The world trembled as light swallowed the old library.Kael Ardent, a twenty-one-year-old university student known for his quiet brilliance and his obsession with forgotten myths, felt the air around him twist. The book he had been studying—an ancient volume bound in cracked leather titled Chronicles of the Four Shields—vibrated in his hands. Its words glowed and reshaped themselves into a single command: “Answer the call.”Before he could blink, the world vanished.Kael landed hard on marble. His ears rang with the echo of voices, foreign yet oddly familiar. As his eyes adjusted, he saw three others standing nearby, each looking as stunned as he felt. The vast chamber surrounding them shimmered with blue sigils carved into the walls. Stained-glass windows depicted great beasts devouring cities while four figures stood in defiance, each holding a weapon of legend—a sword, a spear, a bow, and a shield.Before Kael could speak, a man in regal robes stepped forward. His silver crown glea

Rain lashed against the rooftops of Erenthia, turning its cobblestone streets into rivers of mud. The city that had once cheered for heroes now recoiled from him as if he carried plague. Kael Ardent walked through the storm with his hood pulled low, his soaked cloak heavy against his shoulders. His shield glowed faintly under the gray sky — a reminder of the curse that bound him. Every merchant stall he passed closed its shutters; every innkeeper’s eyes went cold the moment they recognized him. He stopped before a small tavern tucked between an apothecary and a pawn shop. The wooden sign above the door read The Broken Fang. He pushed the door open. The smell of ale, sweat, and burning wood washed over him. Conversations faltered. “That’s him,” someone hissed. “The Shield Bastard.” Kael ignored them and walked to the counter. The bartender — a stout man with a scar down his cheek — eyed him warily. “No rooms,” he said flatly. “I just need information,” Kael replied, voice low. “

The Western Road stretched like a scar across the wild lands — a cracked vein of stone winding between hills draped in dying grass. Wind howled over the plain, carrying with it the scent of rain and blood. Kael and Lyria trudged along its edge, cloaked against the cold, the rising sun staining the horizon red. They had left the capital two nights ago. Their faces were now on bounty boards in every city square. The royal decree called them traitors — murderers of knights, thieves of sacred relics. Kael could still hear the king’s voice echoing through the court, sentencing him to exile as the other heroes watched in silence. Now the so-called Shield Hero walked nameless through a world that no longer wanted him. “System log: Alignment—Neutral. Bounty: 2,000 gold. Threat level: Low to Moderate.” Kael ignored the whisper in his mind, but Lyria frowned. “It’s still tracking you,” she said. “Even after everything, the system hasn’t erased your registry.” “Let it,” Kael muttered. “If i

The road to Traven Hollow was empty except for the crows. Their cries followed Kael and Lyria down the misted path, black shapes circling above the dying pines. The rain had passed, but the forest felt drowned in silence — too still, too watchful. Kael adjusted his cloak and glanced at the shield strapped to his arm. It hadn’t stopped humming since the fight with the Ironfangs. Sometimes, when he wasn’t paying attention, he thought he could feel something breathing beneath its surface. Lyria walked beside him, hood drawn low. “We’ll need supplies soon. And somewhere to lay low. Every village from here to the capital’s got bounty notices with your face on them.” Kael gave a tired half-smile. “At least they got my good side.” She shot him a look. “I’m serious.” “So am I.” He lowered his voice. “But we can’t keep running forever. If the Waves are growing stronger, I need to grow faster. Stronger. Whatever it takes.” “Even if it kills you?” Kael didn’t answer. The silence stretche

Dawn came shrouded in ash. Kael and Lyria stood before the shattered gates of Eryndor, once the beating heart of the western kingdoms — now a corpse of a city, swallowed by its own silence. The air shimmered faintly, thick with the residue of Aether corruption. Black vines crawled up marble spires, and broken statues of kings and scholars stared blindly at the ruins they had left behind. A faint tremor passed through Kael’s hand as he gripped the shield. Its surface flickered with spectral light — fragments of images flashing too quickly to understand: banners burning, a woman in silver armor crying out, a colossal figure of light devouring the skyline. The system’s interface appeared unbidden, its usual calm tone fractured by static. [Warning: Aether contamination detected — Class Red Zone.] [Recommendation: Avoid prolonged exposure. Host synchronization unstable.] “Too late for that,” Kael muttered. Lyria scanned the ruins ahead, her hand resting on the hilt of her sword. “So