Both Liliana and Rika turned to him, surprised.

  “What is it then?” Liliana asked.

  Kale didn’t look at them, his eyes still fixed on the words. His heart beat slower, but the truth settled in his chest, calm and steady.

  “It’s... sacrifice.”

  Liliana’s eyes widened slightly, understanding dawning, though she didn’t fully grasp what Kale was truly feeling. Rika stared, taken aback, unsure how to respond.

  Kale didn’t explain further. He didn’t need to. The riddle wasn’t just about something distant or abstract. It wasn’t about the past. It was a glimpse of what was to come, of a choice he would have to make.

  And deep down, he knew what it meant. It was his fate.

  As Kale’s voice faded, the stillness in the room deepened, almost reverent. Liliana and Rika exchanged a glance, both uncertain, but before either could speak, the crackle of magic filled the air.

  The ancient tome on the podium began to glow softly, its glyphs flickering with a gentle light. The polished stone beneath their feet shimmered, and a pulse of energy, subtle yet undeniable, radiated from the center of the room. Rika stepped back, but Kale remained motionless, his gaze lingering on the riddle, still absorbed in its meaning.

  The floor before them shifted and the stone parted, revealing a portal—its swirling colors a deep indigo darkening to near black. The portal radiated warmth, inviting rather than intimidating, as if it had been waiting for them all along.

  Liliana studied the portal’s smooth, rippling surface. “This is it. The entrance to Aeloria’s temple. Serassa should be waiting for us on the other side.”

  Kale finally looked up from the riddle, his expression still contemplative. There was no ominous feeling, no sense of danger, only the quiet, steady pull of something greater. Something they were meant to find.

  Rika shot a playful glance at Kale. “Guess we don’t need to smash our way in this time, huh?”

  “Let’s hope Serassa is there,” Liliana said. “We need her guidance... and she needs to know what’s coming.”

  Kale nodded, taking a deep breath. “Let’s go.”

  Together, they stepped forward, the soft hum of magic growing as they passed through the portal, leaving behind the quiet halls of the archives. The world around them shifted gently, like walking into a dream. As the portal enveloped them, the temple awaited on the other side.

  Light streamed through high arches, casting warm glows across the floor, but the room itself was vast and silent. They had entered the heart of Aeloria’s temple, and there was a sense of something grander at play, something waiting to be found.

  Rika’s eyes swept over the tall statues, the carvings on the walls. “So... this is it, huh? Kind of expected more glowing crystals or floating things.”

  Liliana hovered ahead, turning slightly to take in the grandeur around them. “This place radiates power,” she said. “It may not look dangerous, but it’s alive with magic.”

  Rika frowned at one of the statues. “Yeah, well, alive or not, it’s quiet. Too quiet. If Serassa’s here, why hasn’t she shown herself?”

  Kale walked behind them, his eyes less focused on the grandeur of the temple and more distant, the words of the riddle still echoed in his mind. There was something about this place, its stillness, its calm, that tugged at the corners of his thoughts, pulling him in directions he didn’t want to go just yet.

  “I don’t know if we should expect her to just... appear,” Kale said quietly. “But she’s here. She has to be.”

  They moved deeper into the temple. Statues of Aeloria—elegant, serene—watched over them from every angle. Each one was carved with meticulous care, their stone faces filled with calm wisdom, but their presence was unnerving, as if they could see straight into the soul of anyone who stood before them.

  “This place gives me the creeps,” Rika muttered. “All these statues staring, and for what? Doesn’t feel like anyone’s been here in ages.”

  Liliana floated closer to one of the statues, inspecting the ancient carvings along the stone. “Aeloria’s influence lingers, even without people to maintain the temple. There’s power here.”

  Rika glanced at Kale. “She’s been saying that a lot lately, you notice?”

  Kale didn’t respond. The stillness around them had deepened, unnatural in its intensity. Something felt off. The temple wasn’t just quiet, it was void of sound, a silence that pressed against him in a way he couldn’t shake. His thoughts churned, not only over the riddle but over the strange pull of this place. It felt as if the temple hadn’t just been a destination to warn Serassa, but a place that had been waiting. For him.

