The roar of the twin waterfalls grew noticeably louder, as though their waters themselves were becoming tense in anticipation of a monumental event about to unfold.
Despite the beauty that covered the land, an invisible veil of darkness had begun to seep into its details.
The reason was obvious:
That foreign entity.
The violet creatures suddenly gathered around it, staring at it with an unsettling stillness, while the air itself grew heavier until the entire scene overflowed with dread.
Above them, the sky began to fill with dense clouds, as though preparing for an imminent explosion.
Leora trembled and pointed ahead.
"Look! It's blooming!"
Roy furrowed his brow calmly.
"It doesn't seem like something ordinary... It's looking down on us with arrogance."
Nearby, a little girl said to her mother:
"Mom! That crystal is truly amazing... It's blooming with reverence, like a flower."
Meanwhile, whispers of concern spread among the crowd, as though everyone sensed that something ominous was about to happen.
The white creature trembled and said in a broken voice:
"My journey ends here..."
A profound silence enveloped the area, as if the world had detached itself from its usual noise.
Suddenly, a melodious voice echoed from the sky, drawing everyone's attention.
"By the order of Her Holiness... we have come to carry out the Ceremony of Erasure."
Leora screamed:
"Where is that voice coming from? What does it mean?!"
Roy shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Show yourself! Hiding behind that sphere won't save you!"
Panic spread among the people.
Someone whispered fearfully:
"What does he mean by 'Erasure'? Have we all been sentenced to execution on this cursed day?"
The mysterious entity responded with a powerful voice accompanied by a faint laugh:
"I can see fear behind your confident tone... boy, do you know the meaning of true beauty?"
Roy frowned angrily.
"What are you implying?"
The voice thundered:
"The magic of nature shall be harvested for the benefit of Her Majesty, Contista."
He raised his hands toward the sky.
A massive radiant aura exploded outward and slowly expanded over the entire region.
As it spread, the landscape began to transform in a horrifying manner.
The trees lost their colors and turned a pale white.
The grass became black like coal.
The violet creatures collapsed all at once after losing their pigmentation, then crumbled apart and vanished as though they had never existed.
Leora trembled in horror.
"What exactly happened? The whole place changed in an instant!"
The white creature added with a shaking voice:
"The land has completely lost its life... all the colors have disappeared... but why are the three of us still alive?"
Roy's eyes widened in terror.
He bent slightly forward as though an unbearable burden had fallen upon him.
"I couldn't save them... This is all because of me!"
At that moment, the crystal fully opened.
From within it emerged a man whose skin was as pale as ash, while his gray hair gently swayed in the wind with eerie calmness.
He possessed an imposing appearance, free of any ugliness.
His metallic attire bore an emblem of a moon above which sat a woman upon a gigantic flower.
He spoke in a cold voice, frighteningly calm:
"We are the Knights of the Templar Order... and I am Commander Walter."
Then he added in a steady tone:
"This place still carries the fragrance of the past and has never changed. She loved sitting before this bridge and quietly contemplating it... perhaps this beauty may restore a fragment of her lost radiance."
Roy sank into complete silence, as though he had surrendered to the weight of the moment.
Leora, however, was tense and whispered:
"What is this person talking about?"
Suddenly, the white creature pointed toward the sky.
"Look!"
Five more crystals rose into the heavens, identical to Walter's crystal, and slowly began to bloom.
From each one, a masked knight emerged.
The five of them stood in heavy silence, as though the scene was not ending...
But had only just begun.