Chapter 17 Threads of Fire and Starlight

Zane

The Rift pulsed again. And the sky bled shadows.

I turned, breathing hard. Blood—some mine, most not—dripped from the end of my great sword, steaming where it hit the cobbled stone.

The square was chaos. Civilians screamed behind splintered stalls. Vendors clutched charm-pads that no longer glowed, their magic useless. A child sobbed beneath a floating food cart, its levitation rune still flickering stubbornly, refusing to fail.

Something stepped through.

Oh shit.

I didn’t so much hear it as feel the collective gasps of everyone around us.

I gulped.

It moved as if the world itself had to make space for its passage. Broad-shouldered. Draped in black, rune-cracked plate armor. Every step echoed through the fractured stone beneath its weight. Its helmet was half-rusted iron, half-exposed bone. Its eyes—twin stars of sunken blue flame—locked on me the moment it fully cleared the Rift.

It wasn’t looking at the civilians or searching the scattered ruins of the market for fallen soldiers.

It was looking directly at me.

Eva’s voice dropped to a chilling whisper.

[Eva: Oh, no.]

I didn’t ask.

I already knew.

[Eva: S-Class Entity Detected – Classification: Death Knight] [Probability of Survival in Direct Conflict: 0.003%]

My throat tightened. My grip on the great sword clenched until my knuckles ached.

[Eva: Zane… that’s a Death Knight…]

Eva’s warning continued, filled with a rare, desperate urgency.

I didn’t respond. The Death Knight raised its weapon—slowly.

Eva’s voice sharpened, cutting through the haze of battle.

[Eva: You have to run.]

“No.”

[Eva: You can’t fight that thing. Class A adventure groups shouldn’t fight that thing. You need at least two S-class Sword Masters to take down a Death Knight. It’s suicide. You’re not ready.]

“I don’t care.”

[Eva: It’s going to kill you.]

“I know.”

The Death Knight took another step, its heavy footfalls echoing like a death knell.

Around us, civilians still stumbled for cover, their screams a frantic chorus. A few children cowered beneath shattered carts. The city guards were down, unconscious or worse some of them had actually attempted to fight the initial round of Rift beasts and skeletons. Mages scrambled for backup that wouldn’t come in time.

I exhaled, the sound thin in the suddenly vast silence.

“You know what happens if I run?”

[Eva:…Someone else dies.]

I paused, a grim determination setting in. “No. Everyone here dies. Including my siblings. I cannot beat that thing. But I might be able to hold it off. Until… until someone that can beat it gets here.”

A beat passed, heavy with unspoken concern.

[Eva: Damn you, husband.]

The Death Knight raised its blade higher, its movements deliberate, devoid of haste.

It loomed giving its oversized blade a couple of practice swing. You'd thought a hurricane and just landed. The pressure around it cracked the air—stones fracturing beneath the sheer weight of a swing that hadn’t even landed yet.

If I didn’t act, everyone—including me and my siblings—was going to die.

I swallowed hard, tasting dust and fear.

“You got any ideas?” I murmured, my voice raspy.

Eva hesitated, a pause that felt like an eternity.

[Eva: Yes. And… you’re not going to like it.]

The Death Knight unslung its massive blade. It wasn’t long. It wasn’t sharp.

It didn’t need to be.

It was ancient. Half-snapped. Burned black at the edges, glowing faintly from the deep, corrosive grooves etched along its immense weight. Its aura soaked the plaza like spilled oil, a suffocating presence of death-aspected mana.

I instinctively reached for another mana blade—

My core staggered.

Too much. Too soon. I was using a ton of mana to maintain my stats.

[Eva: He’s watching you,] Eva said softly, her voice oddly detached now. [Not the crowd. Not the Rift. You.]

I adjusted my stance, widening it, grounding myself. I didn’t blink, my gaze locked on the terrifying figure before me.

“I noticed. Any thoughts on why?”

[Eva: Probably the purity of your mana. Death Knights used to be human—so the theory goes. Pure mana, truly pure mana… it makes them remember. A flicker of what they once were.]

“How is that helping?”

[There’s an old protocol in the Divine Archives. Technically deprecated. Ancient honor combat framework—remnants of the Sovereign Duel Codex. But his interest… it might work. It might buy time until reinforcements arrive.]

“How long?”

