The fire in Ardenvale had finally died.
Only smoke and silence remained — a hollow echo of the storm that had nearly consumed them.
Kale sat at the edge of the broken ridge, his cloak torn and burned, his sword planted in the dirt beside him. The wind tugged gently at his hair as if trying to pull him back to reality.
She had my mana.,
That thought looped endlessly through his mind, louder than the ringing in his ears.
He didn't hear Lyra approach until she placed a hand on his shoulder. "You should rest," she murmured.
He didn't move. "She was made from me. Do you understand what that means?"
Lyra's eyes softened. "That Aurelion's experiments weren't just theories. He recreated souls."
Kale's grip on the hilt tightened. "He recreated me."
Varyn stood a few feet away, sharpening his claws on a broken spear. "The witches didn't send just anyone. That girl — Seren — she was their weapon."
Ryn, crouched nearby, added grimly, "And she called you a failure. Which means they perfected what you are."
Elric slammed his blade back into its sheath. "Enough talking in circles. What matters is what comes next."
Lyra turned to him sharply. "What comes next is understanding why they made her."
Kale's voice was low but steady. "Aurelion wasn't trying to destroy the world. He was trying to change it. Maybe Seren is the result of that… or the price."
They traveled through the ruins for the next few hours, searching for anything that could explain what happened here. Most buildings were crumbled, overtaken by vines and ash.
But near the heart of the village, beneath a shattered bell tower, Lyra found something — a hidden staircase leading underground.
"Kale," she called softly. "You should see this."
They descended carefully, torches flickering against ancient stone walls. The air was cold, thick with dust and old mana residue. At the bottom lay a single chamber — circular, its walls etched with glowing blue inscriptions.
In the center stood a pedestal, and on it, a black crystal pulsing faintly with mana.
Lyra stepped forward. "This isn't a weapon," she said, awe filling her tone. "It's a memory crystal."
Kale hesitated, then reached out. The moment his hand touched it, light flared — and the room vanished.
He stood in darkness.
Then, slowly, an image began to form: a laboratory, filled with light and motion.
A man in a dark coat stood before a group of glowing tubes. His voice echoed through the void.
"Mana is the essence of life. But what if we could shape it? What if we could make it obey?"
Kale's breath caught. "Aurelion…"
The man turned — and for a heartbeat, Kale saw his own face. Older, colder, but unmistakable.
"The world fears wizards born with too much power. But I will show them that cursed mana is not a plague… it is evolution."
Another figure appeared beside him — a young girl with white hair and bright silver eyes. Seren.
"The prototype failed," Aurelion continued. "But this one… this one will surpass even me."
Kale stumbled back, the vision shaking. "No…"
Aurelion looked up — directly at him.
"To the one who bears my mark — if you're seeing this, then you survived. Good. You were never meant to be destroyed. You were meant to finish my work."
The light snapped out.
Kale dropped to his knees, gasping as the real world returned.
Lyra caught him before he fell. "Kale! What did you see?"
He swallowed hard, staring at the empty pedestal. "Aurelion created Seren… and me. But it wasn't just about power."
Ryn frowned. "Then what was it about?"
Kale's eyes darkened. "He was trying to make mana choose its wielder. To merge it with will, not blood."
Lyra looked shaken. "That means… you and Seren are mana-born. Living conduits."
Varyn's voice was grim. "And if the witches control her, they control that experiment."
Kale stood slowly, the faint glow returning to his eyes. "Then we find her first."
Elric crossed his arms. "You sure you're ready for that?"
Kale's voice was quiet, but it cut through the silence.
"I have to be. Because if Seren is the perfected version of me…" He looked at the horizon, where the storm clouds gathered again. "Then I'm the last mistake she's coming to erase."