Thalia lowered her gaze, her countenance taken by a contained sadness. Her lips trembled before she managed to speak, her voice loaded with sorrow."I wanted… that we didn't need to come to this, father."
She breathed deeply and, right after, raised her face; the melancholy transforming into determination. Her eyes shone with the strength of one who had decided her own destiny. Slowly, she turned to the side, facing the baron head-on, no longer hesitating."From now on, my life will be controlled by me."
The silence that followed was heavy. The baron, still seated in his improvised throne, took a sip of wine calmly, trying to mask the fury that rose through his chest. His firm and cutting gaze landed upon his daughter like a blade.
"Controlled by you?" said in a grave tone, almost a whisper loaded with threat. "You have no idea of the weight that I carry to maintain this family."
Baron Silvanis placed the cup strongly upon the table, the wine splashing on the wood. His gaze darkened, the fury taking the place of the usual coldness."Guards!" his voice echoed like an incontestable order. "Lock her in her chambers. If my daughter does not understand the duty she carries, she will be forced to understand."
The armors jingled when two men advanced. The environment became tense, each step of the soldiers sounding like a verdict.
Thalia, however, did not retreat. With steady breathing and her heart pulsing in defiance, she turned to Kael. Her determined eyes left no space for doubts."Do it."
The silence that followed was suffocating. The guards stopped for an instant, as if they were not sure of what the young woman had just ordered. The baron, on his part, frowned, confused and taken by wrath, trying to decipher what she meant to say.
Kael, in a quick movement, removed his cloak. The fabric fell like a dead weight, and, in the same instant, the two guards who advanced against Thalia were thrown to the ground, knocked down by his precise and brutal strength.
Baron Silvanis widened his eyes, confused before the scene."Who are you?" he bellowed, his voice loaded with incredulity. Right after, he shouted:"Guards!"
The doors opened and, in a matter of seconds, the hall was filled with armed soldiers, forming a circle of steel around the group.
Kael felt the vibrations that echoed through the room — each step, each breath, each heartbeat. A cold smile appeared on his lips."Baron… before we begin, tell me: do you have any involvement with a group known as Democrats?"
Silvanis stood abruptly from his chair, the wine cup falling and shattering on the floor. His face hardened, taken by surprise and by wrath."Boy… what do you know about that?"
Kael slightly tilted his head, the tone loaded with irony."I understand… so Anhanguçu did not lie." He sighed, as if meditating about the decision. "I was thinking about killing you right here… but, since you seem to know something, I will have to take you with me. Before, however, you could do me a small favor: leave this barony to your last daughter."
Baron Silvanis narrowed his eyes, his voice now almost a roar."Boy, you do not know what you are talking about. You should not go around pronouncing that name." Right after, he ordered with coldness: "Kill him."
It was in that moment that Isabela and Doros removed their cloaks. The baron swallowed dry, his eyes widening in shock upon recognizing Doros.
Black disheveled hair fell in rebellious locks, framing youthful and striking features. His brown eyes shone with a wild intensity, almost hypnotic, and the mystical mark on his face denounced the impossible: he was alive. The golden earring on his ear gleamed as a symbol of an untamable and free nature.
"Thalia…" the baron shouted, taken by fury and incredulity. "I ordered your death!"
The hall exploded in chaos. Guards advanced in waves against Kael, Isabela and Doros. Thalia retreated a few steps, her heart divided between fear and hope, but her eyes remained fixed on Doros, as if she could not believe what she saw.
Kael moved like a lethal shadow, breaking formations, knocking down soldiers with dry and precise blows.Isabela, with her sword in hand, advanced in fluid and calculated movements, slashing steel and flesh without losing balance.Doros, with two swords in hand, spun like a whirlwind, each strike tracing an arc of fury and skill that opened a path in the army of guards.
The sound of steel against steel echoed in the hall, mixed with screams, the clinking of swords and the crash of bodies falling.
Baron Silvanis observed from the edge of the hall, his eyes widened, unable to believe what he saw. Those youths, whom he considered only disposable pieces, were massacring his personal guard. Each strike of Kael was dry and certain, knocking down soldiers much more experienced. Isabela, with her almost military discipline, opened space with her sword as if she had trained for that her whole life. And Doros — the ghost whom he judged dead — spun with his two blades in fury, tearing apart the formation of men that should have been unbeatable.
Silvanis gripped the arms of the chair, his knuckles white from tension."How… how is it possible?" he murmured, his voice failing for the first time.
One by one, the guards were falling. The clinking of the falling swords echoed louder than the screams of pain themselves. The floor of the hall was taken by bodies and stains of blood, and only the four youths remained standing, side by side, breathing firmly amidst the massacre.