[Seven minutes for Strike Team One.]

I stared at her through the interface, the absurdity of the situation almost comical. “You want me to challenge it to a duel?”

[Better than getting stepped on.]

“How would that even work? Why would he give up his tactical advantage?”

The Death Knight raised its blade—pointed it directly at me.

Then paused.

Waiting.

[If you can trigger the memory of the dying soul within him, there’s a chance he’ll respond. A remnant of his former honor. But you’re going to have to open everything you know. You know what that means.]

I swallowed hard, the concept chilling me to the bone. “Do it.”

[Initializing: Dueling Protocol – System Archive v2.11 – Sovereign Class Amendment]

[Challenge Issued – Sword-Only Terms – Caster Discipline Sealed]

[Awaiting Response…]

The Death Knight tilted its helmeted head, its blue flames for eyes flickering. Then, impossibly—it nodded.

[Challenge Accepted – Bound Terms Enacted]

[Combat Parameters Locked: Pure Swordsmanship with Mana Method – Body Strengthening Only – No Spells – Duel Format Exclusive]

The Rift behind the knight dimmed—pausing its incessant spew of monsters.

The world seemed to breathe.

[Zane…] Eva whispered, a rare note of genuine warning in her voice. [If you break the rules, so will he. And he will not be merciful. He won’t just kill you. He will devour your soul and the soul of anyone that’s related to you. That’s his price.]

I nodded, my resolve hardening. “I won’t.”

I stepped forward.

No firestorm. No area-of-effect spells. No complicated spell scripts.

Just breath.

Balance.

Mana and a little secret…

The crowd didn’t cheer. They didn’t gasp.

They just watched—frozen in terrified silence—as a boy stepped forward to meet a walking weapon of history.

I rolled my shoulder.

The square held its breath.

I stared at the Death Knight’s weapon—massive, chipped, dragging sparks across stone. A relic of violence. A grave marker in motion.

I didn’t want to answer it with anything less.

I felt for the core at Dietitian.

“Eva.”

[Yes.]

[Open it.]

[Oh hell yeah.]

Power flooded my body.

I looked toward the civilians still crouched in alleyways. I looked at my siblings, huddled behind Lila’s protective stance.

But I wasn’t done yet.

“Call her.”

[You got it.]

[Weapon Summon: Veyr’s Echo.]

The air behind me cracked.

Not like thunder.

Like a seal breaking.

Mana collapsed inward—folding space, folding reality itself—drawn to a single point behind my spine.

And then it breathed.

Out of silence, it formed.

Not forged.

Not built.

Born.

A longsword—silver, black-edged, rune-lined. It shimmered with arcs of latent force, as if remembering every strike it had ever executed.

Runes curled around the hilt—elegant, lethal—etched by instinct, not spell.

A single name pulsed near the guard: Veyr.

I caught it mid-turn. The blade fit like it had never belonged anywhere else.

The air sang.

A low harmonic—metal, mana, memory.

[Soulbound Weapon: Veyr’s Echo]

[Type: Soulbound Longsword Level 2]

[Weapon Class: Echo-type Memory Blade]

[Material Composition: Mana-forged imprint matrix (non-replicable), Latent harmonic mana resonance, Self-generated runes (Core Signature Synced)] [Core Properties: Weight: None (soulbound synchrony), Length: 118.3 cm, Edge: Dual, adaptive, Handling: 100% synergy with Zane Myles, Channeling Loss: 0.02%] [Unique Abilities:]

·      · Perfect Motion Memory: Remembers every movement Zane has executed. Can replay or layer past strikes into present ones.

·      Power Conduction (Sovereign Grade): Can channel any known power in the Sea of Worlds.

·      Instinctive Rune Sync: Blade runes shift in real-time to reflect Zane’s intent.

·      Edge of the Soul: Bypasses minor magical barriers and corrupt bindings.

·      Resonance Harmonic: Flares with a frequency that disrupts enemy spells and constructs.

[System Note: Weapon classified as Willborn. Origin unknown. Not replicable. Summon only under stabilized or sanctioned conditions. User Zane Myles – For Now]

Across the plaza, the Death Knight shifted its stance, raising its enormous, ancient blade. Acknowledging it.

No words. No flourish. Just the weight of recognition.

They stepped forward. And the duel began