The sky was painted in soft orange as the sun dipped low behind Eldoria's jagged mountains. Kai stood at the edge of the valley trail, his cloak rippling in the wind. Below, the northern road stretched like a serpent through the woods, lit by the torches of a small caravan.
They were right on time.
Kai's eyes narrowed. He spotted her instantly—riding at the front, wrapped in silver and violet armor, hair tied high like a banner in the wind. She moved with grace, but her back was straight with tension. That was her.
Princess Lira Althwyn.
He hadn't seen her since the twelfth loop.
Back then, he failed to protect her.
This time, he wouldn't.
He stepped onto the path just as the caravan slowed at a broken tree. The guards stiffened, hands on swords. Kai didn't flinch.
"I'm not your enemy," he called, loud enough to carry. "But you're heading into a trap."
The guards didn't lower their blades.
Lira dismounted slowly, her expression unreadable. Up close, she looked younger than he remembered—sharper, too. A little more cautious.
"And who are you to speak of traps, stranger?" she asked.
Kai hesitated.
He couldn't tell her everything. Not yet.
"A friend," he said. "One who knows where you're going... and who's waiting for you there."
Lira stepped forward. Her eyes met his. "You look like someone I've seen in a dream."
He didn't reply. She wouldn't remember him. Not in this cycle.
A sudden rustle cut through the moment. The trees behind them trembled. Kai's instincts flared.
"Get down!" he shouted.
A black spear shot from the forest, aimed straight for Lira. Kai moved in a flash, blade out. The Eternal Flame ignited in a blaze of crimson and gold as he sliced the spear mid-air. It exploded in a burst of dark smoke, sending nearby guards flying.
From the shadows, creatures emerged — twisted things, half-human, half-smoke, eyes glowing violet.
Shadowborn.
The guards rushed forward, steel clashing with shrieks and snarls. Lira drew her blade, holding her own. But Kai's focus was already beyond the fight.
He charged into the thick of the monsters, blade dancing like wildfire. Each strike of the Eternal Flame burned through darkness, cutting clean and bright. He moved like someone who'd fought them a hundred times — because he had.
One of the larger beasts lunged from behind.
"Behind you!" Lira called.
Kai twisted, sliding low. His blade arced upward, cleaving the creature in two. The shadows screamed and scattered like ash in the wind.
Soon, silence returned.
The last shadowborn twitched before melting into black mist.
The guards were shaken but alive. Lira wiped blood from her cheek and walked over, her expression tight with questions.
"That sword," she said, staring at the still-glowing blade. "You're not just a traveler."
Kai lowered the Eternal Flame. "I've walked this path before. Too many times."
She blinked. "What are you?"
He looked away. "Someone trying to stop the world from burning again."
A long silence passed between them, only broken by the crackling of dying embers and the shifting wind.
Then Lira nodded, slowly. "Then walk with us. We head for the Frostvale Mountains. If what you say is true... I might need your sword before we reach them."
Kai exhaled.
This time, she lived.
This time, she believed him.
He was already doing better than the last cycle.
As they continued down the road, Kai walked beside her, the sky deepening into twilight. The next battle waited ahead. The Blood Archive… the cult… the truth buried in the cold north.
But tonight, for once, he wasn't alone.