Under the celestial light of the full moon, illuminating the dark forest…
A group of five masked men stood, cloaked in black robes that covered even their faces, each marked with a "golden star" in the center, surrounded by an aura of cold.
Among them, a tall, burly man with a hoarse voice… seemingly the "Failed Grandson of Ice."
They were… the conditions of the "Summoning Ritual."
Next to him, a short man, showing nothing but his cunning green eyes…
"Yes… we shall begin soon…
Wait for us, heirs of Sun and Ice…"
.
.
.
Beneath the same silver light, the girl with blue locks stood, lost in thought, in front of one of the rooms in her vast palace.
She spoke to herself, wondering if she should enter.
Then a familiar, calm voice interrupted her thoughts…
"Elena… will you enter?"
She smiled at him.
"Yes, Your Highness, Prince Kyle."
Elena opened the room, her hands trembling, her eyes wandering in sorrow and longing.
"The room… hasn't changed in fifteen years… my brother's room."
Kyle held her hands to reassure her.
She began searching for anything unusual, until she found a black-covered book she had never seen before. She tried to open it, only to find it sealed with black magic.
Kyle took the book from her, attempting to infuse it with his magic, and the book glowed with intense power, throwing Kyle to the ground in shock; it had absorbed a massive amount of magic but refused to open.
Elena took the book from the ground, hoping to use her Valdrian magic to unlock it.
To her surprise, the book shone with a bright blue light.
Kyle covered Elena's eyes to protect her from the blinding glow.
"Elena… close your eyes."
Both stood frozen for a moment until they heard that familiar voice…
"My dearest… I've missed you so much."
Elena's body trembled, her heartbeat audible, her breathing shallow, tears streaming down her face.
"This… this is my brother… Cedric."
Kyle held her hands to calm her.
"Elena, stay calm.
This is a recorded message in this book.
It seems Cedric wanted to tell you something."
He wiped her tears until she regained some composure and continued listening, after stopping the book's magic flow.
"How I wish I could stay with you, but there's no time…
Hearing this means you've succeeded in killing me.
It seems I will die without telling you why I killed 'our father.'
Know that both of us loved you, and we did this to protect you from the curse.
You will find the necessary information here in this book.
I sealed it so it could only be opened with Valdrian magic.
I have no more time, but know, my sister…
that your older brother apologizes for failing to stay with you long. I am the 'Failed Grandson of Ice.'
…So live a long life and marry someone who loves you and whom you truly love.
How I wish I could have seen the children of my beautiful sister…"
Silence filled the place, broken only by the rumbling thunder and the raging winds.
The clear sky changed, just as her life had changed completely.
Elena stood holding the book, her gaze filled with hatred and vengeance, lightning reflecting in her blazing blue eyes.
"I swear… I, Elena Valdrian, will take revenge on all who destroyed my life.
Are you with me, First Prince Kyle Oreystal?"
Kyle smiled, standing beside her.
"How could I allow anyone who brought sorrow to my flower to remain free?"
Elena opened the book to find its pages tattered.
"This book was written by me, Lucian Oreystal.
Whoever holds this book must be one of our founding descendants.
First, I must express my deepest apologies for causing this 'curse.'
All I can do is inform you of its origin…
Everyone knows the Legend of the Founding, but the hidden story of why the war between humans and dragons began…
Long ago, humans lived in harmony with dragons, and life thrived…
But one man suddenly desired a dragon's heart. According to legend, whoever ate the dragon's heart would become the strongest creature. This was 'Maros Savrial.'
Elena and Kyle exchanged a tense glance.
"Isn't Rose's full name… Rosalyn Savrial?!"
Kyle replied anxiously, "It seems there are many intertwined threads here."
Elena continued reading…
"…This man attempted to kill one of the dragons, betraying the trust between humans and dragons, and thus the war began as known.
As for the curse, when the final blow was struck to the Dragon Leader, he cursed us six, saying:
'I will not let you escape, traitors…
I will curse you and your descendants until the day I am revived by your heirs…'
At first, no one understood this, but later it became clear.
In each generation, one heir is born with immense power, and another is powerless. The fate of the powerful is to kill his predecessor and sibling to survive.
We worked together to break the curse, but Raine was killed by his eldest son to protect the younger, and the younger, unaware, killed his elder brother…
It was later discovered that the curse affects only one descendant per generation, and they must be siblings.
All we can say is: beware of… the ultimate enemy."
The last word was burned, leaving their minds filled with uncertainty.
Kyle looked at Elena, who was holding back her tears, her lips trembling, her hands shaking.
"Elena, there's no one here but me. You can cry; you don't need to pretend to be strong."
Elena looked at him through her tears.
"So… I killed my brother… hated him… and he… he was protecting me… why, why?"
Kyle gently patted her head.
"I am sure they truly loved you…
Now we must find out how to break this cursed spell."
She wiped her tears, replacing her weakness with strength and determination.
"There's no time to cry or lament.
We must find this 'enemy.'"
Kyle embraced her, his voice calm.
"Do not fear, my love. I swear I will break this vile curse."
Elena pushed him away, her cheeks flushed.
"You can't just approach someone like that suddenly."
"Haha, I love seeing you embarrassed, Elena."
"Huh! You like seeing me what?"
Kyle smiled, tilting his head slightly.
"I'm happy to see your smile; you had been frowning."
"Haha… wonderful, wonderful.
It seems my Sun and Ice grandchildren are in love.
Enjoy it, for death is at the door."
Time seemed to freeze as a masked man appeared from nowhere, distinguished only by the golden star on his back.
Both drew their swords, sensing a dangerous presence they had not noticed before.
"Calm yourselves; I have come only to greet the 'sacrifices.'"
Shards of ice filled the air.
"The sacrifices?!
Do you know anything about the curse?"
The man's gaze fell on the book in Elena's hand, his eyes burning with anger.
"It seems that fool… revealed the secret…
It doesn't matter. Soon, destruction will come upon the traitors through the blood of their children."
He raised a finger, dispersing the ice shards, and both froze from the sheer force, as he burned the book with black flames.
He vanished as if he had never been there, whispering:
"Meet me at its final completion…
At the beginning of the end…
To pay for betrayal and treachery…
The price of death for those who trusted and were forsaken."
They were left in bewilderment.
"I'm certain this group is connected to the curse."
"Yes, and it seems that man meant my brother when he said 'that fool.'
But first, we must search for any suspicious group marked with a 'golden star.'
But what does he mean by 'at its final completion, at the beginning of the end'?"
"If he means the moon… we have only a month. We must hurry."
All that remained was the sound of the wind, snapping branches, as if answering their questions…