Rain fell softly the night before the storm.
Not a downpour. Not yet. Just a whisper of water on rooftops, trickling through gutters, soaking the edge of the world in quiet tension.
Aiden stood beneath the shrine's awning, watching the silver threads dance in the torchlight.
He didn't mind the rain. It slowed visibility. Drenched fuses. Softened the sound of footsteps.
It made killzones easier to bait.
---
Old Mill – Final Preparations
> [Fortification Objective – Traps Completed: 5/5]
– Pitfall lined with forged iron nails
– Collapsing upper beam rigged with fireburst cord
– False floor above oil basin
– Tripwire-linked bell system
– Arcane spark powder (salvaged from shrine incense)
> Bonus: Improvised Field Upgrades Activated
+10% Efficiency vs. Unaware Enemies
The old grindhouse groaned under its own history. But now it was loaded—every weak plank and creaking stair twisted into part of the plan.
It wasn't perfect.
But it was deadly enough.
---
Kaelridge – Outside the Elder's House
Torran sat on the porch steps, wiping his dagger clean again and again. He wasn't smiling tonight.
Aiden sat beside him without a word.
They listened to the rain for a while.
"I'm scared," Torran admitted eventually.
"Good," Aiden said. "It means you're alive. Bravery without fear is just stupidity."
"Have you killed before?"
Aiden didn't answer at first.
"Yes," he said finally. "In another life."
Torran glanced sideways. "You ever kill someone and wish you hadn't?"
"Yes."
"Do you ever wish you killed someone sooner?"
Aiden looked straight ahead.
"…Yes."
---
Empress Caelia's Mirror Room – Capital
The storm reached the city an hour before dawn.
Caelia stood barefoot on the silver lattice floor, her breath misting before her lips.
> "Another divergence?" she asked.
The masked figure beside her nodded. "Kaelridge survived in exactly one timeline. That thread has begun repeating."
She closed her eyes. "So the fracture's anchoring."
"Yes, Majesty."
"Will the Gravedogs fail?"
"They were never meant to succeed. They're a distraction."
Caelia turned to the mirror. "He'll think it's his victory. Let him."
The mirror rippled.
> Timeline Fork: 3% Drift
[Subject: Varos, Aiden]
Status: Threat Level Escalating
---
Shrine Grounds – Just Before Dawn
Veyda lit the final warding circle beneath the spirit tree, her fingers steady despite the cold.
Aiden watched the glow rise around her, casting soft silver light across her face.
"Will they come?" she asked.
"Yes."
"Will you stop them?"
"…I'll try."
She stepped close. The aura around her pulsed faintly—like the leyline itself was listening.
"There's something old in you," she murmured. "It echoes."
"I know," he said. "It scares me."
"Good," she replied.
Then she touched two fingers to his chest—just above the Emberheart Core.
> [Warding Sigil Imprinted – Blessing: Leyline Endurance (Minor)]
+5% Resistance to Mana Drain | Duration: 24 hours
---
> [Final Preparations Complete]
Estimated Time to Contact: 3 Hours
System Forecast:
– 41% chance of victory
– 23% chance of death
– 36% chance of divergence
---
Aiden returned to the mill just as the sky began to lighten behind the clouds.
The others were already gathering.
Weapons ready.
Faces drawn tight.
This wasn't a battle to win fame or gold.
This was survival.
And if they made it through the next day…
Everything would change.