[Chapter-4 of Volume-1] The Shadow of The Golden Crack

Volume – 01

Chapter – 04

“The Shadow of the Golden Crack”

[Chapter 4: The Shadow of the Golden Crack]

The world didn't end with a bang, but with the terrifyingly soft sound of my body hitting the scorched earth.

Bastian, Elowen, Leonhard, and Cassian rushed to the scene, their hearts sinking as they saw the aftermath of the birthday celebration. What was once a lush, vibrant garden was now a desolate circle of grey ash. In the center of the ruin, Liana sat sobbing, clutching my limp, blood-stained body. Her own left hand and the side of her neck were red and blistered—burned by the violent waves of energy I had unintentionally released.

"Caelum!" Elowen’s voice broke into a shriek as she lunged toward me.

"Wait, Elowen! Stop!" Bastian shouted, his voice laced with a rare, sharp fear. He and Leonhard stood frozen, their eyes fixed on the frontal-left side of my neck.

A jagged, golden crack had formed on my skin, pulsing with a rhythmic, ethereal light.

Leonhard immediately barked orders for the estate’s doctor, while Cassian stepped forward to lift my small frame and carry me to my room. But as he reached out, a dense, suffocating aura exploded outward. It was a pressure more terrifying than the depths of an S-Rank Labyrinth, heavy enough to make the air itself feel like lead, momentarily paralyzing everyone in the room.

Inside the darkness of my mind, I was no longer in the manor.

I opened my eyes to find myself standing in a surreal, silent dimension. An endless expanse of white sand stretched out toward a deep, indigo ocean, all under a sky of perpetual, soft rain. It felt hauntingly familiar—the same weightless, cold transition I felt when I died as Shin Shintaro.

Where am I? Liana... are you okay? I looked around the void, my heart heavy. It feels the same as when I died in my old world. The same feelings. This is it, huh? My second life ends here?

"You must be Shin Shintaro... I mean, 'Caelum Von Astellion'."

I spun around. Seven figures stood shrouded in the mist. They were mere silhouettes, yet their presence was immense, as if they were pillars holding up the sky.

"I am..." I replied, my voice steady despite the overwhelming pressure. "But how do you know my last world’s name?"

"We know everything about your last world," a second person replied, their voice echoing as if from every direction at once.

"Huhhhhh?" I breathed, my mind racing with a thousand questions. "Then tell me, what am I? Why was I brought here? And who are you people?"

I wanted to demand answers, to know why the "Spectre" had followed me, but the figures began to blur. Before they vanished into the indigo haze, one of them leaned forward, their voice dropping into a chilling, bone-deep whisper.

"Don't be in such a hurry, little Spark. We will meet again when the time is right. But remember... if you misuse what sleeps inside you, this world will not be the one that pays the price—you will."

With that final, unsettling threat, the white sands dissolved into the indigo waves, and the rainy sky collapsed into darkness. My consciousness was pulled back toward the surface of reality.

I woke with a start, my breath hitching in my throat. The first thing I saw wasn't the white sand, but the tear-stained face of my sister, Liana. She was sitting right by my bedside, her hand—wrapped in thick bandages—clutching mine.

"Cael...?" she whispered, her eyes wide with hope.

I looked around the room. My parents and brothers were all there, their faces etched with exhaustion and relief. The golden crack on my neck had stopped glowing, but it remained—a permanent, jagged mark on my skin that looked like a fracture in fine porcelain.

The Doctor stepped forward and let out a long, heavy sigh. "He is stable for now, Margrave. But I must be honest... I have never seen such a condition in all my years. It's as if his internal mana is too vast for his physical form to contain."

"Can it be cured?" Bastian asked, his voice low and dangerous.

"With my skills? No," the Doctor admitted. "You would need to consult a High-Ranking Doctor in the Capital. But even with your influence, the waiting list is immense. It would take over a year for an appointment."

I looked at my mother, who looked as if she hadn't slept since I collapsed. "Mother... I am hungry and feeling tired."

Elowen let out a sob of relief. "Bastian, please... take the appointment. Until then, we should take care of Caelum."

"I will," Bastian nodded solemnly. He used a Public-Telepathy spell to contact the Capital immediately. After a tense exchange, he looked back at us. "The date is set. One week after Caelum’s 5th birthday."

The maids brought food, and Elowen fed me with trembling hands before finally putting me to sleep.

Five days passed. Physically, I was fit and fine again, but the guilt was a heavier burden than the Soul-Ache. When I saw the permanent burn marks on Liana’s hand and neck, I broke down.

"Liana... I'm so sorry," I sobbed, hugging her tightly. "Because of me... no one will want to be your friend now. I ruined your beauty."

Liana just smiled, a gentle, stubborn look in her eyes. She patted my head with her uninjured hand. "Don't worry, Caelum. Even if nobody else wants to be my friend, I'll always have you. You're my little brother."

"Thank you..." I whispered, my voice cracking. "Thank you for not leaving me, sister."

To help my recovery, Liana and Mizu decided it was time to start my formal education. They led me to the Astellion Noble Library—a massive hall filled with the scent of old paper and the weight of history.

"Woah..." I gasped, looking at the towering shelves.

"Now then, Cael," Liana said, pulling out a chair. "Come and sit here. Mizu and I will start teaching you about this world. Let’s start."

Mizu stepped forward, opening a thick volume. "From the start, this world is called 'Yggdrasill', named after the famous sacred tree."

"And we live in the famous kingdom 'Kingdom of Astrandor'," Liana added, pointing to a map. "It is located on the Human Continent called 'Aurellia'."

"In this world, we have 7 Gods," Mizu said reverently. "We call them the Pant—"

I nodded, my eyes fixed on the pages, but my mind was elsewhere.

<NOTICE: SCANNING LIBRARY DATA...>

The education of Caelum Von Astellion had truly begun.

Chapter – 04 of Volume – 01 {Finished

--ShinzoLordShadow