As Towan began walking back to rejoin his friends, his thoughts swirled with unanswered questions, each one nagging at the edges of his mind. Why was that strange duo here? What could they possibly gain from this? His brows furrowed as a sharper thought struck him. And why didn’t anyone else respond to the corrupted energy?

The village was supposed to be brimming with capable fighters, seasoned enough to detect something as potent as that disturbance. Yet, it was eerily quiet, as if no one had noticed—or worse, as if they had chosen to ignore it. A chill prickled down his spine, the unease settling deeper with each step.

“Damn it,” he muttered under his breath. “If Elliot were here, he’d probably have this all figured out by now.”

He allowed himself a faint smirk at the thought of his friend’s composed demeanor, always so quick to connect dots Towan hadn’t even noticed. Well, he thought, shoving his hands into his pockets, I’ll find him soon enough. He’s probably waiting with the others already.

As the path stretched out before him, the uneasiness lingered, like a faint echo of the corrupted energy that had brought him here in the first place. Something wasn’t adding up, and the thought of sharing his findings with Elliot and the others gave him a small measure of relief. Whatever this was, they’d figure it out together.

Towan finally arrived at their rented home, his steps heavier than usual, the weight of the recent events pressing down on him. As he pushed the door open, the familiar sight of his friends greeted him.

Rhys was the first to notice, leaning casually against the wall with a faint smirk on his face. His sharp eyes scanned Towan from head to toe, taking in the mess of torn clothing and scuffed boots. “Well, well, look who decided to show up looking like he wrestled a bear,” Rhys quipped, his tone dripping with friendly mockery. “What happened, Towan? Got into trouble?”

Towan rolled his eyes but didn’t take the bait. “I had a bit of trouble,” he admitted, brushing off the dirt from his jacket. His tone was calm, but his sharp gaze betrayed the turmoil within. “But that’s not important right now.”

Rhys raised an eyebrow but said nothing more, sensing a shift in Towan’s usual energy.

“What’s the problem?” Elliot’s voice broke through the moment. He had been sitting at the table, absently tracing patterns on its surface with his finger. His gaze was distant, as though he was still lost in the depths of his own thoughts. The mention of a problem seemed to pull him back to reality, though his eyes remained clouded with something else—something heavy.

Towan studied Elliot for a moment, noticing the furrow in his brow and the subtle tension in his jaw. He was sure Elliot wasn’t entirely here, his mind clearly preoccupied. It wasn’t like Elliot to seem this unsettled, but now wasn’t the time to press him on it.

Towan exhaled sharply, running a hand through his messy hair. “Something’s off,” he began, his voice firm. “The corrupted energy I dealt with wasn’t random. I think it was part of a bigger plan. A distraction.”

Elliot straightened, his gaze sharpening as he tuned in. Rhys, though still leaning against the wall, crossed his arms, his smirk fading.

“I need to catch you up,” Towan continued, glancing between his friends. “Something’s happening with the tournaments fighters.”

The atmosphere in the room grew heavier as Towan prepared to explain, the weight of his suspicions now shared among them.

“There’s no way no one else noticed the corrupted energy, right? I didn’t see anyone else around,” Towan pointed out, his tone sharp as he voiced the thought that had been nagging at him.

Rhys blinked, momentarily caught off guard. “Now that you mention it…” he said, a note of surprise creeping into his voice. It wasn’t like the village fighters to ignore something so serious.

“I didn’t come across anyone either,” Kade added, his voice steady and thoughtful. He leaned slightly against the table, crossing his arms as he considered the situation. “Something else must be happening to keep them busy.”

“Exactly!” Towan exclaimed, snapping his fingers as if to underline his point. His mind raced as he tried to connect the dots. Then his expression darkened, his focus shifting. “Where’s Eryndar?” he asked, his eyes scanning the room. “He’s the one who should have answers.”

“He wasn’t here when I arrived,” Rhys said, shaking his head. His usual relaxed demeanor was replaced by a hint of unease. “I’ve got some important info I was planning to tell him, but I guess it’ll have to wait.”

Towan frowned, his thoughts churning. If Eryndar wasn’t here, it meant he was likely already out there dealing with something. Something big enough to demand his immediate attention.

