The Forgotten King moved faster than thought. One moment he stood by the throne, the next, he was in front of Elias, his gold-and-black armor gleaming like molten metal, his massive hand gripping Elias's wrist before his gauntlet could strike.
Elias barely had time to register what was happening before he was airborne, his entire body hurled across the chamber. His thrusters fired at the last second, breaking the impact, but the force still rattled his bones.
Reinhardt charged in next, hammer raised high. "Alright, tin man—let's see how hard you hit back!"
The King didn't dodge.
He caught the hammer mid-swing with one hand.
Reinhardt's face twisted in pure disbelief just before the King ripped the weapon from his grasp and swung it back at him.
Reinhardt barely managed to dive aside, the floor cracking like glass where he had stood.
"Oh, screw that!" he cursed. "That was my move!"
Lira and Cecilia struck next, moving in tandem, their blades flashing. Lira went low, slicing toward the joints in his armor, while Cecilia phased mid-step, appearing behind him with a dagger aimed for the neck seam.
Neither attack landed.
The Forgotten King twisted, faster than both of them, his hand catching Lira's wrist before she could land her strike. At the same time, his other hand shot backward, catching Cecilia mid-phase, his grip crushing down on her arm before she could retreat.
Then, with effortless strength, he threw them both away.
Lira flipped mid-air, landing on her feet with a hard breath. "Okay, ow."
Cecilia hit the ground and groaned. "Alright. He doesn't have blind spots. That's annoying."
Ivy fired a volley of enchanted arrows, her aim precise—every shot calculated for structural weaknesses. The arrows hit true, embedding into the King's armor joints, chest plate, and helm.
They did nothing.
The King barely acknowledged them, his form shimmering for a fraction of a second, and the arrows crumbled into dust.
Marco cursed from behind cover. "His armor is self-repairing! That's not fair!"
Varian stepped forward at last, his golden sword glowing. His voice was sharp. "Enough."
The Forgotten King stopped, turning toward him.
"You fight with precision, but without purpose," Varian said, his stance unwavering. "You test us, yet we do not even know the rules of your trial."
The Forgotten King studied him for a long moment.
Then, he spoke.
"You wish to claim the knowledge of the Forgotten?"
Elias, who had finally gotten back to his feet, wiped the blood from his mouth. "Yeah, that's kind of the reason we're here."
The King's glowing eyes narrowed. "Then you must prove you are worthy. Not as a warrior. Not as a thief. But as a leader."
Elias's breath caught.
He wasn't expecting that.
The King raised a hand. The entire chamber trembled, the very air shifting around them.
"A leader is not simply one who fights. A leader is one who understands the past and chooses the future."
The room changed.
In a blink, they were somewhere else—a vast battlefield, stretching into the distance, the sky filled with crimson fire.
They were in the past.
Hundreds—no, thousands—of warriors clashed in the distance, wielding weapons of both magic and technology, their armor resembling both Vanguard and Academy designs, but older, more primal.
At the center of it all stood two figures locked in battle—one of them a warrior clad in dark armor, the other a mage surrounded by golden energy.
Elias's heart pounded as he realized what he was seeing.
"This was… the war before the Vanguard."
The Forgotten King nodded. "The war that ended an age."
Ivy took a step forward, eyes wide. "What are we seeing?"
Varian's voice was quiet. "The truth the Academy erased."
The King gestured, and the scene moved forward.
They watched as the dark warrior struck the golden mage down, his blade piercing through divine light. They watched as the armies fell, entire legions crushed under the weight of history. They watched as the world itself burned.
And then—
They saw the Academy rise from the ashes.
Elias felt his breath hitch as he recognized the familiar robes, the insignias. The very people who now controlled the world had once been the ones who ended it.
The Forgotten King turned to them. "The Academy was not born from scholars, nor protectors. It was born from conquest. From those who feared losing power."
Lira muttered, "Well, that explains a lot."
The King stepped closer to Elias. "You seek the truth. You seek to change the world. But tell me, Elias Graham—will you burn it to do so?"
Elias met his gaze. He knew what the King was asking.
Would he destroy the Academy? Would he erase them as they erased the Vanguard?
Elias clenched his fists. He had fought the Academy, seen their corruption, seen their willingness to rewrite history just to keep their power intact.
But if he wiped them out completely, if he became like them—was he really any better?
The King studied him for a long moment. Then, he exhaled.
"You hesitate. That is good."
The battlefield faded. They were back in the throne room.
The Forgotten King lowered his stance, his golden armor dimming.
"You have passed."
Silence.
Reinhardt blinked. "Wait. What?"
The King nodded toward Elias. "You have chosen to question the past, not simply replace it. That is what makes you different from those before you."
He stepped back, and suddenly—the entire vault rumbled.
A door behind the throne split open, revealing a hidden chamber filled with ancient technology, glowing archives, and weapons unlike anything they had ever seen.
The King's voice was calm. "The knowledge of the Forgotten is yours. Use it wisely."
Elias took a slow step forward, his heart pounding.
The war wasn't over.
But this?
This was a turning point.