The giant mountain looked ordinary from the outside—just another silent guardian among the rocky ridges encircling the city.
But behind its stony face, hidden under an advanced illusory barrier, lay a world carved from secrets.
To the wandering eye, the barrier projected an endless, dense forest.
But anyone passing through the correct entrance would find themselves stepping into a place where reality bent to human ambition.
"Prepare to ascend," one of the guards ordered as a concealed stone door slid open.
Tiflos and Orion stepped into a transparent elevator that sank deep into the mountain's heart.
Layer by layer, the hidden facility unfolded before their eyes—research labs humming with energy, training chambers echoing with force, astronomical observatories, vast libraries, and entire departments moving like synchronized machinery.
A self-running city beneath stone.
The guards guided the brothers to the dining hall first—an enormous place that looked like it never slept.
Tiflos and Orion ate until exhaustion pinned their bodies to the seats, their faces slack and half-dreaming from sheer fullness.
A guard escorted them afterward to their private quarters.
The moment they entered, neither cared for the room's shape nor its amenities. They simply collapsed onto one bed—despite there being two—and slept.
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The next morning, they awoke in a pristine white room—so clean and bright that it almost hurt the eyes.
It was the exact opposite of the filth-soaked alleys they had come from.
The sheets were soft, the air smelled of fragrant antiseptics, and the silence felt more artificial than peaceful.
Tiflos turned his head, scanning the room slowly.
A small dining table stood in the center, set with breakfast—real breakfast—something he hadn't seen in ages.
"From the abyss of hunger to this cold, polished paradise…" he whispered, eyes fixed on the food.
"Which is worse? Material poverty… or comfortable slavery?"
Orion, wide-eyed and innocent, asked,
"Brother… are we in heaven?"
"I don't know," Tiflos answered softly. "But every heaven comes with a price."
They ate in silence—long, aching silence.
Even beauty, they realized, could feel foreign. But foreign beauty was still better than the streets… even if it wasn't the home they once knew.
A worker entered to collect the table, and as she left, the door opened again.
A tall man stepped in—
the man who saved them.
Professor Cain.
Broad-shouldered, calm, and impossibly composed, he looked like someone who kept entire worlds inside his mind. His thick glasses hid sharp golden eyes, and his black-and-white attire was so precise it felt almost inhuman.
"I am Professor Cain," he began, voice low but firm.
"Specialist in Visual Abilities and Auxiliary Machinery. I also lead this city's branch of an organization we call the True Seers."
He paused. "Welcome… to the Facility of Heroes."
Cain guided them through the facility's arteries, where countless people worked with purpose and efficiency.
"Everyone is talented, Tiflos," he said, gesturing to the central monitoring hall.
"You and your brother are no exception. In our world, your eyes can raise you… or bury you."
Tiflos's gaze sharpened.
"If that's true… then why help us?"
Cain smiled—a cold, knowing smile.
"In truth, everyone possesses talent. But talent without support shrivels. That's why the world now believes power belongs only to those in authority. It was a lie—one crafted by the leaders themselves."
He stopped walking.
And then he said it.
"Tiflos… we didn't take you in for nothing. Your father—Agabius—helped us from within the government. He worked with us to bring down the current world system."
Tiflos froze.
"My father… helped you?!"
"Yes," Cain replied simply.
"We've been searching for you since the funeral. We couldn't attend. If anyone saw us near your family, the system's enforcers would have killed you both."
Orion looked up, voice small:
"So… you were Father's friends?"
Cain placed a hand on the boy's head, gently.
"Indeed. We worked together for years."
Tiflos remained silent—thoughts swirling, memories cutting into him like shards.
Finally, he spoke with distrust dripping from every word:
"If you were truly Father's allies… prove it."
Cain's golden eyes gleamed.
"Your very situation proves it. What benefit would we gain from saving a dead minister's sons whose bodies were nearly torn apart by dogs?
And don't concern yourself—if you wish to leave, leave now. Perhaps you prefer the life of a street rat."
Cain spread his arms, like offering two fates:
"Tiflos…
Either you fight the ones who killed your father and reclaim everything stolen from you…
Or you return to the alleys and perfect your skills in theft."
Silence.
Then—
"What do you mean… killed my father?!"
Tiflos shouted, stunned.
Orion's small hands trembled as he stared at Cain speechlessly.
Cain's smirk deepened.
"I won't reveal great secrets to boys who wish to run back to the streets."
Tiflos turned to Orion.
His little brother was nodding—firmly, with a determination Tiflos had never seen before.
Tiflos exhaled.
"…Fine.
We'll join you."