Setting: The City of Masks –
A symbolic city where no faces are allowed to show. Governed by cryptic rituals and laws. It is ruled by a mysterious order known as The Silent Mirror.
After the shadow at the grave revealed that the sixth commander is now being used, Musayuki's group heads toward the City of Masks.
Sajibro (gazing from afar):
"It looks quiet… but this city doesn't sleep – it disguises itself."
Hana (tying a black mask onto her face):
"Everything here is false… even the silence."
Before entry, they are all forced to wear finely crafted metal masks.
Each mask reflects a repressed emotion of the wearer.
Kain (whispering as he puts his on):
"It's as if this mask knows me… more than I know myself."
Inside the city, sounds are muffled, and faces are hidden.
Everyone on the streets moves in a strange rhythm,
as if dancing to a melody that cannot be heard.
Igris (examining symbols on the walls):
"These aren't decorations… they're enchantments – spirit-binding spells."
Hana (placing a hand on her head):
"There are… whispers… calling me… by my old name… Luna."
Zu-Ken (peering from under his mask):
"What is this place? It's alive… as if it's swallowing us."
At the heart of the city, the group arrives at a square called The Mirror of a Thousand Masks.
There, the Dance of Souls begins.
The dancers wear masks glowing with pale blue light,
moving in eerie harmony, as if bound by an invisible chain.
Suddenly, the dance's leader appears...
Masked, tall, moving with a strange confidence and regal presence.
Igris (in a low voice):
"That's him… Seraphin."
Kara:
"He was once a symbol of peace among us… how did he become a master of shadow rituals?"
Seraphin (his voice emerging from the mask, deep and doubled):
"I have not changed… You simply forgot that peace is never born without sacrifice."
Musayuki (focusing on his aura):
"His aura… it's mixed. There's a trace of Raizen… and something else."
Sajibro:
"He's not speaking of his own will… The mask is feeding on his soul."
Seraphin raises his hand… and the ritual begins.
Neutral spirits rise from the earth, swirling in the skies, seeking bodies to possess.
Hana (startled):
"They're… using these rites to rebuild an army of will-less souls!"
Raizen (appearing as a shadow above the city):
"The masks reveal the truth… You are not loyal to the shadow – only to yourselves."
Musayuki (stepping forward, removing his mask):
"I won't hide my face… I won't fight behind a mask."
His energy surges, his eyes glowing.
He faces Seraphin—not with power, but with a word:
"Remember who you were… not who they made you become."
The mask on Seraphin's face trembles… then begins to crack.
But before it fully falls, black shadows leap from the depths of the earth,
surrounding the group in a sudden vortex of darkness.
Kain (raising his blade):
"We have a minute before this place devours us. Either we awaken his soul… or we vanish."
Seraphin strikes his mask, and in a final surge of dark light, vanishes along with his soldiers—
their spirits now reclaimed.
End of Chapter Fifteen