The light surrounding Yeon Jin slowly faded. The portal behind him sealed shut, leaving behind absolute darkness. He could see nothing. Not even Mi Rae's silhouette, who had crossed before him. Only a heavy, living silence.
Then a voice echoed. Deep. Ancient.
"Yeon Jin… Child of the Eclipse. You have crossed the threshold. Now, memory must judge you."*
Jin stepped back, his breath short. His body still hummed from the activated Codex, but his limbs remained numb. He blinked. In front of him, walls emerged one by one — tall, covered with shifting symbols, glowing like living ink. The room was vast, circular, and everything seemed to breathe around him.
At the center, a luminous column rose from the floor. It pulsed in sync with his heartbeat.
Mi Rae stood nearby, arms crossed, her gaze solemn.
"Welcome to the **Chamber of Silences**. Here, the Codex shows you what you are… and what you could become."
Jin stepped closer. The symbols trembled at his presence.
"I thought I was here to learn how to fight… not listen to ghosts."
"You think battle begins with the first blow?" she said. "The real fight… begins with the truth."
Jin froze.
Genetic memory scan in progress… Partial lineage recognized. Ancestral seal detected. Decryption initiated.*
A sudden heat flooded the room. The walls trembled. Then images flared into the air.
Memory 1: The Mother
A woman — tall, elegant, eyes gentle but distant. She held a notebook, scribbling symbols, speaking into a recorder:
"The Codex must never fall into the Council's hands. Jin must stay in the shadows. Even if it means dying without revealing who we are."*
She turned. And Jin recognized her face.
"Mom…"
Mi Rae nodded.
"She was brilliant. But broken. She hid half the Codex in your blood… and the other in your memories."
The images vanished. Jin felt shattered inside. He had never seen this before.
Memory 2: The Pact*
The room changed. A subterranean chamber lined with sculpted pillars. Hooded figures chanted ancient words. A young boy
himself, at nine — stood in the center.
A voice declared:
"The Eclipse returns. The bearer must remain sealed until the Awakening. The Pact is signed."
Then the boy was struck by light. And collapsed.
Jin dropped to his knees.
"What is this? These memories aren't mine."
"They are," Mi Rae replied. "They've just been buried. The Codex doesn't grant power. It returns what was stolen."
Memory 3: The Fracture*
A ruined city. Crumbling walls. Soldiers in crimson coats. Among them, a younger Mi Rae holding a lifeless body.
"You thought the Codex would save you…"*, she whispered in the memory. *"But this world doesn't want saviors. Only monsters that obey."
Jin rose.
"This is your war? People chasing fragments of power just to fight? You're no different from them."
Mi Rae stepped closer.
"No. I want you to become something else. Someone this world can neither control nor discard."
She extended her hand.
"But to do that, you must break your seal. You must face your mirror."
🔮 The Mirror of the Codex
At the room's center, the column split. A mirror appeared — but it didn't reflect Jin. It showed… an older, colder version of him, pale eyes, wearing the Entropy Council's cloak.
"That's me?"
"That's who you'll become… if you choose power without memory."
The reflection smirked, bitter.
"You want to survive? Then forget your mother. Forget Mi Rae. Join the true masters."
Jin froze. His heart pounded.
He shut his eyes.
And punched the mirror.
A blinding light engulfed the chamber. The Codex rang in his mind.
Seal broken. First barrier lifted. Ability unlocked: "Fractal Memory."
Jin collapsed — exhausted, but changed. His eyes now glowed pale blue. His blood shimmered as if dancing.
Mi Rae stepped forward.
"It's done. You're ready to begin."
"Begin what?"
She finally smiled.
"To rewrite history."