Semua Bab A Secretary Affair: Bab 21 - Bab 30

Three weeks had passed inside the sanctuary, though the sun had risen and set only seven times in the world outside. Time here flowed like water—sometimes slow enough to trace every drop, sometimes rushing forward until days blurred together like ink spreading across old parchment. No one questioned it anymore; this place had been built to bend the flow of hours exactly for this purpose, to give them every possible advantage before the final confrontation began. The air always smelled of old paper, beeswax, and something faintly like rain even when no storm fell outside, and the walls seemed to breathe softly, as if the very stones held memory and magic woven into their foundations. Clint sat cross-legged on the floor of the highest chamber, the book resting open before him on a cushion of woven starflower stems. Pages turned on their own, never rustling, never making a sound, revealing histories and lessons that

Sa sandaling iyon, parang tumigil ang pag-ikot ng mundo para kay Clint. Ang mga salitang narinig niya mula sa kapatid sa kanyang isipan ay tila humugot ng lakas mula sa pinakamalalim na bahagi ng kanyang puso. Wala nang pag-aalinlangan ang pagpili ay hindi tungkol sa pagitan ng pag-ibig at tungkulin, kundi tungkol sa pagpapanatili ng kanyang sarili kahit sa gitna ng matinding pagsubok. Itinaas niya ang aklat at hinayaan ang gintong liwanag na kumalat hindi lamang bilang pananggalang, kundi bilang salamin na nagpapakita ng katotohanan. "Hindi ako magpapasya para sa inyo," malakas niyang sinabi, habang ang liwanag ay unti-unting umabot hanggang sa dulo ng bangin. "Pero ipapakita ko sa kanya na hindi niya kami mababago ayon sa gusto niya. Ang kwentong ito ay atin na ngayon." Sa isang iglap, naglaho ang bulwagan. Ang mga anino, ang kadena, ang bangin lahat ay nagtunaw na parang usok na tinangay ng hangin.

Tahimik ang paligid matapos ang sigawan at pagtama ng mga pwersa. Ngunit ang katahimikang iyon ay hindi payapa. Parang may mga mata sa dilim na nakamasid sa bawat galaw nila. Nanatiling nakayuko si Trev habang pinipigilan ang panginginig ng kanyang mga kamay. Ang dating uhaw sa dugo ay hindi tuluyang nawala. Naging tahimik lamang ito sa isang sulok ng kanyang isipan, naghihintay ng pagkakataong muling umusbong. Naramdaman niya ang bigat ng tingin ng iba kahit pa hindi sila nagsasalita. Alam niyang hindi na siya muling magiging katulad ng dati. Hinawakan siya ni Clint sa braso dahilan para mag-angat siya ng tingin. Nakita niya sa mga mata ng pinsan na walang takot doon. May pag-unawa at pangako na hindi siya iiwan sa laban na kailangan niyang harapin mag-isa. Pero bago pa makapagsalita si Trev ay biglang kumulog ang langit kah

The mark burned bright silver on the old woman’s forehead, and for a moment, everything went still. The shadows froze, the wind died down, and even the voice of the false hero fell silent. Nanlaki ang mga mata nina Sheara at Lia as they saw the symbol they had only read about in old tales the mark of the first guardian who bore the weight of the curse before anyone else. "Lola!" Lia cried out, trying to run to her, but the spirit Sheara held her back. "Don't," the spirit whispered, her voice trembling. "If you touch it now, the bond will break completely. She carries the burden alone." The old grandmother looked up at the impostor, her eyes no longer filled with fear but with the quiet strength of someone who had carried secrets for generations. "I hid the truth because I was afraid," she admitted, her voice clear and steady. "I thought if they never knew the full extent of the curse, they would live free from its shadow. But silence only fed the darkness. I let it

Hindi nagtagal ay bumigay ang pader ng mga ugat. The shadowed forms of people they knew kept moving closer, slow but sure with every step. Walang galit sa kanilang mga mukha, walang poot, only empty obedience, as if the life had been pulled right out of them.Tumingin si Trev sa kanyang mga kasama. Mahigpit niyang hawak ang espadang gawa sa liwanag at anino. He knew he could not use it to strike blindly, not when every face coming for them belonged to someone they grew up with, someone they loved. “Huwag niyo silang sasaktan nang hindi kailangan” he said, voice low but steady. “They are still in there somewhere. We just have to give them a reason to remember who they are.”Bumukas ang aklat sa harap ni Clint at kumislap ang mga salita sa pahina nito. “Force will not work here” he murmured, tracing the glowing lines. “The curse feeds on violence. The o