Chapter 26 – The Royal Archives
The following morning, Brook woke to the sound of bells.
Not the emergency horns.
These were quieter.
Three slow bells from the palace tower.
A signal used for official announcements.
Brook sat up in his bed and stared at the ceiling.
For several seconds, he didn't move.
His mind immediately returned to everything that had happened.
The expedition.
The seven Watchmen who died.
The giant in the Blackwood.
The strange prisoner.
The hidden staircase.
The door beneath Shinokuni-01.
And his parents.
Brook rubbed his face.
"Too much."
He got dressed and headed toward the Watchmen headquarters.
The moment he entered the courtyard, he noticed something was different.
Royal Guards were everywhere.
More than usual.
Watchmen stood in small groups, speaking quietly.
Brook walked toward the training yard and spotted Sera sitting on a wooden bench.
She looked exhausted.
"Morning."
She looked up.
"You're late."
Brook glanced toward the palace clock.
"Late for what?"
"Nothing."
"Then how am I late?"
Sera smiled.
"You're always late."
Brook sat beside her.
"You look tired."
"So do you."
"I had a weird night."
"Another nightmare?"
Brook nodded.
"I kept dreaming about the door."
Sera's smile disappeared.
"The one beneath the city?"
"Yeah."
"What did you see?"
Brook looked toward the palace.
"I don't know."
"But something was behind it."
Sera remained quiet.
Brook noticed her expression.
"What?"
"Nothing."
"Sera."
She sighed.
"I've been thinking about what Shoyo told me."
Brook frowned.
"What did she tell you?"
Sera hesitated.
"That some things are better left alone."
Brook stared at her.
"That's not very reassuring."
"I know."
She looked toward the Wall.
"But Shoyo has been alive longer than anyone I know. If she's afraid of something…"
She didn't finish.
She didn't need to.
Brook understood.
Before he could respond, a Royal Guard approached them.
"Brook Smith?"
Brook stood.
"Yes?"
"His Majesty requests your presence at the palace."
Brook sighed.
"Again?"
The guard nodded.
"And Prince Henry has already been summoned."
Sera stood.
"Are you going alone?"
Brook looked at the guard.
"Can she come?"
The guard hesitated.
"I was instructed to bring only you."
Sera folded her arms.
"Then tell the King I'm coming anyway."
Brook laughed.
"That's probably not how royal invitations work."
The guard looked increasingly uncomfortable.
Brook shook his head.
"I'll be back."
Sera nodded.
"Don't get yourself killed."
"I'll try."
"That's not reassuring."
Brook smiled and followed the guard toward the palace.
As he walked away, Sera watched him disappear through the gates.
Her smile faded.
Something about the entire situation felt wrong.
The palace was quieter than usual.
Brook followed the guard through the marble corridors until they reached a large set of wooden doors.
The guard opened them.
Brook stepped inside.
Henry was already there.
So was Captain Mercer.
And the King.
But they weren't alone.
The old prisoner stood beside the table.
His hands were no longer chained.
Brook immediately stopped.
"You let him out?"
The King nodded.
"He has agreed to cooperate."
The old man smiled.
"Good morning, Brook."
Brook didn't return the greeting.
"You knew my parents."
"I did."
"Then start talking."
Henry stepped closer.
"Brook…"
"No."
Brook's voice hardened.
"I've spent five years hearing the same story."
"They went to the laboratory."
"They were searching for a cure."
"They never came back."
He stared directly at the old man.
"If you know something, tell me."
The old man nodded slowly.
"Your father discovered something beneath the world."
Brook frowned.
"Beneath the world?"
"Not literally."
The old man walked toward the table.
"He discovered evidence that the history taught inside these Walls was incomplete."
Henry exchanged a glance with Brook.
"What kind of evidence?" he asked.
"Records."
"Ancient records."
"Much older than the Walls."
The King stepped forward.
"My father told me the same thing."
Brook looked at him.
"Your father knew?"
The King nodded.
"Every king has been told fragments of the truth."
"Why keep it hidden?"
The King didn't answer immediately.
"Because knowledge can be more dangerous than ignorance."
Brook shook his head.
