Beyond the door lay a long stone corridor, damp and lined with forgotten carvings. At the end stood a mysterious woman cloaked in a long coat, her face hidden in shadow. She was weaving dark magic into a sealed door etched with Hale family runes. Beside her stood Gayle, nervously watching.
Suddenly, the ancient door began to creak open.
The woman's eyes widened. "Impossible… how?"
Gayle gave a guilty sigh. "Apologies, my lady. That fool is still fighting. Please wait just a bit longer."
The woman stepped forward slowly. "I don't need him anymore."
She entered the chamber beyond the door. Gayle followed, his eyes lighting up.
The room was massive, shimmering with gold, ancient scrolls, and treasures hoarded through generations. It was the Hale family's forbidden vault—a legacy no outsider was ever meant to touch.
The woman walked past the riches, uninterested. She raised a hand, and dark smoke-like flames twisted around her fingers. She muttered, frustrated, "Why… it's not here? Where is it!?"
She scoured every corner of the chamber. Then something on the wall caught her attention. Her face twisted in rage. She struck the wall with magic, shattering part of it.
Then she paused.
She sensed someone coming.
"I can't let them see this…" she whispered coldly.
She turned to Gayle. With a swift incantation, a dark sigil appeared on his chest.
Then—
Ari and the others arrived.
Ari's eyes widened. "You!"
She swung her Eternal Blade at the cloaked woman—but just as the blade was about to connect, the woman vanished, leaving only an afterimage behind.
The blade struck the wall, leaving a glowing scar on the stone.
Ari turned to her uncle, fury burning in her gaze.
Gray arrived, carrying Aden on his back.
Without hesitation, Ari pressed her blade to Gayle's throat. "Now. Tell us everything."
Gayle raised his hands slowly, trembling. "Don't kill me, Ari. I'll talk. Just listen."
He took a breath. His voice began to tremble.
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"This started when I was seventeen. Zech—your father—was just a year older. But even then, he was everything I wasn't. He was kind, wise, treated servants like family. Everyone loved him. Everyone said he would be the next leader of the Hale family."
His hands clenched.
"I… I always saw others as beneath me. But he? He treated everyone equally. And because of that… I was constantly compared to him. I hated it."
He looked at the floor, his voice filled with bitterness.
"Then one day… our father made it official. Zech would be the next head. My dream—my birthright—was stolen."
His eyes flickered with rage.
"So I turned to Aden. I whispered lies to him, twisted his mind against his own parents. He was just a boy, and I became the only one he trusted."
He gave a bitter laugh. "I told him… that you, Ari, would be chosen instead of him. That your parents never believed he was worthy… even though the tradition clearly states only a male can lead. But I twisted the truth. Over and over."
Ari's hands trembled in anger.
Gayle continued. "What he didn't know… was that the will already named him the next heir if Zech died. Signed by both Zech and Kira."
The others stood in stunned silence.
"But I hid it from him. Because I wanted him to hate them. I wanted him angry. Easy to control."
He looked up with hollow eyes.
"And then… she came."
________________________________________
"She promised me power. Said she'd make me ruler of not just the Hale family… but the entire empire. She gave me soldiers, spells, orders. She orchestrated the incident five years ago—the day your father was to be declared leader."
He looked at Ari.
"She told me to kill my father. And I did."
Ari's breath caught.
"I wanted to kill Zech too… but she stopped me. Said if I disobeyed, she'd revoke everything she promised. Instead, she ordered me to kill you, Ari."
He looked down.
"I tried. And I failed."
A silence fell across the room.
"After that… I felt closer to my dream than ever. Until I found the will. Zech had chosen Aden to succeed him. Not me."
He gritted his teeth.
"I told Aden that Zech and Kira had killed his grandfather for their benefit… and made sure he never saw the truth. I captured anyone who could tell him otherwise. Because if Aden was too young to lead… then I could rule in his place."
He glanced at the opened door behind them.
"Today was the day we'd unlock the Hale Vault. The woman said only the highest Hale bloodline could open it. With Zech gone, Aden was the key. And all she wanted was one thing from the vault. The rest… would be mine."
Ari asked coldly, "Who is this woman? Is she the one who murdered our parents and blamed Imperial?"
Gayle's voice grew weak.
"No… when your parents died… she and I was already planning this heist. It wasn't us."
Ari narrowed her eyes. "HER NAME?"
Gayle whispered, "Her name is… C—"
His body froze mid-word.
A dark spell ignited on his chest.
He screamed as black smoke engulfed him, burning away his form. Within seconds—
He was gone.
Ash scattered to the floor.
Silence.
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Ari stood motionless. She turned to the wall Gayle had destroyed.
There were fragments of writing left. Something beginning with an S.
She and the others searched the room, digging through the treasures. Amidst the relics, Ari found an ancient map—one that didn't match their current world. Dawn recognized it too—it matched the one in her mysterious book.
With heavy hearts, they returned to the mansions mostly of them are wounded.
________________________________________
Then after some time they arrived that the hale mansion.
All the servants lowered their heads, murmuring apologies or hiding their faces in fear. Many glanced nervously at Aden.
Ari remembered Gayle's words. That he was "mad" like him.
But she stepped forward, gently holding Aden's arm.
"Aden… you're our family's rightful head now. Please… carry our legacy forward."
Aden shook his head. "I can't. I don't deserve it. Let me serve you—as a worker, as someone trying to atone for my sins. Not as a brother. Not as a leader."
Ari's voice trembled. "Then who else will do it?"
He looked at her, resolute. "You."
Ari flinched. "But tradition—"
Aden interrupted, bowing.
"From now on, I and all of BladeHex pledge our loyalty to you, Ari Hale. And we will find and kill the one who truly destroyed our family."
BladeHex members stepped into the hall.
Sasha stepped forward. "Aden, we've returned the stolen money and rescued the captives—with help from the Central Alliance."
Ari nodded. "Thank you. But killing Imperial won't be easy. Even BladeHex combined might not match him. We still don't know his true goal… and fighting with incomplete knowledge is suicide."
She turned to a servant. "Is Master Alex in town?"
The servant shook his head. "Lady Ari, he's gone—training children in a faraway town."
Ari sighed. "When he returns… send him here. There's something I need to ask him."
Tracey looked around. "So, what do we do now?"
Ari stared at the ancient map in her hands.
"For now… we stay here. Rest. You guys also need some rest and recovery. When Master Alex returns, I have some things to ask to him and then —we begin the search."
She looked at each of them with a new fire in her eyes.
"To find the pillars—and find Imperial."