Chapter 46 Arkanum Veritas (7)
Astral Library, Thirtos City
The basement beneath the Astral Library was known only to a select few. There were no windows, no doors—only a spiral staircase hidden behind a bookshelf that vanished as soon as the glyph key was locked. This place once served as a repository for forbidden tomes. Now, it had become the meeting ground where Gaia plotted murder.
Five figures sat around a small round table made of obsidian. They wore no ceremonial robes or symbols of authority—all were clad in shades of gray, their eyes weary.
Rinoa, sitting apart from the others, stared blankly at the table. Memories of her past at the Atlantis Academy flooded her mind like a tumultuous wave. Amidst the stacks of books and the painful sweat of practice, she had once been one of the top students; her genius and talent now twisted by the shadows of uncertainty. A single tragic event, the accident that claimed her friend's life, haunted her every step, creating a chasm between her and the world she had once known. The further she drifted, the deeper she sank into an oppressive solitude.
Inner conflict engulfed Rinoa like an unexpected storm. The foes she faced were not merely enemies; they represented a spectrum of what she once perceived as goodness, now overshadowed by darkness and hatred. Each attack, every mission, reflected her internal struggle, as the flames of vengeance smoldering within consumed the remaining tranquility. With eyes that bore the weight of pain and hope, she found herself torn between reminiscing about a bitter past and grasping at a murky future.
Physically, Rinoa appeared fragile. Her skin was pale, and her dark eyes, once shimmering with curiosity, now held an ocean of sorrow. She resisted the flow of power that should have surged within her, as an act of defiance against the hopes she once embraced. Her feelings toward that power resembled a lost peace; its presence was met with uncertainty and grief. In every heartbeat, she questioned the choices she made, striving to find answers amidst the bleak doubts that shackled her heart.
"Arkanum Veritas is no longer an idea," Lady Valeora replied bitterly. "It has become a body, and a body can be killed."
Lord Ludwig unrolled a parchment, revealing the faces of two individuals: Elena Iscariot and Kael Juno.
"Two puppeteers. One is the mastermind of ideology, and the other the head of logistics. They do not need an army—just the truth and a symbol. And that is more dangerous than any weapon."
Sir Thalor inserted a scrap of paper: a list of names. "I have gathered those who are not registered in the system. Former allies of Elbert, mercenaries from the southern lands, and a defector from the Atlantis academy who turned after Marquez's death."
Gravemind Sanctum, Titan District, Thirtos City