The silver light gradually faded.
The empty chamber returned.
Only Kael remained standing before the mirror.
One crack had disappeared.
Six still remained.
The Fourth Lock had accepted his first answer.
But the trial was far from over.
The child was gone.
Yet his final words continued echoing inside Kael's mind.
**This journey... was never meant to be walked alone.**
Kael slowly raised his hand and touched the smooth surface of the mirror.
For the first time...
It reflected more than just himself.
Behind him stood countless silhouettes.
Some were clear.
Others were blurred.
Some belonged to companions he had met only recently.
Others belonged to people who had walked beside him for years.
The World Tree spoke once more.
**"Tell me, Gardener."**
**"Who carried you here?"**
Kael instinctively answered.
"My own choices."
The reflection didn't change.
The World Tree remained silent.
Kael frowned.
"...That isn't the answer."
The Traveler smiled.
"You've spent too long believing every burden belongs to you."
"The Fourth Lock won't allow that lie."
Kael stared at the reflection again.
His memories slowly began surfacing.
Not the memories of ancient civilizations.
Not forgotten kingdoms.
Simple moments.
...
His first day at the Academy.
He had stood alone before the enormous entrance gate, uncertain whether he even belonged there.
Students from noble families laughed confidently.
Talented mages demonstrated their spells.
Young swordsmen proudly displayed their family crests.
He had possessed none of those things.
For the first time in years...
He remembered feeling afraid.
Then...
A cheerful voice had called out.
"You're blocking the entrance."
Young Aren stood behind him carrying far too many bags.
One immediately slipped from his shoulder.
Books scattered across the ground.
Kael had instinctively bent down to help.
The two boys awkwardly gathered the books together.
Aren scratched his head.
"...Thanks."
Kael smiled.
"No problem."
That had been it.
No dramatic introduction.
No prophecy.
Just two strangers helping each other.
The reflection rippled.
A faint image of Aren appeared behind Kael.
...
Another memory emerged.
The Academy library.
Lyra sat alone near a window, surrounded by towering stacks of books.
Every student deliberately chose another seat.
Not because she was rude.
Because she looked completely absorbed in her studies.
Kael had quietly walked over.
"Is this seat taken?"
Without lifting her eyes from the book, she answered.
"It is now."
Kael laughed.
"I'll find another one."
Several seconds later...
Lyra suddenly looked up.
"You actually listened."
Kael blinked.
"I thought you were serious."
"I wasn't."
An awkward silence followed.
Then...
For reasons neither of them understood...
They both started laughing.
The reflection changed once again.
Lyra now stood beside Aren.
...
Another memory.
Selene.
During a history lecture.
The professor had confidently declared that the Ancient Era ended because humanity lacked unity.
Only one student had raised her hand.
Selene.
"That's an assumption."
The classroom became silent.
The professor frowned.
"History supports it."
"No."
Selene calmly replied.
"The surviving records support it."
"There is a difference."
Even then...
She had searched for truth instead of accepting convenient answers.
The reflection welcomed another figure.
...
Kael slowly smiled.
"I remember."
The World Tree remained silent.
The reflection waited.
"No..."
Kael quietly corrected himself.
"I remember them."
Immediately...
Another crack disappeared from the mirror.
Only five remained.
The Traveler nodded approvingly.
"Better."
"But still incomplete."
Kael looked confused.
"What else?"
Instead of answering...
The mirror showed another memory.
...
The Kingdom War.
Night.
Heavy rain poured across the battlefield.
Young soldiers shivered around a small campfire.
Food had almost run out.
Everyone remained exhausted.
Kael remembered this night.
Or so he thought.
In his memory...
He had spent the evening planning tomorrow's battle.
But now...
The scene continued beyond what he remembered.
Aren quietly removed half of his meal and placed it beside Kael while pretending not to notice.
Lyra secretly repaired Kael's torn cloak using simple weaving magic while he slept.
Selene spent the entire night studying enemy maps so Kael wouldn't have to.
None of them mentioned it the next morning.
None of them expected gratitude.
They simply did it.
Because they were companions.
Kael felt his throat tighten.
"...Why don't I remember this?"
The Traveler answered gently.
"Because you were always looking ahead."
"You rarely looked beside you."
The words struck deeper than expected.
How many moments had he overlooked?
How many sacrifices had gone unnoticed?
How many people had quietly supported him while asking for nothing in return?
He had believed he carried everyone.
Perhaps...
Everyone had been carrying him as well.
...
Far away.
Imperial Academy.
The afternoon classes had ended.
Students gathered on the central training grounds after hearing rumors of the awakened Throne.
Instructors attempted to restore order.
It didn't work.
Everyone wanted answers.
Aren stood near the edge of the field, absentmindedly staring at the silver shield mark on his hand.
He hadn't told anyone else.
Only Lyra and Selene knew.
"What are you thinking about?"
Lyra walked over carrying another armful of books.
Aren laughed weakly.
"I'm wondering if the Throne made a mistake."
"It didn't."
"You sound awfully certain."
Lyra looked toward the eastern mountains.
"If ancient artifacts could choose only talented people..."
"They would have chosen someone else long ago."
"They chose you."
"That means they saw something even you don't."
Aren remained silent.
Before he could answer—
A loud crash echoed across the training ground.
Two students had begun arguing.
Their argument quickly escalated into a duel.
Several spectators cheered.
One of the boys suddenly lost control of a fire spell.
The flames exploded toward the crowd.
Students screamed.
Panic spread instantly.
Without thinking—
Aren moved.
He threw himself between the fire and the frightened students.
Boom!
The explosion struck him directly.
Dust filled the air.
When it cleared...
Aren still stood there.
Unharmed.
A translucent silver shield surrounded him.
Ancient runes slowly rotated across its surface.
The training ground fell completely silent.
Even Aren stared at the barrier in disbelief.
The shield mark on the back of his hand glowed brilliantly.
Far away...
The Crystal Throne answered.
One more ancient rune upon its surface illuminated.
Its deep voice echoed across the empty mountains.
**"The candidate has taken his first step."**
...
Within the Fourth Lock...
Kael watched another crack disappear.
Only four remained now.
He frowned.
"I didn't do anything."
The Traveler smiled knowingly.
"No."
"But your companion did."
Kael looked toward the mirror.
For the first time...
He saw something impossible.
His reflection...
And Aren's...
Were connected by a thin thread of silver light.
Then another thread appeared.
Connecting Lyra.
Another.
Connecting Selene.
More threads continued appearing.
Some stretched beyond the Academy.
Toward Seraphina.
Toward the First Son.
Toward Eli.
Toward Mira.
Toward people scattered across the entire world.
The World Tree spoke with quiet warmth.
**"A forest is never grown by one tree alone."**
Kael finally understood.
The Fourth Lock wasn't merely testing whether he remembered people.
It was teaching him a truth he had ignored for too long.
A hero could save a battle.
A king could save a nation.
But only companions...
Could save each other.
And somewhere, beyond the endless sky...
The Watcher quietly observed the growing web of silver threads.
For the first time in three thousand years...
It saw something it had never accounted for.
Not power.
Not destiny.
But bonds.