Chapter 1: The Chains That Bind

  In the shadows of Aurisol's sunlit lands, where noble blood ruled and common lives went unnoticed, two brothers walked paths the stars had yet to light.

  Layik, the elder brother, carried the weight of responsibility on his narrow shoulders. Quiet, watchful, and driven by a single purpose — to protect his younger brother. His hands were calloused from labor, his eyes hardened by the world that showed him no mercy.

  Abu, the younger one, was the opposite — short-tempered, wild, and burning with a dream to become a soldier. But fate had marked Abu differently. Across his body, like black veins carved into flesh, lay the Blackpaples Chain — a mysterious curse that no one could explain. The chains wrapped around him, shifting beneath his skin like living metal.

  The brothers' lives changed when Layik found work at the noble House of Erik — a powerful family whose bloodline carried the strength of the Star of Erikon. The current heir, Spick Erik, was known across the land for his unnatural strength — the power to lift any weight as if it were dust.

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  One day, Abu followed Layik to the estate. During the break, he watched the noble children playing in the garden, their laughter echoing through the air.

  "This is Spick," one of the children boasted, pointing to the tallest boy among them. "He's of the Erik bloodline — he can lift anything! No one is stronger!"

  Abu's eyes burned with challenge. He stepped forward, his chains clinking beneath his worn clothes.

  "I can lift anything too," he declared.

  The children burst into laughter.

  "A scumb like you?" Spick sneered. "You can't even lift your own chains."

  Abu's fists clenched, but his brother's warning voice echoed in his mind. Don't start fights you can't win...

  But Abu didn't listen.

  "I'll make a wager," he growled. "One of my chain peals — if you can lift it, I'll bow to you. If not... you'll bow to me."

  Spick smirked, stepping forward. Abu unclipped a small black peal from his chain — slightly bigger than the others, no larger than a man's thumb — and placed it on the ground.

  The noble boy grinned, thinking it a joke. He reached down, gripping the black stone...

  ...and his smile vanished.

  He pulled harder, veins bulging... but the peal didn't move. It was as if the weight of the world had been sealed inside that small piece of chain.

  The laughter around them faded.

  Abu's eyes gleamed. He crossed his arms.

  "What's wrong, noble blood? Too heavy?"