  Still, Serassa was nowhere to be seen.

  “Maybe she’s not home,” Rika said. “Or maybe she needed groceries, and decided to head out.”

  “No,” Liliana said quietly, her voice tense. “Something’s wrong.”

  Kale felt it too—the way the light in the temple seemed dimmer now, the warmth in the air fading into something cold. His hand hovered over the hilt of Aeloria’s Promise. “Keep your guard up.”

  The further they walked, the more the temple's serenity felt... hollow. Lifeless. Kale’s stomach twisted with a growing sense of dread.

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  It wasn’t until they reached the central chamber that they saw her.

  Serassa lay at the base of Aeloria’s statue, her silver hair stained red with blood, her once-regal robes torn and tattered. The stillness of the temple was replaced by the faint sound of her labored breathing, shallow and pained. Around her, the faint shimmering of blood magic lingered in the air, dissipating slowly like smoke.

  Liliana gasped. “No!”

  Rika’s face hardened. “Shit. What the hells happened here?”

  Kale knelt beside Serassa. For a moment, he thought they were too late, that she was already gone. But then her eyes fluttered open, weak, but still alive.

  “It’s too late,” Serassa whispered, her voice ragged, barely above a breath.

  Liliana hovered closer. “Serassa, what happened? Who did this?”

  Serassa’s eyes drifted to Kale, then to the others, her breaths coming in short, painful gasps. “House Bloodthorn... Alistair... he came here.”

  Rika cursed under her breath. “Why would that bastard come here?”

  Liliana’s face twisted in confusion. “Alistair? He’s ruthless, but why attack you? Why here?”

  Serassa’s voice wavered as she fought to stay conscious, her hand trembling as she lifted it, pointing weakly toward the entrance of the chamber. “He... he made a deal... with Xeroth.”

  Kale felt the blood drain from his face. “A deal?”

  “He came here... to take something...” Serassa’s eyes fluttered closed, her voice growing fainter with each passing second. “He took the sword... the blade... Lifedrinker.”

  Kale’s heart skipped a beat. “What is it? What does it do?”

  Serassa’s eyes opened, glassy and distant, her breath shallow as she forced the words out. “The blade... it curses those it cuts... anyone touched by it... can’t regenerate... can’t heal.”

  Serassa’s gaze was unfocused, but her words carried a grave urgency. “Wounds made by Lifedrinker... they fester. They spread like poison. Flesh rots, painfully... slowly... and nothing can heal it. Not restorative magic. Not potions. Nothing.”

  She shuddered, her words growing faint. “But the curse... it doesn’t end there. It takes from its wielder too. With every swing, every strike, Lifedrinker feeds—not just on its victims, but on its master. Each life it takes makes the blade stronger... and its wielder along with it. Their strength grows, their power surges, but at a cost. The blade drains their vitality, their life force, feeding on them even as it empowers them. The more they fight, the more unstoppable they become... until the blade takes everything. Until it devours them entirely.”

  Serassa’s hand trembled, her eyes fluttering closed. “It’s a weapon of ruin... for both sides. He means to end those who stand in his way... Xeroth promised him power... and with that sword...”

  Her words settled over the group, each of them realizing the severity of the situation. Alistair with Lifedrinker—the consequences were unimaginable. No one he fought would ever recover, and with each battle, he’d grow stronger, even as the sword consumed him.

  “But why would he make a deal with Xeroth?” Kale asked. “What does Xeroth gain from this?”

  Serassa fought to stay conscious. “Xeroth... needs chaos. Alistair... with that sword... can spread it. Break the order... weaken the resistance. In return... Alistair gains... the power he craves... the chance to rule.”

  This was worse than he thought. Alistair, already dangerous, now wielded a blade that could tear apart armies, and with Xeroth’s backing, there would be nothing to stop him from becoming a nightmare on the battlefield.

  “Where did he go after this? Do you know?” Liliana asked.

  Serassa’s breathing was shallow, each breath a painful effort. “I... don’t... know. But he... will strike soon. The sword... it will call him... to use it. He can’t resist... its pull.”

  “So what do we do?” Rika asked. “How do we stop him if that thing can kill anyone it touches?”

