The Second Gate loomed, not with the menace of darkness, but with an eerie stillness—as if reality itself bent away from its presence. Unlike the first, which pulsed with power, this one was silent. Waiting. Watching.
Brent stood at the center of the ritual platform carved into volcanic stone, Rae and Lysa flanking him on either side. He was clad in the regalia of a full Paladin of the Twilight Flame—charcoal black armor streaked with pulsing crimson lines, a mantle of glowing fire-threaded silk on his shoulders.
His core pulsed like a beacon.
[Brent – Core Status Updated]
Twilight Paladin Core – Integrated
Flame Resonance: 100% Mastered – Supreme Tier
Shadow Resonance: 72% – Evolving
Light Resonance: 94% – Bound by Vow
New Fusion Trait: Eclipse Brand – Allows instant switching between light/fire/void stances with burning or healing effects
Level: 14 → Level 15 (Gate Synchronization Boost)
New Ability: Radiant Sundering Wake – Upon heavy impact, sends a shockwave of explosive lightfire that can both heal allies and knock back enemies
They were ready. More ready than they had ever been.
But the Gate was not.
The Unexpected Twist
As Brent took his first step forward, the sigils beneath their feet pulsed, then shattered.
Not with an explosion—no, with a whimper.
Everything stopped. Time froze. Wind silenced.
Then the air ripped open.
Not forward, into the Gate as expected—but upward, pulling the trio skyward like puppets without strings. Rae screamed, Lysa clung to Brent's arm as the world blurred into streaks of flame and shadow and memory.
System Notification:
WARNING: GATE ENTRY FAILED – TRAJECTORY OVERRIDE DETECTED
Foreign interference rerouting descent. INITIATING UNSTABLE RELOCATION…
Brent has activated: Trial of the Unnamed Realm
Unique Modifier: Echo Rift Distortion
They didn't land in the expected entry chamber of the Second Gate.
They fell into a battlefield.
The Rift Battlefield – "Ruins of the Broken Sovereign"
Dozens of corpses lined the field—some still glowing, others whispering in languages long dead. Towering statues of fallen gods bent inward, like they'd collapsed while praying. The sky was crimson glass, with veins of black lightning crawling across the clouds.
The three landed hard. Brent rolled, shielding Lysa with his body. Rae hit next, immediately summoning her flame-veiled weapon as she spun into a guarded stance.
"I don't think this is the Gate," Lysa whispered.
"It's not," Brent growled. "It's a trial within a trial.Someone's rerouted us."
Before them, an ancient relic hummed—a fractured crystal throne half-buried in obsidian. Seated upon it was Her.
The Entity from the First Gate.
Except… she was younger here. Her hair shorter, her body flickering with instability like she was only half-present.
She turned her gaze to Brent, eyes burning with layers of time.
"You're early," she said.
The Conversation with Her
"Who did this?" Brent asked. "Was it you?"
"No," Her voice shimmered. "But I am the reason you're still alive. The Gate rejected Kalen for a reason. It needed balance."
"Then why rip us out of our entry?" Rae asked, flaring with defensive energy.
"Because you must see what awaits beyond the Gate before you decide to enter. The Second Gate… isn't a passage—it's a choice."
She stood, one hand raised to the sky. The battlefield twisted.
And around them, Brent's own memories began to rise like specters—Kalen bleeding out, Vaelrick's burning corpse, his mother crying as they fled, Rae clutching his hand under the starlit night.
"I've sealed this Rift for only ten minutes," Her voice echoed now, full of distance and weight. "Survive. Understand. Choose."
The world broke.
Trial Initiated – "Storm of the Broken Bonds"
Beasts made of memories and flame erupted from the cracks. Twisted echoes of people Brent had fought, failed, or saved—all writhing together in malformed rage.
System Notification:
Leveling Barrier Removed: All Resonances Can Now Progress Freely During Rift Trials
Special Trial Perk Activated:
Soulfire Unleashed: Each memory slain fuels your Soul Resonance.
Brent summoned his twin-blade form of Eclipse Brand, glowing with flame on one side, shadow on the other.
Rae synchronized beside him, her Soulflare Vector Chain forming portals around them.
Lysa began to sing.
And then they fought.
Battle Highlights
Brent unleashed Radiant Sundering Wakeagainst a massive projection of Vaelrick's face. It burst apart like crystal dust, empowering him with +1 level (→ Level 16).
Rae directed Brent's next Eclipse strike through her vector chain, reversing it through time, and striking a different enemy from behind.
Lysa summoned an emberborn wyvern of flame and soul-sound, burning through illusions with a shriek that shattered nearby Echo creatures.
But with every strike, Brent's Shadow Resonancegrew.
And in the moment his blade shattered a corrupted version of himself—hollow-eyed and blood-drenched—his core trembled.
[Core Update – Brent Emeris]
Shadow Resonance: 89%
Trait Unlocked: Null Flame Echo – A delayed copy of any technique used within 10 seconds appears behind the target with 80% force
New Fusion Reached: Twilight-Flame Requiem Core
First Stage Complete
End of Trial – Choice Ahead
The Entity reappeared as the battlefield cracked and faded.
"You've passed, Brent Emeris. You've seen the broken bonds of all who will follow this path. The Gate awaits."
"But… we weren't supposed to see this, were we?" Rae asked.
"No," she replied, her eyes on Lysa. "But someonewanted you to. There are still threads pulling from above this world. And not all want the Gate to remain sealed."
Brent stepped forward, battered but alive.
"I don't care who wants it closed. We're going through."
She smiled. "Then go, Twilight Flame. Soul-Bound Three. The Gate opens."