The room fell into a momentary silence, the weight of the unknown pressing on all of them. Whatever was happening, it wasn’t just an isolated event. Towan, Elliot, Kade, and Rhys all exchanged glances, the unspoken agreement settling between them: they needed answers, and they couldn’t afford to wait for Eryndar to return to get them.

“We gotta start looking for whatever’s happening,” Towan declared, already making his way toward the door. His movements were swift and determined, his posture radiating urgency.

“Wait,” Rhys interrupted, stepping forward and raising a hand to stop him. His voice carried a rare seriousness, which immediately caught everyone’s attention. “I have something really important to tell you guys.”

Towan halted in his tracks, his hand resting on the doorframe as he turned back toward Rhys. “What is it?” he asked, his eyes narrowing. His tone was a mix of curiosity and impatience, clearly ready to bolt out of the house at a moment’s notice.

Rhys ran a hand through his dark hair, the weight of what he’d uncovered evident on his face. “It’s about the ruins in the east. Something’s going on there, and it’s connected to the corrupted energy we’ve been dealing with,” he began, his voice steady despite the gravity of his words.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Kade straightened, his calm expression sharpening slightly as he listened. Elliot, who had been quiet up to this point, leaned forward, his piercing gaze locking onto Rhys. The room, which moments ago had been buzzing with energy, now felt heavy with anticipation.

“This better be good,” Towan said, folding his arms and stepping back into the room, though his stance made it clear he was still ready to leave if this didn’t seem urgent enough.

“It is,” Rhys assured him, his tone unwavering. “You’re going to want to hear this before we take another step.”

The group exchanged glances, the air thick with tension as Rhys prepared to reveal what he had learned.

“As I entered the ruins,” Rhys began, his voice steady but laced with unease, “the first thing I saw were these weird, corrupted figures caught in some sort of loop. And…” He paused, glancing at Towan and Elliot. “They looked like you two. Copies of you. And honestly? They were getting their asses handed to them.”

Towan raised an eyebrow, his expression caught between confusion and intrigue. “Wait… wasn’t that where Master fought our copies?” Elliot asked, his voice calm but his eyes narrowing as he tried to piece things together.

Rhys nodded. “Exactly. At first, I thought it might’ve been some leftover effect from his fight, but then I saw more. There was a copy of Kade and even one of me. Same deal—they were stuck in the loop, fighting… and losing. Over and over again.”

Kade tilted his head slightly, his expression still calm but his interest piqued. “They didn’t notice you at all?”

“Not at all,” Rhys confirmed. “They didn’t even flinch when I passed right by them. It was like they weren’t fully… there. Just echoes or something. The whole scene felt off, like it was deliberately set up for someone to see.”

Towan’s smirk disappeared, replaced by a more serious look. “So they’re just stuck in some weird replay of their defeat? What’s the point of that?”

“I don’t know,” Rhys admitted, “but it’s clear this wasn’t just random. Something—or someone—is behind it. And whatever it is, it’s connected to the corrupted energy we’ve been sensing.”

The room fell silent as everyone processed the strange revelation. The air grew heavier with the realization that the ruins were more than just remnants of a past battle—they were a deliberate puzzle, a warning, or perhaps even a trap.

“Wasn’t there an Eryndar copy?” Kade asked, his calm demeanor betraying a flicker of curiosity. He was recalling fragments of a conversation he had overheard between Master and Eryndar.

“That’s where things got… interesting,” Rhys replied, his voice lowering slightly as if reliving the moment. “I had to hide because two guys showed up. They were talking about who could have defeated their Eryndar copy. They called it their best creation.”

Towan’s eyes widened in surprise. “You hid? That doesn’t sound like you at all, Rhys. Why didn’t you fight them?”

Rhys let out a slow breath, the tension in his shoulders evident. “Because they were incredibly strong. I could feel the corrupted energy rolling off them like a wave. Honestly, I doubt even the four of us together could’ve taken them down.”

The gravity of his words settled over the room, silencing Towan’s usual bravado.

“They mentioned something about ‘the Herald,’” Rhys continued. “And I caught their names—Caleis and Dravan. Whoever they are, they’re not just your average corrupted lackeys.”

“Wait… did they really mention the Herald?” Elliot interrupted; his voice sharp with sudden interest. His expression shifted, the reserved calm giving way to thoughtful intensity. “I’ve read about him in some of the older texts. He might be that black figure we keep seeing in the ruin’s walls.”

