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"Helene, listen to me carefully."Many years ago...
In a dark chamber, the elderly woman sat in a chair, her face devoid of any color and her eyes distant.
Berger glanced at her coldly and continued, "For the crimes you've committed, for the trust that you've betrayed, I should kill you a hundred times over."
The gnome's indifferent voice echoed in Helene's ears, causing her to shudder in fear.
"But I will give you a chance to redeem yourself!"
Helene's eyes trembled, flickering with a faint ray of hope.
She raised her head and gazed at the gnome standing before her, shrouded in drifting smoke.
"Berger, you-"
The gnome cut her off.
"There will come a time in the future when the boy will require your
assistance," he said calmly. "When the time comes... redeem yourself, Helene."
The elderly woman's lips quivered.
Berger continued, "Death is the easy way out. I will not grant you that luxury. You will live, and you will repent."
The gnome's voice turned cold. "Do you understand?"
Helene nodded.
She lowered her head and whispered:
"Thank you... and I'm sorry."
***
"But since its inception, its true purpose has been something else," Helene said.
"To recruit operatives... for the Cult of Bones."
For a moment, the square fell into absolute silence.
Her words hung like a thunderclap that seemed to have frozen time itself.
The tens of thousands gathered in the plaza stood motionless, as if their minds needed a moment to grasp what they'd just heard.
Even the countless people watching the public hearing's live broadcast across the cities of the Empire were astounded by this revelation.
After all, this was something that the Imperial Court's widespread campaign to clear Adam's name had never brought to light.
Shock spread through the hearts of the Empire's citizens.
People stared at one another in disbelief, some shaking their heads, others whispering frantically as they tried to process the new information.
It wasn't just the ordinary citizens who were shocked. Even the powerful Magi watching from the viewing platforms showed visible surprise. Some leaned forward in their seats, while others shot to their feet.
From the common townfolk standing at the edges of the square to the strongest Magi of the Empire, the reaction was the same.
No one had expected such a confession!
Standing on the stage, Alamansour found his eyes going wide. His lips parted, but no words escaped. At last, a realization set in, and he blurted out:
"Wait a minute! If what you said is true... then how does it prove Adam's innocence?! That just goes on to show that he was indeed raised by the Cult!!"
The crowd settled into nervous silence. All of them eagerly waited to hear the witness's words.
Helene sighed, slowly shaking her head.
"No, he wasn't," she said quietly.
"I had marked him as someone with potential to become an operative for the Cult of Bones. However, I never recruited him. Or rather... I couldn't.""
"And why is that?!" Almansour asked in a loud voice.
"Because he had the backing of a powerful and influential figure," Helene answered truthfully.
"And who is this person that you speak of?" Almansour pressed, determined to uncover every detail and bring the truth to light.
Helene remained silent for a long moment.
When she finally spoke, her words threw the crowd into utter turmoil.
"That person was the disciple of the Second Emperor, Gerald Acadia," she said solemnly.
She paused briefly before adding:
"Which makes Adam Constantine... the grand-disciple of the late Emperor"
People stared at the stage in disbelief, struggling to process what they'd just heard. The murmurs quickly grew into a storm of voices as the crowd tried to make sense of the claim.
And it wasn't just those present in Ravenfell...
Across the Empire, countless viewers watching the live broadcast were equally stunned.
To learn that Adam Constantine hailed from the arcane lineage of the great Emperor Gerald Acadia was something no one had imagined.
Even Nylian and Lovelace cast shocked gazes toward Adam.
Helene drew a slow breath before continuing.
"Because of that person's backing, I could not directly recruit Adam for the Cult," she said. "Interfering with him openly would have invited consequences
even I could not face."
Her voice grew quieter, but still echoed far and wide across Ravenfell.
"However... I did inform my superiors of his existence."
She paused briefly before adding, "Adam displayed extraordinary talent from a very young age. It was obvious that someone like him would attract the Cult's
attention."
Helene lowered her gaze.
"And from that moment onward, the majority of the events that unfolded in his life were not mere coincidences. They were attempts by the Cult to capture
him."
She clenched her hands tightly.
"And the more those attempts failed... the more valuable Adam became in their
eyes."
The elderly woman turned to Almansour and finally concluded, "Whatever I just mentioned is the truth, and nothing but the truth... I swear it on the mana
coursing through my veins."
For a moment, Almansour said nothing.
Shock flickered across his stern face as the weight of her words began to settle
in his mind. Piece by piece, the fragments of the past started aligning into a far more troubling picture.
If what Helene had said was true, then the events surrounding Adam's life were not isolated incidents. They were the result of a long-running scheme, one that
had stretched decades!
And that meant that the infamous Battle of Ravenfell might not have been what
everyone believed it to be...
Almansour slowly exhaled.
Across the square, many of the Magi watching had come to the same
realization. Even the ordinary citizens in the crowd felt the shift in the atmosphere, sensing something far larger than a simple betrayal was being
revealed.
At last, Almansour turned toward the sea of crowd gathered in the square. His gaze then swept across the flying communication artifacts.
"For those among you unfamiliar with what Magus Godfrey has just sworn," he said, "she has taken what is known as a mana oath, the same oath Duke
Lovelace took prior to the start of the hearing"
He paused before continuing.
"A Magus' power comes through the mana flowing through their body. When a Magus swears upon that mana, they bind their very essence to the truth of
their words."
His voice turned louder.
"To knowingly lie under such an oath would cause severe backlash.In many cases, it can permanently damage a Magus' mana pathways, or even destroy their ability to wield magic altogether. In the worst case... they may even die."
A wave of shock passed through the hearts of all the mortals gathered or watching from afar.
Helene Godfrey had just placed her entire arcane life on the line to declare that Adam Constantine was telling the truth!