After the knights had taken Serah away, she was cast into the depths of the palace dungeons—a place where the sun never reached. Her cell was small, scarcely large enough for her to stretch her legs, the walls slick with condensation and lined with ancient chains that spoke of forgotten prisoners. She was given no food, no water, and no comfort. Only silence.
Three days passed, the only sounds were the distant echoes of footsteps and the faint creaks of the old prison doors as the guards rotated their shifts. Six knights in total kept constant watch over her, working in teams of two. They never spoke to her or even met her eyes.
When the third day passed, a group of knights emerged before her cell. The clang of keys followed, and the door groaned open.
"On your feet," one of them commanded.
