Adrian couldn't believe his eyes.

He was standing in the middle of the street in the Dark Lotus's base, letting the chatter swirl around him, trapping him in a cocoon yet never fully reaching his ears. For the past few days, he wandered and drank aimlessly, awaiting Lucius's summon that would break him from his drunken stupor and force him into sobriety. And when the note came in the form of a hooded bandit who stole his pouch of coins and replaced it with a sliver of paper, Adrian was too drunk to protest.

The prospect of another mission with Two didn't bother him as much as he would've thought. But it was most likely the alcohol at play, muddling his mind, melting his mask, erasing what and who he was. It didn't matter. Nothing did. Not until he reached the underground city and noticed the commotion flooding the streets.

That was when he saw it: Lucius's dead body.

The first thought that came to mind was that it must've been a setup, another one of Lucius's cruel tests, but the body appeared too real for that. And the people were too noisy to be staging an act.

So Adrian stood there, studying the body and blood, tempted to prod it to check if it was truly dead, as old memories of a hand lifting him away from the darkness and onto his feet raced through his head. A lone savior who came with the promise of revenge, who handed him the dagger he still carried to that day. The jaded dagger that waited for a master to ignite the fires of ambition once more.

"Zuraias!"

The grating voice drew his attention away from Lucius's body, and before he knew it, a hand clapped his shoulder.

"It is good to see you after all this time!"

The man was familiar, bearded and sturdy with a muscular build, but his name escaped Adrian at the moment. Adrian didn't mind. He was too occupied with wrapping his head around the fact that Lucius was dead.

"Yes, it is a pleasant surprise." Adrian pointed at Lucius. "But is that. . . ?"

The man nodded solemnly. "Aye. Two and another boy's doing. What happened was a mystery. One moment there was peace, and in another, there was chaos when they dropped in the middle of this street here. Lucius was long dead."

"This was Two's doing?" Adrian thought Two was loyal to Lucius, his little soldier who murdered on his command, his beast who slayed the burdens out of his path. But she was the one who killed him?

She was the one who set Adrian free?

At the realization, Adrian had to hold back a laugh as triumph tingled through him. He was free. His debt was long gone. Lucius was the only one who knew of his true heritage as an heir of the House of Leontas, but now that the bastard was dead. . .

A choked end of a laugh escaped Adrian's lips, but the man beside him must've read it as a sob because he patted Adrian's back.

"We all know you looked up to him."

Looked up to him!?

Adrian covered his mouth, blocking the laughs that threatened to burst out, and when tears started to roll down his cheeks, the man finally left him alone. The world was spinning around him as Adrian made his way through the ever-growing crowd, bumping into people who sent him grisly threats with one eye and others that shoved him to the side. Once he was freed from the ensnarement of the throng, he tilted his head back and breathed.

And he couldn't help himself. He laughed as tears of utter joy blurred his sight, as people gave him weird looks and avoided him, as his heart beat out of his chest and threatened to suffocate him with excitement.

Lucius was dead.

Like the wings of a bird, he spread his arms wide open.

"Freedom," he whispered as his body felt lighter, the weight of his invisible chains falling from his limbs. As he slowly dropped from his high, he searched the underground city, the ideas in his head churning.

He had to get out of here. Away from the Lotus. Away from Clarica. Away from his life as the assassin Adrian Zuraias.

Walking towards the path out of the underground city, he pinched a coin pouch from the back pockets of a random noble and began to formulate a plan. His first idea was to go to Medeia and find Nero, but that could lead him back to the Lotus. Since Lucius was dead, there would be a power struggle between the leaders, and Nero would return from his exile to take part.

To the north, the Alta Mountains hindered his path, and now that winter was at the door, there was no hope of even making it through the mountain passes alive. Traveling to another kingdom was a burden Adrian wasn't willing to bear. Fortunately, there was a town in Lux far from the capital, from his life as an assassin.

Towards the south, past the rolling hills and tall forests, lay Ruscao, a town that was never graced by his presence. It was perfect.

Reaching the surface and breathing in the fresh autumn winds was never more satisfying than now. Colored leaves were already covering the cobblestone streets, crunching under Adrian's boots, but he didn't care. Turning, he faced the southern skies glowing with shades of red and orange from the falling sun.

The future, his future, was right over there, somewhere far south.

And for the first time in a long time, Adrian genuinely smiled.