“The Herald…” Kade echoed, his gaze drifting slightly as he processed the name.

Rhys nodded. “Yeah. Whoever—or whatever—he is, they seemed to hold him in high regard. These two weren’t just out there for no reason. They were guarding something or waiting for someone. And that Eryndar copy? It sounded like it was supposed to be their trump card. Makes me wonder just how strong their so-called creation really was.”

Elliot frowned, his mind racing through what he had read. “If the Herald is connected to the black figure, then this is bigger than we thought. He could be the source of the corruption—or at least tied to it somehow.”

The group exchanged uneasy glances. The pieces of the puzzle were starting to fit together, but the picture they painted was anything but comforting.

Kade had been listening quietly, his expression unreadable as if he were weighing whether to speak. He opened his mouth slightly but then hesitated, closing it again. Whatever he had seen at his ruin, he clearly wasn’t ready to share it yet. Instead, his eyes shifted to Elliot, who had an equally contemplative look.

Elliot’s brows furrowed, and his hands fidgeted with the hem of his sleeve. His silence spoke volumes, but he, too, seemed to make a conscious decision not to say anything. Both of them exchanged a fleeting glance, an unspoken understanding passing between them. Whatever they had seen, it was something they needed time to process—something they planned to discuss with their respective masters later.

Towan, oblivious to their internal struggles or choosing not to press, turned to Rhys. “I just fought two weirdos at my ruin,” he said, gesturing to his torn and dirtied clothes. “They were using vital essence—recklessly. I think they ended up killing themselves because of it.”

“Vital essence?” Elliot repeated, snapping out of his thoughts.

“Yeah,” Towan said with a grim nod. “It was like they were forcing their bodies past their limits, ignoring the damage. By the time I finished them off, they were already burning out from the inside.”

Rhys crossed his arms, leaning back slightly. “Vital essence… That’s no joke. If they were using it, they weren’t ordinary enemies.”

“It’s not just that,” Towan said, frowning as he replayed the fight in his head. “They weren’t fighting to win. It felt more like… they were testing something. Testing me.”

“Testing you?” Kade asked, his usual calm now tinged with unease.

Towan nodded. “Yeah. Like they wanted to see what I’d do, how I’d react.”

Elliot exchanged a glance with Kade, both clearly unsettled but saying nothing about their own experiences. Rhys, however, leaned forward, his expression dark. “If they were testing you, then someone’s watching us. Watching all of us.”

“And we still don’t know why,” Elliot added quietly, his unease clear.

Towan hesitated for a moment, then reached into his pocket and pulled out a shard. It glimmered faintly with an eerie, dark light, as though it were alive. “I found this after the fight. It was embedded in one of the bodies.”

Everyone leaned in closer to examine it, the air in the room growing tense.

“That’s…” Elliot trailed off, his eyes narrowing as he stared at the shard.

“Corrupted essence,” Rhys finished grimly. “It’s like it’s solidified.”

Kade, who had been silent, reached into his own pocket and produced an identical shard. “I found one too,” he said, his voice calm but edged with concern. “It was hidden in the wall of the ruin I explored.”

The group exchanged uneasy glances, the weight of the discovery settling over them.

“So, they left these behind,” Elliot muttered, his tone thoughtful. “But why? What’s their purpose?”

Rhys shook his head. “Whatever it is, it’s not good.”

“What about you two?” Towan asked, looking at Rhys and Elliot.

Rhys shrugged. “Nothing. My ruin didn’t have anything like that. Just those figures in the loop.”

Elliot shook his head as well. “Same here. Nothing physical was left” His expression tightened, as if he were holding back the full truth.

Kade, ever the steady presence, finally spoke again. “Whatever their reason, one thing is clear: this is no coincidence. The corrupted figures, the enemies we’re facing—they’re all connected. And it all leads back to the Herald.”

Towan clenched his fists, his frustration bubbling to the surface. “Then we find him. We find out what the hell’s going on and end this.”

“Easier said than done,” Rhys said, his tone half-joking but his eyes serious. “But one thing’s for sure—we can’t stay in the dark much longer.”

Elliot, his mind still preoccupied with the figure in his vision, looked up at the group. “Then we’d better start putting the pieces together. Quickly.”