CHAPTER 2: CHOICE THAT SHOOK THE HALL

A Question Before the Thrones

The great hall of Bloodcrest Palace was awash with golden light from the high stained-glass windows, casting majestic reflections across the marble floor. Nobles of high standing sat around the long crescent table, their eyes focused on one figure standing confidently at the center.

Kaito Bloodcrest.

Seven years old. Eyes like crimson fire, posture like a future monarch.

And beside him, barefoot and trembling, stood a thin, fragile girl. Her head bowed low, dirty silver hair covering her face. She held onto the hem of Kaito's robe like it was her only link to safety.

Reyzen Bloodcrest leaned forward from his throne. His voice cut through the silence like a blade.

"Kaito. What do you intend to do with that girl?"

There was no hostility in his tone—only curiosity.

The hall murmured.

Kaito raised his chin slightly. His voice, though soft, rang clear.

"I want her to stay by my side. As family. As my sister."

A stunned silence fell.

One noble scoffed under his breath.

But Kaito wasn't done.

"I've always wanted a sibling… someone I could laugh with, protect, and trust. She's scared, alone, and broken. I saw the way she was treated. Like garbage. I don't know her past, but I know how she looked at me. Like I was her last hope."

He turned to Reyzen.

"So I ask you, Father. Not as a child, but as your heir—please adopt her. Let her bear the name Bloodcrest."

Reyzen raised a brow. An unexpected answer. But before replying, his sharp eyes narrowed on the girl.

Then—he sensed it.

A ripple. Faint, nearly undetectable.

"...Curious," he muttered.

He lifted his hand, fingers snapping with casual grace.

A wave of invisible energy surged outward. It shimmered through the air like heat distortion.

Nullaria.

A high-tier dispel magic—so rare that only one in a million mages could ever dream of casting it.

The girl flinched, clutching her head. Then—

Fwoosh.

Her ears stretched.

Sleek, pointed, and unmistakable.

She was an elf.

Gasps echoed around the chamber.

"An elf?!"

"They're banned!"

"This is treason—"

Kaito's eyes widened in disbelief. He stepped closer to the girl as she crumpled to the ground in shame.

She looked up at him with tearful eyes, lips trembling.

"I-I didn't know… what they did to me… I couldn't remember…"

Kaito knelt beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. "It doesn't matter. You're not going back there."

Reyzen's voice boomed again.

"Kaito, you do understand what this means? Elves are our enemy. Our kingdom has fought their kind for nearly a century. Many have died. Their presence in our lands is punishable by death."

Reyzen rose from his throne, his voice calm but laced with ancient authority.

"There's something all of you, including my son, must understand."

He walked slowly across the grand hall, his golden cloak dragging behind him like a trail of fire.

"This world... is not ruled by humans alone."

He raised his hand, and with a flick of his fingers, an illusion shimmered to life above the nobles—an ancient, glowing map of the continent, divided into colorful territories.

"There are the Elves—blessed with mana by birth, masters of nature and spirit, gifted in longevity and archery. Proud, fierce, and often unwilling to bow to any throne that isn't their own forest's."

The illusion morphed, showing slender figures with pointed ears leaping between trees, arrows glowing with nature's energy.

"The Dwarves—short in stature but giants in craftsmanship. Beneath the Ironspine Mountains, they forge weapons that can slice magic itself, and armor that shrugs off dragonfire."

Next came broad-shouldered, bearded figures hammering glowing steel deep within crimson caverns.

"The Beastmen—diverse tribes spread across the Wildstep Expanse. Part human, part animal—feral and instinctive. Some say they are closest to the original lifeforms of the world."

The illusion displayed fanged warriors with wolf, lion, and tiger traits hunting in the wild.

"The Fairies—mysterious, radiant, and largely hidden. They dwell within the Dreamveil Glades, protectors of forgotten magic. Rarely seen, and never captured."

Soft lights flickered like stars as tiny winged beings danced over a glowing lake.

"And then… the Dragons."

The entire hall darkened. Even the illusion pulsed with a deep, trembling hum.

"There are only seven dragons left in this world. Each a living force of nature. Fire, Ice, Storm, Earth, Light, Darkness, and the last… Void."

The map changed to show seven enormous silhouettes circling a black egg.

"They don't die—they vanish. And when they do, an egg appears somewhere in the world, rebirthing them. Nobody knows where. Nobody sees it happen. And when they return—they are never the same."

He lowered his hand. The illusion vanished.

"Those who face a dragon do not die by its breath. They die… crushed by its aura alone."

Reyzen turned toward Kaito. "This girl, your so-called 'sister,' is from a race that's been at war with ours for nearly a century. An elf. And in our kingdom… they are forbidden. By law."

Kaito looked up, face fierce.

"And what was her crime? Being born an elf? Getting captured and enslaved as a child? She's done nothing wrong. She was terrified. Tortured. And now, she's under my protection—not as Kaito, but as a Bloodcrest."

He stood tall.

"If this law endangers her, then I'll change the law. I am the heir, am I not?"

Whispers turned into arguments. Nobles rose from their seats, some angry, others speechless.

"Arrogant brat."

"He's lost his mind."

"But… what conviction…"

Reyzen's golden eyes sparkled. Then he raised a hand.

Silence returned.

"You say you'll change the law. Bold. But do you truly have the strength to stand behind such ideals?"

He stepped down from his throne, walking slowly toward his son. The pressure in the room grew with every step.

"Then let's test that conviction."

He stopped five paces away.

"If you can land a single clean hit on me… then she becomes family. But if you fail—"

He glanced at the girl.

"—You'll watch her be taken away."

The nobles gasped.

The girl's breath caught.

Kaito's hands clenched into fists. His jaw tightened.

Reyzen thought to himself:

My son stands at the same league as my 100 elite knights. But I… I am leagues beyond them. Let's see, Kaito… how far you've truly come.

The hall fell into silence.

The duel of fate had begun.

TO BE CONTINUED…