Jay wasn't a hero.
He wasn't awakened. He wasn't gifted. He was just an eighteen‑year‑old Aura knight with a dented breastplate, a chipped sword, and a stubborn streak that kept him alive more than his skill ever did.
"Move it, rookies!" Captain Halden barked. "We're close to the mine. Keep your Aura steady."
Jay tightened his grip on his sword. His Aura flickered faintly—barely enough to reinforce his muscles.
Ryn muttered, "Why are we even here? The Rift-guard should handle crystal anomalies."
Dante snorted. "Because our captain's an idiot."
Jay didn't disagree.
Halden scoffed. "Riftguard takes too long. If this mine holds deity crystals, I want the credit."
Jay exchanged a look with Ryn and Dante. Everyone knew Halden was desperate for a promotion. Everyone also knew he was reckless enough to get them all killed.
They had just finished fighting a pack of monsters. Their Aura reserves were low. Their bodies were exhausted. Jay's voice was tight as he whispered, "We should rest. That was the whole reason we came to this village."
But orders were orders.
The mine entrance appeared ahead—an old wooden frame glowing faintly with blue‑black light.
Jay froze.
"That's… not deity light," he whispered.
Ryn's face drained of color. "That's Abyssal resonance. Captain, we need to—"
"We're going in," Halden snapped.
Jay's stomach twisted.
But Halden marched forward, and the platoon followed.
Inside the Mine
The moment they stepped inside, the world changed.
The walls pulsed like veins. Crystals jutted out in jagged clusters, glowing with unstable Abyssal light. Whispers crawled through the air—soft, distant, hungry.
Jay's Aura trembled. Ryn's Essentia flickered violently.
"This place is wrong," Jay muttered.
Then the walls split open.
Walkers crawled out—twisted silhouettes of limbs and shadow, eyes glowing with cold hunger.
"AMBUSH!" Jay shouted.
Chaos erupted.
Aura knights swung wildly. Essentia blasts lit the cavern. Walkers screeched, lunging with impossible speed.
Jay fought beside Ryn and Dante, blade flashing, Aura barely holding.
But there were too many.
A Walker slammed Jay into the wall. His vision blurred. His chest burned. Something sharp pierced him—
—and everything went black.
When Jay Woke Up
He opened his eyes to a stone ceiling.
Warmth. Bandages. A faint hum of stabilizing magic.
He sat up sharply.
Ryn lay on the next bed—alive, bandaged, breathing. Dante too.
Jay exhaled shakily.
The rest of the platoon filled the room—injured, unconscious, but alive.
Even Halden.
Before he could process anything, the door opened.
Three figures entered.
Rhyden. Lira. Brutus.
The Rift-guard.
Their insignias marked them as Specialist Corps—far above anything Jay had ever hoped to reach.
Jay stiffened.
Rhyden approached first. "You're awake. Good."
Jay swallowed. "What… happened?"
"Walkers," Brutus grunted. "A nest. You idiots walked right into it."
Jay clenched his fists.
Rhyden continued, "Your captain's report was wrong. There were no deity crystals. Only Abyssal residue and a maturing nest."
Jay looked away.
Lira stepped forward with a small crystal orb swirling with violet mist.
"We need to test you," she said gently. "Walkers release corruption spores."
Jay nodded and held out his hand.
The orb pulsed once. Twice. Three times.
Then it dimmed.
"No corruption," Lira said. "You're clean."
Jay sagged in relief.
One by one, the platoon passed.
Halden… did not.
The orb flared violently when it touched him. He screamed. The Riftguard restrained him instantly.
"He's infected," Lira said quietly. "We'll treat him, but he won't return to command."
Jay didn't know how to feel.
Rhyden turned back to him.
"You handled yourself well," he said. "Your Aura held longer than most unawaken knights."
Jay blinked. "I… did?"
Rhyden nodded. "You kept your head. You protected your squad. You didn't panic. That matters."
Jay felt heat rise in his chest.
Rhyden continued, "Your platoon is being disbanded. Too much trauma. Too much instability."
