Chapter 28: Echoes of Zeta

Fifty years...

It had been long enough for silence to become something resembling truth.

For fifty years, Zeta had remained behind that absolute seal, cut off from the rest of Gandalia. No one entered.

No one left.

As the years passed, the outside powers grew accustomed to it.

At first, countless eyes had watched Zeta.

There had been endless speculation, rumors, and theories.

But the years passed.

Then came the decades.

And as time went on, the world's interest gradually began to fade.

To most beings, Zeta had become nothing more than an isolated human land.

A weak land.

A land that had lost its former glory.

A land that had closed its doors to the outside world and no longer posed any real threat.

But they did not know the truth.

Throughout those five decades...

Something else had been taking shape behind the seal.

And at this very moment...

The first signs of change began to appear.

It was not an explosion of energy.

Nor was it a terrifying aura sweeping across the continents.

It was merely an extremely faint disturbance in the fabric of space surrounding Zeta.

A disturbance that an ordinary person would never have noticed.

But to those who stood at the very peak of Gandalia's hierarchy of power...

It was different.

It was like a distant echo.

An echo of something that had yet to appear.

On the Angel Continent...

One of the Four Archangels sat within a magnificent sacred palace.

The palace stood upon elevated ground surrounded by vast white clouds, while dense sacred energy continuously flowed through the surroundings.

He had been doing nothing but meditating.

Until his eyes suddenly opened.

The energy around him came to a halt.

The clouds ceased to move.

Not a single sound could be heard.

He slowly raised his head.

A sharp glint appeared deep within his eyes.

He could sense a change from an extremely distant place.

Something too faint to give him an answer.

Yet clear enough to awaken his vigilance.

He looked toward Zeta.

He remained silent for several moments.

Then he said:

"Zeta..."

He did not know what had happened.

Nor did he know whether the disturbance meant something dangerous.

So he did not act recklessly.

He summoned one of his subordinates and issued a brief command:

"Watch it."

The subordinate bowed and left.

As for the Archangel...

He returned to his meditation.

But this time, his concentration was no longer the same.

On the Demon Continent...

Darkness covered everything.

Inside an ancient demonic palace, one of the Seven Demon Kings sat upon his throne.

Massive pillars carved with ancient symbols surrounded him, while dense demonic energy slowly swirled throughout the hall.

Suddenly...

His eyes opened.

The tranquility of the place vanished for a brief moment.

He stared into the empty space before him.

He could feel something.

Something distant.

Weak.

But real.

He raised his hand.

A small vortex of energy appeared before him as he attempted to determine the source of that sensation.

After several moments...

The vortex came to a halt.

He said:

"Zeta."

There was no fear in his voice.

Only curiosity and caution.

He remained deep in thought.

The humans had been isolated for decades.

So why was the space around them beginning to stir now?

Had something changed within Zeta?

Had a new power emerged?

Or was there something he had yet to understand?

He found no answer.

And therefore, he did not send his forces.

Acting without knowing what awaited them could be a mistake.

He said:

"Continue watching."

Then he returned to his throne.

But this time...

His attention was no longer far from Zeta.

In the Beast Territories...

The mountains stretched across vast distances.

Deep within an ancient region, where the feet of most beasts had not tread for thousands of years, the Beast Emperor was in seclusion.

Until he felt the change.

His eyes opened.

The rocks surrounding him trembled slightly.

He raised his head.

He looked into the distance.

He could not see Zeta with his eyes.

But his senses had reached it.

For a long time, he continued staring in that direction.

Then he said:

"What is happening there?"

The question was not directed at anyone.

It was simply a thought that escaped his lips.

The humans had done nothing worthy of attention for a long time.

But this change...

Was different.

Even so, he saw no sufficient reason to act.

Sending forces into an unknown region without knowing what awaited them would not be wise.

Therefore, he merely continued to observe.

On the Elven Continent...

The ancient forests were quieter than anywhere else.

Colossal trees stretched toward the heavens, their deep roots intertwined beneath the earth, while natural energy flowed in every direction.

At the heart of that forest...

The Elf Queen sat within her living palace.

Her eyes were closed.

But suddenly...

They opened.

The leaves around her began to move despite the absence of wind.

She sensed a change in the distant reaches.

It was not hostile.

Nor was it powerful.

But it was unfamiliar.

She closed her eyes once more and tried to trace the source of that sensation.

Then she opened them again.

The direction of the disturbance was clear.

