Chapter 61 — The Origin Before the Darvens

The crimson eye above the throne remained open.

Kael stood at the entrance of the ancient structure, PR-02 raised.

The seven intruders had stopped moving.

Even the Verdant Gale Warden had become still.

Something was wrong.

Kael could feel it.

The presence inside this place was not like the ancient sealed entity.

It was not hostile.

It was not welcoming either.

It was simply—

old.

Older than the Darven family.

Older than the current inheritance.

Possibly older than the network itself.

The System continued displaying the same notification.

[Ancient Darven Structure detected.]

[Classification: Unknown.]

[Network connection: None.]

[Bloodline compatibility: 99%.]

Kael stared at the number.

“Ninety-nine percent…”

The Warden looked at him.

“That should not be possible.”

Kael frowned.

“Why?”

“Because the structure predates your family.”

“That makes the compatibility even stranger.”

The Warden's silver eyes narrowed.

“Exactly.”

The crimson eye above the throne blinked.

The voice returned.

“Your confusion is justified.”

Kael immediately raised PR-02.

“Who are you?”

The eye remained still.

“A record.”

Kael frowned.

“A record?”

“Not a guardian.”

“Not a beast.”

“Not an ancestor.”

The seven intruders remained completely silent.

Kael glanced toward them.

“They brought me here.”

The crimson eye shifted.

“No.”

The voice echoed through the chamber.

“You came because the bloodline recognized the structure.”

Kael's eyes narrowed.

“So they were bait.”

One of the intruders suddenly looked uncomfortable.

Kael noticed.

The man had expected something.

Perhaps not this.

Perhaps not the revelation.

Kael lowered his rifle slightly.

“Who sent you?”

The leader stepped forward.

“We were ordered to bring the Administrator here.”

“By whom?”

The leader hesitated.

Then—

“Darian.”

Kael's expression hardened.

He had expected that.

But the eye above the throne reacted.

The crimson pupil narrowed.

“Darian.”

The voice became colder.

“That name still exists.”

Kael immediately noticed the change.

“You know him.”

No answer.

Kael repeated himself.

“You know Darian.”

“I know the branch from which he came.”

Kael stepped forward.

“What branch?”

The seven intruders shifted.

The voice answered.

“The branch that should never have returned.”

The atmosphere changed.

Kael's instincts activated.

He raised PR-02.

The seven intruders attacked simultaneously.

No warning.

No speech.

No hesitation.

Seven weapons moved at once.

Kael activated Darven Armament.

PR-02 snapped upward.

AR-03V appeared beside him.

The katana flew from its sheath.

BANG!

BANG-BANG!

CLANG!

Three attacks were stopped.

The remaining four reached him.

Kael twisted.

One blade passed his shoulder.

Another struck the ground.

A third weapon came toward his back.

His katana intercepted it.

CLANG!

Kael turned and kicked the attacker backward.

The Warden moved.

A compressed wave of air swept through the chamber.

Three intruders were thrown sideways.

The remaining four regrouped immediately.

Kael's eyes narrowed.

“They're stronger than the previous group.”

The System confirmed it.

[Hostile Target detected.]

Level: 38

Grade: Commander

Another.

Level: 40

Grade: Commander

Another.

Level: 39.

And another—

Level: 41.

Kael's expression became serious.

These weren't ordinary hunters.

They had been selected specifically for this mission.

The leader raised a black weapon.

“Secure the Administrator.”

Kael smiled faintly.

“Try.”

The chamber became a battlefield.

Kael didn't allow himself to be trapped between the throne and the intruders.

He moved toward the left wall.

That forced three enemies to approach from one direction.

PR-02 fired.

BANG!

The nearest enemy's weapon flew from his hand.

Kael recalled the rifle.

AR-03V fired.

BANG-BANG-BANG!

The remaining two were forced apart.

Kael charged.

His katana met a heavy axe.

CLANG!

The enemy pushed harder.

Kael's arms trembled.

The Commander's Strength was superior.

Kael shifted his footing.

The axe came down.

Kael stepped aside.

The weapon struck the stone.

Kael struck the exposed side.

SHING!

The armor cracked.

The Commander retreated.

Kael didn't pursue.

He was already turning.

A second opponent had attacked from behind.

PR-02 intercepted.

CLANG!

The enemy's blade struck the rifle.

The Armament Bond kept the weapon from being knocked away.

Kael immediately twisted the barrel.

Metal shifted.

The rifle's shape changed.

The stock folded.

The barrel shortened.

The weapon struck the enemy at close range.

The Commander staggered.

Kael recalled his katana.

One strike.

The opponent dropped.

The System appeared.

[Combat advantage acquired.]

Kael didn't stop.

Four remained.

The Warden was fighting three.

The last stood beside the throne.

Kael noticed something.

