Chapter 108: Echoes of the Past
The morning after his conversation with King Godfrey, Kael found himself unable to stop thinking about the map.Not the kingdoms.
Not the politics.Not even the distant continents.The blank spaces.
The places marked only with ancient symbols and faded warnings.The places nobody seemed willing to talk about.
For someone who had spent most of his life fighting for survival, the idea that entire parts of the world remained unknown felt almost impossible.And naturally it made him curious.
The Royal Archives
Three days later, Kael stood before one of the oldest structures in Solaryn.The Royal Archives.Unlike the palace, the building wasn't designed to impress.It was designed to endure.Massive stone walls surrounded a structure older than many kingdoms.
Countless scholars, historians, researchers, and scribes moved through its halls.
Kael immediately felt out of place.
A sword felt much more natural in his hands than a book.
"You're staring at the building like it's a monster."A familiar voice spoke behind him.
Kael turned.Lyra was standing there.
Not Lyra from his old team.Lyra Solen of the King's Guard.A scholar first.
A warrior second."You spend your free time here?" Kael asked.
She looked horrified.
"Spend my free time?"
A pause.
"I practically live here."
Kael suddenly understood why the other guards found her strange.
Knowledge Has Weight
Inside the archives, rows upon rows of books stretched endlessly.
Ancient scrolls rested behind protective barriers.
Maps covered entire walls.
Records dating back centuries filled countless shelves.
Kael had never seen so much knowledge gathered in one place.
"It's overwhelming," he admitted.
Lyra nodded.
"Good."
Kael blinked.
"Good?"
She smiled.
"If knowledge doesn't overwhelm you, it means you haven't realized how much you don't know."
That sounded suspiciously similar to something King Godfrey would say.
The First Mystery
Hours later, Kael found something strange.
A damaged map.
Much older than anything else nearby.
Most of it had faded.
But one section remained visible.
A massive region beyond the northern reaches of Valkyra.
The map simply labeled it:
The Shattered Crown
No explanation.
No details.
Just a warning.
"Forbidden since the Fall."
Kael frowned.
"The Fall of what?"
Lyra glanced at the map.
And immediately became interested.
Which worried Kael.
Because scholars only looked like that when they discovered something dangerous.
Forgotten History
"What do you know about the Age of Fractures?" Lyra asked.
"Almost nothing."
"Good."
Kael sighed.
"Everyone keeps saying that."
Lyra ignored him.
"The Age of Fractures happened roughly fifteen hundred years ago."
A pause."Maybe."Kael blinked.
"Maybe?"
Lyra pointed toward several conflicting historical records.
"Nobody knows."
That was somehow more concerning.
"You're telling me humanity lost part of its own history?"Lyra's expression darkened.
"No."
A pause.
"We're saying history was taken."
Silence followed.
Because those were very different things.
Meanwhile: The Team Returns
Far from Solaryn, Bram and the others finally approached Eryndor.Home.
Or at least something close to it.
The city looked different than they remembered.Larger.Busier.
More heavily guarded.
The effects of recent events were still visible everywhere.The city was recovering.
But scars remained.
Just like the people living there.
A Different Kind of Distance
As they entered the city, people recognized them.Not immediately.But eventually.
These weren't just adventurers anymore.
They were survivors of events that had changed the kingdom.
Heroes.
The title felt uncomfortable.
Especially for Bram.Because heroes weren't supposed to feel this lost.Tovin and Nyra
Later that evening, the group gathered for dinner.Nothing formal.
Just food.Conversation.
Normal life.Something they hadn't experienced in a very long time.
Tovin was explaining a strategy problem.
Nobody was listening.
Mostly because Nyra kept interrupting.
Mostly because she kept pretending she wasn't interested in what he was saying.
Mostly because she was failing miserably.
Lira finally sighed.
"You know everyone can tell, right?"
Nyra froze.Tovin blinked.
Bram immediately looked interested.
"What can everyone tell?"
Lira regretted speaking immediately.
Elsewhere in Solaryn
Back in the capital, Kael sat alone in the archives long after Lyra had left.
The damaged map remained spread before him.
The Shattered Crown.
The Fall.
History that had disappeared.
Questions with no answers.
For some reason
The feeling reminded him of Kade.
A man who appeared from nowhere.
A man who knew things he shouldn't.
A man who vanished just as mysteriously.
Kael stared at the ancient warning.
Then quietly spoke.
"Where did you come from?"
Whether he meant Kade or the map
Even he wasn't sure.
The King's Concern
Elsewhere within the palace, King Godfrey Solvayne stood before a window overlooking Solaryn.
Astra stood nearby.
Silent.
As always.
"The boy is asking questions."
Godfrey said.
Astra nodded.
"He was always going to."
The King's expression became thoughtful.
"Then we may run out of time."
A pause.
"Before he learns the truth."
Astra's eyes narrowed slightly.
"The truth about what?"
Godfrey looked toward the distant horizon.
Toward places older than kingdoms.
Older than history.
Older than mankind's memory.
And for the first time in years
The King looked worried.
"The First Devourer."