Vale walked closer to the dark man within the vast expanse of the hollow mountain.

  Yet the mountain was not dark.

  Not now, nor had it been for the past month.

  At its heart, Chimera’s flower illuminated everything. Its ethereal glow filled the cavern without faltering, bathing stone, steel, and shadow alike in a soft, otherworldly light. The illumination was gentle, yet absolute, as though the mountain itself had surrendered to it.

  Vale’s gaze slipped past Barbatos as he approached, drawn irresistibly toward the flower.

  It was enormous, its massive petals swallowing nearly half the cavern, rising like a living monument. Vale narrowed his eyes slightly, studying it in silence. He knew, somewhat, what Alexandria looked like. Through her memories, he had seen fragments: the color of her hair, the pallor of her skin, fleeting impressions blurred by pain and rage. But those visions had belonged to another time, before her power was broken, before her form had been forced into that of the great wolf.

  Only now had she regained enough strength to abandon that shape.

  Only now was she returning to herself.

  Vale let out a small, relieved sigh, a faint smile tugging at his lips as he stepped closer to Barbatos. The dark god and Callum were still exchanging quiet, cheerful words, an easy familiarity between them that no longer surprised Vale. He had learned some time ago that the two were best friends, a fact that had initially seemed absurd, then quickly inevitable.

  The strong were drawn to one another.

  Barbatos broke off the conversation as Vale neared. A small smile appeared on the god’s face as he turned fully toward him. Then, without warning, Barbatos lowered himself, slowly, deliberately, until he rested on one knee.

  Vale froze.

  He stumbled back half a step, stunned. “Uh, sorry, but I don’t think you should kneel in front of me,” he said quickly, nervous laughter slipping into his voice.

  Barbatos looked up at him, still smiling.

  Even kneeling, he was barely shorter than Vale. His sheer size was overwhelming, only slightly shorter than Korin, who himself towered well past two meters. Barbatos rose smoothly back to his feet, his expression calm, almost relieved.

  “Oh, but I should,” he said quietly.

  He turned his gaze toward Chimera’s flower.

  “You see, I was always curious about her,” Barbatos continued. “She is the only one who might truly understand my power, and the burden that comes with it.”

  He looked back at Vale.

  “So really, you helped me find my equal. And for that, I am truly grateful.”

  Vale lifted a hand to the back of his head, rubbing it awkwardly. “Well… when you phrase it like that, yeah, I guess it makes sense.”

  He understood. Barbatos was honorable, this act did not surprise him on a logical level. Nor did it shock him that Barbatos viewed Chimera as his equal. She was the only being who shared even a fraction of his overwhelming power, the only one who could truly comprehend his existence.

  Still, understanding did little to ease the discomfort.

  A being who could shatter the world.

  A being whose presence alone could kill him.

  Kneeling.

  For him.

  Vale felt painfully unworthy of the gesture, yet it had already happened. Now he had to accept it, to make sense of it, and that proved far harder than expected.

  Slowly, he steadied himself.

  Barbatos and Callum waited patiently, saying nothing as Vale regained his composure. Ember scoffed quietly behind him and rolled his serpentine eyes. Vale noticed and shot the wyvern an irritated glance, which only earned him a dismissive huff in return. The ravens remained perched on his shoulders, unbothered, their calm presence grounding him more than he realized.

  At last, Vale took a deep breath.

  He lifted his gaze again, eyes settling on the translucent white flower before them.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  Then, with renewed excitement creeping into his voice, he spoke.

  “You guys… want to take a closer look?”

  Both men chuckled softly and nodded.

  Together, they moved forward.

  Vale’s ravens and Ember took the lead, gliding ahead before stopping at the outer edges of the flower’s immense petals. As Vale drew closer, he noticed the numerous scientific stations surrounding it, monitoring equipment, instruments, and consoles arranged carefully to observe Chimera’s condition with precision.

  He barely registered them.

  He stopped less than a step away from the flower, staring.

  It pulsed with life.

  At its radiant center was a dark shape, vague, distorted, but unmistakable. The silhouette of a woman, suspended within the bloom like a promise waiting to be fulfilled.

  Vale’s breath caught.

  Callum walked off to the side, slowly circling the flower with quiet curiosity, but Vale remained where he was. He reached out and placed his hand against the base of one massive petal.

  The texture was strange.

  Rough, yet delicate. Firm, yet warm.

  An unexplainable sensation washed over him, like finding comfort within pain, or warmth within sorrow. Vale’s expression grew distant, mesmerized.

  Barbatos noticed immediately.

  “Don’t sense her energy,” he warned, his voice low and cautious.

  Vale broke his focus and looked at him. For a moment, doubt flickered across his face, but understanding followed just as quickly.

