Crown Prince Callan, still standing watch, turned his head quickly—his sharp eyes catching sight of a figure in heavy robes walking toward him, surrounded by palace guards and followed by several high-ranking nobles dressed in deep red and dark gold.
The nobles whispered among themselves, amazed by the sight they had just seen earlier from the safety of the palace windows.
The figure walking ahead of them was none other than Emperor of Solaria, his long cloak brushing the stone ground as he moved, his golden crown reflecting the firelight. His face, though aged, was strong—his brows slightly furrowed, his expression unreadable.
As soon as Callan saw him, the prince straightened his back and stepped forward. His hand went to his chest as he lowered his head slightly in formal greeting.
"Father, may the night bless your steps," Callan said
The emperor looked at his son for a mont before glancing past him—over the wall and down below, where foreign warriors rested like fallen stars from the heavens. They were scattered across the grass and stone, cloaks pulled over their shoulders, so with weapons still in hand as they slept.
He did not speak right away.
He simply stood, watching everything—the kindness of his people, the silence that had replaced battle, the strange equipnt and weapons that looked nothing like Solarian steel, and the strange symbols on their clothes that glowed faintly.
The nobles behind him were silent too. They couldn’t believe that these powerful strangers who fell from the sky could be so... powerful.
Finally, the emperor turned to his son again.
One noble whispered behind them, loud enough to hear, "It was like watching gods in mortal skin... so powerful, so fast..."
Another muttered, "They shouldn’t be trusted. That much strength... it doesn’t belong in this world."
But the emperor raised his hand gently, silencing them. "I ca here to see for myself. And I have seen."
He looked at his son again, then down at the sleeping people once more. "The world is changing, Callan. I can feel it in my bones. Magic, the old kind... is returning. And so are things we once feared."
___________________
Lauren walked silently along a narrow path that passed through the resting area. Her steps were slow, thoughtful. She held her cloak tightly around her, the soft wind brushing her hair as she looked around, searching with her eyes.
Then her steps stopped.
She had reached an area where several cloth-covered bodies lay side by side. The white silk that covered them fluttered slightly in the wind. So soldiers and volunteers had placed small, hand-carved wooden tokens near their heads—tokens of peace, perhaps, or respect for the fallen.
Lauren sighed deeply, "Where is Seojun...?"
A soft rustle ca from behind.
Alexa appeared and walked beside her, her two swords resting on her back. She sat down slowly on the grass, her eyes tired but still calm.
"Auntie," Alexa said softly. "It seems like Seojun landed sowhere far."
Lauren nodded slowly, her eyes still looking out beyond the horizon. "I hope he’s safe too," she whispered. "He always manages to surprise us... but still... I wish I knew where he is right now."
Then she sat beside Alexa, the two of them silent for a mont as the morning breeze passed over them.
Alexa tilted her head slightly and asked, "How did you get here, Auntie?"
Lauren gave a small, tired laugh. "It must be the work of my god," she said gently. "He didn’t want to just sit and watch from Earth. I was only waiting for the broadcast to finish, and then suddenly—poof. I was here. I didn’t even realize it until I was falling from the sky with the rest of you."
Alexa smiled and chuckled softly. "Uncle Jonathan is probably panicking," she said, imagining the scene in her mind.
Lauren laughed as well, her hand covering her mouth. "Not for long," she replied. "He always panics for a minute, then calms down like nothing happened. Still... I hope soone explained to him what happened to ."
But before they could say more, a voice called out from nearby.
They turned their heads.
Several knights of Solaria were walking toward the newly built camp area, where so anchors and cara crew had been waiting with half-broken equipnt. One of the knights was holding a strange device—the magical cara that had been taken during the first skyfall attack.
The female news anchor, still in her field gear with her long coat and headset, rushed toward the knight as soon as she saw it. Her voice rose, clearly annoyed.
"You took it! That’s why we couldn’t broadcast! Do you even understand how much the world is watching right now?" she shouted, pulling the cara quickly from the soldier’s hands.
The cara operator was adjusting sothing, his hands moving fast as he tried to fix the signal. "Co on, co on... almost there... focus it on the camp now!"
The lens flickered, and the magical screen ca back to life, showing the background—the camps, the temporary tents, the food lines, the wounded being tended to, and the resting warriors from all over the world.
Lauren stood up as the scene beca visible.
The anchor turned just in ti to see her, her eyes lighting up with instant recognition. "That’s... that’s her! That’s Lauren Hamilton!" she gasped.
She imdiately ran forward with the caraman following.
The cara lens flickered for a few seconds, struggling to adjust to the strange magical atmosphere around the camp. But then—finally—it focused.
The image on the floating global screen brightened, showing the large yard outside Solaria’s walls. Viewers all over Earth gasped as the scene beca clear for the first ti in hours.
The news anchor, brushing dust from her coat and holding her microphone firmly, now stood straight in front of the cara, her tone quickly changing from frustrated to composed. She gave a quick nod to the caraman.
"We’re back! Yes, you’re seeing this live, everyone!" she said quickly, the excitent in her voice clear. "This is Sofia reporting from inside Stage Two of the Awakener Event. We’ve just regained connection after several hours of blackout."
She took a short breath and continued, pointing behind her to the makeshift camp."What you’re seeing now is the temporary rest area built beside the outer walls of the Solaria Kingdom. This is where all twenty-four guilds who advanced into Stage Two have gathered following the battle against the dragons Today!"
"YES YOU HEAR IT RIGHT! The ti that passed without news is the ti GUILDS HAD WAR WITH DRAGONS!"
She paused, her eyes flicking to soone approaching from the side.
"And here with us is a very important figure soone who suddenly appeared during the transition to Stage Two and has been confird as one of the unexpected participants—Lauren Hamilton."
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