The collar tightened again.But this time, the flames didn't immediately pull out another memory.I laughed instead. Blood slipped from my lips as the sound tore out of my throat."Dad," I said, meeting his eyes, "are you scared now?"He didn't answer."Continue," he repeated, his voice cracked and hollow.The flames surged.When the sky lit again, Lucia's smiling face appeared."Lyla," she said, "you're late."The memory played slowly.Everything she had said on the cliff, her tone, her expression, the cold calculation behind her eyes…This time, everyone saw it clearly.The image froze at the moment she fell.There was no fear on her face. Only a satisfied smile.The healer suddenly shouted, "Look at her neck!"All eyes shifted to Lucia's throat.Under the moonlight, a thin silver line glowed faintly along her skin."That's the mark of a Northlands life elixir," the healer said, disbelief thick in his voice. "After drinking it, a silver vein appears along the neck. S
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