Adrian woke to the soft nuzzle of warm fur against his cheek. He blinked groggily, opening his eyes to see Mimi perched beside him. The small fox tilted her head, letting out a soft trill, urging him to rise. Adrian exhaled, shaking off the last vestiges of sleep. "Alright, alright, I'm up."

He pushed himself off the bedroll, stretching out the tension that had built in his muscles overnight. The chamber was hushed, the green flames of the bonfire reduced to a soft glow.

His gaze drifted to the center of the room, where Kiyara sat with serene stillness, legs folded and her hands resting lightly on her knees. She was meditating, eyes closed and breathing steady.

Adrian stepped forward quietly, with Mimi padding along beside him. He lowered himself to the ground, settling into a cross-legged position across from Kiyara. Might as well join in.

But before he could fully sink into the rhythm of his breath, Kiyara’s voice cut through the silence. “What are you doing, my King?”

Adrian opened one eye, finding her gaze fixed on him. He felt a flush rise to his cheeks and rubbed the back of his neck. “I was uh, trying to meditate too."

"And here I thought you would be too restless for such stillness. Are you seeking peace, or simply trying to match my focus?”

“Maybe both, or maybe I just didn’t want to disturb you.”

Kiyara’s eyes softened as she regarded Adrian with a smile. “How do you feel, my King?”

Adrian tilted his head, considering her question. “Surprisingly refreshed, I’m not even hungry or thirsty right now.”

“Of course, that’s a response only you would give.”

“Huh? Was there something wrong with what I said?"

“Nothing wrong, my King. Merely pointing out that most people would be bedridden from mana poisoning if they consumed as much of my conjured food or interacted so frequently with my mana-crafted items as you do.”

Adrian chuckled and shrugged, feeling a trace of pride in her words. “I’m aware I’m not normal. But why bring this up now?”

Kiyara laughed, a little louder this time. “In truth, even among skilled magic users, sustaining themselves so extensively with my mana-infused creations would be overwhelming. The fact that you can handle it with barely a second thought is... abnormal.”

A grin spread across Adrian’s face. “I’ve come to terms with being ‘not normal. And I’m going to use every single privilege I have in this life to succeed.”

Kiyara nodded, approval evident in her expression. “A good mentality to have, my King. Now, tell me this: how strong are you in this life?”

Adrian’s eyes brightened as he considered her question. “I’ve got a decent grasp over evocation magic,” he replied.

To illustrate, he held out his hand and summoned a small dagger of blue fire. It danced above his palm, flickering with controlled intensity. “And I’ve been getting more comfortable with conjuration too.”

Kiyara watched the flame with interest. “Very good, but have you regained your signature spell yet?”

The flame in Adrian’s hand wavered before disappearing entirely. He shook his head, a hint of frustration in his voice. “No. I haven’t figured it out yet. I’m not even sure where to begin.”

“That does complicate matters. In the past, you wielded many signature spells which were widely known, and feared."

“Do you remember any of them? Maybe it could help me regain one of those spells in this life."

Kiyara’s eyes grew distant as she delved into her memories. “I recall... something about you summoning your god warriors. but beyond that...”

The words “god warriors” echoed in Adrian’s mind. Before he could fully process their meaning, pain exploded in his skull, blinding him with its intensity. He gasped, clutching his head as the world spun.

He fell forward, the stone floor rushing up to meet him as darkness claimed his consciousness. The last thing he heard before slipping away was Kiyara’s voice, laced with alarm and an edge of something he rarely heard from her: fear.

***

Adrian’s eyes snapped open, and the first thing he registered was the oppressive weight of darkness pressing down around him. Cold stone scraped against his hands as he shifted, and he forced himself to sit up, every muscle aching from the fall. Where am I?

He sucked in a breath. High cliffs loomed on all sides, jagged and impossibly steep. He was at the bottom of a massive ravine, its walls shrouded in shadow and stretching endlessly upward.. For a moment, Adrian’s chest tightened with the weight of isolation. How did I end up here?

He stumbled to his feet, one hand bracing against the cold, uneven rock. Silence pressed against his ears, broken only by the distant drip of water echoing somewhere deeper in the ravine. But then, amidst the oppressive stillness, a flicker of movement caught his eye.

Adrian’s heart thudded in his chest. He focused on the figure standing atop an outcropping of stone: regal, imposing, and draped in robes that rippled like living flames. The King in Blue. It's me, but not me. More importantly though, why am I seeing him here?

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Adrian’s breath caught in his throat, and without thinking, he opened his mouth to call out. “Hey! Over here!"

For a heartbeat, doubt gripped him. What am I doing? This is probably just another vision. I can’t interact with anything here.

But before he could drown in self-reproach, the King in Blue turned sharply, his piercing gaze locking onto Adrian. “Be quiet."

Adrian’s pulse pounded in his ears. He can hear me? For a moment, he was rooted to the spot, the reality of the situation more disorienting than any vision he had experienced before.

He swallowed his words, stunned into silence by the force of the King in Blue’s command. The air in the ravine felt colder, charged with an energy that prickled against his skin.

Meanwhile, The King turned away and strode deeper into the darkness. Blue flames flickered around the edges of his form, casting ghostly light on the ancient rock walls.

He didn’t tell me to leave. That means something, Adrian thought. He stepped forward, following the King into the depths of the ravine. The uneven ground made every step precarious, but he pushed on, his eyes fixed on the robed figure moving ahead.

