shard."
Arian looked at the crystal.
Its dark energy pulsed faintly.
Which meant one terrifying thing.
Someone had already begun collecting the power of the Abyss again.
And somewhere in the darkness of Eldoria…
A new enemy was rising.