Chapter-38

Chapter: The Dragon's Truth

A dragon.

Not a warped, corrupted beast. Not a creature of the Shadow's making. This is something older, something primal. Its obsidian scales gleam like polished night, reflecting the soft glow of the monolith. Power ripples through the air, unseen but felt, pressing against my skin like a storm on the verge of breaking.

The Mad Hatter stares, unblinking, his mouth hanging open.

"A… a dragon?" he breathes. "No, no, no. That's not right. That's not how the stories go. Dragons were never part of—"

"The legends are incomplete," the dragon rumbles, its voice a deep tremor that shakes the cavern itself.

The rabbit shifts on the Hatter's shoulder but does not cower. Unlike him, it is listening.

I take a step forward.

The dragon watches me, its burning gaze unblinking, unafraid. There is no hostility in its stance, no immediate threat. But there is expectation.

"You seek the source of the Shadow," the dragon says. "And you have found it… but not in the way you expect."

The weight of its words settles into the air. A challenge, a revelation, and perhaps… a warning.

I smirk.

"Then tell me what I have found."

---

The Dragon's Revelation

For a long moment, the dragon is silent. Then, it shifts—its great wings flexing slightly before settling back against its body. The sheer weight of its presence makes the monolith seem small.

"You believe the Shadow is a force," it says slowly. "Something separate from Wonderland. Something that invaded it. But that is not the truth."

The Mad Hatter inhales sharply. "Not separate?"

The dragon's eyes flick to him, then back to me.

"The Shadow was born here, just as Wonderland was. Two halves of the same whole."

Something clicks into place in my mind.

"Balance," I murmur.

The dragon inclines its head.

"The Shadow is not an enemy. It is a consequence. A reaction to imbalance. You seek to defeat it, to banish it… but tell me, traveler—" The dragon leans forward slightly, its presence impossibly vast. "What happens when you remove one half of something whole?"

I say nothing.

Because I already know the answer.

"You break it," the dragon rumbles. "If the Shadow is destroyed, Wonderland will not heal. It will shatter."

The silence that follows is deafening.

The Hatter grips his coat tightly, his knuckles white. "Then… then what are we supposed to do?"

The dragon exhales, the force of its breath stirring the dust on the cavern floor.

"Restore the balance," it says simply.

---

A New Choice

Restore balance.

Not destroy.

Not conquer.

Balance.

This was never about simply defeating the Shadow. That was the story others wanted to believe—the easy answer. The lie they told themselves to justify their fear.

But the truth is rarely so simple.

I glance at the monolith, then back at the dragon. "And the Heart of Wonderland?"

The dragon's gaze darkens slightly.

"It is not a weapon," it says. "It is not meant to be wielded. It is meant to remember."

The realization settles in me like a slow-burning ember.

The Heart does not fight the Shadow.

The Heart remembers what Wonderland was meant to be.

And now, I must decide what to do with that knowledge.

The cavern hums with expectation. The dragon watches. The Hatter barely breathes. The rabbit waits.

The Heart of Wonderland belongs to me now.

The only question is—

What will I do with it?