While Leo struggled in the mud of the capital, the true architecture of the coming war was being drafted in the Abyssal Spire, a fortress hidden between the folds of space and time.
The Gold-Lined Leader
The man in the black coat with gold lines stood before a massive, floating hourglass. Instead of sand, it was filled with glowing, crimson mana that dripped slowly into the bottom chamber.
"The seal on the boy is like an old dam," he murmured. "The more he tries to patch it with 'plant magic,' the more the pressure builds."
This was Malakor, the leader of the Shadow Council. He was once a high-ranking advisor to the previous Magic King, a man who had seen the "truth" of magic—that it was a gift from a dark source, and that the kingdom's peace was a lie built on the suppression of the Hellfire.
The Left and Right Hands
Malakor turned to his two subordinates.
The Right Hand (Umbra): A silent man whose body was composed of "Living Void." He didn't speak; he moved through shadows, acting as Malakor's perfect assassin.
The Left Hand (Lyra): A woman with violet skin and eyes that glowed with a sickly yellow light. She practiced Necrotic Song Magic, a forbidden art that could turn the living into mindless puppets through frequency.
"Umbra," Malakor commanded. "The boy thinks he is training. Give him a target. Something he cannot defeat with vines alone."
"And the girl?" Lyra asked, her voice like grinding glass, referring to Elara. "The Water Spirit is an annoyance. It balances his heat."
"Let them stay together for now," Malakor smiled. "The higher they build their tower of hope, the more beautiful it will look when it collapses."
The Council's Lore
Through their conversation, the history of Lucifero is finally hinted at. Lucifero wasn't just a mage; he was the first being to tap into the "Underworld Mana."
The Shadow Council believes that the Magic King is a "thief" who stole the world's true power to keep the commoners weak and the nobles in control. To them, Leo isn't a monster—he is the Key to returning the world to its "natural, chaotic state."
The Grandfather's Secret Meeting
Back in the capital, under the cover of a moonless night, Soren (Leo's grandfather) met with Magic King Alaric in the Royal Gardens.
"The boy is losing himself, Alaric," Soren said, his voice cracking. "He saw his father in a vision. The locket... it triggered a resonance."
"He has to be ready, Soren," Alaric replied, looking at his own hands, which were faintly glowing with protective light. "Malakor has moved the Ghouls to the border. He's targeting the Village of Oakhaven. It's where the seal was first forged. He's going for the source."
"If you send Leo there, you're handing him to Malakor on a silver platter," Soren warned.
"Or," Alaric countered, "I am giving him the chance to choose his own fate before Malakor chooses it for him."
The Omen
As the meeting ended, a single leaf fell from a tree near the King. Before it hit the ground, it turned to ash and vanished.
The "Clock" Malakor mentioned wasn't just a metaphor. Above the kingdom, the stars began to align in a pattern that hadn't been seen in five hundred years—the Crown of Thorns constellation.
The time for training was over. The first move of the war had been made.