[Chapter 249. The Vanguard]

The night had cleared, the rain stopping just as they approached the dark structure on the horizon. The receding storm left a glistening sheen on the landscape, the air thick with the scent of damp earth. Darkness gave them cover as their formation moved with practiced stealth across the unfamiliar terrain. They didn't know what they were walking toward, only that it was massive and unlike anything they had encountered in this strange world. From a distance, it looked like a dark tower standing atop a lone mountain, its form blotting out the stars. But that couldn't be true—this world was too young for a city to exist. It was a thought that troubled even the most experienced among them.

Kilyth had no wings like the rest of her team, so she had to run to keep up. Her half-breed body, though not as powerful as the purebloods, was conditioned for endurance. Her lungs burned with each breath as she matched their pace across the uneven ground. Her eyes, adapted to low light, darted between the flying forms above and the ground below, searching for danger. When they drew close enough for the dark structure to take shape against the horizon, they stopped. The sudden stillness felt more threatening than the journey itself.

"It's not a mountain. They're walls," one of the larger purebloods said, his boots making no sound as he landed on the soft ground. His voice was low, carrying a tone of disbelief. "From afar, it looks like one of our own." The comparison to their own fortress-cities was unsettling; the proportions were all wrong, yet the intent was unmistakably similar.

"So it's a fortress," the commander of the scout team said, his wings folding against his back as he touched down. He looked around. There was no sign of life—no torches, no movement—nothing but the imposing structure and the surrounding wilderness. "Scout the area for traps. Find an entrance." His command was crisp, leaving no room for hesitation.

The purebloods took to the skies, splitting into two teams. Their eyes scanned the dark walls that rose like an obsidian scar against the night sky, their enhanced vision picking out details Kilyth could barely perceive. The sheer scale of the architecture was staggering, dwarfing anything she had seen before. Kilyth remained below, her boots sinking into the damp earth as she watched them ascend. The silence stretched, heavy with unspoken hierarchies, before the commander's voice cut through it.

"Kilyth, ground approach," he commanded, gesturing toward her without meeting her eyes. His voice carried the casual dismissal she had grown accustomed to—a subtle reminder of her place among the winged elites. "Make yourself useful and scout the perimeter. Be thorough. The rest of you, do not fly over the walls."

Kilyth gave a curt nod, her expression hidden behind the black cloth tied around her lower face. The fabric muffled her breathing, creating a small pocket of warmth against the cool air. She moved with practiced efficiency, her dark clothing blending into the landscape as she traced the perimeter of the massive structure. Each footstep was carefully placed, her senses heightened as she scanned for traps or guards. Her gloved fingers brushed against the seamless black granite, finding no joints, no mortar—nothing but a single, impossibly continuous wall that seemed to have grown from the earth itself. The stone was unnaturally smooth under her touch, colder than the air, and devoid of any weathering despite its seeming age.

She walked for a while along the wall, her legs beginning to ache from the constant tension of maintaining stealth. A paved, dark gray road simply ended at the smooth wall, as if the builders had stopped mid-project. The moonlight illuminated a perfect seam where the cobbled surface met the impenetrable stone, creating an abrupt boundary that defied logic.

`That makes no sense. Why have a road that ends at a wall?`

The thought repeated in her mind as she continued her methodical search, her frustration growing with each step. She scanned the horizon, noting the strange geometry of the structure. There was something unsettling about its perfection—something that spoke of the System's influence.

She made her way further around and stopped at the edge of a farmland stretching into the distance between the slightly angled sections of the wall. The fields were oddly well-tended, with neat rows of crops that glowed faintly in the moonlight, giving off an ethereal luminescence. The plants were unlike anything she'd seen in their territory, featuring broad leaves and thick stalks brimming with life. An hour passed as she inspected the wall and the farmland alike. Her keen eyes noted every detail: the perfect spacing between plants, the lack of weeds, and the strange green color of the vegetation that seemed to drink the moonlight itself.

`There are crops in the field, but no entrance through the wall.`

Who tended these fields? How did they pass through the impenetrable structure? And why build a road that led nowhere, or fields that served no apparent purpose? The questions accumulated, adding to the growing sense that this place defied the rules of their world and the logic that had guided their exploration thus far.