  Chimera had no restraint over her atum right now.

  Trying to sense it would overwhelm him instantly. The sheer volume alone would tear him apart, overload every channel he possessed. In truth, even her presence, unrestrained as it was, could kill him if fate were unkind.

  Vale knew that.

  And yet, he did not fear it.

  He offered Barbatos a weak smile and gently pulled his hand away as the flower pulsed once more, its light steady and patient, as if waiting for the moment she would finally awaken.

  As Vale withdrew his hand from the flower, a dark shadow suddenly rose from the ground beside it.

  The light did not push it back.

  Instead, shadow and radiance coexisted, one folding around the other like opposing truths forced into harmony.

  Vale raised a brow as the darkness thickened, then peeled upward, taking shape with fluid precision. From it emerged Evelyn, her form coalescing as though she were being sculpted from living night itself. The shadow receded beneath her feet, dissolving back into the stone as if it had never been there.

  She spared Vale only a brief glance before turning her full attention to the towering flower.

  Evelyn stepped closer, lifting a hand and gently resting her palm against its pulsating surface. Her expression was grim, measured, thoughtful, burdened. The light reflected faintly in her eyes as though she were staring at something far beyond the petals themselves.

  Vale watched her in silence, curiosity evident in his gaze.

  After a long moment, she spoke, her voice low and controlled.

  “How long now?”

  Barbatos crossed his arms and shifted his attention toward the scientists stationed several meters away. They moved with practiced efficiency, eyes fixed on instruments and readouts, murmuring quiet updates to one another.

  “About a week longer,” Barbatos replied. “She’s only just begun showing signs of stabilization. We shouldn’t expect her to awaken immediately.”

  Vale tilted his head slightly at that. A week felt both close and impossibly distant.

  As Barbatos finished speaking, Callum returned from circling the flower. The moment his eyes landed on Evelyn, his expression brightened unmistakably. He closed the distance between them without hesitation.

  “Hello, dear,” he said warmly.

  Evelyn rolled her eyes, scoffing softly, yet she didn’t pull away. Instead, she leaned in, meeting him halfway.

  Their kiss was immediate.

  Deep.

  Unapologetically intimate.

  It carried the weight of separation and longing, as though both had been holding back words they now no longer needed. It was brief, but unmistakably charged, the kind of kiss shared by people who knew each other completely and still chose one another every time.

  When they finally parted, they remained close, foreheads nearly touching, gazes locked in a quiet exchange of affection too complex to name.

  Vale stood a short distance away, shifting awkwardly. He wasn’t uncomfortable exactly, but he was undeniably aware that he was very much a third party to a moment he had no business interrupting.

  Still, he supposed it was normal.

  Since Callum’s fourth trial, since his official return to active duty, meetings like this had become rare. Vale trained with him when possible. Evelyn met him for… other reasons. Once a week, if fate allowed.

  Vale glanced sideways.

  Barbatos stood beside him, utterly still.

  Too still.

  Vale blinked, then raised a brow as he noticed something odd, something almost amusing. The world-ending god looked… awkward. His posture was rigid, his gaze fixed firmly away from the couple, as though witnessing something profoundly unfamiliar.

  Vale’s mouth parted slightly in disbelief.

  “Not used to this either?” Vale asked quietly.

  Barbatos sighed, his shoulders loosening just a fraction as he shrugged. “Yes. You could say that.”

  There was something regretful in his tone, something almost human.

  Vale barely managed to suppress a chuckle.

  Before he could say anything else, Evelyn’s voice cut through the moment.

  “Vale, sorry about that.”

  She approached him with graceful, soundless steps, the shadow beneath her feet barely rippling as she moved. Her expression softened slightly as she met his gaze.

  “I came here to ask you to come with me.”

  Vale tilted his head, suspicion flickering across his face. “Did something happen?”

  Evelyn chuckled softly and lifted her hands in a calming gesture, but before she could continue, Callum wrapped his arms around her from behind, resting his chin lightly against her shoulder.

  She glanced up at him, giving him an awkward look. Callum only smiled wider, eyes closed, entirely unbothered.

  With a small sigh, Evelyn continued.

  “A fracture appeared just outside the mountain’s base,” she explained. “Second-rank. It’s stable for now, won’t reach critical instability for a few more days.”

  She looked to Callum briefly, then back to Vale.

  “I thought it would be a good opportunity. Some practical experience. Nothing dangerous.”

  Vale’s eyes widened.

  Then, slowly, a deep grin spread across his face.

  Experience.

  A real fracture.

  A controlled engagement.

  The excitement flared in his chest instantly, sharp and undeniable.

  “when are we leaving?” he asked without hesitation.

  The anticipation in his voice made it clear, this was exactly what he had been waiting for.