Morning broke over the ruined warehouse.
Sunlight streamed through the shattered roof, illuminating broken beams, scattered weapons, and the scars left by the night's battle. The air smelled of smoke and dust, but the silence was strangely peaceful.
The recruits worked together to clear debris while Sara and Sam tended to the injured. Miraculously, no one had lost their life.
Emerald stood near the collapsed entrance, watching them.
"They're smiling," she said quietly.
Noah joined her, carrying two mugs of hot tea.
"They're alive."
He handed her one.
"That's worth smiling about."
Emerald accepted it with a grateful nod.
"I keep thinking about my mother."
Noah remained silent, allowing her to continue.
"She told me the Emerald Throne is alive."
"And that only you can awaken it."
Emerald sighed.
"I don't even know where it is."
A deep rumble interrupted them.
Varak approached, each step making the cracked concrete tremble beneath his enormous paws. Though his appearance was still intimidating, the crimson glow in his six eyes had faded, replaced by a calm emerald light.
The recruits instinctively stepped back.
Varak lowered his massive head.
"The throne awaits."
Emerald looked up at him.
"You know where it is?"
"I have guarded its resting place for centuries."
Commander Darius, who had remained with a handful of Hunters after the battle, stepped forward.
"If that's true, then the Queen knows it as well."
Varak shook his great head.
"She knows of its existence."
His voice echoed through the warehouse.
"But she has never found it."
Lyra frowned.
"How is that possible?"
"The sanctuary was hidden by the last true king."
Varak's gaze rested on Emerald.
"Your father."
A hush fell over the room.
Emerald had spent years wondering about the parents she had never known.
Now, with every passing hour, another piece of their legacy was unfolding before her.
"My father built a sanctuary?"
Varak nodded.
"When the Queen betrayed your family, your father realized the palace would fall."
The Guardian's eyes grew distant, as though reliving old memories.
"So he gathered the kingdom's greatest mages."
"They concealed the Emerald Throne within a sanctuary that could only be opened by the blood of the rightful heir."
Darius folded his arms.
"If that's true, why didn't your aunt search for it herself?"
"Because she cannot."
Varak's voice was absolute.
"The sanctuary rejects false rulers."
Noah glanced at Emerald.
"So... all we have to do is reach it before she does."
"If only it were that simple," Varak replied.
"The path lies beyond the Veil."
"The Veil?" Sam asked.
Varak turned toward the eastern horizon.
"It is the boundary between the Human World and the Underworld."
"It has remained sealed since the night your parents sacrificed themselves."
Emerald's heart tightened.
"My parents sealed it?"
"To protect you."
Before anyone could speak again, Lyra suddenly stiffened.
She was staring toward the warehouse doors.
"We're being watched."
Everyone reached for their weapons.
A lone figure emerged from the surrounding trees.
An old woman wrapped in a weathered green cloak leaned heavily on a wooden staff.
Emerald recognized her immediately.
"You..."
The mysterious woman smiled warmly.
"I wondered how long it would take before we met again under calmer circumstances."
Varak bowed his enormous head.
"Lady Elara."
Every eye turned toward the Guardian.
"You know her?" Sara asked.
"She served three generations of the royal family."
Lady Elara chuckled.
"And now I serve the fourth."
She stopped before Emerald.
"I believe it's time you learned the truth."
Emerald nodded.
"I'm ready."
Elara gently placed her hand over Emerald's glowing mark.
The mark pulsed.
Instead of pain, warmth spread through Emerald's body.
"You've spent sixteen years believing your powers were merely locked away."
"They are."
"But that is only half the truth."
Emerald frowned.
"What do you mean?"
Elara's expression became solemn.
"The curse did more than seal your magic."
"It divided your soul."
A stunned silence followed.
"My... soul?"
"The Queen feared not only your power..."
Elara looked directly into Emerald's eyes.
"...she feared your potential."
"To ensure you could never become the queen your parents believed you would be, she split your royal essence in two."
Noah's face paled.
"Can that even be done?"
"Only with forbidden magic."
Emerald looked down at her glowing mark.
"So half of my power..."
"...has been sleeping inside the sanctuary," Elara finished.
"The Emerald Throne has protected it all these years."
Varak nodded in agreement.
"That is why the throne calls to you."
Emerald took a slow breath.
"If I reach the sanctuary..."
"You will become whole."
The words settled heavily over the group.
Darius stepped forward.
"You won't reach it."
Everyone looked at him.
"The Queen's armies will already be searching every known entrance to the Veil."
"So what do you suggest?" Noah asked cautiously.
Darius was silent for several moments.
Then he removed the silver mask from his face.
The recruits stared.
He looked younger than Emerald had expected, perhaps in his early thirties. A long scar ran across his left cheek, and his gray eyes carried years of regret.
"I know another way."
No one spoke.
"It was built for the Hunters centuries ago."
"A hidden passage."
"It leads directly beneath the Veil."
Sara narrowed her eyes.
"Why would you tell us?"
Darius looked at Emerald.
"Because yesterday I came here to end the last royal."
His expression softened.
"Today..."
He glanced at the frightened recruits helping one another rebuild.
"...I saw the kind of queen this world actually needs."
Noah exchanged a surprised glance with Emerald.
"You'd betray the Hunters?"
"I'll betray no one."
Darius answered firmly.
"I'll honor what they were meant to protect."
Before anyone could respond—
A sharp cry pierced the morning air.
A hawk circled overhead before landing on Elara's outstretched arm.
Its feathers shimmered with traces of emerald magic.
The bird carried a tiny scroll tied to its leg.
Elara untied it and read the message.
Her face lost all color.
"What is it?" Emerald asked.
Elara slowly looked up.
"The Queen has left the palace."
"She's marching here."
"With the entire Royal Legion."
Varak turned toward the distant mountains.
His voice was low and resolute.
"Then we have very little time."
Emerald looked at every person standing beside her—her human friends, the redeemed Lyra, the ancient Guardian, the wise Elara, and even Commander Darius.
The path ahead would lead them into the Underworld itself.
There would be no turning back.
She tightened her grip on her sword.
"Then we leave today."
One by one, every member of the group nodded.
The journey to reclaim the throne had finally begun.