The aftermath of the duel was a whirlwind. Kaito was secluded by the Duke, no doubt being subjected to a new round of conditioning. But the seed of doubt was planted.
More importantly, during the chaos of the duel and the massive summoning ritual, Haruto's primary shadow had finally achieved its true mission: it had slipped past the Sanctum's defenses and descended to a place even the royal family feared—the Sepulcher of the First King, a cavern deep beneath the sanctum. What he found there was not a tomb, but a prison.
At the cavern's heart was not a corpse, but a swirling, chaotic maelstrom of violet and black energy—the Abyssal Core. It was a wound in the world, the very source of demonic energy that the first king of Esteria had supposedly defeated.
The truth was far darker. He hadn't defeated it; he had contained it, and his lineage had secretly drawn power from it for generations, using it to build their kingdom. The "Demon King" was a scapegoat, a story to explain the Core's inevitable, leaking influence. And Duke Valerius's plan was the most audacious of all.
Haruto's shadow witnessed the Regent himself, standing before the Core with his top mages.
"The new hero's 'Purification' ritual is the key," Valerius explained, his eyes gleaming with mad ambition in the Core's violent light. "His pure light magic is not to destroy the Core, but to act as a catalyst, to stabilize its chaotic energy just long enough for me to bind it to my will. I will not just be King of Esteria; I will become the God-Emperor of a new age, with the power of the abyss itself as my throne!" This was the ultimate betrayal. Valerius was willing to risk unleashing the Core completely, to gamble the very fabric of reality for absolute power.
Containing or destroying the Core was now the only option, but doing so could cause a magical cataclysm that would wipe Esteria off the map. Returning to the Council, Haruto delivered the terrifying news. The room was steeped in a grave silence. "Then we are doomed," Elder Bryn whispered, her wooden form trembling.
"To fight him is to risk annihilation." "There is… one path," a new, guttural voice spoke from the entrance of the chamber. Standing there, flanked by two wary Sun Elf guards, was Vorlak. The demon strategist was tall, with crimson skin and intelligent, slitted eyes. He looked weary. "The Core is the source of my people's strength, but also our madness," Vorlak said, his gaze fixed on Haruto.
"Valerius and his line have used us, manipulated our more bestial brethren into being his attack dogs for centuries. I lead the faction that wishes to be free of its influence. We wish to be more than monsters." "You expect us to trust a demon?" Lorian snarled. "I expect you to trust a mutual enemy," Vorlak countered.
"Valerius is a threat to us all. My people know the nature of the Core. We have studied it for millennia. We believe it can be contained, but not by light or shadow alone.
It requires a balance. The stabilizing power of the 'Paragon's' light… and the absorbing, nullifying power of the Shadowmancer's darkness. Working in tandem."
All eyes turned to Haruto. The path was clear, and it was more terrifying than any battle. It meant finding a way to work with Kaito, his embittered rival, and Vorlak, a demon, to perform a ritual of unimaginable risk. It meant that the final battle for Esteria would not be fought with armies, but with a desperate, three-part harmony of Light, Shadow, and Demonic knowledge, all to silence the abyssal heart of the kingdom itself. The redemption of the Black Shadow was now inextricably linked to the salvation of the entire world.