After obtaining the spell, we set out toward the Silver Dragon's territory.
At the time, I had no idea something was waiting for me there.
Something… wrong.
As we traveled, an unexplainable feeling settled deep within me—subtle at first, like a whisper at the edge of thought.
By the time we arrived, it had grown heavier.
Suffocating.
Like a silent warning pressing against my chest.
I scanned the area, searching for Queen Elizabeth.
She wasn't there.
A frown crept onto my face as I turned to the servants.
"Where is the queen?"
They exchanged uneasy glances before one finally stepped forward.
"My lord… she hasn't returned since you sent her to gather the herb."
For a moment, everything went still.
That didn't make sense.
She wouldn't disappear like that—not now.
Not without reporting back.
Something was wrong.
Then—
A voice slipped into my mind.
"You search blindly… yet the answer is within your reach."
I froze.
That voice… it wasn't human.
"Why not ask me to find her, Master?"
"The Void Sword…" I murmured. "I almost forgot you could speak."
A hollow presence brushed against my thoughts—faint amusement.
"You forget many things, Master. It is… one of your more predictable flaws."
"Locate Elizabeth. Now."
A pause.
"Permission is required."
My eyes narrowed. "Take it."
Darkness swallowed everything.
I processed the request.
Searching is inefficient.
I calculate.
Existence is not space—it is pattern.
Every life leaves a trace: intent, emotion, residual mana.
To humans, it is invisible.
To me, it is structure.
I accessed the fragment designated Primordial Blind One.
The world unfolded.
Not land—
Data.
Streams.
Fractures.
Probabilities collapsing into certainty.
Noise.
Erased.
Then—
A distortion.
Unstable.
Displaced.
Torn from origin.
Elizabeth.
I followed the thread.
Interference attempted resistance.
Resistance is expected.
Resistance is meaningless.
Location resolved.
Control returned.
The world snapped back.
"Target located," the sword stated.
"Where?"
"She is no longer within the Silver Dragon's territory."
A chill ran down my spine.
"Then where?"
"An underground structure.
Deep within a jungle region… far beyond your kingdom."
That made no sense.
The herb was close.
There was no reason for her to be that far.
Unless—
She didn't go there.
She was taken.
"Sylvara. Stay here."
"What? Wait—where are you—"
I was already gone.
The jungle closed in as I moved, shadows blurring past me.
Branches snapped beneath my steps, wind cutting against my face.
Faster.
Every second mattered.
By the time I found it, the bunker barely existed above ground—a hidden scar beneath roots and stone.
I didn't hesitate.
I broke in.
The air inside was suffocating—damp, metallic… wrong.
Low growls echoed through the halls.
Not human.
Not animal.
Failures.
I ignored them.
Then I saw her.
Chained to a cold iron table.
Pale.
Weak.
For a moment—
I couldn't move.
"…Elizabeth."
I rushed forward, dropping beside her.
"I'm here. I'll get you out."
Her eyes fluttered open slowly.
And when they found me—
Relief.
"I knew…" her voice trembled, "you'd come."
Something tightened in my chest.
I reached for the chains—
They didn't break.
Not normal restraints.
Then—
Clap. Clap. Clap.
Slow. Deliberate.
I turned.
A man stepped from the shadows, thin, composed, eyes burning with something far worse than madness.
Understanding.
"Remarkable," he said softly. "You navigated my work faster than expected."
"Release her."
He smiled faintly. "Do you know what dragons truly are?"
I didn't answer.
He continued anyway.
"They are not rulers of the sky. Not legends."
His gaze sharpened.
"They are evolution… unfinished."
My grip tightened.
"You're turning people into monsters."
"Correction," he said calmly. "I am removing their limits."
A distant scream echoed through the bunker.
He didn't react.
"Humans are fragile.
Temporary.
But dragons…" he whispered, almost reverently, "they are what comes next."
"You're insane."
"No," he replied. "I am early."
The air shifted.
Danger.
I moved instantly—lifting Elizabeth into my arms.
He didn't stop me.
That was wrong.
"Run, then," he said quietly.
I paused.
"Take her."
A smile touched his lips.
"She's the only one who survived."
Silence.
Cold realization crept in.
"Meaning?"
His eyes gleamed.
"She's already changing."
My heart skipped.
Elizabeth's fingers tightened weakly against my clothes.
"…don't listen to him," she whispered.
I didn't respond.
I couldn't.
Because for the first time—
I wasn't sure.
I turned and left.
Not because he let me.
But because something told me staying would be worse.
When we emerged into the fading light, I finally stopped.
She was trembling.
So was I.
"You're safe now," I said quietly.
A lie?
Maybe.
Her hand tightened slightly against me.
"…you came for me," she murmured.
I looked down at her.
And for a brief moment—
The world felt smaller.
Quieter.
"I always will."
But in the back of my mind—
The sword said nothing.
And that silence was louder than anything else.
But I couldn't forget she was changing I was thinking what should I do when suddenly,
" You can just ask me if you want to save her."
I was shocked.