Chapter 1: The Shattered Light ( Prologue)
The air in the Solis Dominion was thick with the scent of ozone and impending doom.
"Your Majesty, we should leave immediately."
The speaker was Victor Graves. Despite being in his forties, his features remained sharp, though they were currently tightened by a mask of sheer anxiety. As the head butler of the Caelestos household, he had served the family with unwavering devotion, but even his legendary composure was fraying.
"There is no destination left for us anyway, Victor," a voice replied, calm as a still lake.
It Caspian Caelestos stood by the tall arched window. He was a man of striking presence, his hair a shock of white that caught the dying light, framing eyes the color of deep ruby-blue. To the world, he was the most profound mage and swordsman in history—a man with talents that reached above the heavens, known to all as the Guiding Light.
"Their numbers are more than ours, including Lucian," Victor pressed, his voice trembling. "They have over ten Grade-9 Magicians, and several other knights and mages are following them. How do we escape, my Lord?"
Caspian turned. He could see the fear in Victor's eyes, but beneath it, he saw iron-clad loyalty.
"Tell me, Victor, why do you think humans fight one another?"
Victor was confused by the question given the timing.
"I... I don't know. Perhaps power?"
"That is true. But wouldn't the advantages be greater if they worked together instead of fighting?"
"I don't know, Your Majesty. Maybe it is their nature."
Caspian walked toward the window, his blue eyes sparking as he gazed at the silhouettes of flying mages in the distance.
"That's right. It is nature. It isn't just that they want power—they want what another possesses. They never think of sharing, but rather keeping it to themselves."
As a beam of teleportation light erupted in the distance, Victor scowled.
"Your Majesty, we must leave!"
"I told you, there is nowhere to go," Caspian interrupted. "But go, call for Seraphine. And bring your son, Silas."
Victor rushed from the room and reappeared moments later with a woman holding a one-year-old child.
Seraphine Caelestos was the picture of angelic grace, her golden hair flowing like spun silk, her eyes matching the brilliant ruby-blue of her husband's.
Following closely was Silas Graves, Victor's son, a twenty-one-year-old with black hair and a disciplined stride.
Caspian looked at his wife.
"I may die today."
The words were spoken with a terrifying calmness. Seraphine felt as if the ground had been removed from beneath her.
"What are you saying? We can escape! Let us go to the world beyond the Earth—we can live peacefully there with our son!"
"No, we cannot."
It was a matter of cold reality; opening the Altar to the Otherworld required a sacrifice, and the Three Poles of Life were already depleted.
Caspian looked at her with a sorrowful smile.
"I hope you will forgive me for what I am about to do."
He took the infant Stellian from her arms.
The child had white hair with strands of gold, his eyes a mirror of his parents'.
Caspian walked toward Silas.
"I have a duty for you. Even if it takes your life, you must not back down."
Silas bowed with profound respect.
"Tell me what I must do."
Caspian handed the child to him.
He then unclasped the necklace from Seraphine's neck—a black chain with a golden diamond—and tied it around his son's neck.
"Go to the Astraea Kingdom, the Southern Region. Admit him to the Ever-Watch Orphanage. Stay with him as his guardian, and then apply for the Magic-Tower. He will take his real surname, Caelestos, but you must never reveal his true identity to him."
Seraphine, overwhelmed, pressed a final kiss to Stellian's cheek.
"Take care of him... please."
"Leave at once through the dark forest," Caspian commanded.
Silas's body turned into a flash of green light as he dashed toward the exit.
Caspian hugged his wife and remained in that position until her tears were swept away.
Then, he muttered the words of the Great Sacrifice.
A pillar of light pierced the ceiling, engulfing Seraphine. She cried out in fear, but her form began to change.
Because the conditions of the Altar required Caspian to sacrifice his own power to send her away, Seraphine turned corporeal.
She was still there, yet drifting between worlds.
Suddenly, the ceiling blew apart.
Lucian Han, the red-haired Elemental Magician, landed in the ruins.
"Long time no see, old friend," Lucian said, conjuring a sword of fire.
Victor whispered to Caspian, "Your Majesty... every maiden guard has been killed."
Caspian raised a sword of golden light.
"Then bring it on, Lucian."
They collided. Fire and golden light tore through the hall as blades met in a scream of mana.
Clink! Clink!
Even with his power cut by 90% to fuel the Altar, Caspian fought like a god.
But as he glanced away, he saw Victor take a blade to the chest.
"It was... an honor... serving you..." Victor gasped as he fell, his eyes closing forever.
"You have guts, losing focus in a fight like this!" Lucian hissed.
He lunged forward, his fire blade piercing Caspian's chest.
Ugh.
Caspian fell to his knees, blood spilling from his mouth.
Lucian looked down with pity.
"Sorry, friend. It was my duty."
He raised his blade and ended the life of the Guiding Light.
The Altar's condition was completed.
Zzzzzzzzzzz... BOOM!
The light surrounding Seraphine's corporeal form shot toward the sky, piercing the clouds and vanishing.
Lucian clicked his tongue.
"We couldn't find the wife or son. He must have sent them away."
He turned to his mages.
"Prepare the annihilation. History must not know the Caelestos existed."
Every mage joined hands, creating a ten-meter orb of flame.
They dropped it onto the mansion and vanished in beams of red light.
BOOM!
The 800-square-meter estate exploded, sending a mushroom cloud of fire 200 meters into the air.
Where the grand Caelestos mansion once stood, the ground was now completely flattened—a scorched, empty wasteland of ash and cracked stone.
Not a single pillar remained.
Deep in the dark forest, Silas Graves turned around.
His heart shattered as he watched the distant horizon erupt.
Through the trees, he saw the massive explosion and the sky turning a hellish orange.
Tears fell from his eyes as he realized his father and his King were gone, but he controlled his emotions, tightened his grip on the child, and dashed toward the Astraea Kingdom.
Two Months Later
After sixty days of constant battle against monsters and scouts, Silas reached the Ever-Watch Orphanage.
He was a mess—his clothes shredded and his skin mapped with scars.
Knock. Knock.
"Coming!"
Alina Thorne, the founder, opened the door. She was in her fifties and had white hairs perhaps due to old age.
"Oh my... you are a complete mess."
"I am looking for the founder... I am here by the orders of Caspian Caelestos," Silas panted.
Alina's expression turned to sorrow as she took the child in her arms.
"So... he didn't make it."
She looked at the boy with eyes full of love.
"Come in, let me treat your wounds. What will you do after this?"
Silas remained silent for a moment, then spoke.
"There is a Chairman position empty in the Magic Tower. I intend to take it."