Their footsteps echoed through the endless hallways.
Cold. Hollow. Relentless.
Despite the distant music of the gala still playing somewhere far behind them, this part of the mansion felt like a different world entirely—lifeless, forgotten… hidden.
Ning's lungs burned.
But what shocked him more than the exhaustion…
…was his father.
Still running.
Still ahead.
Still untouchable.
"Father!" Ning shouted, his voice breaking through the silence. "Just stop! You can't run forever!"
"Run?" his father snapped back between breaths. "I am not running. I am the only one facing reality!"
They turned another corner.
Another endless corridor.
"No!" Ning fired back. "You've always been running! From me… from mother… from everything that actually mattered!"
No answer.
Only footsteps.
"You weren't there!" Ning continued, his voice cracking now. "Not when I was a child! Not when she disappeared! I was alone—completely alone!"
His father finally slowed.
Just slightly.
"I had responsibilities," he said, colder now. "You and your mother were not the only ones depending on me. Nations relied on my work. millions of lives."
"And what about mine?!" Ning shouted.
Silence.
"You think I cared about money? About games? About that stupid mansion?!" His fists trembled. "All I wanted… was you. Just once. Just one day where you stayed."
His father stopped.
Completely.
At the end of the corridor.
In front of a massive door.
Thick. Metallic. Imposing.
Even at a glance, Ning could tell—
This wasn't normal.
"Do you even know me?" Ning asked quietly now. "My favorite food? What I like? Who I am?"
No answer.
"After mom disappeared…" his voice dropped further, "I begged you. I begged you to find her. You had the power. The money. The connections."
His nails dug into his palms.
"You did nothing."
Silence swallowed the hallway.
For a moment… the world stood still.
Then—
"…Your mother…" his father murmured.
His shoulders sank.
For the first time, he looked… old.
"An unfortunate outcome… I…"
He hesitated.
And for a fraction of a second—
Ning saw it.
Regret.
But just as quickly—
It vanished.
Replaced.
By something else.
Obsession.
A flicker ignited in his father's eyes.
Sharp. Unnatural.
"You will understand," he said, turning toward the door. "Once you see it."
A heavy thud echoed as he slammed his heel against the locking mechanism.
The door hissed.
Layers of metal disengaging.
Seals breaking.
Slowly—
It opened.
"Your mother didn't disappear." His father continued. "She became something greater... something nobody could grasp entirely."
Ning's breath stopped.
He knew what was about to come.
He felt it.
Deep down in his stomach, he knew it.
His blank stare went deep into the dark behind the sealed door.
Ning just shook his head violently.
"Your mother... is Orbisterra."