Rain continued to fall.
Cold.
Relentless.
Unforgiving.
Kael stood at the doorway long after Orion disappeared.
His words echoed endlessly in his mind.
Eleven Throne Holders.
Eleven monsters.
Eleven gods in human form.
And every one of them now knew he existed.
A weak cough came from behind him.
Kael immediately turned.
“Lyra.”
She slowly sat up.
Color had returned to her face.
Not much.
But enough to notice.
For the first time in months, she didn’t look like she was dying.
That should have made him happy.
Instead, it terrified him.
Nothing about this was normal.
Nothing.
“Brother.”
Lyra smiled weakly.
“You look scared.”
Kael forced a smile.
“I’m fine.”
She rolled her eyes.
“You always lie when you’re worried.”
For a moment, the room felt normal again.
Like old times.
Before thrones.
Before gods.
Before death itself had entered their lives.
Then—
BANG.
The door burst open.
Kael instantly moved in front of Lyra.
A hooded figure stepped inside.
Then another.
Then another.
Five in total.
Church members.
The same silver armor hidden beneath dark cloaks.
Kael’s muscles tensed.
But something felt different.
They weren’t holding weapons.
The scarred priest stepped forward.
The same man who had tried to kill him.
His expression was grim.
“We don’t have much time.”
Kael stared.
“What?”
“The War Throne has mobilized.”
Silence.
The priest continued.
“Our scouts reported movement an hour ago.”
“Movement?”
The priest nodded.
“An army.”
Kael felt his stomach drop.
“How big?”
The room fell silent.
Nobody answered immediately.
Finally—
“Two hundred thousand.”
Even Lyra’s eyes widened.
Two hundred thousand soldiers.
For one person.
The realization felt absurd.
Terrifying.
Impossible.
Yet somehow Kael knew it was true.
The Death Throne wasn’t merely feared.
It was hated.
The priest took a deep breath.
“You must leave Elaris.”
Kael frowned.
“Why help me?”
The old priest laughed bitterly.
“Because the Church made the same mistake ten thousand years ago.”
Kael froze.
“What mistake?”
The priest’s eyes darkened.
“We feared the Death Throne.”
His voice became quiet.
“So we created the monster ourselves.”
Before Kael could ask more—
A soldier rushed inside.
Panic covered his face.
“Father!”
The priest turned.
“What happened?”
The soldier’s voice shook.
“The eastern gate.”
Silence.
“What about it?”
The soldier swallowed.
Then whispered:
“They’re here.”
The room froze.
Impossible.
The War Throne’s army should have been days away.
The priest seemed to realize something.
His face lost all color.
“No…”
Kael felt danger creeping into the room.
Then—
The entire city shook.
BOOOOOOM.
A deafening explosion echoed across Elaris.
Windows shattered.
Walls cracked.
People screamed outside.
Kael rushed to the window.
And froze.
A gigantic crater had appeared beyond the city walls.
Smoke rose into the sky.
Lightning illuminated the darkness.
And standing at the center of the crater…
Was a single man.
Not an army.
Not a battalion.
One man.
Over two meters tall.
Black armor.
A massive sword resting on his shoulder.
His presence alone felt heavier than mountains.
Every instinct inside Kael screamed.
Run.
The man slowly raised his head.
Even from miles away…
Their eyes met.
Golden eyes.
Cold eyes.
The eyes of a conqueror.
Draven Ashborn.
The War Throne Holder.
The monster who commanded nations.
The man smiled.
Then took a step forward.
BOOM.
The city walls exploded.
One step.
That was all it took.
Screams erupted throughout Elaris.
Panic consumed the streets.
People ran in every direction.
The priest grabbed Kael’s shoulder.
“Go!”
Kael didn’t move.
His eyes remained fixed on Draven.
The War Throne Holder wasn’t looking at the city.
Wasn’t looking at the Church.
Wasn’t looking at the soldiers.
He was only looking at Kael.
As if nothing else existed.
As if the entire city was meaningless.
The priest shouted again.
“GO!”
This time Kael moved.
He grabbed Lyra.
The group rushed through the back exit.
Rain hammered the streets.
Chaos consumed everything.
Buildings burned.
People screamed.
The city was dying.
And it had happened in less than five minutes.
Ahead, the Church soldiers guided them toward an underground tunnel.
Their escape route.
Their only chance.
Kael helped Lyra down the stone staircase.
Then—
She suddenly stopped.
Her body froze.
“Lyra?”
No response.
Her eyes widened.
Completely white.
The air around her trembled.
The rain outside stopped moving.
The wind stopped.
Even sound vanished.
Everyone froze.
Except Kael.
And Lyra.
A strange silver light emerged from her chest.
Soft.
Beautiful.
Ancient.
The priest stared in horror.
“No…”
One soldier fell to his knees.
Another started praying.
Kael grabbed Lyra’s shoulders.
“What’s happening?!”
Slowly…
Very slowly…
A symbol appeared above her head.
A glowing silver hourglass.
The exact symbol Kael had seen floating around Orion.
The symbol of Time.
The priest’s voice trembled.
Impossible.
Utterly impossible.
“The Time Throne…”
Kael’s blood ran cold.
Then the priest whispered words that shattered everything.
“Your sister…”
He stared at Lyra.
“…is a Throne Candidate.”
Silence.
The silver light continued to grow.
And far away—
In the middle of the ruined city—
Orion Zephar suddenly stopped walking.
For the first time in centuries…
The Time Throne Holder looked shocked.
Completely shocked.
Because the future had just changed.
And he had no idea why.
End of Chapter 5