Black Dragon X [LitRPG • Dark Fantasy]-Chapter 48 - 47 : Awakening Shadows

Silence reigned over the mountain. The wind had stopped. Even the rocks seemed to be holding their breath.

On the ground... Skyler lay motionless. His hair was scattered over the cold stones, and his breaths were barely audible.

Beside him on the rock... the Sun Stone. It was still. Faded. As if the light that had dwelled within it for years... had finally gone out.

A new crack tore across the surface of the stone. Golden light began to seep from it... as if something inside was trying to break free.

The small fissures left by Kai’s strike moments ago widened. A faint sound emerged from within the stone.

Tap.

The air froze. Then : Tap.

The rocks around Skyler’s body trembled. Tiny pebbles began to leap from the ground. The air grew heavier. Then it happened. The light erupted.

A massive golden beam shot from the stone toward the sky. It split the darkness over the mountain.

The rocky peaks shook violently. The clouds tore apart. And the light that poured from the stone... was no ordinary light. It was a scream.

The scream of the Sun Stone. Kai’s eyes widened suddenly. But before he could move a sharp sound rang out.

Craaaaaaaaack.

A deep crack ran through the heart of the stone. It wasn’t a small fissure this time. It was a clear fracture... tearing its surface from top to bottom.

The light within it grew fiercer. More chaotic. As if it had lost control. The air around Skyler began to swirl into a vortex.

The ground trembled. And the crack... kept widening.

Then, The stone split open. A portion of it opened slightly. And from within a massive wave of energy surged forth.

Silent.

Yet it passed through the mountain... then the sky... then the world. At that very moment... the wave arrived. It was neither visible, nor a sound. Yet it passed through the air...

_

as if the world itself shuddered for a brief moment.

Then, it appeared.

In the hand of a man inside a crowded market in a distant city... a dark light flickered. The man froze. He looked at his palm. Something strange rested on his skin.

A card.

It had no definite shape. Small. But its surface was far from ordinary. It was black...not a natural black. But a deep, profound black... as if light itself were being swallowed within it. The man stared at it in astonishment.

—"Where did this come from?"

Before he could understand, another card appeared. This time in the hand of a woman walking down the street. She screamed suddenly.

—"What is this thing?!"

On another continent... a young man was sitting in front of his computer. He suddenly stopped. He raised his hand slowly. A black card appeared between his fingers.

—"What...?"

He flipped it over slowly. On its surface... strange golden lines began to move. Letters.But they were not letters of any language he knew.

Sharp curves. Intertwined symbols. As if it were an ancient script... older than history itself. The young man whispered,

—"Who sent this?"

But the phenomenon wasn’t happening in just one place. It was happening everywhere. On a crowded bus... In a school... At an airport... In a factory...

People stared at their hands in shock. Black cards had appeared suddenly. Between everyone’s fingers. Phones were raised. People began taking pictures.

—"Look! It appeared out of nowhere!"

—"Do you see this writing?!"

—"What language is this?!"

Some tried to tear the card. But it wouldn’t rip. Some tried to throw it away. But it remained in their hand. As if... it was bound to them.

At an international news station... the anchorwoman was reading a routine report. Then she suddenly stopped.

She looked at her hand. A black card had appeared on the desk. Her eyes widened. But the broadcast was live. She lifted the card toward the camera.

—"It seems... it seems something strange is happening right now..."

The image spread quickly. The networks were flooded. Millions of pictures appeared within seconds. All of them of the same thing.

Black cards.

The same shape. The same mysterious symbols. Experts began analyzing.

—"Is this a new technology?"

—"Is it a global hoax?"

—"Is it an energy phenomenon?"

But no one knew the answer. Because one thing was clear. These cards... did not come from humans.

In a dark room inside a research facility... an elderly scientist was staring at the card in his hand. His eyes narrowed. He whispered slowly,

—"This... is not human writing."

He lifted his head toward the screen. And said in a low voice,

—"It’s a system language."

Then he added, with concern,

—"But... which system?"

At that moment, the symbols on the card began to move slowly. As if they were awakening. But humans... did not yet know... that these cards were not a message. But a proclamation.

A proclamation of something that had just begun. Something... the world would not be able to stop.

_

But not all of the world was in fear.

At the School of Sorcery... far from the cities. Inside a vast hall... drenched in darkness. Massive stone pillars rose toward a ceiling that could not be seen.

The few torches hanging on the walls were not enough to illuminate the place. So... no faces appeared. Only shadows. Dozens of shadows.

Sorcerers.

