It was four in the morning.
Sera took her first step out of her dormitory room.
A sharp chill hung in the air.
The rest of the academy was still fast asleep.
Kairos, Lucien, Caelum, and Riven were already waiting.
They stood together in the shadowed corner of the corridor.
No one spoke a word.
Only their eyes met in a silent agreement.
There were no separate shifts today.
No single person was on guard duty alone.
Today, all five of them moved together.
Sera tightened her fist around the cold metal key.
Its sharp edges dug deeply into her skin.
”Let’s go,” she whispered softly.
The five of them moved toward the oldest part of the academy.
The West Wing.
This was the part of the campus normal students actively avoided.
The surrounding walls were old and stained dark over time.
They were cracked in several spots.
The place smelled like old dust and damp floorboards.
It smelled like rooms that hadn’t seen fresh air in years.
Riven walked upfront.
He stepped quietly without making much noise on the stone.
He put a hand up out of nowhere.
The rest of them stopped cold.
”Keep your voices down from here,” he said softly.
”And it’s pitch black up ahead,” Lucien whispered from right behind him.
Lucien suppressed his usual playful grin.
”Extremely atmospheric, though.” ”Whoever handled the gothic decoration here really outdid themselves.” ”Lucien, quiet,” Kairos muttered.
He shot him a stern look over his shoulder.
They pressed forward.
At the end of a long, dark gallery stood a massive stone statue.
It was carved in the image of a woman.
Her eyes were tightly closed.
Her lips were set in a completely blank expression.
Lucien studied the statue closely and whispered.
”That must be the messenger’s eye.” ”Truly asleep.” Behind the statue, Caelum noticed an old, heavy iron door.
Its rusted lock had already been shattered.
It lay broken on the stone floor.
Malric’s operative had clearly arrived long before them.
Riven pushed the heavy iron door open slowly.
The hinges let out a faint, groaning creak.
It revealed the deep darkness waiting inside.
Yet as soon as all five of them crossed the threshold, a strange sound filled the air.
Books.
Thousands of ancient, leather-bound, dust-covered volumes rested on towering shelves.
And from deep inside those old shelves came a quiet, breathing sound.
It felt as though the motionless pages were not asleep at all.
They felt like they were watching every intruder who entered.
Inside Sera’s chest, that familiar golden heat surged forward.
A sharp burning sensation spread across the palm of her hand.
A split second later, an icy grey current rippled through her veins.
It sent a violent shiver down her spine.
She gripped the metal key even tighter.
”The primary documents were kept right over here,” Riven noted.
He inspected a shelf near the far corner.
”Some are missing.” ”But a few were left behind.” Sera stepped forward.
She carefully pulled an ancient, leather-bound book off the shelf.
A folded, yellowed piece of paper slipped out from between the pages.
It fluttered down to the floor.
Sera knelt, picked up the paper, and unfolded it.
Written at the top in dark, faded ink were the lines: The true name of the entity can never be written freely.
To speak the name aloud is to awaken the entity itself.
Yet its original master…
was not House Voss.
Before them stood another name, erased from history.
Beneath the script was an intricate, ancient symbol.
And right beside that symbol rested a name.
Partially torn and incomplete.
Without wasting a moment, Sera handed the paper to Caelum.
”Look at this.” Caelum took the parchment and read the lines carefully.
For the first time, genuine tension crossed his usually composed face.
”This is the entity’s name.” ”Its true name,” Caelum stated, his voice dropping into a heavy tone.
Kairos’s eyes widened slightly in realization.
”If someone manages to learn the complete name…” ”They could attempt to summon the entity.” ”Or even take complete control over it.” Lucien glanced nervously toward the shadowy corners of the high-ceilinged room.
”Guys, I am really not liking this place.” ”Those books…
they feel like they’re staring right at us.” ”Everything is watching you, Lucien,” Riven replied without looking back.
”Nothing new there.” ”That doesn’t make me feel any better, my friend,” Lucien retorted quietly.
Suddenly, Riven reached out and grabbed Sera by the forearm.
He pulled her behind a massive wooden bookshelf.
”Quiet,” he whispered directly against her ear.
Everyone froze where they stood.
From the opposite end of the long gallery came the sound of approaching footsteps.
Slow.
