The Castle of Light.
Once, it had stood as a symbol of hope. The city gates were protected by an invisible barrier that only allowed those who descended into the Depths without dying to return. Only one man had ever been granted an exception - Elliot Ivanel.

Seeing the gates in the distance, Fitz swallowed hard. Even from far away, she could see apprentice Divers clearing out small monsters around the perimeter. The faces were unfamiliar, though she had once lived in the Castle of Light long enough to know many. Or perhaps... she'd simply forgotten them.

Someone among the Divers seemed to recognize the threads wrapped around Marcellus's arms and shoulders. The person trembled and pointed at him, voice cracking in disbelief.

"C-Con... Contractor!!"

"Of course they'd say that..."

Marcellus sighed as the apprentices scrambled toward the city gates. The Contractor was an extreme Oath, and the Ministry-a force Marcellus was now deeply bound to-was considered the enemy of all factions, especially the Divers. He knew their reaction was inevitable. To them, he was a monster. Nothing could change that.

"Let them report it. We keep moving."

The five of them walked on, passing by massive mushrooms erupting from the cracked earth and patches of scattered seaweed. When they were mere meters from the gate, a small military force emerged to intercept them. Calling it a "force" was generous. There were only three Black Divers, the highest rank of Divers, and around a dozen apprentices.

A pitiful number.

Among the Black Divers, one in particular caught Marcellus's attention, and his surprise.
Sharp eyes. White hair slicked back. Earrings and a katana floating behind him.

That man saw Marcellus, and recognition dawned in his eyes just as it did in Marcellus's.

But before either could act, Fitz darted forward. In an instant, the Diver's eyes softened and melted.

"...Fitz...?"

"AKIRA!!"

Fitz threw herself into his arms. Reflexively, Akira held her close.

"You... you're alive?"

Fitz couldn't answer. Her sobs drowned the words she couldn't speak.

Akira glanced at Marcellus. It didn't take much for him to piece together the state Marcellus was in now: a butcher stripped of both his blade and his belief.

"Tch."

Akira signaled the Divers to fall back, waved to Marcellus, then turned around, still holding Fitz.

"Come in."

Marcellus looked back at the others. Only when Kiana gave a nod did he move to lead the group forward.

Inside, the apprentices shrank into corners, their fearful eyes following Marcellus like they were watching a walking catastrophe. But Marcellus paid them no mind. His head was filled with a single question: How was Akira alive?

Marcellus had killed him, with his own hands, right here in the Depths. Akira had already Resonated once. He couldn't have done it again to escape death. And even if he had, Marcellus would've heard the bells of Resonance ringing through the air.

But there had been no sound. Which meant Akira had died.

Eventually, they reached a reception hall. Akira sat down, Fitz still clinging to him, as if she had returned to the past. He didn't try to pull her back to the present. Silently, he motioned for the others to sit.

"Tell me. What happened."

"Huh..."

"Talk."

Akira wasn't a Visionshaper, nor a Blindseer. But his eyes always knew when someone's past weighed so heavily it reshaped the core of who they were. And in this case, it was Marcellus Ratra.

"But I want to ask something first-"

"You don't get to negotiate."

Akira struck first, deliberately throwing Marcellus off balance. A wise man, he knew what burden Marcellus carried now, and didn't hesitate to press on it. Guilt.

Marcellus had no defense. All his life, he'd known only fighting and killing. Talking had never been his strong suit.

So he told the truth. About the past. About Elliot. About Zi'eer's death. About everything. And Akira listened in silence.

"That's enough. I've heard what I needed to."

His eyes, cold as steel, didn't blink.

"To be blunt, I don't believe you. Letting you enter here was already the limit of my generosity."

He glanced down at Fitz, who had finally fallen asleep from exhaustion.

"You can ask your question."

"How are you alive?"

Marcellus cut straight to it. It was the only thing he truly needed to know. Because if Akira had somehow survived... maybe Elliot could too. But the answer was not what he hoped.

"I didn't come back to life. I just never died. You didn't kill me."

Akira should have died. That is, if Marcellus had fought him seriously. But back then, Marcellus had been following orders. The moment the first seal had lifted, he believed his mission complete and simply walked away toward the Castle of Light, leaving Akira behind.

It was an oversight. But one that nearly cost everything.

Akira had been little more than a corpse, barely clinging to life. Yet someone else lost in the Depths had found him. They dressed his wounds. Gave him blood-clotting medicine. Akira didn't refuse. He couldn't. He had too much left to lose.

But when he returned, the Castle of Light had already fallen. Everyone has gone.

He came back only to lose everything.

That day, Akira swallowed his grief. He moved forward, alone. He requested help from the Central Luminant, but the Ministry's long-standing war with the Divers left the higher-ups unable to spare many veterans.

And so, three Black Divers and a handful of apprentices were all that remained.

Akira had to become their leader. Not because he wanted to-because he had to.

With Klaris gone, he had to rebuild the Castle alone. He tried. But no matter how hard he worked, he could never make it what it once was. Klaris had been the compass. Everything she did was for the Castle, and her calculations were frighteningly precise.

The only variable she hadn't accounted for was Marcellus. And that variable had killed her.

"I see."

Marcellus understood. He had no more questions to ask. Now, he knew. The Castle of Light had to rebuild itself because of what he had done. Well, to be fair, he could have destroyed completely. But he didn't.

"If you really had killed me back then-"

"...what are you talking about, Akira?"

Fitz stirred, bleary-eyed, half-awake. Akira gently stroked her hair, just like in the old days.

"Nothing."

"Mmkay..."

She drifted off again. Only then did Akira resume.

"Where did you find Fitz?"

"Let me tell it."

Before Marcellus could answer, Setareh spoke up.

"And who are you?"

"Does it matter? Are you here for the story or the storyteller?"

"...Apologies."