The hallways of St. Celeste were filling with noise again.
Every laugh and casual greeting felt like a mockery to Lucian, because while they were coming back from a quiet summer, he felt like his world had been smashed to pieces.
Raziel's words kept bouncing around in his mind.
A rotten future, a corrupt Church, a "Paragon" that was more of a curse than a blessing.
His faith in Zhalyr had always been his anchor, now it had cracks.
He stopped in front of the image of the Luminar, the supreme leader of the faith.
'How is it possible? If even the head of the Church can be corrupt, then what the hell are we supposed to believe in?'
Lara appeared by his side and smiled at him. "Lucian," she said, with that calm that now seemed so strange to him. "I'm glad to see you."
Lucian could barely force a nod."Same here, Lara."
"You seem... far away. Is everything in order?"
A bitter laugh escaped Lucian. "Just thinking about how 'familiar' all this is," he said, looking back at the Luminar's stained glass.
"But, can we really trust the familiar when everything we believed in is falling apart?"
Lara's eyes went wide.
She put a hand on his arm, a worried gesture. "Lucian, what do you mean? Did something happen?"
He hesitated.
Raziel had entrusted him with a secret that could burn the world, but seeing the genuine concern in Lara's eyes, he felt a spark of hope.
Maybe they didn't have to carry this alone.
"Lara..." he started in a low voice, getting a bit closer, "I'm afraid that the darkness we are supposed to fight against... might already be here, inside the Church."
CLACK! CLACK! CLACK!
The sound of firm boots echoing in the hallway interrupted them.
It was Raziel, and his face showed seriousness, too much of it.
'Shit! Did he screw up? Did he talk too much?'
"Lucian. Lara," Raziel said as a greeting, although his gaze analyzed the scene with an intensity that would make anyone nervous.
Lara turned towards him, her curiosity overcoming the tension. "Raziel, good to see you. We were just..."
"Lara," Raziel interrupted her, straight to the point, fixing his eyes on her.
"Have you been studying High Zhalyrian? It is important that we understand the ancient texts. All of us."
The question took her by surprise.
The change of topic was so abrupt that she took a second to process it.
"Ah, well, yes. I have been working on my translations. There is much wisdom in those scriptures."
Lucian calmed down since Raziel, as always, had control.
He diverted the conversation from a minefield to a safe topic.
"True, the ancient texts," Lucian said, trying to sound natural.
"Raziel, you've always been good at finding hidden things in those dusty books."
Raziel nodded, his gaze going from Lucian to Lara and back.
"There is much we can learn from the past, if we are willing to look closely."
Lara frowned since she felt the tension under the surface.
"Is there something specific you were thinking of, Raziel?"
He hesitated for an instant, taking a quick look down the hallway, as if making sure no one was listening.
"Maybe we can talk about it later. When we have more time and fewer ears."
"Yes, later is better," Lucian confirmed, giving Raziel a look of complicity.
"We should go to the great hall, they are about to start."
Raziel seemed to relax a little. "Let's go."
In the great hall, Father Marius stood in front of all the novices.
"Welcome, my children," he said, his voice rumbling in the hall.
"It is good to see you all back, ready to begin another year of learning."
Raziel listened with the same poker face as always, although inside his mind was going a thousand miles per hour, scanning every face, looking for threats.
'Shit, he is looking at me. Does he know something? Did I screw up in the capital? No, impossible. Calm down, Raziel...'
Father Marius seemed to nail his gaze on him for a second too long.
Just at that instant, a small pale blue text window, almost transparent, blinked in the corner of his vision.
[WARNING: Presence of a Soul Contract detected]
[Intent Analysis: Latent Hostility]
The air left his lungs.
It wasn't paranoia.
It was real.
Marius not only suspected something, but was tied to something dark.
"The path of faith demands sacrifice," the priest continued, his tone becoming more severe.
"An unbreakable commitment. To the new initiates: welcome and may Zhalyr guide you."
When the ceremony ended, Raziel felt a hand on his arm.
It was Lara.
"Raziel," she whispered, with worry in her gaze, "I saw how Father Marius looked at you. Do you think something is wrong?"
Raziel hesitated, but his face showed nothing.
"I'm not sure," he admitted in a low voice. "But we can't get distracted with worries, we have to focus on what's important."
Lara frowned. "I understand, but even so... I feel like something isn't right."
Raziel gave her a smile. "We will find out. For now, we have to trust Zhalyr and the Church."
It was the biggest lie he had told all day.
Later that night, in his private study, Father Marius hunched over a book that should never have been opened.
The candlelight barely illuminated the darkness of the room, which smelled like old incense and secrets.
He was reading about an ancient pact, a forbidden agreement.
A soft knock on the door.
"Come in," he said, slamming the tome shut and hiding it under a pile of scrolls.
The door opened and a tall figure, wrapped in a hooded cloak, entered without making noise.
"Did you want to see me, Father Marius?" the man asked.
"Yes, come in," Marius gestured towards the chair.
"The matter we discussed... has it been attended to?"
The stranger nodded slowly. "The brat has been neutralized and won't be a problem again."
A sigh of relief escaped Marius's lips.
"Good, we don't need more... complications. The Inquisition is already asking questions and I can't allow them to discover this."
The hooded man leaned forward, his face hidden in the shadows.
"I understand your concern, Father. But remember that this pact is the only way to save the Church, we cannot defeat the darkness with faith alone."
Marius's eyes narrowed.
"I know the risks, but the price it demands..." He shook his head, as if he wanted to push the thought away.
"The price is salvation," the stranger said. "Unless you want to see how the Church is destroyed from within, you will have to make difficult decisions."