The wind carried the smell of ash long before they reached the old capital. It wasn't a normal scent — it clung to the air like memory itself, heavy and burnt.
From a distance, the ruins looked like the skeleton of a dead giant. Towering stone spires jutted out of black earth, their edges scorched and twisted. Rivers of hardened magma cut through the ground like scars. The sky above was perpetually dim, as if the sun itself refused to look down on this place.
Eiji stood on the ridge overlooking it all. "This… was once a city?"
Selene's voice was soft. "The greatest in the world. The capital of the First Empire. It fell in one night."
Kael gripped the hilt of his sword. "And that night… was caused by the first Oracle, wasn't it?"
Eiji didn't answer. The medallion around his neck throbbed faintly, reacting to the ruins below.
Lyra kicked a piece of blackened stone. "Why does every place tied to you look like it exploded?"
Eiji gave a weak smile. "A talent, maybe."
The descent into the city was treacherous. Bridges had long crumbled, the streets were buried under ash, and strange glowing fissures pulsed beneath the surface like veins.
Selene held her staff high, light spilling from the tip. "Stay close. The air here is thick with residual mana. Too long in it, and your mind starts hearing whispers."
"Whispers?" Lyra frowned. "From what?"
"From the dead," Selene replied simply.
They walked through what had once been a market square. Charred stalls stood frozen in time, some still holding the faint outlines of objects turned to dust. Statues lay broken and half-buried, their faces eroded into emptiness.
Eiji felt a strange pull. Each step deeper into the ruins made the medallion heavier, its glow stronger.
Then he heard it. A whisper — faint, almost like a sigh.
"Welcome home."
He froze. "Did you hear that?"
Kael looked back. "Hear what?"
Eiji didn't reply. The voice came again, clearer this time. "You finally returned, my echo."
He spun around, scanning the ruins. Nothing moved, but shadows seemed to shift at the corners of his vision.
Selene noticed his unease. "Eiji?"
He shook his head. "It's nothing. Let's keep moving."
They reached what remained of the central palace — an enormous structure of black stone, half-buried under molten rock. The massive gates were split open, and strange patterns glowed faintly along the walls.
Lyra whistled. "Whoever built this had no sense of subtlety."
Selene's tone grew reverent. "This is the Sanctum of Origin. It's said that every Oracle was crowned here. And every one of them… was buried here too."
Eiji felt a chill crawl up his spine. "Including me."
Before anyone could respond, the ground trembled. A low rumble rolled through the ruins, and cracks spread across the earth.
Kael drew his sword. "What now?"
A figure emerged from the shadows between two pillars. Cloaked, tall, moving with a deliberate calm. When it stepped into the light, they saw a woman with pale blue eyes and silver markings across her face.
Selene gasped. "Impossible… You're—"
The woman raised a hand. "Quiet. Names carry power here."
Her gaze shifted to Eiji. "So you're the Oracle reborn. I was beginning to think the stories were lies."
Eiji studied her warily. "And you are?"
She gave a faint, sad smile. "Once, I was the Keeper of the Crown. I served the Oracle who destroyed this city."
The silence that followed was sharp enough to cut.
Kael stepped forward. "You served him?"
"Yes." She turned to Eiji. "And now, I serve you — if only to make sure you don't repeat his sins."
Eiji frowned. "You're offering to help me? Why?"
She looked up at the broken palace. "Because the world is beginning to awaken again. The seals you're restoring… they weren't just meant to protect Zorynthia. They were meant to imprison something far worse."
Lyra's voice dropped to a whisper. "Imprison what?"
The woman's eyes glowed faintly. "The Echo of the First Oracle."
Eiji felt his heart skip. "What do you mean, the Echo?"
The Keeper's gaze fixed on him, cold and sorrowful. "The piece of your past self that refused to die. It's alive — and it's trying to finish what it started."
The medallion around Eiji's neck blazed with sudden heat. He stumbled, clutching it, as fragments of memory flashed before his eyes — fire, destruction, and a voice that sounded exactly like his own, whispering:
"You can't stop me, Eiji. You are me."
When he opened his eyes again, the Keeper was watching him quietly.
"Now you understand," she said. "The enemy isn't the Guild. It's you."