After the previous night’s discussion, Blaze acted without delay.

  He ordered Alister to construct a temporary detection device—one that could display concentrations of darkness to kings and temple authorities, even in regions that showed no outward signs of instability. It was not meant for accuracy. It was meant for persuasion.

  At the same time, Blaze intensified the search for Roy Val Drake.

  The orders were public, deliberate, and relentless.

  Alister confronted him near the castle grounds.

  “Why are you searching for him so aggressively?” he asked. “I know Roy is competent, but what we’re facing now matters more. You’re acting like he stole something from you.”

  Blaze did not respond immediately.

  Then he spoke quietly.

  “Have you compared his reports—then and now?” Blaze asked. “His record is too clean. Too consistent. Merchants praise him. Explorers trust him. Entire forests cleared, including mutated zones—alone.”

  He paused.

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  “Materials from Ruby circulate more than anywhere else. And before disappearing, he moved toward the southern forests. You know what survives there.”

  Blaze looked at him directly.

  “I don’t want that man becoming expendable.”

  Alister understood.

  He said nothing more and began work on the device.

  Days later, Blaze issued a sealed directive to Ruby’s Village head.

  Ruby Village and its neighboring settlements were to be sealed immediately. The justification cited rising darkness concentration. Healers were restricted from entering due to uncertainty of beast waves.

  Shortly after, a second order followed.

  The Explorer Guild was to be dismantled. Materials were to be transferred to the capital. Ragnar was instructed to report for reassignment.

  Then the wave came.

  Whether coincidence or orchestration, no one could prove.

  Animals emerged near the sealed villages—numbers just large enough to overwhelm local defenses. Healers attempted to intervene independently.

  They did not return.

  The villages, though salvageable, were left to ruin.

  Official reports declared the outcome unavoidable. Darkness readings were released publicly. Evidence was displayed. The system registered no error.

  Questions ended.

  Far away, the ancient ruins trembled.

  Fire salamanders fled the inner caverns, bowing instinctively before retreating, as if acknowledging an unseen authority. Yet nothing emerged.

  Near the castle, detection arrays spiked.

  The heroes sensed incoming waves and prepared to confront what they believed were high-level beasts.

  But beneath the ruins, the atmosphere warped.

  Mana froze.

  Sound collapsed.

  Time itself seemed to hesitate.

  From deep within the underground caverns, a roar rose—ancient, restrained, and final.

  The sun dimmed.

  And the world crossed the last line.