The cold wind of the courtyard carried fragments of shattered light, remnants of Seraphiel's power.
Celestine felt everyone's gaze upon her: the archangel ready to destroy her, the Guardian awaiting her decision, Leonhardt at her side with his hand on his sword.
The world seemed suspended.
She took a deep breath, closing her eyes for just an instant.
The Void pulsed within her chest—not as a voice, but as a restless heat.
When she opened her eyes, her decision was made.
"I'll go with you," she said to the Guardian. "But not because I trust you. I'm going because I refuse to be judged by a heaven that never gave me a choice."
Seraphiel stepped forward, his wings blazing with fury.
"This is treason against the gods, Celestine d'Arnoir."
She met his gaze without trembling.
"I never swore loyalty to them."
A heavy silence fell over the courtyard.
The archangel slowly raised his spear.
"Then you place yourself beside the enemy…"
"…and declare yourself an enemy of Heaven."
Leonhardt stepped forward, positioning himself between Seraphiel and Celestine.
"To reach her, you'll have to go through me."
Seraphiel did not hesitate for a single second.
"If this is the fate of the fallen prince, then so be it."
But the ground vibrated.
The Guardian raised his hand, and the forbidden seal expanded like a circle of violet light, forming a wall of energy that separated the group from the archangel.
"Time is up," the Guardian said. "We can't face him here. Not yet."
Leonhardt grabbed Celestine's arm.
"Are you ready?"
"I never am," she replied. "But I'll move forward anyway."
The Guardian placed both hands on the ground.
The runes in his eyes accelerated, spinning like divine gears.
The barrier transformed into a violet vortex that began to engulf the three of them.
Seraphiel struck the barrier.
"I AM NOT FINISHED WITH YOU, BEARER OF SIN!"
The structure trembled, nearly collapsing, but the Guardian forced more energy into it.
"Go, Celestine!" he commanded. "When you reach the sanctuary, do not touch the pillars until I instruct you!"
The vortex intensified.
Seraphiel's voice thundered across the space:
"CELESTINE! YOU WILL NOT ESCAPE DIVINE JUDGMENT!"
The last thing she saw was his expression—a mix of hatred and desperation—before the entire world was swallowed by the vortex.
Space around them lost all form.
It felt like falling into a river without water, where time flowed backward.
Celestine felt nausea, but Leonhardt held her firmly.
"Breathe… it's going to be okay."
"This… isn't ordinary teleportation," she murmured.
"It's like crossing layers of the world…"
The Guardian replied:
"Correct. We're passing through a rift between the surface and the Ancient Sanctuary."
"A place even the gods cannot reach."
Celestine felt the Void react inside her.
As if it recognized the path.
As if it had been there before.
She pressed a hand to her chest.
"Why is the Void so… restless?"
The Guardian didn't turn his head, but his voice lowered.
"Because that is where everything began."
The vortex opened.
The three emerged onto a circular platform made of white stone.
The sky above had no color—a gray so deep it felt mute.
Around them, massive cracked pillars stretched outward like the remains of a lost civilization.
Leonhardt looked around in awe.
"Where… are we?"
The Guardian straightened and spread his arms.
"Welcome, Celestine…"
"…to the sanctuary where your sin was born."
A freezing chill ran through her body.
The Void inside her fell completely silent.
As if it were… listening.
Leonhardt touched her hand.
"Are you okay?"
She nodded—but she wasn't.
"Guardian…" she said softly, "what exactly… am I going to find here?"
He turned slowly toward her.
His expression was not triumphant.
Nor reverent.
It was filled with sorrow.
"Here… you will meet the first bearer."
"The one who sealed the Void."
"And who died for the same reason you are alive now."
Celestine froze.
"The first… me?"
"Yes," the Guardian replied.
"The woman whose soul you inherited."
And before she could react, the ground trembled.
An ancient presence awakened.
Something that had slept for centuries…
…and now recognized Celestine.