The world had changed.
Gone was the molten sky of the Dragon Realm and the deafening roar of the Birth of Destruction. In its place was an eerie quiet, so deep it pressed against the skin, like velvet woven from silence. Soft light glimmered above, neither sun nor moon, casting a twilight hue across the vast space. Everything was calm. Still.
Jin groaned softly.
His body lay stretched on smooth obsidian stone that pulsed faintly with constellations under the surface, like the floor was made of the night sky itself. He blinked slowly, muscles aching, breath shallow.
A soft warmth pressed against his chest.
Golden hair.
Velka.
She was lying atop him, her breath calm and her fingers gently clenched the front of his clothing, her face nuzzled into his chest.
Jin blinked, the cold air brushing against his skin like ghostly silk. Slowly, he moved to sit up—
But Velka stirred.
"Mmh…" she murmured sleepily, her arms tightening around his waist, pulling him back down with surprising strength. "Warm…"
Jin tensed. "Velka… we need to—"
She let out a soft sigh and hugged him tighter, her cheek pressed against his chest like a child unwilling to leave a dream. Her breathing steadied again, clearly slipping back into sleep.
A small smile tugged at Jin's lips despite himself. The world could be burning, and this woman would still cling to peace if she found it in his heartbeat.
For a few moments, Jin allowed it.
Eventually, Jin whispered gently, "Velka…"
She stirred again, golden lashes parting to reveal eyes like burning suns. For a moment, she looked up at him groggily, her expression blank.
The first thing she saw was him.
Her pupils dilated slightly, golden irises shimmering with confusion, then recognition.
And then...
A deep, blooming red spread across her face.
"Ah—!" she gasped and pushed herself up with both hands, trying to escape his embrace.
But her knees were weak, and the moment she moved, she collapsed forward again, her hands landing against his chest.
Their faces were inches apart.
Velka froze.
So did Jin.
The soft hum of the temple around them seemed to fade.
"Y-You're awake," she said, her voice barely a whisper.
"I am," Jin replied softly.
Her eyes trembled. " I… I didn't mean to—!"
She paused for a moment then she continued " And you held me so tightly. Even when we escaped... you didn't let go."
Jin didn't respond immediately. Instead, he raised a hand and brushed a loose strand of hair from her face.
"Because I didn't want to lose you," he said simply.
Velka's heart pounded. Her lips parted slightly, but no words came. She looked away, flustered, before finally summoning the strength to sit up fully, though her knees still trembled.
She hugged her arms around herself.
"Still... maybe you could have warned me before pulling me so close…"
"I was trying to save your life, not get romantic," Jin replied with a faint grin.
She shot him a half-glare, half-embarrassed look. "Then let me breathe next time."
"Noted."
Jin chuckled softly. "When you sleep, you are in a very peaceful state, just like an innocent child."
Velka turned away, covering her face. "You should've woken me up…"
"I tried," he said, amused. "You hugged tighter."
She went silent, clearly embarrassed.
Still lying beside her, Jin sat up and finally pushed himself to his feet, groaning. His body still ached — the cost of breaking Zhel-vorah's Dragon Glass and warping space with his Astral Rift.
He extended a hand. Velka hesitated, then took it. He helped her up gently.
She looked around for the first time, eyes wide.
They were inside a cathedral-like space, grander than any palace or temple she had ever seen. Massive obsidian pillars stretched into the darkness above, and floating stairways arced through the air without end. Glyphs shimmered in the air, shifting in languages not born from any realm they knew. The stone beneath them was engraved with spiral patterns and constellations, pulsating with slow, heartbeat-like energy.
"Where... are we?" Velka asked.
Jin exhaled.
"Somewhere even I didn't expect." He looked around with a mix of awe and wariness. "This is the Temple of Tumaru."
Velka turned to him. "Tumaru... what is that?"
He gazed upward, eyes tracing the invisible stars above them.
"A name older than most realities. Some say Tumaru was a divine concept. Others, that it was a being who transcended all logic and created a haven for rebels, heretics, and gods who defied fate."
"So this temple was built by him?"
"Or by something left behind by him. Either way, it exists outside time, space, and narrative. It appears only to those who've begun to rewrite their story — who reject what was written."
Velka frowned, stepping closer to him. "So it found us?"
Jin shook his head. "No. I think… my Astral Rift tore space open, and Tumaru answered. Like a guardian watching from the void."
She looked down. "We wouldn't be here if you didn't protect us. If you didn't shield me..."
Jin smiled faintly. "I couldn't let you die, Velka."
Her heart skipped again.
"Jin…" she murmured, staring at him. "Thank you."
He turned to her slowly. "You're not just a god or a warrior. You're one of the few reasons I haven't lost myself. I'll always protect you."
Velka's breath caught. She didn't answer, but her fingers subtly brushed against his.
He didn't pull away.
Just then — a deep, resonant voice echoed through the cathedral.
"You have entered the Temple of Tumaru."
Velka jumped slightly.
The air shimmered. Sigils bloomed around them, floating in golden light. The space felt suddenly alive.
"Your soul has been marked. Your trial begins now."
Jin's eyes narrowed. "So it really is conscious…"
Velka turned to him, tense. "A trial? What kind of trial?"
He smirked faintly.
"I don't know yet. But if Tumaru brought us here... it won't be easy."
From the distant arches ahead, an unseen path lit up with radiant steps, pulsing like veins of destiny itself. The walls trembled faintly, as if breathing.
Velka stepped closer to him instinctively. "We'll face it together, right?"
Jin looked at her with quiet certainty.
"Always."
And together, side by side, they stepped forward into the Trial of Tumaru.