The Forbidden Wing was sealed for a reason.
Built beneath Hollowspire's oldest tower, it had been locked away for centuries. The walls were etched with warding runes so ancient, even most instructors avoided speaking about them. But Lucien had never cared much for rules—especially the ones made to stop people like him.
He crouched behind the statue of an armless knight, watching two patrolling guards pass by with glowing orbs of detection. Their steps were precise, robotic — golems with flesh.
"Timing, silence, deception," Lucien whispered. "The same rules as court politics."
Once they turned the corner, he moved.
A silent chant.A flick of his wrist.A pulse of shadowfire.
[Skill Activated: Shadow Veil][Current Visibility: 0%][Enchantment Disruption Chance: 3%]
He slipped past the locked door and into the Forbidden Wing like a ghost.
Inside was a maze of crumbling scroll racks, broken crystal mirrors, and sealed relic boxes humming with bound magic. It was dusty, untouched, sacred… and perfectly quiet.
Lucien's steps echoed softly as he walked, the torches lighting themselves with his presence. Every surface pulsed with old spells. He could taste the power in the air.
[Location Discovered: Vault of Echoing Flame][Hidden Objective: Locate the Dragon's Whisper Codex][Reward: Unknown]
Lucien's eyes narrowed.
At the far end, atop a pedestal wrapped in flame-inscribed chains, sat a black book. Its cover was scaled like dragon hide, and a faint heartbeat pulsed from within it.
"That must be it…"
He approached slowly.
The air thickened. Heat prickled his skin. His collar buzzed violently as if warning him to stop.
He didn't.
When he placed a single hand on the book—
Everything shattered.
He was no longer in Hollowspire.
He stood in a burning sky.
Dragons roared across the heavens, wings made of stars and fire. Mountains melted into rivers of gold. And before him, coiled atop a massive ring of stone, was Seraphine — the great black-scaled dragoness of his past life.
Her eyes glowed with sorrow and wrath.
"You again."
Lucien felt his throat tighten. "You're not real. You're… a memory."
She rose, towering above him.
"I am the soul fragment you bound long ago. The one you tried to steal and twist. And now... I burn within your shadow."
[System Warning: Memory Fragment of Draco Umbra entering unstable merge][New Trial: Face the Dragon's Guilt]
Lucien clenched his fists. "I don't feel guilt."
"Liar," Seraphine growled, her wings flaring. "Then prove it. Fight me without spells. Fight me with your truth."
Suddenly, a storm of black flames erupted around them. The memory realm trembled as Lucien was pulled into combat with the essence of his greatest mistake.
The battle was brutal.
Fists met claw.Shadow met fire.Old pain clashed with new power.
Lucien bled. He burned. He screamed.
But he never fell.
And finally, when Seraphine's memory paused, weakened, and silent, he knelt before her—not in surrender, but in honesty.
"I never hated you," he whispered. "I chose power because I was afraid… afraid that loving you would make me weak."
She gazed at him, a shadowy tear running down her scaled cheek.
"Then learn to wield both. Love and power. Flame and shadow."
The memory shattered.
Lucien collapsed onto the floor of the Forbidden Wing, clutching the codex. The runes on its cover were now glowing softly.
[Trial Complete][New Path Unlocked: Draco Umbra – Soul Flame Branch][Skill Acquired: Dragon's Whisper – Commune with ancient spirits][Passive Acquired: Immortal Will – Soul cannot be broken by illusion or fear][Hidden Title: He Who Survived the Flameheart]
Lucien laughed weakly.
"I fought the soul of my ex and survived. That has to count for something."
Later, back in his private quarters, he opened the codex fully for the first time.
It wasn't a spellbook.
It was a diary.
Her diary.
Her thoughts. Her hopes. Her fears. Her love… for him.
And something else. A prophecy.
"One day, the boy of ash and starlight will return. He will walk between life and death. Between love and ruin. And through him… the flame shall rise again."
Lucien read it twice. Then a third time.
He closed the book and stared at the flickering candle before him.
"Elira," he whispered, as a realization struck him.
She reminded him of Seraphine — not in appearance, but in the way she watched him, as if she already knew what he could become.
Just then, a knock.
Elira entered, holding a parchment.
"You're summoned," she said. "By the High Council."
Lucien raised an eyebrow. "That's… fast."
"They know about the Forbidden Wing."
Lucien stood, smirking. "Then let's go give them something to really fear."