Chapter 2633: Story 2634: The Trial of Blood

Kael fell through darkness.

For several seconds, there was no sound except the rushing wind around him. Then his body struck a cold stone surface.

He rolled across the ground and quickly raised his shield.

“Lena!”

“I’m here!”

Her voice came from nearby.

Elias groaned as he pushed himself upright.

The three siblings stood in a vast underground chamber illuminated by red crystals.

Kael looked upward.

There was no opening above them.

“We’ve been trapped.”

A deep voice answered from the darkness.

“You have been chosen.”

Kael raised his sword.

“Show yourself.”

Three enormous doors appeared in the chamber walls.

Each door carried one symbol.

K-26.

K-27.

K-28.

Lena stared at the first door.

“That one is mine.”

Elias approached the second.

“And that’s mine.”

Kael looked at the final door.

His sword began glowing.

“Then this is mine.”

The voice returned.

“Each heir must face the blood that created them.”

The doors opened simultaneously.

Darkness poured from each entrance.

Elias looked at Kael.

“We stay together.”

The voice thundered through the chamber.

“NO.”

A shockwave separated them.

Kael was thrown toward his doorway.

“Lena!”

She reached for him.

“Kael!”

The doors slammed shut.

Silence followed.

Kael found himself standing alone inside a massive stone hall.

At the far end stood an ancient warrior wearing black armor.

The warrior slowly removed his helmet.

Kael froze.

The face was his own.

Not the First Heir.

Older.

Scarred.

Wounded.

The warrior raised a sword.

“You carry borrowed blood.”

Kael tightened his grip.

“I carry my own life.”

The warrior attacked.

Their blades collided.

Kael blocked the first strike.

Then another.

The warrior moved exactly like him.

Every attack was familiar.

Every defense was perfect.

Kael realized the truth.

“This isn’t an enemy.”

The warrior smiled.

“No.”

He vanished.

Kael turned.

The blade struck his shield.

“You are fighting yourself.”

Kael fell backward.

Meanwhile, Lena stood inside a chamber filled with mirrors.

Every reflection showed a different version of her.

A child.

A soldier.

A queen.

A monster.

One reflection stepped forward.

“You can command the dead.”

Lena shook her head.

“I don’t want to.”

“You will.”

“I choose not to.”

The reflection smiled.

“Then why are you afraid?”

Lena stared at herself.

Because she knew the answer.

She was afraid of becoming what Veyr had created.

She closed her eyes.

“I am not his creation.”

The mirrors shattered.

Red light flooded the chamber.

Elsewhere, Elias faced a throne surrounded by corpses.

A voice whispered,

“You are the corrupted heir.”

Elias stared at the throne.

“Yes.”

“You killed.”

“Yes.”

“You commanded the dead.”

“Yes.”

“You cannot return to the living.”

Elias slowly raised his weapon.

“I don’t need to return.”

The throne cracked.

“I only need to protect my family.”

The three chambers suddenly shook.

Kael’s warrior disappeared.

Lena’s shattered mirrors reformed.

Elias’s throne burst apart.

All three doors opened.

The siblings stood together again.

Above them, the Ancient King watched from a towering platform.

“You have passed the first trial.”

Kael raised his sword.

“What was the trial?”

The Ancient King answered.

“To discover whether blood controls you.”

Lena looked at her glowing palm.

“And the next trial?”

The Ancient King smiled.

“Whether you can control the blood.”

Suddenly, the chamber walls opened.

Beyond them stood an enormous army of ancient warriors.

Every soldier lowered their weapon.

Then millions of red eyes opened behind them.

The Ancient King raised one hand.

“Choose your kingdom.”

Kael looked at Lena and Elias.

Then he stepped forward.

“We don’t want a kingdom.”

His sword began glowing.

“We want an end to this war.”

The Ancient King stared at him.

For the first time, it smiled.

“Then you must defeat the one who started it.”

Behind the throne, a massive door opened.

Marcus Veyr stood beyond it.

But beside him stood the First Heir.

And both were waiting.

The final bloodline battle had begun.