Unseen by Tsukasa and his companions, high above the tavern's ruins, in a shadowed balcony overlooking the street, a figure watched.
A tall man clad in dark, regal robes trimmed with crimson thread, his long silver hair catching the torchlight. His eyes — a cold, calculating shade of gold — narrowed as he witnessed Tsukasa's transformation.
Lord Vaelric Drenmor, one of the ancient noble families of Dravorn. A man known for his ruthless dealings in the city's underbelly, and whispered to have ties to forbidden magics. But even for all his knowledge, what he saw tonight was unlike anything he had ever encountered.
He watched as the outsider's armor materialized through a ring of glyphs, as fire and runes spiraled around his body — the very laws of magic bent without incantation, without catalysts, without price.
And then the Final Attack Ride — an impossible display of overwhelming power. A force that struck with the precision of magic but carried none of the world's known mana signatures.
Vaelric's lips curled into a thin, dangerous smile.
"So… a new power awakens in this decaying world," he murmured to himself, voice like a serpent's hiss. "A force not born of the ancient gods… nor the demon kings… nor the bloodlines of men. An anomaly."
He turned to the shadowed figure at his side, a servant cloaked in darkness.
"Find out everything about this 'Guy'" Vaelric ordered. "Who he is. What he is. And why the stars themselves recoil at his presence."
The servant bowed low. "As you command, my lord."
Vaelric's golden eyes gleamed with hungry curiosity.
"A power like that… if it cannot be controlled… it must be destroyed. But if it can…"
He let the words hang in the air like poison.
In the streets below, Tsukasa holstered his Decadriver with a flick. Lumi and Elara regrouped by his side as more city guards and panicked civilians began to swarm the area.
"We need to move," Lumi urged. "There'll be questions we don't wanna answer."
Tsukasa gave a lazy smirk. "Yeah, yeah. Lead the way."
But as they vanished into the alleys, none of them noticed the unseen predator watching from above.
And for the first time in centuries, Lord Vaelric felt a thrill of unease.
This world had no name for the power he just witnessed.
A force unbound by this world's rules.
A power ancient yet unknown.
And it would change the balance of power in Dravorn forever.