The heavy tome felt warm in Noah’s hands.
Its black leather cover bore the symbol of the Broken Crown.
As he stared at it, the crimson engraving pulsed once.
BOOM.
The heartbeat.
Even here...
Far beneath the academy...
He could still hear it.
Seraphina folded her remaining arm behind her back.
"You have questions."
Noah looked up.
"I have hundreds."
"Good."
"The moment a Successor stops asking questions..."
"...they become dangerous."
She walked toward a massive map hanging on the wall.
The parchment covered nearly an entire side of the chamber.
At first glance, it looked like an ordinary world map.
Then Noah noticed the crimson markings.
Seven crowns.
Each placed on a different continent.
"The Seven Thrones."
Seraphina said quietly.
"They are the true source of Ragnarok."
Noah frowned.
"I thought the Heart was."
"The Heart..."
She smiled faintly.
"...is merely the key."
She pointed toward the first crown.
"Blackthorn Forest."
"The First Throne."
Then another.
"A frozen kingdom buried beneath the northern glaciers."
"The Second Throne."
Another.
"A city swallowed by the sea."
"The Third."
Each location sounded more impossible than the last.
"There are seven."
"One for every Successor."
Noah slowly nodded.
"So eventually..."
"...I’ll have to visit all of them."
"If you survive."
Her answer came so naturally it almost sounded encouraging.
Noah flipped open the ancient book.
The first Chapter contained no history.
No explanations.
Only a single illustration.
A man wearing a broken crown.
Standing alone against thousands of monsters.
At the bottom of the page were four words.
Power Demands a Price.
Noah turned another page.
Blank.
The next.
Blank.
He frowned.
"...It’s empty."
Seraphina nodded.
"It should be."
"What?"
"The Archive doesn’t reveal knowledge."
"It judges its reader."
Silence.
"You’ll unlock each Chapter only after proving yourself."
"So this book is basically giving me homework."
She blinked.
"...Homework?"
"No, never mind."
Suddenly—
The entire library trembled.
A low vibration rolled through the chamber.
The candles flickered violently.
Seraphina’s expression hardened.
"They’re searching."
Noah looked toward the ceiling.
"The Church?"
"No."
She shook her head.
"The academy."
Almost immediately...
The System chimed.
[Emergency Notice]
All first-year students are to report to the Central Courtyard immediately.
Attendance is mandatory.
Noah sighed.
"Bad timing."
"You should go."
Seraphina walked back toward her chair.
"The Archive only opens for one hour each night."
"Can I come back?"
"If it wishes."
"...That’s not reassuring."
"It wasn’t meant to be."
Noah chuckled.
She reminded him of the First Successor.
Blunt.
Straightforward.
Almost impossible to read.
As he turned to leave—
Seraphina spoke again.
"Noah."
He stopped.
"When someone offers you easy power..."
Her crimson eyes became unusually serious.
"...run."
Before he could ask what she meant—
The tunnel walls shifted.
The hidden passage reopened.
It was time to leave.
Five minutes later...
Noah emerged back into Room 117.
The bookshelf silently slid back into place.
As though nothing had happened.
He slipped the black key into his pocket.
Then hurried outside.
The entire academy was already gathering in the Central Courtyard.
Hundreds of students stood in orderly rows.
Professors lined the edges of the square.
At the center stood Headmaster Leonhardt.
His expression was unusually grim.
The murmuring died as he raised a hand.
"Thirty minutes ago..."
He began.
"...one of our restricted vaults was breached."
A wave of whispers spread through the students.
"No items were stolen."
"But something was awakened."
Noah’s stomach tightened.
The Headmaster continued.
"Until further notice..."
"The academy will be placed under Level-Two Security."
Powerful magic barriers ignited around the campus.
A shimmering dome enclosed the entire academy.
No one could enter.
No one could leave.
Then Leonhardt said the words that made Noah’s blood run cold.
"The intruder..."
"...is still somewhere inside Valhalla Academy."
Noah instinctively touched the pocket containing the black key.
For a split second...
He had the unsettling feeling...
The Headmaster already knew.