Lucian saw smoke billowing in the air. He turned to Aurora, his eyes fixed on the plume—dark and tall, as if carrying an ominous sign. Finally, he stepped closer and asked in a serious tone, "What the hell is going on?"
But Aurora only shook her head slowly. "I don't know," she whispered. "I… I really don't understand."
Instantly, Lucian's thoughts turned to Nother. Was this… an attack?
A feeling of unease settled in his chest. If the smoke did originate from there, he had to make sure everything was safe. Without a second thought, he hurried towards his apartment.
Wusssh!
Wind magic surged beneath his feet, launching him forward like a shadow skimming across the rooftops. Lucian sped like an invisible gust of wind, his anxiety growing. Something was wrong. Very wrong.
After a short journey, Lucian finally arrived in front of his apartment. But strangely… nothing was amiss. His apartment seemed fine. The market was still bustling, filled with people coming and going—as if no one noticed the smoke billowing in the distance.
Damn… Lucian frowned, his chest growing more restless.
Wusshhh…
He heard a sound—he turned quickly, his eyes scanning the surrounding buildings… then to the sky.
And there he saw it. A fireball—flying, hurtling towards him.
Without thinking, Lucian leaped back. But he didn't yet know… the attack was only the beginning.
In an instant, the sky was filled with fireballs—countless in number—blazing, burning, as if intent on incinerating everything.
Stunned, Lucian froze. His heart thundered in his chest—paralyzed by indecision.
While Lucian was stunned, watching the sky, someone called out from behind him, but Lucian didn't hear; he could only focus on the multitude of fireballs in the sky.
Finally, he was jostled by someone running in terror. Wussh… The numerous fireballs finally began to hit the ground. Surrounding buildings caught fire, people began screaming and running around, creating chaos, a terrible situation; many people lay on the ground, knocked down and trampled by the panicked crowd.
Lucian growled under his breath, eyes locked on the burning sky. Helpless, he watched as people around him fell—screaming, crushed, dying. Suddenly, Lucian turned his head, hearing something moving quickly on the remaining rooftops. The rumble of its passage was audible.
He saw about five figures moving above him—quickly heading somewhere. Lucian remembered that strange figure. Sensing something was amiss, he decided to follow where the five people were going.
He leaped onto a building still intact from the inferno, then moved from one rooftop to another. But his gaze was no longer fixed on the five people ahead. He glanced sideways—and saw thick smoke billowing from various points in the Nother area.
"Tch… What the hell is going on in this place?" Lucian muttered. He was utterly confused by this chaotic situation.
But as he looked back ahead—
A sudden blast of fire hit right in front of him.
Shit—!
Lucian didn't have time to dodge. His body was thrown from the height and fell into a narrow alley below. Two figures moved towards him, intending to make sure he was dead.
But they were surprised. All that remained was a charred, burnt robe—Lucian was gone—vanished like smoke.
Confused, one of them immediately warned of a surprise attack.
And just as he suspected—Lucian reappeared, leaping towards them with the aid of wind magic. One enemy was flung hard, crashing into the building behind him.
His partner immediately lunged forward, sword drawn, ready to slash at Lucian. But Lucian dodged calmly—his movements so smooth, as if he were one with the wind.
The enemy was shocked. He was sure his attack wouldn't miss. That technique was always accurate. He growled, disbelieving that anyone could dodge it.
Now, he looked around—searching for Lucian, who had disappeared from his sight.
Before enemy reinforcements arrived, Lucian was ready. He knew this was his only chance before things got worse. With a heavy breath, he focused his gaze on the remaining enemy—the only one still standing amidst the destruction.
"Your goal… is to attack Nother, isn't it?" Lucian thought to himself.
The enemy seemed confused, looking around as if searching for someone—searching for Lucian. Seeing the opening, Lucian didn't want to waste time. With a quick movement, he gathered a little energy in his hand and unleashed a light attack. The attack wasn't meant to kill, only enough to incapacitate.
But as his body floated towards the enemy—
His body suddenly stiffened. His breath caught, as if something was piercing his chest from within. Lucian winced in pain, and his body fell to the ground.
"Tch… Still hurts, huh…" he muttered softly. He thought the pain in his chest had disappeared since the previous battle. But the reality—at a critical moment like this—the pain returned without warning.
The enemy smirked at the helpless Lucian. He stepped slowly, his voice deliberately filled with mockery.
"What's the matter, huh? Can't even stand now?"
His gaze sharply pierced Lucian, who lay writhing in pain. There was no mercy in his face. Calmly, he raised his sword high—its blade gleaming in the light of the burning buildings. The tip of the sword was pointed directly at Lucian's head.
Lucian cracked open one eye. Blurred shapes and firelight blurred together—but he could see death coming. In his heart, he knew—it was over. Death, he thought, had truly come to claim him.
The enemy leaped—lunging his sword straight towards Lucian's head.
Lucian closed his eyes tightly. He resigned himself to fate. The world felt dark.
But suddenly—
The ground trembled. A rumbling sound echoed, like heavy footsteps pounding the cobblestone streets.
Lucian jolted. His eyelids slowly opened.
Before him—stood two figures. One man, one woman. The firelight from the surroundings made their silhouettes look like guardians descending from the heavens.
It was Aurora and Nathan. They stood firmly between Lucian and the enemy's sword, like an impenetrable living shield.
Lucian's eyes widened. He could hardly believe they had come—at the most critical moment. His body trembled. Amazement. Relief. Confusion.
"Ugh… uhh…" Blood flowed from his mouth. With difficulty, his hand reached up and touched the blood, staring at the crimson fluid staining his palm.
"Huh… this damn curse… really is troublesome…" he hissed weakly.
Then his head fell back onto the cobblestones. Cold. Hard. His body could no longer move. As if all his strength had been sucked out.
But Lucian could still hear—the clang of swords clashing in the air. Aurora was currently fighting the enemy, while Nathan shook his unconscious friend.
"Hey, Syin, wake up. What happened to you?" he asked anxiously. His face was full of worry, especially about the possibility of the curse attacking his friend's body again.
Feeling certain that the curse had reactivated, Nathan quickly pulled a book from under his cloak. Quickly, he opened it, then tore out one of the pages. On the tear, his hand moved deftly—carefully and precisely writing a spell, exactly as he had learned.
Once the spell was finished, the page began to react. The writing etched there seemed like living ocean waves, and slowly began to float, heading towards Lucian's body. The power of the spell worked like a stabilizer.
It was a spell created by Nathan himself. He had studied the mystery hidden behind the torn piece of paper Lucian once held—the paper that carried the curse with it. Since then, Nathan had developed this spell to neutralize the effects of the curse, at least temporarily. Because so far, he hadn't been able to completely remove the curse—its type was still an unsolved mystery.
Lucian's face, which had been pressed against the cobblestones, slowly began to be lifted by Nathan. But at that moment, Nathan was startled by the shadow of someone—someone standing above them, staring straight at him from a height.
Ten figures stood silently, watching them. Reflexively, Nathan looked up. His eyes widened as he realized the presence of the ten people standing on top of the building, surrounded by raging flames.
But his surprise wasn't because of their number, but because of something else—a familiar emblem, clearly depicted on their robes. His eyes were fixed. That emblem… was shaped like a wolf's head.
Without warning, one of them jumped down, followed by the other nine who followed in quick, silent movements. They all glided straight towards Lucian and Nathan.
Meanwhile, in the distance, Aurora, who was still fighting, glanced over. Her gaze narrowed, surprised to see the group of strange people who appeared mysteriously.