Jay's heart sank. "So what happens to us?"
"You," Rhyden said, "are being reassigned."
Jay frowned. "To where?"
Lira answered.
"To a new platoon. One better trained. One that won't walk into an Abyssal nest because of a fool."
Jay swallowed.
A new platoon. A new start. A new path.
Rhyden placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Rest. Tomorrow, you'll meet your new commander."
As the Rift-guard turned to leave, Lira paused at the door.
"Jay… when the Walkers attacked, something in the Abyss reacted to you."
Jay froze.
"What does that mean?"
Lira hesitated.
"…I don't know yet."
Then she left.
Jay stared at his hands.
He didn't feel different. He didn't feel special. He didn't feel awakened.
But something in the mine had touched him.
And the Abyss didn't forget.
Oversight and Orders
The infirmary buzzed with quiet tension. Bandages wrapped around ribs, arms, and legs. The air smelled of herbs and healing salves. Jay sat on the edge of his bed, stretching his sore shoulder while Ryn and Dante argued about who got hit harder in the mine.
A Riftguard officer stepped inside — a Rift Scout, judging by the silver‑lined insignia on his chest. He held a sealed scroll.
"Attention," he announced. "Orders from the Arclight High Council."
The room fell silent.
Jay frowned. "High Council? Why would they—"
The Rift-guard unrolled the scroll.
"Thirteen knights of the 7th Platoon are to be transferred immediately to the Eastern Garrison for reassignment."
Gasps rippled through the room.
Ryn blinked. "Transferred? Why?"
Dante muttered, "Someone pulled strings. Has to be."
Jay looked around. The thirteen knights who had been whispering about quitting earlier suddenly looked relieved. One of them — Verrick — smirked. He had bragged before that his uncle was a High Council Minister.
The Rift-guard continued, "These knights are to report to the Eastern Garrison within the hour. Their reassignment is final."
The thirteen stood, some smug, some embarrassed, some simply grateful to escape Pyrrha's command their new captain
Jay clenched his jaw.
They're running away.
Ryn whispered, "Bro… they're ditching us."
Dante shook his head. "No. They're being rescued."
Before anyone could say more, the temperature in the room dropped.
The Burning Wraith Arrives
Pyrrha's Entrance
Pyrrha stepped through the doorway. The doorway filled with her presence, and the room froze.
Her presence was commanding, drawing every eye. She was a woman of stunning beauty, with scarlet eyes and crimson hair. When she spoke, her voice was cold but angelic, sending a chill through the room.
The entire infirmary fell silent as her scarlet eyes swept across those gathered. Her gaze was cold and unreadable, leaving no room for doubt about her authority. Ryn muttered under his breath, likening her to a goddess. When Pyrrha's cold gaze landed on him, Ryn quickly covered his mouth.
She looked at the Rift-guard, then at the scroll, and finally at the thirteen knights.
"So," she said calmly, "instead of facing your weakness… you ran to your families."
Verrick swallowed. "Captain, we—"
"Silence."
Her gaze burned into them.
"You passed the knight exam. You earned your armor. And then you stopped trying. You became complacent. Mediocre. Satisfied with being average."
The thirteen knights lowered their heads.
"Your former captain let you stagnate. He let you believe passing the exam was enough. That you could coast through your career doing the bare minimum."
She stepped closer.
"You were wrong."
The Riftguard cleared his throat nervously. "Captain… the High Council—"
"I am aware of the High Council's decision," Pyrrha said. "And I accept it."
The thirteen exhaled in relief.
But Pyrrha wasn't finished.
"You will go to the Eastern Garrison. You will live quiet lives. You will never rise in rank. And you will never again call yourselves true knights."
Her voice sharpened.
"You are being transferred because you are liabilities. Not assets."
The thirteen flinched.
"Leave."
They filed out, some ashamed, some angry, some pretending not to care.
When the door closed, Pyrrha faced the remaining ten.