* * *

Leaves blew in the sky in a blur of yellow, orange, and red that coalesced with the hues of the sun setting in the distant west. The time for stars neared each second as they climbed to the surface from the east. Jungkook and Two were already at the stables, preparing for the departure to Hiemura.

Snow and Nickelyn had accompanied them, standing off to the sides, watching. Jungkook peeked at the pair, especially at Snow, to gauge their emotions.

Even though Snow protested at first, she eventually gave into Jungkook's request and prepared two horses with food and water for the journey to Umbra. It was a sign of loyalty, yet Jungkook couldn't help but wonder if she planned to pursue other ideas in his absence.

Packing the last of his supplies, Jungkook clapped his hands clean of dust and led his white stallion out of the stables with the reins. After he mounted his horse, Two followed suit moments later.

"I trust you can protect the castle in my absence until the Captain returns." There was a twinge in his chest, not unlike a needle wheedling its way through his heart, but he dismissed it. This was no time to allow emotions to get the best of him.

Snow glanced to the south as she nodded. "And I trust Elias will return in a day. We will manage."

Nickelyn sent him one of her cheeky grins. "Look at you all grown up. Only weeks ago, I was knocking you into the sand during training, yet now you're leaving to explore the world yourself."

A light heat settled on Jungkook's cheeks. He cleared his throat, averting his gaze. "You didn't have to bring that up."

Nickelyn only smiled, but this one didn't reach her eyes. "Good luck on your journey, Jungkook." She regarded Two with a small nudge in her head. "Please do protect him."

Curling her lips, Two scoffed. "As if I have any say."

The sun had disappeared below the horizon, and the stars now herded the remaining gleams of light over the edge of the west. Darkness settled over the castle, hiding them from lingering gazes. Covering his head with the hood of his charcoal cloak, Jungkook gave Nickelyn and Snow one last goodbye before kicking his heels into the sides of his horse.

He rode through the back gates of the castle to avoid the prying eyes of the guard and servants, Two on his tail. When he made it to the foot of the hill, he proceeded west.

Upon the hill was the castle with its millions of windows glowing yellow, giving the entire structure a luminescent luster. Instead of staring at Clarica from his balcony, Jungkook was finally looking at the castle—at his home. He had reached the city, no longer observing from a distance.

But for some reason, rather than a warm euphoria, he felt the twinge of needles piercing his heart again. Usually, he would be exulting in his newfound freedom, excited about uncovering more secrets of Clarica hidden right below his nose.

So what a surprise it was when, instead of delight, he felt melancholy. He didn't want to leave. For the first time, he wanted to stay.

* * *

Snow watched as Jungkook and Two left through the back gate under the veil of the night as Nickelyn waited silently beside her. Once Jungkook was out of sight, Snow inhaled a trembling breath.

"So it has finally begun," Snow said.

Nickelyn hummed. "All we have to do is wait for Elias and the Captain."

Snow wrinkled her nose as she remembered Jungkook's response to searching for Lord Aegus. "No, I propose we take other measures. We should send a search for Lord Aegus."

The corners of Nickelyn's lips tightened, threatening to stretch into a thin line. "That might attract the attention of General Faelaux."

"His attention will be drawn one way or another, and it is wise to have royal blood in the castle when that occurs."

After a long silence, Nickelyn sighed. "I'll send two trustworthy guards and order them to search in secret. That is all I can do."

"And that is enough." Snow clasped her hands behind her back as her hair and white robes billowed in the breeze. From threats of an insurrection to demons to an assassination. . . Something was coming, rising from the chaos, but Snow didn't know what it was yet. "What do you think will happen?"

Nickelyn shrugged. "All I know is that I will do my damndest to protect Lux."

"I guess that is all we can do."

Snow glanced at the rolling hills in the south that were too dark to discern as her mind wandered to her last conversation with Elias. Back then, they stood in this very field under the setting sun—Elias wound up from Snow's prying advances to learn what had pushed him onto the route he had chosen. But all she received from that interaction were more questions and doubts.

Could she really trust Elias? When the time came to choose between Faelaux and his father, who would he choose? Snow closed her eyes. It didn't matter. That was a problem for a later time.

As she studied the southern terrain, she was clueless about the four others traveling under the same stars, three to Hiemura and one to Ruscao. It was at that moment fate cleared a road to a new era, a new time, and the first step on the road to Infernum was taken.