The sun rose gently from the east as Raiden lay back against the mountain’s hard surface, Soul’s head resting on his chest, the morning wind brushing softly against them both.
But even as he savored his rest, something kept tapping against his forehead, gentle touches that somehow felt agonizing.
Instinctively, he reached for his head and opened his eyes, stirring Soul awake. His eyes locked onto a familiar face: those piercing, menacing dark eyes beneath a hooded cloak, the black mask, and all that excessive jewelry.
Squinting, he studied the face, starting from the jaw. "I know you... you’re with Chrono, aren’t you? A lieutenant, perhaps?" His voice carried the deep rasp of morning.
"That doesn’t matter." He stood upright in one fluid motion. "Captain Chrono wants to see you."
Raiden sighed and pushed himself up to sit. "Right, I’ll be there soon."
Raiden rubbed his eyes and glanced at Soul, who was still half-asleep, her head lolling gently from side to side. He smiled softly, slipped off his shirt, spread it out, and tenderly helped her lie down on the makeshift pillow.
He stood and began following Chrono’s lieutenant, his mind wandering to thoughts of when and how they had both succumbed to sleep.
He turned for one last look at Soul, and seeing the serene smile on her sleeping face, he could tell she was blissfully at peace.
Raiden let out a sigh, hands in his pockets. He remembered how Soul had worried that Ash and Noelle would struggle to sleep with her overwhelming dark aura filling the tent.
While Raiden doubted her concerns—given that Ash shared his nature and Noelle’s powers could easily counter such effects—he hadn’t argued. Soul had been resolute, leaving them with no alternative but to sleep under the open sky.
Before long, they arrived at the circle. Chrono stood at the entrance, his white turban settled on his head, a smile gracing his features.
"Now Odard, get word to the remaining forces to accelerate their advance," Chrono ordered when they reached him.
Nodding once, Odard brushed past him and ducked into the nearest tent on the wall’s left flank.
"Half-dressed, are we?" Chrono looked directly at Raiden. "Quite the build you have there," he said, his tone openly mocking.
"So, what did you need?"
"Take it down a notch, would you?"
Raiden continued the staring contest, betraying nothing in his expression. Now that he knew Chrono’s true position as the Arsenal Armada’s second-in-command, everything had to be reconsidered—their negotiations, their entire interaction. Snow’s wariness suddenly made perfect sense.
"Walk with me." Chrono was already moving, retracing the route Raiden and Odard had used. Raiden joined him with minimal delay.
"I take it you know nothing about the lands across the water?"
Chrono’s expression shifted, and he came to a stop. Raiden paused as well, their eyes fixed on something in the distance.
"Moving between absolute domains means crossing dimensional boundaries," Chrono’s eyes narrowed.
"The naked eye can’t perceive them because they occupy the thin line separating reality from what lies beyond endurance."
He looked directly at Raiden. "So, unless you’re invited in, the Leviathan Path becomes your only way to reach another’s domain."
Raiden frowned slightly. He’d heard Chrono reference the Leviathan Path before, yet he still had no clue what it meant.
"What exactly is that?"
Chrono smiled at last, though his eyes held that peculiar, faraway look. "Never laid eyes on a leviathan myself, but the stories say they’re assembled from numerous familiars by some unknown creator."
Chrono gave a disapproving shake of his head. "Sorry, but from what I’ve heard, it was beyond even Aaron’s capabilities to create."
Raiden found himself questioning whether others possessed Aaron’s combination of intellect and strategic caution. If such individuals existed and chose to hunt the pages, his situation would become far more complicated.
Taking a deep breath, Chrono continued, "If your mana reserves can handle the transportation, then there’s no problem." When he turned back to Raiden, his face had darkened.
"The Solace Isle is where we’re going initially. It’s the domain of the Sleeping Star."
"Sleeping Star?" Raiden questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"That’s correct. He served as a star in your kingdom in the past, but reached third place at only twelve years old. Too young to advance to maker or judge, yet too powerful to continue as a star."
Raiden watched Chrono carefully, catching the anxiety in his gaze and hearing his voice waver slightly. This task might prove harder than he’d originally thought.
"The most powerful number three ever recorded," Chrono said, turning toward Raiden. "Back when your kingdom was famous for its strength, imagine how insulting it was for the adults to watch a child achieve what they couldn’t."
"I’m betting they went after him, and he was forced to escape."
Chrono nodded once. "Correct."
He smiled grimly. "The real insult was that he carried a white crest—he was just a supporter."
"What?" Raiden’s eyes widened in disbelief.
"That was exactly how I reacted the first time." Chrono put his hands in his pockets. "The short version is he managed to claim the island, triggered his absolute domain, and then fell into some kind of eternal sleep."
A wave of cold swept through Raiden’s body, but he pushed aside his growing apprehension.
"What makes that place necessary for our alliance?"
"The Sleeping Star’s domain works like a pact system. Once allied there, you can access other absolute domains freely, but betraying your ally brings punishment unless you handle it through proper channels."
His eyes narrowed to thin lines. "Like what?"
"That’s when the Tragical Isle becomes relevant."
"What is that exactly?"
"An absolute domain under Luci’s control," he said with a shrug. "Apart from the name, he’s a complete mystery to me."
"There’s some kind of connection between the Sleeping Star and Luci’s worlds, though." He resumed walking. "Where Solace handles diplomatic settlements, Tragical deals with violent ones."
Raiden’s mind jumped frantically between different possibilities.
"Any betrayals between allies must be settled on Tragical Isle by both parties."
"But you have options: either both parties travel to Tragical Isle voluntarily, or one can compel the other’s presence." He gave a casual smirk. "Plus, you can drag anyone there, even people from the real world, provided you meet the cost."
His heart started hammering unevenly as Raiden grasped the full scope of what lay ahead: a completely alien world with its own rules. He had the distinct feeling Chrono wasn’t telling him everything.
"Are you implying that Tragical is the only place where combat is permitted?"
Chrono paused, a smirk crossing his face. "Not quite. Every absolute domain operates by different rules, and combat anywhere else can be a death sentence." His shoulders lifted in a casual shrug. "You can escape alive sometimes, but going to war means you’re done for."
Are you saying that if we don’t fight, we’ll have a better chance of escaping?
Chrono changed direction and patted Raiden’s shoulder lightly. "Don’t kid yourself," he said, smiling with unsettling ease. "We might as well be marching to our graves."
With his hands deep in his pockets, he headed back to the circle as Raiden’s gaze followed him.
Raiden clenched his hand into a fist. Chrono’s evasion told him everything he needed to know: there were secrets being kept, likely important ones.
Despite everything, Raiden knew Chrono wasn’t lying about the dangers. The twenty-eight pages remained his priority, though.
Fear of what lay ahead wasn’t going to make him abandon his mission.
While he stood in place, someone called his name with a voice that was soft yet gravelly. "Raiden!"
His expression shifted to puzzlement as he looked left and spotted Freya and Aeris. Freya was waving at him, her soft smile complementing the dark ponytail and black vest that revealed her well-defined arms.
Aeris strolled beside her, hands buried in her pockets, blonde hair flowing behind her as she wore a quiet smile.
A smile spread across Raiden’s features. "About time we can leave," he said quietly as they drew near.