Chapter 15: The Third Flame, and the First Time She Lied

Reincarnated as a Background Character — Boss Fell in Love With Me

Chapter 15: The Third Flame, and the First Time She Lied

The arrival of the Third Flame was akin to a bolt from the blue, a cataclysm that descended upon their world with an unsettling swiftness that left no time for preparation or contemplation. There were no heralding horns, no envoys sent forth to announce its coming. There was no grand ceremony or sacred rites to prepare the Ash Court for what was to unfold. It arrived simply and brutally, a blaze incarnate.

With an unmistakable, ethereal elegance, it cascaded from the firmament like divine silk unfurling in the wind—its hues a mesmerizing blend of deep crimson and vibrant gold. This inferno burned with an intensity that seemed to defy the very nature of heat, casting an omnipotent glow upon the Ash Court. It illuminated the area below not just with light, but with the weight of a judgment handed down from the cosmos itself, a decree that required no trial or jury.

Raze moved swiftly to the balcony, feeling as if the very air had thickened around him with anticipation. Just as he reached it, he beheld a sight that would be etched into his mind forever: the Sigil of Ascendancy flared to life in the sky, manifesting as three intersecting circles wreathed in holy flame. It was a symbol as ancient as it was powerful—its appearance heralding the final stage of the Pact.

A series of notifications flickered urgently in the back of Raze's mind, each one pulsing with significance:

[Pact Alert: Phase III Achieved — Ascendant Tier Unlocked]

[Sync: 98% — Stable]

[Next Activation: On Emotional Overload or Will Convergence]

[Trial III: The Invitation of the Flame is pending…]

[Location: Unknown.]

As he processed this staggering shift, he turned his gaze and found Velzeria by his side. She had not moved from her spot, yet the change in her demeanor was unmistakable: her form was rigid, as if she were a statue carved from stone, and the light in her eyes seemed dimmed, gazing far beyond the present moment. The tether that connected them—an ethereal thread of emotion and intent—remained ominously quiet.

Too quiet.

"…You knew this would happen," Raze murmured, his voice low and tinged with hurt.

"I suspected," she confessed, her tone a mixture of resignation and something Raze couldn't quite place.

"But you didn't tell me," he pressed, the sting of betrayal weaving through his words.

"I didn't want you afraid," she replied, her gaze not meeting his.

Raze's stare bore into her with intensity, searching for the honesty he so desperately needed. This was the first time he felt the weight of a lie fall between them like a brick in the air, palpable and suffocating. He sensed the bond stretching, straining against the truth that lay unspoken.

[Sync Stability: –2%]

[Passive Feedback Registered: Suppressed Intent Detected]

They shared a profound silence that stretched into the night, heavy with all that was left unsaid. Velzeria, it seemed, had no desire to elaborate on her foreknowledge, while Raze found himself paralyzed by his own reluctance to pry further. In that silence, an emotional rift widened between them, a distance that felt like an aching bruise—small yet deep, quiet yet resonant. It was akin to a spiderweb crack forming in glass that one once believed unbreakable.

As dawn painted the sky with tentative light, their stillness was shattered by the arrival of a summons. An entity not born of human flesh nor truly alive—rather, it was a spectral messenger conjured from flickering cinders and rigid laws that governed their reality. The courier's voice was an unintelligible medley of sounds, an otherworldly melody that resonated within them, before it vanished in a burst of radiant light, leaving behind an enigmatic message for Velzeria.

She grasped the sealed scroll, a storm of thoughts flickering behind her calm facade, yet she did not open it.

"We don't have to go," Raze ventured, breaking the silence that hung between them like a heavy fog.

A thin smile graced her lips, but it didn't reach her eyes — a gesture both sad and knowing. "You think I fear what's waiting at the center of the flame?"

Raze shook his head slowly. "No," he clarified, his voice firm yet laced with concern. "I think you fear what I'll become once we get there."

Her expression remained unchanged, revealing nothing but further confirming his fears. It was a reflection of the truth: he was right.

That evening, as twilight cloaked the world in shadows, Velzeria found herself standing before a simple mirror—not the fabled Mirror of Intent that revealed the very core of one's soul, but merely a reflective pane of glass, ordinary yet hauntingly fragile. She scrutinized her reflection for what felt like an eternity, wrestling with demons that remained concealed from Raze.

In a voice barely louder than a whisper, too subtle for even him to perceive, she uttered a plea to the universe—or perhaps to her own heart: "Don't make me choose you over the world."

[Soul Echo Detected – Memory Flag Set]

[You did not hear her words. But the tether did.]

Finally, as the clock tolled midnight, they departed, fingers entwined and souls aligned, yet both were painfully aware that they were walking toward an abyss of uncertainty—toward something that neither fully comprehended, while one of them was already harboring a lie. The weight of unvoiced fears hung heavily in the air, draping over their path like dark clouds before a storm, heralding a tempest that would surely come.

To be continued...