  Kale stood slowly, his eyes dark and filled with resolve. “We take it back. Before he has the chance to use it.”

  Liliana hovered beside him. “It won’t be easy. He’s probably surrounded by his strongest guards by now, and we don’t know how deeply Xeroth’s influence has already spread.”

  Kale nodded. “We’ll have to be smart. We can’t face him head-on, not with Lifedrinker in his hands.”

  “You must... destroy it,” Serassa said.

  “Destroy the sword?” Kale asked.

  Serassa’s eyes, barely open, met his. “If you... don’t... it will... take everything.” Her breath hitched, her voice weakening further. “It will... consume the world... one life at a time.”

  Kale’s chest tightened. Destroying Lifedrinker? He had no idea if that was even possible, but the alternative... He couldn’t let the sword remain in Alistair’s hands.

  Liliana looked at Serassa, then back to Kale. “Can we even do that? Destroy a weapon like Lifedrinker?”

  Serassa’s final breath was a whisper. “Find the way... or be... undone...”

  Her head slumped back, her body going still as the light in her eyes faded. The guardian of the temple was gone, her final warning lingering like a cold wind through the chamber.

  For a moment, none of them spoke.

  “We need to move,” Kale said. “Alistair’s already ahead of us, so we don’t have time to waste.”

  “Then let’s make sure we end him before he gets a chance to use that cursed blade,” Rika said.

  “And if we have to destroy Lifedrinker to do it, we’ll find a way,” Liliana said.

  Kale glanced down at Serassa, his heart heavy. “She gave us a chance. Let’s not waste it.”

  The air in the temple felt colder now, the silence heavier after Serassa’s final words. Kale stared at her lifeless form, his mind racing. Alistair had Lifedrinker. That was bad enough. But worse was not knowing what his next move would be.

  Rika paced, her warhammer resting on her shoulder as she let out a frustrated growl. “He probably went straight back home. That’s where he’d go, right? Hide out, gather his forces.”

  Kale frowned, shaking his head. “Maybe. But Serassa said he wouldn’t be able to resist using the sword... and if he’s that desperate for power, wouldn’t he use it right away? Against someone important?”

  The words hung in the air for a moment before Liliana’s face suddenly paled, her eyes wide with a growing sense of dread.

  “No... no, he wouldn’t go back to Bloodhaven,” she whispered, her voice trembling.

  Kale and Rika both turned to her, confusion flickering across their faces.

  “What do you mean?” Kale asked.

  Liliana’s eyes locked onto his. “He’s going to the Bastion of the Scarlet Veil.”

  “Your father...”

  Rika’s eyes widened. “Oh, shit.”

  Liliana’s voice was shaky but filled with urgency. “He’s going to kill him. My father is the Lord of the Scarlet Veil, the one standing in the way of Alistair’s ambitions. If Alistair has Lifedrinker, he’ll think my father is the perfect target to show his strength. To prove what the sword can do.”

  Kale’s heart sank. “If that sword touches him...”

  “We need to go. Now,” Rika said.

  Liliana’s voice was brittle with fear. “The Bastion is heavily defended, but with Lifedrinker... none of it will matter. He could walk through their forces like they’re nothing. My father... if we’re too late—”

  “We won’t be too late,” Kale said. “We have to get there before he does.”

  Liliana looked in the direction of the portal they had come through, her breath coming in shallow bursts. “Even at our fastest—”

  Rika cut in. “We’ll make it. We don’t have a choice.”

  Kale nodded, his jaw clenched. “We’ll warn them. And if we can’t warn them in time... we’ll fight.”

  Liliana closed her eyes, a brief moment of stillness before reality hit her again. “If Alistair touches my father with that sword...” She trailed off, but the unspoken truth was clear. There would be no saving him.

  “We’ll stop him,” Kale said.

  The resolve in his voice was enough to snap them into action. Liliana’s fear was real, but there was no time for panic. They had to move. They had to warn the Bastion, warn her father, before Alistair struck.

  “Let’s go,” Kale said, his eyes filled with determination.

  Together, the group turned toward the exit, urgency driving their every step. Their destination was clear: the Bastion of the Scarlet Veil, and time was already slipping away.