The cobbled pathways of Alunsina hummed beneath my feet, the evening air thick with the scent of rain-kissed stone and incense from the distant temples. The city was alive—more than usual.
Lanterns swayed overhead, casting golden halos on the streets where students in ceremonial robes hurried between dormitories, discussing theories of Loom Weaving and Diwa Manifestations with an urgency that bordered on reverence.
The Academy loomed ahead, its towering spires piercing the heavens, a bastion of wisdom in a world still trembling from the dangers lurking in its corners.
Yet tonight, there was a fresh charge in the air.
Excitement.
Hope.
In the distance, near the Great Forum, a group of merchants had gathered, their voices rising in an almost ecstatic chant.
"Sa Ilaw ng Tatlong Kaharian, isang Bathalumea! (By the Light of the Three Kingdoms, one Bathalumea!)"