It had been one day since the fall of Lyr'Thal.
My father, Rodrigo, was awake now, though still bandaged and bruised from head to toe.Matías had also opened his eyes, pale but stable.
The bodies of the fallen had been cremated.The names of the twenty-seven were recorded and remembered.Their families received comfort, presence… and promises.
But the silence in the halls still echoed like distant thunder.
And that day…we all gathered.
The great hall had been cleared.No long tables, no decorations.Just rows of chairs and the weight of collective exhaustion.
In that room sat my grandparents, my uncles, my parents, the squad captains, and the heads of every department—from agriculture to defense, from cooking to healing.
Their faces said it all.
Deep shadows under their eyes. Eyes swollen with tears. Fear. Guilt. Silence.
Some murmured.Others stared at the ground.A few whispered that hope was slipping away.That if the Lich was only the first… we were doomed.
And then, my father stood up.
Rodrigo released his aura.
Not as a threat—but as reassurance.
Like a warm, invisible hand pressing on every heart, reminding them:you're still alive.
Beside him, Grandfather Patricio closed his eyes and activated his ability.
An unseen wave of emotional energy rippled through the room.Fear turned to stillness.Stillness to clarity.And slowly… determination.
I raised my hand for silence.And they gave it.
—Yesterday… —I began— was a victory. But also… a loss.Twenty-seven of our people are gone.And not because we weren't brave.Not because we didn't try.
But because we failed.
I let the silence hang.
—And today, we need to talk about that.
I looked at everyone in the room.
—What did we do wrong? What must we improve?
One by one, voices rose.
A captain said we lacked unity.Another blamed poor coordination.One mentioned not enough people on the front lines.A healer, sobbing, admitted they didn't know how to treat spiritual corruption.
And then… Rodrigo spoke.
—We are weak.
The room fell silent.
The words hit like a hammer.
—If we had been stronger… there would have been fewer injuries.If I… had been stronger…I could have saved my comrade.
Then, without warning—he knelt.
Every gaze locked onto him.
Rodrigo lowered himself until his forehead touched the ground.He slammed it.Blood splashed across the floor.
—Forgive me… —he whispered, his voice cracking—. I wasn't enough.I wasn't strong enough.I couldn't protect you all.
And he wept.
No one spoke.
Some stared at the ground.Others at him.And in their eyes…
The image of a man who gave everything—Who nearly died to defend them—and still begged for forgiveness…
It shattered them.
And something ignited in their hearts.
A flame.
Small.Flickering.
But alive.
Rodrigo lifted his head.
And that's when I saw it.
His aura began to glow.
Not with rage.But with depth.With something new—something pure.
And then…it exploded.
A spiritual shockwave pulsed through the hall.His energy doubled, then tripled.It was different.
Stronger.Realer.
I knew immediately:
A second awakening.
I had only seen it once in my past life.
Kevin.
One of the strongest warriors we ever knew.He had awakened at the brink of death, during a battle against a Level 8 creature.After awakening, he traded his life to destroy it—dying seconds later.
My father…
had done it.
I didn't know how.But it had happened.
There he was—on his knees.Bleeding.Shining.
And not to destroy—
To protect.
My mother was crying silently.My uncles watched in awe.Everyone present…
had witnessed something beyond human.
And in their hearts,the flame that had just been born…
began to grow.