Standing in silence. Then, a dark light began to appear in their hands. Black cards. One after another.

They did not scream. They were not startled. Instead, a brief silence fell. Then someone laughed quietly. And a deep voice from among the shadows said,

—"The world has entered the season."

Another sorcerer slowly raised his card. The mysterious symbols reflected in his eyes... but his face remained hidden in the shadow. He whispered,

—"The fun has begun."

Soft laughter spread through the hall. Another voice spoke coldly,

—"The world has finally... awakened."

And in a corner of the hall... a shadow taller than the rest stood. He did not speak. He simply raised his card slowly. Watching the symbols move across it.

Then, he smiled. Not because Arkham would be freed... but for something else.

_

Elsewhere...

Far away. Farther than any city. The land there was dark. And in the midst of that land... stood the witch.

Yoruko.

Her long hair moved slowly with the wind. Around her snakes. Dozens of snakes. They were coiled around the rocks... and around her feet, as was her custom.

But suddenly, they began to move. Energetically. Dancing lightly across the ground. As if they sensed something.

The snakes raised their heads. Their tongues flicked through the air. Yoruko lowered her gaze to her hand. A black card had appeared between her fingers.

The mysterious symbols began to pulse slowly. A wide smile spread across her lips. Then she lifted her head... and looked into the darkness before her.

There, Shin was still suspended in chains. His face did not appear. Only a shadow. Yoruko spoke in a calm voice... full of cunning.

—"Your turn... is approaching."

The snakes coiled more tightly around her feet. Then she added with a sly smile,

"Pray... that your final days are merciful."

Shen did not respond. But the air itself seemed to grow heavier. Then the scene shifted.

_

In a distant palace...

In a place unknown to humans. A deep silence. On a high throne... sat a woman.

Izanami.

Her eyes were half-closed. As if she had been waiting. Then, she sensed the cards that had appeared across the world. She was not surprised. She did not move. She simply opened her eyes.

A brief silence passed.

Then, a slow smile spread across her lips. A smile... of satisfaction. She whispered to herself,

—"So... it has finally begun."

Then she added in a quiet voice,

—"Just as I expected."

Her eyes gleamed slightly. As if she were remembering someone. Then she said calmly,

—"Kai..."

Her smile widened.

—"You have opened the door."

And the world... did not yet know... to what.

_

Meanwhile, inside the School of Sorcery, in a forbidden upper hall...

The place was cold... and silent... as if it existed outside of time. A vast hall of black stone. At its center stood a mirror. Not an ordinary mirror. Its surface did not reflect light... but swallowed it.

A black mirror.

As if it were a gateway to something deeper than darkness itself. In front of it stood two men.

Draven. And Kaguchi.

Draven stood quietly, holding an ancient scroll in his hand. Its parchment was worn... and the threads binding it had faded with time.

At its edge... there was an old seal. A dragon symbol carved with precision, but half of it had been erased... as if time itself had tried to hide it. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Draven opened the manuscript slowly. The symbols inside were not a human language. Circles. Equations. And numbers. Many, many numbers. His eyes moved over the lines quietly. Then he spoke in a low voice.

—"According to the Arkham Covenant manuscript..."

He lifted his gaze slightly toward the black mirror.

—"To complete the opening of the final seal..."

He paused for a moment. Then continued,

—"we need two thousand souls of high energy."

Silence returned to the hall. But Draven did not stop. He turned another page of the manuscript. The symbols there were even more complex. Then he said coldly,

—"And in three days..."

He closed the manuscript slowly. The sound of the old parchment echoed through the hall. Then he said,

—"The new world will begin."

The surface of the black mirror rippled slightly. As if it had heard the words. Beside Draven, Kaguchi stepped forward. His eyes were not on the manuscript. But on the mirror.

He raised his hand slowly. Then he placed his palm on its black surface. The mirror did not reflect him. It swallowed him.

Dark ripples spread beneath his hand. As if something inside... had responded to him. A faint smile appeared on his face. And he said calmly,

—"We have waited for years..."

He pressed his palm slightly against the mirror. The darkness beneath his hand deepened. Then he continued,

—"Only three days..."

He lifted his gaze toward the mirror. And his eyes gleamed with something dangerous.

—"And everything will begin."

A moment of silence. Then, the mirror moved. Not like a mirror. But like a black lake. And in its depths... shadows began to appear. Thousands of shadows.

Draven looked at them without blinking. Then he said calmly,

—"The world does not yet know..."

He closed the manuscript.

—"That the countdown..."

Silence.

Then he spoke the final word.

—"Has begun."