Night settled peacefully over Base 101.
Torches burned atop the walls.
Patrols marched through the streets.
The laughter from the evening celebration slowly faded as the kingdom returned to its routine.
But not everyone slept.
---
Far beyond the northern forest...
Leon moved silently through the trees.
Eight Shadow Scouts followed him.
No one spoke.
No branches snapped beneath their feet.
No leaves rustled.
The forest itself seemed unaware they were there.
Moonlight filtered through the canopy.
Leon raised a single hand.
The entire squad stopped instantly.
He crouched beside a shattered crystal formation left behind by the monster horde.
Inside his mind, his System spoke.
Captain...
Residual energy detected.
Not monster mana.
Unknown origin.
Leon reached down and picked up another small emerald shard.
It was identical to the one he had recovered during the battle.
Someone had been here...
After the monsters passed.
---
One of the Shadow Scouts appeared beside him.
"Captain."
Leon didn't look up.
"Report."
"We found footprints."
"Human?"
The scout hesitated.
"...Similar."
Leon stood.
"Show me."
---
Several hundred meters deeper into the forest...
The scout pointed toward a patch of soft earth.
There they were.
Footprints.
Perfectly preserved.
Too light to belong to armored soldiers.
Too precise to belong to monsters.
Leon studied them for several moments.
Then his eyes narrowed.
"They're hiding their weight."
The scout looked surprised.
"You can tell?"
Leon nodded.
"Professionals."
He slowly looked toward the darkness ahead.
"They wanted us to find this."
---
Inside his mind...
His System responded.
Probability of deliberate trail...
Ninety-six percent.
Leon quietly drew one of his new Shadow Fang Daggers.
"...Then let's see where it leads."
---
The Shadow Scouts continued.
For nearly an hour...
The footprints never disappeared.
Never crossed themselves.
Never made mistakes.
Whoever they followed...
Wanted to be followed.
Finally...
The trail ended.
Not at a camp.
Not at a cave.
At the top of a cliff overlooking the northern valley.
Leon slowly stepped forward.
Nothing.
No enemies.
No movement.
Only a single object resting on a flat stone.
A black feather.
Its surface shimmered with faint emerald mana.
Leon carefully picked it up.
The moment he touched it—
WHOOM!
A vision flashed before his eyes.
A towering mountain range.
Cities unlike anything in Eastern Aetherra.
Massive kingdoms built into cliffs.
Black banners fluttering beneath unfamiliar stars.
Then...
Seven cloaked figures standing around a circular table.
One of them spoke.
"The Eastern Kings continue to exceed expectations."
Another answered.
"The Necromancer has claimed the First Key."
A third voice echoed.
"Continue observing."
"The Sovereigns must not interfere..."
The vision shattered.
Leon immediately stepped backward.
His breathing remained calm...
But his grip tightened around the feather.
---
"Captain!"
The Shadow Scouts rushed to his side.
"What happened?"
Leon looked toward the western horizon.
For the first time in a long while...
His expression showed genuine concern.
"We're not alone."
---
Far away...
Beyond mountains no one in Eastern Aetherra had ever crossed...
Inside a colossal fortress carved into black stone...
A cloaked figure stood before a gigantic map.
Half of the continent glowed faintly.
The eastern half.
A small emerald light pulsed above one kingdom.
Base 101.
The figure smiled beneath a silver mask.
"So..."
"Leon found the breadcrumb."
Another cloaked figure stepped beside them.
"Was that wise?"
The first figure nodded.
"Very."
"It tells us exactly what kind of scout he is."
"And?"
The masked figure looked toward the distant east.
"He is worthy of being watched."
---
Back inside Base 101...
The Commander's Manor remained quiet.
Sam stood alone on the balcony overlooking his kingdom.
The cool night breeze carried the scent of fresh-cut timber and burning forges.
Inside his mind...
Rex suddenly spoke.
Commander...
Leon has crossed the northern reconnaissance boundary.
Sam smiled faintly.
"He found something."
Affirmative.
Probability... Ninety-eight percent.
Sam looked toward the dark northern forest.
"I trust him."
There was no hesitation in his voice.
No worry.
Leon had become the finest scout in Base 101.
If anyone could uncover the truth behind the mysterious observers...
It was him.
Above the kingdom...
The emerald pillar continued to shine.
And somewhere beyond the known lands of Eastern Aetherra...
Unknown eyes continued watching humanity's rise.
The game...
Was growing larger.