---
Two hours before sunrise, they moved.
Nymera kept her cloak drawn low, her dagger hidden at her hip, and her steps silent as shadow.
Beside her, Lucien walked like a ghost — no armor, only black leather and steel. A guard's uniform stolen from a silent ally. He wore no sigils, bore no crests.
They weren't heirs or nobles now.
They were thieves of truth.
---
The Royal Vault lay beneath the east wing of the palace — a buried labyrinth carved into the rock beneath Veyladoris itself. According to legend, only the reigning monarch could unseal it. But Lucien had other knowledge.
"A ceremonial gate?" she whispered as they approached the sealed arch hidden behind a false library shelf.
"Not exactly." He knelt beside the arch, drew a small blade, and sliced his palm. "The throne is built on a blood lock."
The wall shimmered — not a door, but a seal. As his blood struck the stone, ancient glyphs flickered into view.
Nymera watched them flare in silver light, recognizing the shape of some.
Old Sovereign script.
Ones she'd seen in the crypt.
> [Bloodline Magic Echo Detected. Compatibility High.]
"I can finish it," she said.
Lucien stepped back, nodding once.
She placed her palm beside his.
The moment her skin touched the seal, the glyphs pulsed, rearranged, and then—
The wall vanished.
No crumble, no creak. Just silence.
They stepped through into dust.
---
The vault didn't smell like gold.
It smelled like death.
Old parchment. Burned wax. Salt. Stone.
The air was dry enough to crack bone, and magic buzzed in her molars — old magic, the kind that was bound to secrets and bound again to silence.
Torches lit automatically along the walls, their flames green instead of gold.
"The crown keeps its real truths here," Lucien said, his voice hushed. "Laws erased. Creatures bred and buried. Systems... tested."
He looked at her. "You ready?"
"No," she said honestly. "But let's keep walking."
---
The first chamber was filled with scrolls.
Thousands. No titles. Just color-coded cords.
Lucien grabbed one wrapped in red.
It read: "System Archive: Subject 7A — Project Sovereign Reset"
Nymera read over his shoulder.
> "Subject 7A exhibited excessive instability by Cycle 4. Emotional triggers corrupted command flow. Host refused execution of Primary Directive. Terminated by Guardian 3C. System fragments recycled into new host body: classified."
Her blood turned cold.
"Cycle 4," she murmured. "That means… this has happened before."
Lucien's jaw tightened.
"They've been rebooting hosts like you. Trial after trial. Hoping one would follow the script."
Nymera shook her head slowly. "No wonder the mirror called me a spoke in the wheel."
She turned to the next scroll.
Blue cord. Older.
> "System Root Construction Log. Cycle 1. Primary intent: Break Sovereign Blood Chains. Force evolution through catastrophic failure. Each host must be capable of god-level override. Outcome: Unstable."
"Wait…" Lucien frowned. "That means the system didn't start as control…"
"No," Nymera whispered, eyes wide. "It started as a weapon to destroy the bloodlines ruling this world."
---
> [System Internal Conflict Detected. Loyalty Protocols Disrupted.]
[User Now Recognized as Rogue Catalyst.]
The torches flickered violently.
A low hum filled the vault, like something deep within the walls had awakened.
Then—
A door slammed open at the far end of the vault.
Steel on stone. Heavy boots.
Lucien cursed under his breath. "They know."
"Run?"
"No." Nymera dropped the scroll. "We take what we need."
They grabbed what they could — sigils etched into skin, papers folded and crammed into pouches — and ducked into a side corridor.
Behind them, armored figures began to descend.
Not soldiers.
Guards of the throne.
System-bound enforcers.
---
They ran through the twisting corridors until Lucien threw open a grate leading into the storm tunnels below the east courtyard.
"I had this cleared two years ago," he gasped. "Never thought I'd use it like this."
"Now's a great time for firsts," Nymera snapped.
They dropped into freezing water and ran through knee-deep sludge until the sounds of pursuit faded.
Only then did they collapse — breathless, soaked, alive.
---
Nymera leaned her head back against the tunnel wall, scrolls still clutched in her arms.
"Lucien," she said softly.
"Yeah?"
"I think we just stole the soul of this kingdom."
He chuckled darkly.
"Then let's see what it screams when it realizes it's missing."
---
> [System Override Path Confirmed. New Title: Kingdombreaker's Spark.]
[New Quest Unlocked: Black Ledger — Reveal the Seven Lost Hosts.]