They camped at the mouth of the shattered Archive, the cold wind brushing against the scorched earth like a ghost reluctant to leave.
Lira sat near the fire, sharpening her blade. Each scrape of steel echoed into the night. "You should rest, Kai. You look like death kissed you twice."
Kai stared into the flames, fingers wrapped around a mug of something vaguely warm. "I've died more times than I can count. This just feels… familiar."
Seris sat a little apart, her cloak wrapped tightly. "That's the problem. You're too familiar with pain."
The silence between them was heavier than the mountain air. Then Kai finally spoke, voice low.
"I remember now. The Core… the creature inside… it was part of a larger whole. In my second life, I sealed it, but I never knew where the other fragments went."
Lira stopped sharpening. "Fragments?"
He nodded. "That thing was only a piece of something older. Something that shouldn't exist."
Seris's breath caught. "The Book of Ash mentions a primordial entity—'The Sleepless Void.' Bound in seven vessels. Each scattered across the realms."
Kai's eyes glowed faintly. "We just destroyed one."
Lira stood, brushing snow from her boots. "So what, now we collect the rest before someone worse finds them?"
Seris added, "The Cult of the Hollow Star is already hunting the pieces. If they awaken the Sleepless Void… all of existence may unravel."
Kai stood, his silhouette outlined by the fire. "Then we start moving. Now."
But the moment he stepped away from the fire, he staggered.
Lira caught him. "You're still weak."
"I'm fine," he lied.
His skin burned where the Eternal Flame had flared at the Core. A mark had formed across his chest — a twisted rune in the shape of a half-closed eye.
Seris saw it too. "That's not just a scar. It's a seal… or a curse. The Void marked you."
Kai grit his teeth. "Then I'll carve my name over it."
Suddenly, the wind shifted. It wasn't cold this time — it was sharp. Unnatural.
A snowflake landed near the fire… and didn't melt.
A shadow stepped into view from the trees, quiet as breath.
She was tall, silver-haired, with a glaive of pure frost slung across her back. Her eyes shimmered blue — emotionless, like the frozen sea.
"I didn't expect to find you so soon," she said, voice like cracked ice.
Lira raised her sword. "Who the hell—?"
Kai froze. Not from fear. But memory.
"…Aurellia?"
The woman didn't move. "You still remember me, Flamebearer?"
Lira looked between them. "You know her?"
Kai nodded slowly, voice dry. "Third life. She was my ally… and my executioner."
Aurellia's eyes narrowed. "I'm here for the same reason you are. The next fragment… has awakened."
She tossed a scroll into the firelight. The map drawn in glowing ink revealed a dark, jagged forest labeled only as:
"Whispergrave."
Seris's voice was barely a whisper. "That place… it's cursed."
Aurellia smiled, a glint of something unreadable in her eyes. "Perfect. Shall we travel together?"
Kai stared at her for a long moment.
"…Only if you don't try to kill me again."
She smirked. "No promises."