AK : RISING MYTHIC

Pain.

A dull, boiling fire beneath his skin.

Arslan's eyes flinched open as a wave of heat surged through his chest, up into his temples.

> "Ouch…" he groaned, clutching his head as he tried to sit up. "My body… my head is burning…"

He scanned the space around him in disoriented confusion.

Stone walls. Twilight glow from the narrow window.

The familiar arched ceiling of the Mythic Base room.

> "Wait… how did I get here?" he mumbled, wincing again. "I was in the Threshold…"

A voice echoed calmly from the corner of the room.

> "I put you here."

Arslan turned his head sharply.

There, sitting with an annoyingly casual grace on a nearby wooden chair, was Kar'Thæl. His aura was dimmed, no horns or flaming presence—just the shadow of his form, cloaked in a more human appearance, yet still unmistakably unnatural.

> "You collapsed after the binding," Kar'Thæl said, resting his chin on one hand. "Your body barely held together. I carried you back before someone noticed."

Arslan gritted his teeth as another sting hit his ribs.

> "Damn… it feels like I'm being set on fire from the inside."

Kar'Thæl nodded thoughtfully. "That's not far from the truth. You're not just hosting me, Arslan. You're integrating me. My essence, my soul-thread, your vessel... it all fuses. That kind of thing hurts."

Arslan leaned back, sweating, eyes narrowed. "How long was I out?"

Kar'Thæl shrugged. "Long enough. But time is the least of our concerns now."

He leaned forward slightly, voice more serious.

> "Our binding... it was noticed."

> "The moment the ritual completed, a surge of darkness burst outward. Just like when the Messenger Gates opened."

Arslan straightened. "Who noticed?"

> "The Demon World," Kar'Thæl said coldly.

> "In their skies, a fork of lightning tore through the clouds—the old sign of a binding completed. To them, it means one thing: I've returned."

Arslan rubbed his forehead, trying to process it through the pain. "So they'll come?"

Kar'Thæl stood and walked slowly toward the window.

> "Yes. But not to find you. They'll go to the King. To warn him. To twist things. They'll whisper that you've been compromised. That I am active."

> "But they won't know who I'm bound to unless I reveal myself."

Arslan narrowed his eyes. "Can they find you inside me?"

Kar'Thæl turned to him, a hint of amusement playing at the edge of his mouth.

> "No. Not unless I allow it. As long as I remain suppressed within you, I'm just another presence."

> "You keep your mouth shut, I keep my head down—we stay ghosts."

Arslan exhaled, slowly getting to his feet. "Then… we're fine."

Kar'Thæl shook his head.

> "No."

> "Problems will begin to rise soon."

Arslan's expression hardened. "Like what?"

Kar'Thæl paced slowly across the room now, arms behind his back.

> "The Council may begin questioning strange energy surges. The demons might send spies. Even the Echelon Knights might notice something wrong with your aura."

He looked back at Arslan.

> "You're a mythic-ranked knight now—too many eyes on you."

Arslan tilted his head. "Then we'd better be smarter than all of them."

Kar'Thæl gave a low, pleased chuckle. "That's the spirit."

Then Arslan remembered. "The stones… Where are they?"

Kar'Thæl smirked like a man who just cheated death and got away with it.

> "Safe."

> "I moved them myself before the binding."

> "And in their place… I left three fake stones inside the Bound Threshold."

Arslan blinked. "You what?"

> "Identical to the real ones in energy signature and appearance. Enough to fool even your Council of Surge."

> "This way, if anyone goes poking around… they'll find exactly what they want to believe."

> "And your King Farhan… will never doubt you."

Arslan slowly nodded, both impressed and unsettled.

> "That's actually smart…"

> "You protected me… without them knowing it."

Kar'Thæl turned back to the chair and sat again, exhaling.

> "I'm tied to you now, Arslan. If you fall, I fall. That's the deal, remember?"

> "So yes, I'll protect you."

> "And I'll make sure no idiot in a crown suspects the truth."

Then his expression shifted—something quieter behind the smirk.

> "Also… there's a surprise I haven't told you yet."

Arslan raised a brow. "Surprise?"

> "A power. A secret. A weapon, maybe."

> "Something I've never given to any vessel before."

Arslan narrowed his gaze. "Then why not tell me now?"

Kar'Thæl crossed his legs, eyes closing briefly.

> "Because your body isn't ready."

> "Your soul is still adjusting to my thread."

> "If I unlocked it now, it could burn you from the inside out."

Arslan stared at him for a long moment.

> "So you're saying… I get something no one else ever got?"

Kar'Thæl opened one eye.

> "Yes."

> "Because you're not like the others."

> "You didn't get consumed."

> "You made me obey you."

Arslan smirked faintly, despite the pain. "Damn right I did."

> "Now keep your promise… and plz use some healing power to lessen my pain ."

Kar'Thæl grinned.

> "Healing? Sorry, babe, If I use it will hurt you more ."

ARSLAN said "It means, you have healing power too. That's better.....hehehehe"

"You are more smarter than I expected"Kar'Thael said "I hope we will spend good time"

"Yeah will be"Arslan nodded

One more thing" Kar'Thael said "Demons use 3 stones which they had already got, to enter Mid-level demons into your world if You don't give remaining stones to them ... They will hurt innocent people to see my face "

"It means real war is coming soon" Arslan replied" "it's too disgusting...."

They sat in silence for a moment.

The room was calm now, but the world beyond was shifting.

The storm had started.

And the one who could stop it… had just awakened.