The bird-like creature spat blood from its beak before collapsing and convulsing on the ground, its two remaining feathers swinging weakly.
Tai bent down and cut off the creature's horn as Hal retrieved his mark from the bird. There were only two doors left, and Hal was glad that was the case.
The two of them were not in the mood to remain in a place that reeked of rotting flesh, and so with a swing of Tai's sword, the entranced became open, and the two boys sped through to the next door.
Arriving soon after at the door that had a picture of the horn that belonged to the bird that almost made them its dinner
Tai did the honours and placed the horn in its place, but to their surprise, the voice did not speak to them again as the door quickly opened to reveal another door.
This one had a statue of a stone soldier standing at attention, but the place where his sword should have been was mysteriously empty.
Tai looked from his sword to the statue and walked towards it
"Are you sure about this, Tai?"
"Yes, this is the only way for us to continue"
He placed the sword in the golem's hand and stepped back as the golem suddenly spoke with the deep voice they were so accustomed to
"Good on returning this sword to me now, if you would like it back, then come after him and prove yourself a child of the greatest knight of Haverfield"
The golem's eyes let out a golden light before it suddenly slashed forward, causing Hal and Tai to jump back. A small door opened beside it, and the golem went through the door, causing Tai to run after it.
Hal called out to Hal before throwing the King's edge to him.
He tried to follow, but the door closed, keeping him on the other side of the cave, before the voice resounded again.
"This is a test that he must face alone, but if you intend to follow him, then you will have to face the final test and prove yourself worthy to stand at his side in the coming struggle"
The door that contained the golem then suddenly opened, revealing to Hal a hall that was dark and devoid of any crystal or glow to guide him.
He gritted his teeth and stepped through the door, causing a torch to suddenly light and reveal itself to him.
He grabbed the torch without delay and proceeded to walk into the dark hall.
He felt a gaze fall on him as soon as he entered, but for some reason, he knew the creature would not attack him now; instead, it was choosing to observe him.
The wall had different paintings showing the kingdom of Haverfield. Hal posed at different ones and observed them, deeming them to be useful if someone wanted to keep them hidden from Hal.
The first mural had a picture of two friends and a woman enjoying drinks together, one of the men shared Tai's hair colour, prompting Hal to refer to him as his father, and the other had jet black hair.
The next painting showed Tai's father training with the other man he saw in the mural, training together under the watchful eye of the woman.
Hal's eyes squinted as he wondered what story these murals could hold
The next showed the two boys being knighted by a king sitting proudly on his throne; he had dark brown hair and wore a crown made of silver
The next mural had Tai's father being hailed as a hero, while the other man was overshadowed by him. He walked to the next mural, which saw the man speak to a dragon of light in a cave-like setting
"Could this be the Juzo Glowing Caverns?"
But at this point, the other man was nowhere to be seen as the next murals depicted Tai's dad being hailed as a hero more and more, but the other man was once again nowhere to be seen.
Until Hal came to the next mural that depicted the man with a woman wearing a veil looming over him, he seemed to be screaming as if filled with madness, while the woman smiled menacingly over him.
Hal continued and saw the man return to the kingdom and wage war against its king. He slaughtered many and conquered multiple cities that he left soaked in blood.
Until the faithful encountered where he stood against Tai's dad, the kingdom was on fire with that very veiled woman looming over the entire mural.
The next mural was blurred, and so was the next and the next and the next until Hal finally came across one with the very veiled woman with strings coming from her fingertips to the kingdom below.
She was smiling boldly above the kingdom, and Hal found himself looking closely at her face before he saw her eyes move to him, and then he felt a new gaze fall on him.
He had stared directly at its spectre, but his eyes couldn't detect it. He turned up and saw the words written on the mural.
"Here is the woman who cast a veil over Haverfield"
Hal instinctively bolted away, yet the gaze followed him. He felt it catch up to him as if the gaze wanted to devour him, only for it to suddenly disappear as he reached a place that had some light coming from the walls
In front of him was a bear; it had crystals growing out of its body, especially from its shoulders. It stood frozen, its eyes devoid of life
But the gaze emanating from the bear felt familiar; it was the one he felt at the beginning of his descent into this path
His heart was still racing from his experience earlier, but he couldn't let that show, and so he stared up at the shadow that was coming off the bear
It had stretched into a vague human form that towered above him and stared at him with malice
"So, would you be so kind as to introduce yourself, child?"
Hal forced a smile and summoned the slaughter's gain
"Gladly, I am Hal Leonardo Fernis, and I have come for your life"