Some legends are born in castles. Others… start in burning barns, with no one watching but ghosts.
Sakamoto's Age: 6.5Location: 3 hours from VelduinTown in danger: BraelorStatus: Surveilled. Exposed. Divided.Weather: Low fog, gray wind, snow bleeding black
Opening Line:
You can't wear a crown made of ashand expect it not to crumble when someone else begs you to save them.
The Message from Braelor
A scout arrives. Bleeding. Burned.
"They're coming. From the Westward Verge. Two shadows. No faces."
"How many dead?" Ravian asks.
"Twenty. More hiding."
"Did they ask for a name?"
"No.They whispered one:Ash Crown."
The Choice
Ravian urges silence.
"This is bait."
"So?" Sakamoto asks.
"So we don't move."
"They're dying."
"They'll die faster if you show your face."
Sakamoto walks to the edge of the outpost hill.
Looks at the horizon.
Then whispers:
"They're already using my name to kill people.So I might as well make it mean something."
Eira's "Creator"
Eira stands in the frost, alone.
A figure in white robes appears — no footsteps, no breath.
"You were born from a spell. Do you know that?" he asks.
"I was born from a mistake."
"You're a resonance copy of a girl who died loving a cursed king.You are what her soul left behind."
"Then why do I feel real?"
"Because pain doesn't care if you're real or not."
He disappears.
She starts walking again.
Toward Braelor.
Ravian Breaks a Rule
Ravian digs into his old pack.
Pulls out a sealed black ring.
Sakamoto stares.
"What is that?"
"A soul lock."
"You said you'd never use one."
"I also said I'd never let you die."
The Battle Begins
As they near Braelor's edge — they see fire.
The air burns sideways.
Villagers scream behind boarded windows.
And two figures stand in the snow:
One wrapped in scrolls
One holding a blade made of glass and bone
The one with the scrolls speaks:
"Ash Crown.You may enter the town.You may even save it."
He unrolls the parchment.
"But you'll never leave it again."