Chapter 20 – The Hall of Origin

Following the Shadow's Trail

Night had fallen silently over Valmere Academy. Most of the students had already returned to their dormitories, but Ethan remained awake, hidden among the pillars of the central courtyard. The light cloak he wore served both to keep him warm and to camouflage him in the darkness.

In the distance, he watched Master Kael. The professor walked with measured steps, his cloak swaying slightly. No sound. No hesitation. As if he knew every inch of his path.

Ethan kept a safe distance, the Forest Deer of the Ancestors following him through the shadows. The beast appeared even more alert than usual—its green eyes gleamed with an instinctual focus.

Kael turned a corner and passed through an ornate iron gate adorned with ancient symbols. At the top of the structure, in stone darkened by time, an inscription could be read—a message few recognized:

"Hall of Origin."

The Forbidden Place

The Hall of Origin was a structure forgotten in the academy's underground. Theoretically, it served as a repository for ancient artifacts, but rumors claimed that relics linked to the very beginnings of the bond between humans and beasts—long before the rise of the current Guilds—were kept there.

Ethan waited until the gate closed. Carefully, he used one of the side passages, entering an adjacent corridor via a maintenance staircase. That path had been shown to him by his father, long ago.

What Sleeps in the Stone

The hall was vast, with tall columns supporting an arched ceiling. In the center lay a stone circle similar to the one Ethan had encountered in the forest. But this one was different.

The circle was broken.

Fragments were scattered across the floor, as if they had been forcefully torn away. In its place stood a single statue: a hooded figure holding an indistinct creature—a hybrid of beast and shadow.

Kael stood before the statue. His hand rested on one of the fragments of its base. He murmured something in an ancient tongue—words that Ethan could not understand, yet that made him shudder from within.

The golden fragment kept in his room… began to warm.

Alert in the Bond

The Deer emitted a soft, almost inaudible sound. A warning. Ethan knew: it was time to retreat.

But it was too late.

Kael turned around.

— You may step out of the shadows, Ethan. You've seen enough.

The Confrontation of Words

Ethan stepped out slowly. There was no longer any point in hiding.

— What are you doing here?

Kael observed him for a moment. His eyes now shone with an intense, strange silvery light.

— Seeking answers. Just like you.

— Why do the fragments react to you?

— Because they were made for that.

Silence.

— Are you a Guardian?

Kael laughed, but the sound was not human.

— No. But I knew all of them. Before they were erased from history. I am what remains when the Veils are torn.

His words seemed to echo through the chamber like remnants of an ancient memory.

A Portent

The fragment in Ethan's pocket burned so fiercely that it seemed as if it wanted to break free on its own. He slowly backed away.

— You are not from the academy.

— No — Kael replied. — But it is no longer what it appears to be. This place… holds secrets that even the Council dares not recall.

Then he did something unexpected: he threw to the ground a small crystal—black, with purple veins.

— When you are ready to understand… bring the fragments here. Or bury them. And live in peace, until chaos knocks on your door.

With a single step, Kael vanished. His body fragmented into strands of dark mist and disappeared into the air.