Jay. Ryn. Dante. Mira. Kael. Orrin. Aldric. Lysa. Bram. Tessa.
Her voice dropped to a cold, dangerous calm.
"Listen carefully."
She stepped forward.
"If any of you wish to quit, leave now."
No one moved.
"Good. Because after today, if you attempt to leave… you will be jailed."
A cold silence fell over the room.
"You are knights of the Arclight Kingdom. You swore an oath. You do not get to abandon your duty because training is difficult."
Her gaze swept across the ten.
"You stayed. Good. You have potential. You have discipline. You have the will to grow."
She turned toward the door.
"Rest. Tomorrow… real training begins."
Jay felt his heart pound.
Ryn whispered, "Bro… we're dead."
Dante sighed. "Yeah. But at least we're dead together."
Jay didn't laugh.
He stared at the door Pyrrha had walked through.
Real training starts tomorrow. I have to get stronger.
Rumors of the Burning Wraith
Later that night, the infirmary quieted. Jay lay awake, staring at the ceiling.
Ryn leaned over. "Hey Jay… isn't she the Burning Wraith?"
"The what?" Jay asked.
"Red eyes, scarlet hair — she has to be."
Jay frowned. "Am I supposed to know who that is?"
Dante turned from his bed. "Seriously? You don't know her?"
Jay groaned. "Just tell me."
Dante sat up, expression darkening.
"Five years ago… the Kingdom of Pyraxis burned."
He lowered his voice.
"They say a woman wreathed in living flames rampaged through the capital. Rumor was that one of the kingdom's head knights was executed under false charges. Whispers said the king and Pyrrha's mother conspired to kill him — to hide their affair and their experiments with Abyssal power."
Jay's breath caught.
"That head knight… was Captain Rhaegor Emberfall. Her father."
Ryn swallowed. "She was already a Golden Sentinel back then, right?"
Dante nodded. "Aegis Crest. Stage Five. At her age? Unheard of."
He continued.
"When she learned the truth, she stormed the castle. They say her rage awakened her Essentia — fire Essentia. Not normal flame… something far hotter."
Jay whispered, "How many knights tried to stop her?"
Dante's voice dropped.
"Three hundred Silver Knights."
Jay froze.
"And she slaughtered them all."
The room fell silent.
Dante continued, "Her flames burned through their armor. Their aura couldn't suppress her fire. Their formations collapsed the moment she stepped into range. That's when they gave her the name…"
He exhaled.
"The Burning Wraith."
Jay stared at the ceiling, stunned.
"If she did all that… how is she here?"
Dante shrugged. "She didn't kill the king. But she did reach her mother. There was nothing left of her except ash. A Mythril Warden intervened — one of the strongest knights alive. She took his eye before he stopped her."
Jay swallowed. "So why is she in our kingdom?"
"Politics," Dante said bitterly. "After the incident, the High Council executed the king of Pyraxis. But the people wanted Pyrrha dead or exiled forever. Our former king offered her sanctuary."
Jay frowned. "If she's that strong, why give her such a low rank?"
"No one wants a foreigner — especially one who burned her own kingdom — holding a high position. So they stuck her with leading groups like us. No real talent. No real future. Just… expendables."
Ryn clenched his fists. "Don't say that. We just need to get stronger. One Abyssal Walker wiped us out. If the captain hadn't stalled it, we'd be dead."
Jay nodded. "We could've helped if our aura was at Stage Three."
"Exactly," Ryn said. "But our old captain never trained us."
Dante looked toward the door. "But Pyrrha… she'll push us. Hard."
Jay swallowed.
"Maybe that's exactly what we need."
A New Resolve
Later, the nurse guided everyone to their new rooms. Jay lay alone, staring at the ceiling.
Ryn and Dante called out from the hallway:
"Let's get stronger together!"
Jay smiled faintly.
"Yeah."
He closed his eyes.
I'm only Stage Two. Ryn and Dante have Essentia. I'm behind.
But I'll catch up.
He whispered to himself:
"My goal… Aegis Crest."
"Then Sleep claimed him."