THE GENERAL'S DISGRACED HEIR

David blinked, his mind struggling to process the surreal beauty of his surroundings. The ground beneath him felt soft, like he was standing on a cloud. A gentle breeze caressed his skin, carrying with it the faint scent of something otherworldly—like rain mixed with the fragrance of blossoms long forgotten by time.

"Where… am I?" David whispered to himself, his voice barely audible in the quiet stillness of this floating paradise. He tried to recall the last thing he remembered. The infirmary, Seraphina\'s concerned gaze, Amilia healing his loved ones... but now, everything felt distant, like it had been part of another world altogether.

His body felt weightless, and as he took a tentative step forward, the ground shifted subtly beneath him, as if it were alive, reacting to his presence. David gazed at the glowing spires in the distance, their architecture reminding him of something ancient and divine—like they belonged to a forgotten age where gods walked among mortals.

Confusion gnawed at him. Was this a dream? A vision? Or had something happened during his wait in the infirmary? His heart raced as he turned in a slow circle, taking in the vastness of this celestial realm. There was no sign of the infirmary, no familiar faces, no trace of the mortal world he knew. Just endless beauty, endless light, and endless mystery.

"What happened to me?" he murmured, a hint of unease creeping into his voice as he scanned the skies for any sign of life, any hint of familiarity. But the place seemed desolate, untouched by human hands, as if he were the only soul to have ever set foot here.

His mind raced with possibilities. Was this the afterlife? Had something gone wrong with the healing process? Or was this some kind of test—a divine trial?

Whatever the case, David knew one thing: he wasn\'t in Ternion anymore.

David\'s gaze slowly dropped to the ground beneath his feet, expecting to see the usual dirt or stone, but instead, he was met with something entirely different. Below him, the skies stretched endlessly in all directions, reflecting the same golden light that bathed the ethereal realm. But what truly caught his attention was not the beauty of the skies—it was his reflection staring back at him.

It wasn\'t the face he was used to seeing in the mirror every day. No, this face was different, a visage he had long buried deep within himself. The person staring back at him wasn\'t David, the last-born heir of the De Gor family. It was Mark.

His reflection stood tall, naked, yet glowing white as if he were a ghost. The ethereal light surrounded his form, making his bare skin shimmer, almost transparent. But the most striking feature of all was his eyes—one of them glowed a brilliant violet, swirling with an intensity that sent chills down his spine. His hair, dark as night, hung over his face in messy strands, casting shadows over his chiseled features. The faintest hint of darkness seemed to emanate from him, swirling around him like a ghostly aura.

Mark\'s expression was unreadable, his lips pressed into a thin line, his gaze cold and distant. This wasn\'t the face of the carefree David, the one who had grown up in the shadows of his powerful family. No, this was the face of Mark—the true self he had hidden from the world for so long. The one who had once felt lost, abandoned by fate, and who now stood before him as a stark reminder of the darkness he had once embraced.

David—or rather, Mark—took a step back, but the reflection mirrored him perfectly. His breath caught in his throat as he stared deeper into the violet eye that pulsed with an unknown power, the darkness swirling around him more intensely now, as if beckoning him to remember who he truly was. His body felt light, as if he were nothing more than a figment of this strange place, a ghost trapped in an endless dream.

"Mark…" he whispered softly, the name sounding foreign on his tongue. It had been so long since he had even thought of himself as anything other than David. Yet here, in this celestial realm, there was no hiding from the truth.

His reflection tilted its head slightly, a smirk tugging at the corners of its lips, as if amused by his confusion. This was him—the real him—stripped bare, without the titles, without the expectations, without the masks. Just Mark.

"What does this mean?" David—Mark—asked himself. But the reflection offered no answers, only the silent, knowing gaze of his violet eye staring back at him. The endless skies beneath his feet swirled gently, as if in response, but they, too, remained silent, leaving him to face the truth alone.

It was then that he realized—there was no going back.

David took a deep breath, steadying himself as he began to walk forward. Each step felt lighter than the last, as if the very ground beneath him was urging him onward. His eyes scanned the surroundings: an open, arched building of pristine white stone, its walls adorned with intricate carvings that shimmered in the same celestial light.

The architecture was grand and elegant, reminiscent of the majestic structures of the place, but with a surreal quality that made him feel like he was standing in a dream.

As he ventured deeper into the building, something caught his attention. Set in the centre of the grand hall was a circle etched into the marble floor. Strange, mysterious symbols were written all around its edges, spiralling inward toward a focal point in the middle. The markings were unlike anything David had seen before, twisting and intertwining with an almost sentient energy. They seemed to pulse faintly, as if waiting for something—or someone.

David hesitated, studying the symbols carefully. "Am I dead?" he whispered to himself, his voice echoing through the hollow hall. The question hung in the air, unanswered. Was this all a dream? Had he been imagining everything—the battles, the mysteries, the people he cared for? He shook his head, trying to make sense of it all, but the more he thought, the more confused he became.

Having nothing left to lose, David took a step into the circle. At first, nothing happened. He waited, holding his breath, his heart beating in his chest. "Of course," he muttered under his breath, berating himself. "You really thought something magical was going to happen."

But just as the words left his lips, the symbols around the circle began to glow, one by one. A soft hum filled the air, growing louder with each passing second. David\'s eyes widened as holographic screens materialized before him, floating in mid-air. The sudden appearance of the screens startled him, and he took a cautious step back, his guard immediately raised.

On the screens were images of a dark, swampy region, the land teeming with bodies scattered across the murky water. Shadows moved in the background, figures he couldn\'t quite make out, but something within him stirred. David felt a deep connection to the place, as if he had been there before, but the memory remained just out of reach, hovering at the edge of his mind.

"What... what does this mean?" David asked aloud, his voice carrying a mix of frustration and confusion. He reached out toward the screen, but his hand passed through it, his fingers brushing against nothingness. The more he looked at the scene, the more the pieces in his mind started to connect—but still, he couldn\'t remember.

Suddenly, David\'s body began to shimmer, growing transparent as if it were turning into mist. He panicked, his voice rising with urgency. "What is this? What\'s happening?" he shouted at the screen, but it offered no answers. The glowing images flickered, and just before he vanished completely, another screen appeared in front of him.

[Quest has been updated.]

David\'s heart raced as he tried to focus on the next screen, but before he could read the words, his vision blurred, and his surroundings dissolved into nothing. The last thing he saw before disappearing entirely was the screen\'s second message:

[Change the fate of the coming-of-age ceremony.]

Everything went dark.

The next moment, David opened his eyes to the familiar sight of the infirmary ceiling. His body felt heavy, as if it had just returned from another world. He blinked a few times, adjusting to his surroundings.

Amilia and Seraphina were lying on his chest, their soft breathing brushing against his skin. They were both in the bed with him, their peaceful expressions a stark contrast to the chaos he had just experienced.

David felt a flicker on his forehead, and he instinctively winced. Looking up, he saw Katrina standing beside the bed, retracting her hand after flicking his head playfully with her finger. "Wake up, sleeping prince," she teased, a smirk playing on her lips.

Shay and Vivian stood nearby, both awake and smiling, their eyes filled with relief. "Took you long enough," Shay said, folding her arms. Vivian nodded in agreement, her grin widening.

David\'s heart swelled with emotion as he took in the sight of his companions, but his mind still lingered on the visions he had seen. The flicker of the swamp, the strange quest—what did it all mean? As the warmth of his loved ones surrounded him, he knew that the answers would come. But for now, he was just glad to be back.