The glass jars on the shelves began to glow with a sickly, pale light. The humming sound in the small room grew louder. It was not just one voice anymore. It was dozens of whispers, overlapping and scratching at the air.
The False Kai walked slowly around the wooden stool. He looked completely relaxed.
"The game is simple," he said. His voice seemed to echo from the jars, not just his mouth. "You tell me where the silver pin is hidden. If you do, I will give you back the memory of his laugh. If you do not, I will take the memory of his face."
Lina felt sick. Her stomach twisted into a hard knot. She had already lost his laugh. She could not lose his face. She could not forget what he looked like when he smiled for real.
"You are lying," Lina said. She forced her voice to stay steady. "You do not have my memories. You only know what the academy gave you."
"I am the mirror," he said smoothly. He tilted his head. "I hold everything you look at. I hold everything you fear. I am the reflection of your own mind, Lina."
Seren fell to her knees. She pressed her hands hard over her ears. "Make it stop," she cried. Tears streamed down her face. "The jars are screaming. They are full of dead voices."
The False Kai looked down at Seren with empty, flat eyes. He did not care about her pain. He just watched her suffer, taking notes in his perfect mind.
Nia stepped forward. Her eyes were hard and angry. She pushed Seren gently behind her.
"You are just a trick of the light," Nia said. Her voice was sharp. "And tricks break when you shine a real light on them."
The False Kai stopped smiling. "Do not be foolish, Nia. Your magic is weak here."
"Let us see," Nia said.
She raised both hands. Her blue magic flared brightly. It was not an attack. It was a revealing spell. The bright, pure blue light washed over the False Kai, filling the small room with a harsh, clear glow.
The False Kai hissed. It was a terrible, wet sound. He raised his arm to block his eyes. He took a step back, his perfect posture breaking for the first time.
But the light did not stop. It pushed past him and hit the stone wall behind him.
Lina looked at the wall. Her breath stopped in her throat.
The False Kai was standing perfectly still, his arm raised to block his face. But his shadow on the wall was not doing the same thing.
The shadow was huge. It was pale and dripping. It had long, thin arms and a face with empty, sunken eyes. It was the giant monster from the black lake.
The shadow on the wall reached out with long, watery fingers, trying to grab the shadow of Nia.
"He has no shadow of his own," Nia said. Her voice was shaking, but she stood tall. "He is just projecting the thing from the water. He is not a person. He is a puppet. A reflection needs a light source, and his light is the lake."
The False Kai looked at the wall. He saw his true shadow.
For a split second, his perfect face twisted in pure anger. His skin flickered. It did not look like skin anymore. It looked like wet, pale scales.
Because he lost his focus, the humming stopped. The glass jars stopped glowing. The heavy magical lock on the wooden door gave a loud click. The door swung open an inch.
"Run," Lina whispered.
Then she yelled, "Run!"
They scrambled for the door. Lina grabbed Seren and pulled her up. They pushed through the opening and tumbled out into the dusty, quiet hallway.
Behind them, the False Kai let out a roar that sounded like crashing water. But they did not look back. They just ran.
To be Continued
© Kishtika., 2026
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Next Chapter Summary for Chapter 118: The group uses the False Kai's shadow weakness to track the real key, but Jax wakes up in the infirmary and speaks with a voice that shakes the very foundation of the academy.