Fallen Radiance

Elena stood at the edge of the Valley of the Lost, clutching a vial of bright red blood, the essence extracted from the last remains of the fallen angel. In this battle, she almost exhausted her strength to obtain the blood of the angel camp from the bloodthirsty fallen.

The blood shimmered in the bottle, emitting a faint glow, as if there were still angel pressure. Elena looked at it with mixed emotions in her eyes.

"Angel camp..." "This time, it's my turn to use your power," she murmured with a sneer on her lips.

Elena took a thin needle from a bag at her waist, drew some of the blood, and injected it into her arm. For an instant, a cold, strange force rushed into her body, and her body trembled slightly, as if every inch of her skin had been reshaped by this force.

A strange change began to take place inside her body. Her eyes turned from dark brown to a glowing gold, and her skin took on a soft glow, as if her whole soul were enveloped in brilliance. On her palm, a faint angel camp mark emerged, symbolizing her temporary disguise as an angel warrior.

Elena closed her eyes and felt the new power, but there was no joy in her heart: "Camouflage, after all, is just camouflage."

To complete the infiltration, Cavell had given her a special item: a dark mirror. The reflection in that mirror was not her real face, but another completely unfamiliar face.

"With the power of your soul, the mirror will change your identity," Cavill said, as if ringing in his ears, "but remember, the person in the mirror is not yourself." If the will is not strong enough, you may never regain your true self."

Elena looked into the mirror, took a deep breath, and pressed her palm against it. In an instant, the mirror glowed eerily, and her face began to blur and twist, until it became another unfamiliar face - soft in outline, clear in eyes, but with a touch of alienation and coldness.

"As of today, I am no longer Elena Cassirer." "She whispered, with a touch of determination in her voice." I'm Natalie Irwin, an ordinary mercenary."

Elena - now Natalie, wearing a simple light armor, walking the imperial border of the official road. Behind her are months of wandering and fighting, and in front of her is the place that once betrayed her.

As she walked into the border town of the Empire, a familiar sense of repression hit her face. The streets were filled with people in a hurry, and placards were posted in many places, most prominently a large wanted poster.

At the center of the wanted poster is a vivid portrait of her as she would have looked.

"Wanted: Elena Cassirer."

"Charges: treason, collusion with the demon camp, murder of a member of the royal family."

"Reward: fifty thousand -- dead or alive."

Natalie stood in a hidden corner, staring at the wanted poster, her heart sneered.

"Fifty thousand gold?" "I guess my life is worth something."

She did not stay long and quickly turned and left. In today's Empire, danger is everywhere, every familiar face can be a potential threat, and she, must be careful.

Natalie arrives at a tavern, the most common exchange of information on the border. She ordered a bad ale and sat in a corner, quietly observing what was going on.

The tavern was filled with a cacophony of chatter, much of it about the recent royal turmoil and the demonic camp:

"I hear that the Fourth Prince Reynaud himself ordered the arrest of that woman, Elena Cassirer? Tut, how powerful this woman must be, to provoke the emperor to stir up so many people."

"What is it? But a traitor! I hear she's in league with the demon camp, trying to usurp royal power."

"By the way, did those demons have some sort of deal with the royal family? The recent fighting on the border has become more and more strange..."

Natalie's eyes flickered and she clenched the glass in her hand. The information revealed by these conversations leads her to realize that the demon camp has penetrated far deeper than she thought, and that there are more secrets hidden behind Renaud's actions.

Through some inquiries, Natalie learned that the top echelons of the Angel camp were recently convening an important meeting in the Imperial capital to discuss the latest strategy against the demon camp. This is her chance -- and her first step toward the truth.

Her hand gently touched the dagger at her waist, and her eyes were cold and firm. "Wait for me, Reno. I will take away the things you care about most in the way you know best."