As the few boys and girls were planning to teach Eirian a lesson during the hunting trial.
Eirian lounged on the plush couch, arms folded behind his head, eyes half-lidded in apparent relaxation.
Selenia sat rigidly beside Eirian, her lavender skirts perfectly arranged—but her mind churned. She stole a glance at his profile, noting how the fading light caught the angles of his face. Let's see how mighty he is when he's during the Hunting trial. But remained silent.
Eirian's lips quirked. Without opening his eyes, he murmured with amusement, "Plotting my demise, Selenia?"
Selenia stiffened. "Don't flatter yourself," she sniffed, but her pulse betrayed her.
Behind them, the scarred-knuckle boy mouthed to his allies: "Tomorrow. When we reach Astra Mountain Region..."
The sharp-faced boy nodded, his smile venomous.
As evening painted the sky in hues of violet and gold, Lucien entered the resting hall accompanied by a stern-faced woman. The initiates immediately rose to their feet, including Eirian and Selenia.
"This is Elder Liora," Lucien announced. "Your co-examiner for the hunting trial."
The woman gave a curt nod. "We depart now for Astra Mountain. The trial begins at dawn." Her voice was as sharp as a whetted blade, leaving no room for questions.
Eirian's brow furrowed. Lucian was at the reception desk earlier… Why's everyone calling him Elder? He leaned toward Selenia. "Why's Lucien an Elder? He was behind the receptionist counter when I arrived."
Selenia shot him a look of mingled amusement and disbelief. "Are you truly new to the Vexillum Empire?" At his nod, she sighed. "He's always been an Elder—and a renowned Nightshade. The reception duty is just a rotation."
"Ah.." Eirian's lips quirked. Clever. An Elder greeting newcomers personally… The Legion tests people even before they join.
"Follow me," Elder Liora commanded, her voice cold and indifferent.
The eleven new Shadowlings obeyed, trailing behind the two elders. As the Elder Liora and Lucien led them to the western grounds, where two colossal winged beasts stood waiting.
P-Phantom Solarix?!" a boy gasped. Murmurs rippled through the group.
Lucien stroked the nearest beast's crimson wing. "Wind-element flyers. Rare in the empire. Faster than most cultivators at their peak."
The creatures were magnificent—five meters tall, with jet-black eyes and phantom sigils glowing on their foreheads. Their 7-Star Soulspark Realm aura made the air hum.
"Board," Liora ordered.
The initiates split into two groups. Eirian claimed a spot near the edge of his beast's back, the wind already whipping at his robes. With a thunderous cry, the Solarix launched into the sky. The ground shrank to a blur below.
As the last echoes of the Phantom Solarix's wings faded into the sky, a shadowy figure materialized on the abandoned training grounds. Clad in jet-black robes with a grotesque mask obscuring his face, he stood precisely where the initiates had departed moments before.
"Eirian..." The whisper slithered through the night, colder than the mountain wind. In the space between heartbeats, the shadow dissolved - vanishing as completely as if he'd never been there at all.
Eirian braced himself as the wind tore at his skin like daggers. He channeled Starflow through his body, but the relentless wind still stung. Faster than Morvex, he noted, impressed.
Beside him, Selenia gripped the beast's harness, her knuckles white. "You're smirking?" she shouted over the roar.
"It's exhilarating!" he called back casually. The corner of his smile deepening slightly.
She rolled her eyes but didn't argue—partly because the wind stole her retort.
Silence dominated the journey, save for the Solarix's wingbeats and the initiates' labored breathing against the tempest.
In the pale light of early dawn, the jagged peaks of Astra Mountain emerged from the retreating darkness. Eirian's body tensed—something was wrong. Between the cliffs, the shadows twisted unnaturally, as if breathing.
A flicker of movement. Then—eyes. Two amber points of light glowing from a ravine's depths, locked onto him with predatory focus. They vanished as suddenly as they'd appeared.
Eirian scanned the other initiates. None showed any reaction. A hallucination? Yet his skin still prickled with the weight of that gaze. He felt something was going to happen, why didn't anyone notice that pair of eyes.
The Solarix banked sharply, its wings catching the morning wind as they descended toward the outskirts of the Astra region.
As the others stirred awake, the scene unfolded before them: an endless sea of mist swallowing valleys whole, framed by three colossal white mountains that pierced the heavens like frozen giants.