"That's what everyone keeps saying."
"Nobody actually explains anything."
The old man smiled faintly.
"Then perhaps it's time you learned."
He placed a small leather notebook on the table.
Brook stared at it.
He recognized the handwriting immediately.
His father's handwriting.
His breathing stopped.
He reached for the notebook with trembling fingers.
"This…"
His voice barely came out.
"…is his."
The old man nodded.
"Your father gave it to me."
"When?"
"Five years ago."
Brook opened the first page.
There were dozens of notes.
Measurements.
Drawings.
Symbols.
Names.
Most of them meant nothing to him.
Then he reached the final page.
Only one sentence had been written there.
Brook read it silently.
THE WALLS ARE NOT PROTECTING US FROM THE ABOMINATIONS.
His eyes moved to the next line.
THEY ARE PROTECTING SOMETHING FROM US.
Brook slowly lowered the notebook.
Henry stared at him.
"What does it mean?"
"I don't know."
The old man looked toward the King.
"You know."
The King remained silent.
Brook's anger returned.
"Your Majesty."
The King finally spoke.
"I know what my father told me."
"Then tell me."
The King walked toward one of the windows.
"The Twelve Shinokunis were not originally built to protect humanity from the outside."
Brook's eyes narrowed.
"Then why?"
"To contain something."
"What?"
The King looked at him.
"We don't know."
Brook laughed bitterly.
"Of course."
He turned away.
"Everyone knows half the story."
"Nobody knows the rest."
Henry placed a hand on Brook's shoulder.
"At least we're finding out."
Brook looked at him.
"Are we?"
Henry didn't answer.
Later that afternoon, Henry returned to the Royal Archives.
Brook followed.
They descended several floors beneath the palace until they reached a massive underground library.
Rows of ancient records filled the room.
Henry picked up a dusty book.
"These are supposed to be restricted."
Brook looked around.
"Your father knows we're here."
"I know."
"Then why does it feel like we're breaking the law?"
Henry smiled.
"Because we probably are."
Brook laughed.
They spent hours searching.
Most of the records were useless.
War reports.
Royal bloodlines.
Trade agreements.
Old maps.
Then Henry found something.
"Brook."
Brook walked over.
Henry held an ancient parchment in his hands.
"This symbol."
Brook looked at it.
The same circle.
The same twelve smaller circles.
But underneath it was something else.
Six symbols.
Each completely different.
Brook stared at them.
"I've seen these before."
"Where?"
"In my father's notes."
Henry carefully unfolded the parchment.
A single sentence had been written beneath the symbols.
WHEN THE SIX ARE UNITED, THE WALLS WILL NO LONGER MATTER.
Brook stared at the words.
"What does that mean?"
Henry shook his head.
"I don't know."
A voice came from behind them.
"I do."
Both men turned.
Crowley stood at the entrance.
Brook frowned.
"You knew where we were?"
Crowley shrugged.
"You're not exactly difficult to follow."
Henry folded the parchment.
"How long have you been standing there?"
"Long enough."
Brook studied him.
"Crowley."
"Yeah?"
"Do you know what these symbols are?"
Crowley looked at the parchment.
For the briefest moment…
His expression changed.
Then he smiled.
"No."
Brook narrowed his eyes.
"You hesitated."
Crowley sighed.
"Because I've seen something similar."
"Where?"
Crowley walked toward them.
"Outside."
Brook's attention sharpened.
"Where outside?"
Crowley looked at the six symbols again.
"I don't know."
"Or you don't want to tell me?"
Crowley smiled.
"Maybe both."
Brook wasn't satisfied.
But before he could push further, a loud bell echoed through the underground library.
Henry looked toward the ceiling.
"What's that?"
Crowley turned toward the exit.
"The western gate."
Brook immediately grabbed his sword.
"Another attack?"
Crowley shook his head.
"No."
His expression had become serious.
"Something's coming inside."
The three of them hurried toward the stairs.
None of them noticed the parchment lying on the table behind them.
One of the six symbols began to glow faintly.
Then another.
And deep beneath the city…
something knocked against the sealed door.
Once.
Twice.
Then silence.
For now.