Chapter 1 – The Seal Beneath the Roots

Before the stars. Before time. Before the breath of the first god… something stirred in the dark.

It had no name, because names were for things with beginnings. This being had neither. It simply was — vast, eternal, burning.

They called him Flame.

Others, whispering in fear, would one day call him Kurozoku — the Black Dragon of the First Sky.

But before the first mortal prayed… before the gods ruled from ivory thrones… they sealed him.

He did not roar. He did not rage.

He simply waited.

The forest was quiet. Too quiet.

Mist coiled between gnarled roots and stone like smoke. Trees bent toward each other as if whispering secrets. Somewhere far off, a branch snapped. Then silence.

A single figure made her way through the thick woods, a map in one hand, a small glow-crystal in the other.

She was young — at least by the standards of her kind.

White hair fell over her shoulders, long and soft as snowfall. Her skin was pale, her frame small and delicate, her long ears twitching at every movement. Crimson cat-like eyes glinted as she peered between trees.

Aeris Valewyn was lost.

"This isn't where the trail was supposed to lead…" she murmured, frowning at the map. "Ugh. Stupid glowing mushrooms. I should’ve stayed on the main road."

She sighed, folding the parchment.

Still, something's pulling me…

That feeling had been growing stronger. A pulse in her chest. Not fear — something older. A call.

The trees parted.

There, overgrown in vines and shadow, stood a wall of stone. Arched. Sealed. Covered in symbols she didn’t recognize — not at first.

Then they pulsed.

Red-gold lines blinked beneath the moss.

Aeris stepped forward, heart hammering. She reached out, fingers trembling slightly.

The moment her skin touched the center glyph, the entire door shuddered.

Stone cracked. Vines shriveled. Dust and energy hissed into the air.

Then the door… opened.

The chamber was silent.

Circular. Ancient. Built of dark stone carved in concentric circles. Floating above a black altar sat a single jagged crystal — as dark as void, faintly glowing.

Aeris hesitated, then stepped forward.

The air was cold, but not dead. It felt… expectant.

This place… it remembers something.

She reached toward the crystal.

The moment her fingertips grazed it — light exploded.

The world vanished in blinding white and blood-red flame.

She screamed.

Then silence.

He stood in the center of the room.

Tall. Unmoving.

His hair was long, white, cascading to his waist. His skin pale, his form strong but lean. Bare chest. Black robes tied loosely around his waist.

And his eyes—

Deep crimson. Reptilian. Glowing like coiled serpents. Ancient and unblinking.

He said nothing. Just stared.

Aeris collapsed to her knees.

"You’re… not mortal…"

He tilted his head.

"No."

His voice was cold. Low. As if it hadn’t been used in eons.

Outside, the forest shivered.

Birds dropped from the sky. Trees cracked. Wind twisted into unnatural spirals.

The world felt wrong.

Like gravity had remembered something it was supposed to fear.

Above, a gate of light burst open in the sky.

Six celestial knights descended in flame-chariots, wings of gold unfolding. Their blades glowed with divine law.

The lead knight pointed his sword down.

"By decree of the High Realm—return to your prison, Flame."

The white-haired man didn’t move. Didn’t blink.

"You sent mortals," he said slowly, "to scold the sky?"

He raised a hand.

The knights disintegrated. Instantly.

No scream. No clash. Just light — gone.

Aeris stared, frozen.

This isn’t rage… this is silence. This is what fear looks like before it’s born.

He turned.

"You saw nothing," he said. "Speak of this to no one."

She tried to nod, still shaking. Her voice cracked.

"I… I don’t think you’re a monster."

He paused.

For the briefest moment — something flickered behind his eyes. Memory? Doubt? A dream?

He turned away.

"Then you’re more foolish than I thought."

He stepped through the shattered gate and into the night.

Alone, Aeris stood in the ruin.

In her hand — a shard of the black crystal, pulsing faintly. Her fingers trembled as she held it to her chest.

Far across the sea, buried beneath molten stone, an ancient eye opened.

The world shuddered.

The First Flame had returned.

And the gods were no longer ready.