As the twin Phantom Solarix touched down with thunderous wingbeats, the new initiates dismounted. Dust billowed from the landing, stirred by the gusts of the winged beasts. Excitement shimmered in some eyes, while dread clung to others.
Elder Liora stepped forward, her gaze sharp as flint. "You've all been briefed, but let me make this crystal clear."
Her voice cut through the morning fog.
"You will hunt beasts in the outer regions of Astra Mountain and gather their Veinroots as proof. Fifty is the minimum required to pass. Exceptional performances will be noted and rewarded. The trial lasts five days. Return here before the deadline."
Lucien added, his tone colder, "And remember—never step into the inner regions of Astra Mountain. Not even we Elders dare trespass too far. We await your... survival."
A heavy silence followed, then a flurry of motion as teams began to form. Pairs clustered quickly, but with eleven initiates, one unlucky candidate was placed in a trio with the weakest duo—an uneasy balance.
Lucien raised his hand, Starflow sparking through his veins.
"Begin!"
His voice echoed across the wilds, and within seconds, the initiates vanished—each team disappearing into the veiled terrain, swallowed by fog and forest.
Watching them go, Lucien spoke quietly to the female elder, "How many do you think will come back?"
Liora's arms were crossed, her face unreadable. "This batch… has potential. I'd wager six will survive."
Lucien gave a dry hum. "That boy—Eirian, showed promise. The way he handled the Shade Lizard wasn't ordinary."
He paused. "And the girl, Selenia. Her combat was… fine. But when I tried digging into her background, I found nothing. No history. No trace."
Liora's eyes narrowed.
"There's another, too—**Orven**," Lucien continued. "A sharp fighter. Comes from one of the noble families. If ambition matches skill, he might go far."
Above them, unseen in the swirling mists, amber eyes blinked once... then vanished.
The wind stirred again, carrying the distant cries of unseen beasts. And just like that, the Trial of the Shadowlings had begun.
Within the dense mist that cloaked the Astra Outer Region—thick enough to blind ordinary eyes, yet only mildly obscuring vision for cultivators—two figures moved swiftly through the ghostly veil. Their footsteps echoed faintly as they passed towering crimson trees and skirted poisonous flora and venomous insects.
They were young men, both around twenty. One possessed a sharp, handsome face, jet-black eyes, and a tall, muscular frame. The second, while also striking, carried a slightly more delicate air—clearly distinguished but subtly overshadowed by the first.
"Orven, let's head north," the taller one suggested. "More beasts to slay, more Veinroots to harvest. They're excellent supplements for our cultivation."
Orven, the same boy Elder Lucien had taken note of earlier, nodded. "Agreed, Riven. Let's move quickly, but stay cautious. We don't want to attract anything… too powerful."
With their plan set, the two surged forward, wind whispering past them as they disappeared into the mist.
—
In another part of the mist, near a tall tree, two boys stood discussing.
"We'll teach that boy Eirian and that girl Selenia a proper lesson," the first sneered, his voice low and venomous. His name was Garron, a member of a respected noble house, he was still seething from Selenia's outright dismissal the day before.
The second boy, sharper-faced and more composed, glanced eastward. "Let it go for now. There are beasts nearby—I can feel their aura. Let's focus on the hunt first. We'll settle the other matter later."
Garron muttered something under his breath, but followed. The pair vanished into the mist, the tension in the air lingering behind them like a predator waiting to strike.
And in yet another place, across a stretch of dry, red soil, two figures moved with steady purpose. The girl's eyes narrowed as she scanned the horizon, her senses attuned to the subtle shifts in aura.
"I can sense two powerful beasts fighting… about five miles to the northeast," she muttered.
The boy beside her smirked, excitement flickering in his eyes. "What are we waiting for? Let's go!"
They were none other than Eirian and Selenia.
Selenia shot him a sharp look, her voice suddenly firm. "Don't get cocky. I don't know exactly what they are, but their auras… they're above 3-Star Soulspark Realm. Maybe higher..."
Eirian's smirk faded slightly, though his smirk faded, excitement still sparked in his eyes. He adjusted the grip on his weapon. "All the more reason to be careful," he replied. "But also… worth the risk."
Selenia didn't argue, but the tension in her posture spoke volumes. Together, they turned toward the distant clash of titans, the air already tinged with the promise of chaos.