The silence that followed was suffocating.
Silvanis, taken by panic, gave a few steps backward. The pride that he carried until then unraveled, and the instinct of survival spoke louder. He turned to the side door, trying to flee in a hurry, his noble garments dragging on the bloodstained floor.
But before he could reach the exit, Kael stopped breathing for an instant, his head lifted, capturing each vibration of the fleeing baron. Without hesitation, he extended his hand and, with a quick movement, launched one of the swords fallen on the floor.
The blade cut the air and brutally lodged itself in Silvanis's leg.
The baron screamed in pain, collapsing to his knees. The escape had ended.
Kael leaned over Baron Silvanis, his steps echoing heavy in the now silent hall. He gripped the hilt of the sword lodged in his leg, forcing him to face his presence. The cold smile returned to his lips."We will have a long trip to the county…" he said, his voice loaded with irony. "You don't need to worry. I will make sure to bring plenty of paper and ink. After all, you will need to send many letters informing about your debilitation… and passing the barony to your daughter."
The baron tried to react, but only a groan of pain escaped his mouth. His eyes, once full of arrogance, now burned in hatred and humiliation.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the Empire, a mantle of mist covered the narrow and damp streets. Ereon walked in silence, his steps firm and measured. At each crossing, he attentively observed the shadows that stretched, as if seeking hidden signs on the walls.
Ahead, rose the Blackthorn Orphanage. The building, once imposing, now in ruins. Its dark stone walls were covered by moss and cracks, the opaque and broken windows reminded blind and abandoned eyes. The iron gate, corroded by rust, hung crooked on one of the hinges, creaking in the wind like a lament.
The sensation that emanated from the place was suffocating, a mixture of abandonment and omen.
Ereon stopped before the entrance, his eyes narrowed, his hand resting upon the worn wood of the main door, which barely stood."So it is here…" he murmured, as if speaking to himself.
After crossing the gates, the central courtyard extended before him, taken by cracked stones, weeds and the sepulchral silence that seemed to devour even the sound of the wind. The air there was colder, as if the very ruins carried memories of pain and oblivion.
It was then that Ereon stopped, his instincts immediately on alert.
Before him, rose a solitary figure. Her long black hair, straight and shining, fell to the waist like a mantle of shadow. The golden eyes not only radiated a divine power, but also held a melancholic glow, reflection of losses that transcended time.
The white tunic, adorned with golden embroideries, enveloped her figure with a silent grandeur. Over her shoulders, rested a diaphanous cloak, almost translucent like sacred mist — and yet heavy, as if it were the materialized burden of her journey.
The presence of the entity made the ruined courtyard almost irrelevant: everything seemed to bend around her, as if the space became only a stage for her apparition.
Ereon narrowed his eyes, each muscle of his body prepared to react, but his voice sounded controlled."I did not expect to find… someone like you here."
With a solemn tone, the divinity responded:"Do not be surprised… I am only here to cut this thread that binds us."
Ereon already had his hands on the hilts of his katanas, his posture firm, his voice low and controlled:"I do not know about what you are referring to."
The divinity tilted her head, like someone observing someone small trying to understand something greater."You do not need to know anything."
Suddenly, Ereon's mark appeared on his arm, pulsing with a restless light. The divinity continued:"My agreement was made with those who protect you. Remember this. After this, I shall owe you nothing."
In an instant, she advanced with supernatural speed. The hand went through Ereon's body, and he felt the force penetrating his heart, the air being sucked from his lungs. The world around seemed to disappear, and everything faded.
The voice of the divinity echoed, distant and solemn:"With this, my debt with the Abyss is paid."
Ereon felt his body fall, without weight, without resistance, without existence — his physical life ended there. But then, slowly, consciousness returned. He opened his eyes and found himself in complete darkness.
The Abyss. The same place where he had been imprisoned for a year, surrounded by echoes of pain, solitude and despair. Each memory of that confinement returned like a wave, reminding him of the impotence and fear that he had already felt.
In the profound silence, a distant voice echoed, calm and almost ironic:"You are here… it means that Izanagi fulfilled his word. But I must say… crushing the heart was a little exaggerated."
Ereon floated in the void of the Abyss, feeling each fiber of his being marked by the mortal blow. Anger, confusion, fear… and, at the same time, a strange clarity began to arise.
The voice returned, firm:"Are you ready for the truth?"
Ereon opened his eyes slowly, facing the void before him. For an instant, he seemed to awaken from a long sleep. Then, softly, he closed them again, as if he were preparing for what would come next. The Abyss remained silent, and the next step was still a mystery.