The palace was silent in an unnatural way…
Not the silence of absence, but the silence of fullness, as though the place itself was holding its breath out of respect for something greater than itself.
Inside the throne hall, the polished floor reflected pillars of light stretching endlessly upward, making the hall appear like layers of heaven intertwined above one another.
Ancient golden ornaments extended across the walls, intertwining with strange plants that pulsed gently, as if they were not planted there but were truly alive within the structure itself.
Every ray of light passing through the hall refracted in a calculated manner, creating an imposing aura that did not resemble light…
It resembled visible divinity.
Roy stood at the center, his mere presence seemingly weighing down the air around him.
He frowned slowly and said in a low voice, one filled with an invisible burden:
"The world almost lost its balance because of her... if I hadn't intervened in time."
No one moved immediately.
Even the echo of his words seemed delayed before finally fading away.
Upon her throne, Kendra slowly waved her glowing fan, as though she wasn't merely responding... but measuring the distance between words and their meaning.
"Wherever she goes now... the land withers."
She paused for a moment.
Then added in a softer voice:
"What once pulsed with life... has begun to die."
In the corner, Leora watched in confused silence, as if she could no longer distinguish reality from impression.
"Why is her influence this terrifying?" she finally asked.
Roy slowly turned toward her, a faint smile crossing his face—not a reassuring one, but something closer to control.
"It happened a long time ago."
He paused.
Then continued:
"Everything is under control now."
Leora said nothing.
But her eyes did not believe him.
Behind them, Kendra stared directly at Roy, as though she was not searching for an answer... but for a direction.
"What's your plan?"
A brief silence followed.
Then:
"Where will you go this time?"
Roy did not raise his voice. He simply threw his cloak behind him, and it floated briefly in the air before slowly descending like a falling shadow.
"We're heading to the Center of Wisdom... above the eastern waterfall."
Leora slowly raised an eyebrow, trying to make sure she had heard correctly.
"The Center of Wisdom? Above a waterfall? How is that even possible?"
Before anyone else could answer, the white creature spoke calmly, as if explaining an ancient truth that required no proof.
"We'll take the elevator."
It paused briefly.
"We'll arrive in a few minutes."
Roy looked at Kendra.
"Your Majesty... I'll return later. I need to investigate this matter."
She did not answer immediately.
Instead, she raised her scepter.
A single strike upon the floor.
The sound was not loud...
But it wasn't an ordinary sound either.
At that exact moment, the floor before them began to distort.
Like a mirror being compressed by an invisible force.
Then it split apart.
Not like a door opening...
But like reality itself was being torn.
The opening gradually widened until it transformed into a glowing gateway extending into another dimension.
Leora stepped back, her eyes unable to believe what she was seeing.
"How...?" she whispered.
"You seem calm... but she's unbelievably powerful."
Roy chuckled softly, as if it were far simpler than it appeared.
"She saved us the trouble of traveling."
Then he turned toward Kendra.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Kendra did not smile.
But her voice emerged steady and low:
"Return safely... and don't be reckless as usual."
Roy slightly raised his hand.
"See you later."
He paused for a moment.
Then added:
"I'll stop her this time... I promise."
The three of them stepped into the portal.
And the moment they crossed through, it wasn't a transition...
It was a separation.
As though light itself had severed them from the old world all at once.
Threads of radiance intertwined with incomprehensible shadows, and a cold breeze passed through Leora's hair.
It wasn't air...
It was the sensation of emptiness.
Then silence fell once again.
But this time...
It wasn't inside the palace.
It was inside the world itself.
When Leora slowly opened her eyes, she was no longer standing on land.
She was standing upon a motionless surface of water, like a mirror that did not reflect the sky...
But created it.
Above them, gigantic violet trees stretched endlessly, their roots disappearing into nothingness while their branches curled through the heavens as if trying to grasp time itself.
The place was immeasurably vast...
Yet at the same time, frighteningly close.
Everything here pulsed with life...
But silently.
Like life that did not wish to be heard.
The stars were not only in the sky.
They were among the branches, in the air, and even within the reflection beneath their feet.
The white creature spoke calmly:
"The Garden of Wisdom."
It paused briefly, as if recalling a distant memory.
"The last time I came here... I was a child."
It looked around.
"Nothing has changed."
Roy began walking forward.
"To the library."
Leora raised an eyebrow once again.
"In a place like this... there's a library?"
The white creature answered without looking at her:
"This isn't an ordinary library."
It paused for a moment.
"This library contains the entire history of the world."
Silence.
Then:
"We'll search for the lost map... if it still exists."
They began walking across the surface of the water.
Yet with every step, no ripples appeared.
As though they were not walking on water...
But on the idea of water itself.
After an immeasurable amount of time, a colossal structure appeared before them.
An enormous golden monument stood there, as though it were a witness to the era of the Keepers of Balance.
People moved around it slowly, like visitors inside an ancient memory rather than a living reality.
The three of them stopped before it.
The silence here was different.
Heavier.
Older.
Leora cautiously approached and extended her hand toward the monument.
"I can see nine names crossed out out of twelve..."
She stopped.
As though she didn't want to continue.
Then she spoke in a quieter voice:
"Whom do they belong to, I wonder?"
Her eyes slowly scanned the names.
Then they stopped at two of them:
"Vailor... written in gold."
A brief silence.
Then:
"And... Contista... written in red."
At that moment...
Roy's expression did not change suddenly.
Something slower happened instead.
As though time itself had first stopped within him.
His memories trembled.
And an old feminine voice emerged from a place rarely touched by memory.
"You will be promoted to a Knight of the Templar Order..."
Roy said nothing.
But his features became heavier.
As though that name was not a name...
But a wound that had never closed.
At that moment, a little girl sat near the monument.
She wasn't looking at them.
She was looking at the names.
Then she spoke in a low voice, like a prayer no one could hear:
"Rest in peace... O nine Kendras..."
End of Chapter