Rhythmic.
Completely controlled.
The footsteps belonged to someone who knew exactly who would be waiting inside.
Sera held her breath.
Riven’s hand remained firm and steady on her shoulder.
The footsteps drew closer.
They came to a sudden halt in the middle of the room.
A calm, deeply familiar voice shattered the heavy silence.
”You took quite a long time to arrive, Dragon’s Vessel.” Sera’s eyes widened in immediate shock.
Varis.
He stood right in the center of the old library.
He was clad in immaculate white robes.
In his hand, he held a single, folded document.
The exact paper missing from the empty shelf.
A faint smile touched his lips.
His dark eyes remained entirely devoid of warmth or mercy.
”I arrived here well before any of you,” Varis stated in a cool, level voice.
”And the most vital piece of what you came here to retrieve, Seraphina…” ”Is now in my hands.” Caelum stepped out from behind the shelf.
He took a firm step forward.
”Varis.
This is beyond the scope of the Temple.” ”You are crossing a dangerous line.” Varis turned his eyes toward Caelum, his expression completely unbothered.
”Crown Prince.” ”Have you plunged yourself this deeply into this perilous game as well?” ”That is hardly a wise choice for you or your royal lineage.” Lucien stepped out beside him, attempting a light tone.
”What brings you here, High Priest?” ”Out for a late-night library tour?” Varis cast a brief, sharp glance at Lucien.
Then he locked his gaze straight back onto Sera.
”I am here because certain secrets are far too critical for the Temple to ignore.” ”And you, Seraphina…” ”Are the exact epicenter of those secrets.” Sera stepped entirely out from behind the shelf.
Riven kept a protective grip on her arm.
She refused to retreat.
”What are you holding?” Sera asked, meeting his gaze directly.
Varis held up the parchment slightly.
”The single truth your late mother went to great lengths to hide.” ”The true, absolute name of the entity sleeping inside you.” He unfolded the document in a smooth, deliberate motion.
There, right beside the torn symbol, sat the remaining half of the name.
Now perfectly aligned and fully legible.
The moment Sera’s eyes locked onto the complete name, her body suffered a violent internal reaction.
The golden warmth surged inside her chest so fiercely that her palm felt as if it were burning.
Immediately after, the icy grey power altered the room’s atmosphere.
The ambient temperature dropped in an instant.
The soft, breathing noise echoing from the thousands of ancient books multiplied tenfold.
It was as if the library itself was reacting to the visual presence of its true name.
Varis noted every subtle detail of her reaction.
For the very first time, a look of genuine fascination crossed his face.
”Look at that,” he murmured.
His voice was laced with a strange, quiet obsession.
”It awakens the moment its true name is revealed.” Caelum stepped closer, his tone turning sharply commanding.
”Varis.
Put the document down and leave this place now.” Varis shook his head slowly.
”I will not leave empty-handed.” ”Nor can any of you stop me.” ”This is no longer merely Duke Malric’s petty game.” ”The Great Temple has officially entered the field.” He tucked the document securely beneath his white robes.
”Malric will arrive tomorrow,” Varis said with a cold, parting smile.
”To enforce his deadline.” ”But I have no intention of waiting for him.” He cast one final, piercing look at Sera.
”When you are finally ready…
come to me.” ”Otherwise, I will come to collect you myself.” ”And if I must speak that entity’s name aloud to summon it…” ”I will not hesitate for a single second.” With those final words, he turned.
He faded seamlessly into the deep shadows of the outer gallery.
The library went quiet again.
Save for the soft rustle of book pages softly shifting.
Sera squeezed her fingers into her palm, feeling the metal key dig into her skin.
Caelum spoke softly, his tone heavy with gravity.
”The whole game just changed.” ”They aren’t just after you now.” ”They know its real name.” Lucien struck his hand against the stone wall, his signature humor entirely absent.
”So anyone who learns that name can now force control over whatever resides inside you?” Kairos walked over to Sera, looking at her with quiet concern.
”Sera, are you alright?” Sera offered a faint nod.
Her eyes remained locked on the empty space where Varis had just stood.
Only one single thought echoed continuously through her mind.
The name written on the parchment in Varis’s hands…
She had heard that exact name once before.
Years ago, back in her childhood home.