Zeta.

She whispered:

"Something has changed there..."

She did not know the reason.

Nor did she know what was happening behind the seal.

And she had no evidence that the humans were doing anything at all.

Therefore, she did not send anyone.

She merely said:

"Watch it from a distance."

Then she returned to silence.

Yet deep within her mind...

One question remained.

What was happening in Zeta?

In the Werewolf Territories...

The Werewolf King stood atop a towering mountain peak.

The wind struck his body as he gazed across the lands stretching before him.

Suddenly...

His expression changed.

He had sensed something.

Not an aura.

Not pressure.

But a faint disturbance in space.

He raised his head.

He remained silent.

Then he focused his senses in a certain direction.

After a short while...

He said:

"Zeta."

It was a name that should not have occupied his thoughts.

Yet something there had begun to draw his attention.

He did not know whether the disturbance was caused by the humans or by something else.

Therefore, he did not allow any members of his pack to approach.

He said:

"Keep your eyes on it."

Then he turned away.

But before leaving, he cast one final glance toward the horizon.

Something was happening.

And he had to discover what it was.

Meanwhile, on the Vampire Continent...

Night always seemed darker there.

Inside the black palace, the Vampire King stood before a massive window overlooking a vast city.

One of his subordinates hurried into the room.

He bowed and said:

"My King."

The king turned.

"Speak."

The subordinate said:

"A slight disturbance has been detected in the distant reaches of space... near Zeta."

Silence descended.

The king raised his eyes slightly.

Then he looked toward the distant darkness.

"Zeta..."

He repeated the name as though weighing it within his mind.

Fifty years.

Fifty years in which nothing had happened worthy of note.

And now...

A change had appeared.

He asked:

"Do you know its cause?"

The subordinate answered:

"No, My King."

The king remained silent for several moments.

Then he said:

"Do not interfere."

The subordinate paused.

Then bowed.

"As you command."

He left.

The king remained alone.

His eyes were still fixed upon the darkness.

He did not know what was happening.

But his instincts told him one thing.

Zeta was no longer the same.

As time passed...

Small pieces of news began to spread among some of the various powers.

They were not confirmed reports.

Nor had any official message come from Zeta.

The humans had announced nothing.

They were merely scattered reports from distant observers, speaking of faint disturbances in the space surrounding that sealed land.

Some merchants heard of them.

Some adventurers began discussing them.

Some minor powers dismissed them as nothing more than a natural phenomenon.

Others believed they meant something else entirely.

But no one knew the truth.

No one knew what had happened within Zeta.

And no one knew what humanity had prepared during those past decades.

Even the great powers...

Had nothing but speculation.

And that was the most dangerous part of it all.

Because ignorance was sometimes more frightening than the truth itself.

As for Zeta...

There was little concern for those outside speculations.

Life continued along its course.

The cities functioned.

The factories operated.

The army trained.

The fleet moved continuously.

Agriculture continued.

The warehouses remained full.

And the training centers never stopped.

The new system had become a natural part of human life.

The younger generations had never known the old world.

They did not know what it had been like when the cities were divided.

They did not know the rule of the old families.

They did not know how fragmented humanity had once been.

They had been born knowing only one thing.

Humanity.

And that alone had been enough to create an enormous difference.

Above the cities...

Massive warships moved in orderly formations.

Seeing warships in the skies was no longer something that surprised anyone.

They had become a part of everyday life.

Yet behind all of this...

There was one thing no one outside Zeta knew.

All of this power was only the beginning.

And deep within the Sacred Land of Humanity...

The Sovereign Palace was shrouded in silence.

Inside one of its ancient halls...

Fafnir stood before a massive window.

He gazed toward the sky.

The absolute seal still remained.

No one could cross it.

No one could enter.

And no one could leave.

But that no longer mattered to him.

Fifty years had been enough.

Fafnir turned his gaze away from the sky.

Behind his calm expression lay something else.

Anticipation.

He knew exactly how much had changed.

And he knew that humanity was no longer the humanity the world of old had once known.

The time had come to move to the next stage.

But that time had not yet arrived.

One month remained.

Only one month.

And no one outside this hall knew anything about it.

No king.

No emperor.

No queen.

No power anywhere in Gandalia.

The decision belonged to Fafnir alone.

As for the outside world...

All it could do was wait.

And speculate.

And stare at Zeta from afar.

Without knowing...

What was waiting for it behind that seal.