Time lost meaning; each minute stretched into eternity, marked only by the sound of Adrian’s breath and the soft whisper of his footsteps. Blue light pooled in front of the King, illuminating their path and revealing more of the ravine's harsh contours.

Finally, they reached a place where the ground leveled out, and a massive stone archway loomed ahead. Crumbling pillars lined its entrance, etched with symbols and carvings nearly worn away by the passage of time.

Adrian’s eyes widened. The structure exuded a palpable sense of age and mystery. Intricate patterns twisted across the stone, and faint glyphs glimmered beneath the King’s glow, as if awakened by his presence. He watched as the King in Blue stepped beneath the arch and continued into the yawning darkness of a tomb.

This is no ordinary place, Adrian thought. He stepped under the archway, feeling a sudden, weighty stillness settle over him, as if the air itself was holding its breath. Ahead, the King’s blue light illuminated a descending staircase carved into the rock.

Adrian followed as the stairway spiraled downward, its walls covered in elaborate reliefs. His fingers traced one image, carved lines rough and deep. Now, what do we have here?

The reliefs depicted colossal beings that dwarfed mountains. Each scene showed the giants descending upon different civilizations: cities reduced to rubble, forests burning, oceans parting beneath their tread. Did such powerful beings really exist before? How fascinating.

“Keep moving,” the King in Blue said without turning, his voice echoing in the confined space.

Adrian obeyed, tearing his eyes away from the haunting images. They reached the bottom of the staircase, and before them stood a massive stone gate, sealed with layers of what looked like enchanted barriers. Glyphs swirled across its surface, faintly glowing with protective magic.

Without pausing, the King in Blue raised a hand and snapped his fingers. What is he—

Blue energy surged forth, exploding against the gate with a deafening roar. The shockwave blasted outward, buffeting Adrian with an unexpected force. He stumbled, bracing himself against the wall as the world trembled around him. Dust and debris filled the air, choking his lungs and stinging his eyes. He doubled over, coughing hard as fine particles coated his throat. Why can I feel this? Is this not just another vision?

Panic flared, but he forced it down, inhaling sharply through the dust. As the tremors subsided, the shattered remains of the gate lay in pieces on the ground, still smoldering.

The King in Blue stepped through the rubble, his gaze fixed ahead, as if the destruction he wrought was of no consequence. I need to keep following him.

Adrian kept up in the King in Blue’s footsteps as they moved deeper into the ancient tomb. Silence wrapped around them, broken only by the faint crackle of the blue energy that surrounded the King like a shroud.

Until suddenly, the King halted, his gaze fixed ahead. Adrian stopped too, feeling a sudden chill race down his spine.

Adrian followed the King’s line of sight, his breath hitching as his eyes adjusted to the dim light. What in the world…

The chamber stretched out before him, a graveyard for titans, its vast expanse littered with the remains of beings beyond comprehension. Towering skulls loomed in the shadows, their empty sockets dark and cavernous, as if the echoes of their once-great power still lingered in the air.

One skull, larger than the rest, drew Adrian’s attention and held it captive. It was colossal, spanning what must have been the size of the convent grounds back home. The sheer scale of it turned his thoughts into static.

Nearby, a skeletal hand jutted out from a pile of rubble, its fingers outstretched and massive. Each bone was as thick as a tower, the kind of size that could crush entire villages in one grasp.

Adrian’s chest tightened as he took it all in, his mind grappling with the enormity of what he was seeing. These weren’t just creatures. They weren’t even warriors. They were storms given form, forces of nature that could shape the world with a single gesture.

He swallowed hard, his throat dry. How had such beings fallen? Or who killed them?

The King in Blue turned, his icy gaze meeting Adrian’s. “Watch me carefully and commit what you see to memory. You will need this knowledge when you return to reality.”

The words struck Adrian like a jolt. “Wait, what do you mean? And how are you even speaking to me?"

The King’s lips curved into a faint, almost mocking smile. “Enough foolish questions.” He turned away, striding forward with no further explanation.

Adrian exhaled sharply, frustration welling up within him. That’s not an answer. But it’s all I’m going to get, isn’t it? He shook his head and decided to let it go, focusing instead on whatever was ahead.

The King came to a stop at the center of the chamber and slowly rolled up the sleeve of his left arm, exposing pale skin traced with veins of faint, blue light. His voice deepened, resonating with an almost painful intensity as he spoke words that carried power and history.

“The gods have abandoned you, but I shall not. Take from me my flesh and bones, so that the world shall quake in fear forevermore."

Adrian’s eyes widened as he watched. Strange, intricate marks crawled across the King’s body like living ink, consuming his skin in a rush of light and shadow. The marks pulsed, writhing and burning as if they were alive. The King’s jaw clenched, and for a moment, his composure cracked.

Adrian’s instinct took over. He stepped forward, hand outstretched. “Stop! Let me—”

The world fractured around him. Shadows splintered into shards of nothingness, and the ancient chamber dissolved in a cascade of fading light. The bones of titans collapsed into dust, scattering like ashes on the wind. The walls blurred and crumbled, their carvings melting into darkness. Everything rippled and dissipated, leaving only the King in Blue’s flickering form.

Adrian reached for him, his fingers brushing empty air. “No, wait—!”

Darkness closed in, swallowing him whole. Then there was nothing but silence and the oppressive weight of the void.