In the aftermath of the failed operation, the truth surrounding Veynar begins to take shape.

Kairios and Proxus are brought before the Magistrate, the man orchestrating the city’s response to the growing crisis. What initially appeared to be corruption now reveals a more complicated reality. The Magistrate is not acting blindly, he is preparing.

Villages are being drained. People are disappearing. And whatever is responsible is spreading.

His solution is ruthless.

If Kairios and Proxus want freedom, they will act on his behalf. Investigate the disturbances to the north, uncover the source, and put an end to it. Refusal is not an option.

Reluctantly, the two accept.

Elsewhere, the truth behind the disappearances becomes clearer.

Members of the Cult of the Eye are actively capturing individuals with high Lumin, draining them, and transforming them into compasses, living tools used to track something far greater, the Crown of Eyes.

The scale of the threat is far beyond bandits.

Then, everything shifts.

Without warning, a presence descends upon the village.

A single drop of light falls from above, striking the ground and forming a glowing glyph. In an instant, it detonates outward, sending Kairios, Proxus, and even members of the Cult flying back.

From the center of the blast, a figure emerges.

Valenbrandt.

For a brief moment, his presence overwhelms everything. He moves with purpose, ignoring the chaos around him as he targets a single individual, a girl with unusually high Lumin. Using a Lumin-draining artifact, he seizes her without hesitation.

There is no struggle. No explanation.

Only precision.

And then, just as suddenly as he arrived, he is gone, violently pulled back as if something is forcing him away.

The battlefield falls silent.

No one understands what they just witnessed.

But one thing is clear.

This is not random.

This is controlled.

As the dust settles, Kairios is left shaken, not just by the power he witnessed, but by what it represents. His flame failed once. Now he has seen something that may exist far beyond it.

The path ahead is no longer a pilgrimage.

It is a descent into something far larger than any of them understand.

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