Kilyth knew she had to return. Her duty to report weighed heavily on her shoulders, and she was already late. The knowledge added urgency to each step. She moved quickly, but as she drew closer, she saw something she wasn't prepared for.

Her squad was already back, standing in a defensive fighting formation. Their wings were raised, weapons drawn, and their pureblooded arrogance was replaced by genuine concern. Their bodies formed a tight circle, the shield-bearers on the outer edge projecting a shimmering protective field that rippled under strain.

`What is going on? We are supposed to be among the strongest beings in this world.`

Her thoughts raced, her mind struggling to reconcile the scene before her with their supposed supremacy. The purebloods who treated her with contempt now appeared vulnerable—a fact that was both terrifying and strangely satisfying.

Red flashes of light impacted the shield-bearers barrier, each strike making the protective shield waver like a heat haze in the barren lands. The impacts came in rapid succession—a rhythmic assault that spoke of methodical aggression. A moment later, a flash of lightning crackled through the air, striking something unseen near the source of the red beams. The electrical discharge illuminated the night in a blinding flash, casting stark shadows across the landscape.

She began to run toward her team. Right now, she was all alone—a perfect target for an ambush. Her lungs burned, but the fear propelling her forward overrode the discomfort.

Something large flickered in the air: a pale blue glow that stretched tens of imperial units. It materialized and vanished in rapid succession, creating a strobing effect that disoriented her vision. She was less than one imperial unit in height; from where she stood, that glow looked like an impenetrable wall of pure energy, dwarfing her entire team. A multitude of spells struck the glow near the source of the red bolts, each impact causing the blue barrier to ripple and distort like disturbed water. The air crackled with power, making the fine hairs on her arms stand on end.

Then, something exploded in the air—a concussive blast that sent shockwaves rippling across the ground. The sound was deafening, a gut-wrenching roar that made her eardrums throb. Before she could recover, two more explosions followed, each closer than the last, painting the night sky in brilliant flashes of orange and white, leaving behind only drifting embers of blue light.

`What are they fighting?`

The question echoed in her mind as she closed the distance. Whatever it was, it possessed firepower capable of challenging their supposedly invincible squad. The thought was both terrifying and exhilarating. Perhaps in this strange world, even the purebloods weren't as untouchable as they believed.

Before she could fully close the distance to her scout team, she saw multiple dim flashes of blue light in the sky just outside the massive smooth wall. The darkness of the night was enough to make them stand out, even from afar. The air seemed to ripple with each flash, as if the fabric of space was being stretched and released in rapid succession.

As beams of light filled the darkness, she stopped. Her boots sank into the damp earth as she froze mid-stride, her heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird. The beams moved with impossible speed, cutting through the night with precision. They were not random bursts of energy but directed attacks, each finding its mark with uncanny accuracy.

There were now two pale glowing walls in the sky—far smaller than the one from before. And yet they held. The light that shot from behind them was crimson and violet. The beams tore through the darkness, followed by screams of pain erupting in their wake. The screams were high-pitched, a chorus of agony that resonated in the very marrow of her bones. Each spell made the glowing walls ripple like disturbed water, yet they refused to break. The smaller size of the barriers made their resilience all the more impressive, a testament to the power of whatever force maintained them.

A faint hum filled the air, a low-frequency vibration emanating from right above her head. It was a subtle thrumming that grew steadily more intense. Just as Kilyth looked up, a heavy thud landed right beside her. The sound was far more substantial than a footstep, as if something had dropped from a great height.

Something hovered just a few imperial units above her, and something else had landed directly behind her. She felt the displacement of air on her skin—a cool current that sent shivers down her spine. The object behind her was imposing; its weight compressed the ground enough that she felt the shift through the soles of her boots.

"You're a beauty," a deep voice muttered. She couldn't sort out the pitch or the intent behind it. The voice seemed to come from all directions at once, a resonant bass that vibrated through her entire body. There was an undercurrent she couldn't quite identify—admiration mixed with something darker, more possessive. The words were not spoken in her native tongue; she could feel the System's influence translating them.