CHAPTER 227: THE GAROGS HAS ARRIVED (1)

The roar of a crowd washed over the massive, sun-drenched arena of the Royal Academy.

Hundreds of students; Human, Elf, and Dwarf alike, packed the stands, their faces a sea of rapt attention.

In the center of the field, one of the core exhibition matchs of the 8th Sovereign’s Gauntlet was reaching its explosive climax.

On an observation platform, Karl stood with his arms crossed, a grin of pride on his face as he watched his star pupil. Beside him, Serena watched with a calmer focus.

"Your archer is impressive, Karl, but Charles has her cornered," Serena commented, her eyes tracking the complex battle below. "His control of the battlefield is absolute."

"Just watch, Rena," Karl shot back with a grin, never taking his eyes off his student. "She just needs one opening."

On the field, Charles, the Sovereign’s pragmatic right-hand, was proving he was far more than just an administrator.

The entire arena floor was his fortress. Massive walls of earth shifted and reformed at his command. He had systematically locked down the battlefield, forcing his opponent into a smaller and smaller kill zone.

His opponent was fast. She moved with a hunter’s grace, her feet barely seeming to touch the ground.

She fired arrow after arrow, each one a precise, tactical shot.

But for every defense she broke, Charles erected two more. She was being slowly but surely overwhelmed.

Finally, Charles made his move. He clapped his hands together, and the very ground beneath Lyra’s feet turned to quicksand, ensnaring her.

"It’s over," Serena murmured.

The archer, trapped and seemingly defeated, simply smiled.

She drew her longbow, nocking not one, but ten shimmering, mana-infused arrows at once. This was the move she had been waiting for. She didn’t aim at the golem. She aimed at the sky.

She released. The ten arrows shot into the air, but they didn’t fly straight. They diverged, weaving through the air in impossible, intersecting arcs, a deadly constellation of light.

They arced over the walls and defenses to converge from ten different directions on a single point: Charles himself.

Charles let out a long, weary sigh, a wry smile touching his lips as he looked up at the ten arrows hanging in the air, all aimed directly at him.

He dropped his hands, the earthen constructs around him crumbling to dust. "Alright, alright, I yield," he called out. "I didn’t stand a chance against that. Good fight, Lyra."

The girl quietly lowered her bow, the ten arrows dissolving into motes of light. "Thank you, Lord Charles," she replied with a respectful nod.

Karl launched himself into the air, his voice amplified to boom across the entire arena.

"AND THE WINNER OF THE FINAL EXHIBITION MATCH IS... LYRAAAA!"

He descended to hover beside the judges’ table, a smug grin plastered across his face as he looked at Charles. "Sorry, Charles, but you’ll have to try harder to beat my student!"

Charles just chuckled and shook his head, taking the good-natured ribbing in stride.

Karl then looked across the gathered group below, a sea of the Alliance’s most powerful and influential figures.

He spotted Master Von sitting with the other high-ranking contestants.

"Master Von!" he bellowed. "You’re up next against our new champion! The two of you will fight in exactly five minutes!"

He then descended to the ground, covering the side of his mouth as if whispering, but still projecting his voice for all to hear. "You’re a Transcendent, so try to take it easy on her, old man!"

Von, on his own end, only chuckled and continued his quiet discussion with Eli.

Karl landed with a flourish next to Serena at the main judges’ table. She was watching the events with a warm, proud smile, looking every bit the part of the serene Healer.

"So," Karl said casually, leaning against the table. "You sure you don’t want to change your mind and join the exhibition matches? I’m sure the crowd would love to see you in action."

She shook her head, her silver-blonde hair catching the light. "Nah. I’ll pass. I’m here to make sure nothing goes wrong."

Karl sighed dramatically. "Go wrong? What could possibly go wrong, Serena? It’s a beautiful day. We’re perfectly safe."

Before Serena could make a comeback to his famously tempting fate, a brilliant streak of crimson light launched high into the sky from the central spire of the city, exploding into a silent, shimmering firework that formed two, stark words:

CODE RED

That wasn’t the only thing. The Proclamation Orb sitting on their judges’ table began to vibrate violently, glowing with the same, urgent crimson light.

A moment later, more fireworks filled the sky from every corner of the capital, bathing the entire city in a terrifying red glow as a deep, soul-shaking siren began to wail.

The cheers of the crowd died instantly. Karl’s smug grin didn’t vanish, but Serena’s face morphed into nervous energy.

But they could both hear nothing but the frantic, hammering beat of their own hearts.

***

That evening, the frantic energy of the day gave way to a profound, peaceful quiet.

In a section of the forests, a place they had worked to restore together, Adrian and Nyra walked along the edge of a serene, moonlit lake.

While the rest of the kingdom’s elite were engrossed in the final matches of the Gauntlet, they had sought a different kind of respite.

They were seeking out new and rare alchemical herbs that had begun to flourish in the revitalized land. It wasn’t a necessary task, but it was a welcome excuse for a moment of peace.

The air was cool and smelled of sweet fragrance flowers. The only sounds were the gentle lapping of the water and the chirping of crickets.

"Adrian, look at this one!" Nyra’s excited voice broke the silence. "I don’t think we’ve seen it before."

Adrian walked closer to where she was kneeling. There, nestled amongst the roots of an ancient silverwood tree, was a strange, beautiful plant.

It looked like a large, intricate fern, but its delicate, silvery leaves glowed with a soft, internal light, casting a gentle, ethereal glow on the forest floor.

He reached out and gently touched one of the leaves. The moment his finger made contact, the plant reacted.

The glowing, silvery leaves instantly curled inwards, folding up tightly until the plant was a closed, non-glowing bud, as if it were shy.

The moment he removed his hand, it slowly, gracefully, began to unfold again, its light returning to the forest floor.

"Wow..." Nyra breathed, her eyes wide with wonder.

Adrian smiled. "It’s a Shy Maiden’s Veil," he explained.

"The leaves are sensitive to the bio-electric fields of living creatures. Its spores," he added, gesturing to the faint, sparkling dust in the air around it, "can be used to catalyze potions."

"You can touch it," he encouraged.

Nyra reached out her own hand and gently brushed a leaf. It curled up instantly, just as it had for him, hiding its light from her touch.

They watched together in the quiet moonlight as it slowly, shyly, revealed itself once more.

"It truly is beautiful, isn’t it?" Adrian murmured, his gaze lingering not just on the plant, but on her face, illuminated by its glow.

Nyra nodded, a soft laugh escaping her as she sat back on her heels.

"Beautiful and clever. Kind of reminds me of you." She glanced up at him, causing Adrian to smile.

"Flattery from the one who’s been turning barren soil into this paradise? I think you’re the real magic here."

He leaned back on his elbows, staring out at the lake’s glassy surface, where the moon’s reflection rippled gently. "It’s nice, though. Being out here like this. No crowds... just us."

Nyra shifted closer to him, her shoulder brushing his. "Yeah. We’ve been running non-stop since the restoration started. Moments like this make it all worth it.

But before Adrian could respond, a brilliant streak of crimson light pierced the night sky from the direction of the distant capital, exploding into a silent firework that formed two stark words:

CODE RED

More fireworks followed, bathing the forest in a red glow, as a deep, wailing siren echoed through the trees.

The quiet, personal moment was incinerated in the face of the apocalypse they had spent their lives preparing for. They all knew what was happening.

The long eve was over. The Garogs had arrived.