That one wasn't fighting.

He was watching the crimson eye.

Kael's expression changed.

He's not here to fight.

He's here for the structure.

Kael immediately changed direction.

The man raised his weapon.

A black pulse shot toward Kael.

Kael dodged.

The pulse struck the floor.

The stone cracked.

Kael raised PR-02.

BANG!

The projectile struck the man's weapon.

He blocked.

Kael fired again.

BANG!

The man's armor absorbed it.

He stepped back.

Then smiled.

“You understand.”

Kael narrowed his eyes.

“What?”

“You're protecting the structure.”

The man pointed toward the throne.

“Which means you won't use attacks that can damage it.”

Kael's eyes hardened.

He was right.

Every time Kael attacked near the throne, he had subconsciously reduced his power.

The opponent had noticed.

Kael smiled.

“That was your mistake.”

The man's expression changed.

Kael lowered PR-02.

He stopped trying to attack the man directly.

Instead—

he attacked the floor.

BANG!

The stone beneath the enemy shattered.

The man lost balance.

Kael activated Metal Control.

The ancient metal hidden beneath the stone rose.

A ring formed around the enemy's legs.

Kael pulled.

The man fell.

Kael stepped past him.

He didn't need to defeat him yet.

He needed the throne.

Kael reached the center.

The crimson eye looked directly at him.

“Touch the throne.”

Kael stopped.

“You want me to?”

“Yes.”

Kael glanced toward the seven intruders.

Then back.

“Why?”

“Because you have questions.”

Kael's eyes narrowed.

“And you'll answer them?”

“Some.”

“Why?”

“Because the bloodline is finally old enough to remember.”

Kael slowly approached the throne.

His katana began vibrating.

The Darven crest on the guard glowed.

The crimson eye above the throne brightened.

“Place the blade there.”

A narrow depression appeared in the throne.

Kael recognized the shape immediately.

It matched the blade.

He hesitated.

This could be a trap.

But the entire structure already recognized him.

And if he refused, he would learn nothing.

Kael inserted the Darven katana.

The moment the blade touched the throne—

the chamber disappeared.

Kael stood beneath a crimson sky.

But this wasn't the Darven estate.

It was a vast city.

Ancient.

Massive.

Metal structures stretched into the distance.

Mana flowed through enormous towers.

Humans moved through the streets.

Magic and engineering existed together.

Firearms.

Magical machinery.

Metal constructs.

Weapons.

Everything looked strangely familiar.

Kael looked down.

His hand was different.

Older.

But the bloodline signature was unmistakable.

This was not a memory of his father.

Not even an ancestor.

It was a memory from the bloodline itself.

A voice echoed.

“Before the name Darven.”

Kael turned.

Four humans stood before a massive structure.

The same four paths.

The same central eye.

The same hand symbol.

But the word Darven did not appear anywhere.

Instead—

another symbol existed.

A circle containing four lines.

The first administrator spoke.

“We have built the network.”

The second responded.

“We have bound the territorial guardians.”

The third looked toward the mountain.

“And the ancient entity?”

“Contained.”

The fourth stepped forward.

“What about the bloodline?”

The first administrator turned.

“The bloodline is not ours.”

Kael froze.

Not theirs.

The administrator continued.

“It predates this civilization.”

Another voice asked:

“Then where did it come from?”

Silence.

The administrator answered:

“We don't know.”

Kael's expression changed.

Even the original creators hadn't known the bloodline's true origin.

Then—

the scene shifted.

A group of humans stood around a strange metallic object.

Inside it pulsed crimson energy.

A human reached toward it.

The moment he touched it—

the entire structure reacted.

The bloodline.

Metal Control.

The crimson network.

All of them responded.

Kael understood.

The bloodline had not been created to operate the network.

The network had been built because the bloodline already existed.

That changed everything.

The memory continued.

The four humans stood around the first bloodline bearer.

One spoke.

“He needs a house.”

Another answered.

“A family?”

“Yes.”

“Then what should we call them?”

The first administrator looked toward the crimson energy.

“Darven.”

The memory went black.

Kael's eyes widened.

The Darven name had been created after the bloodline existed.

His family wasn't the origin.

The family was the institution that was built around the bloodline.

That explained the strange compatibility.

The structure wasn't recognizing Kael because it was a Darven structure.

The Darven family had inherited the right to access a structure that already belonged to the bloodline.

But there was more.

The memory continued.

Kael saw generations pass.

The original bloodline bearer had descendants.

Some developed Metal Control.

Some did not.

Some remained near the network.

Others left.

The family divided.

Primary line.

Secondary line.

Third branch.

Then—

one branch disappeared.

Another became obsessed with the central Core.

A third branch attempted to control the entire network.

The memory became unstable.

Kael caught fragments.

“The primary line will maintain the Administrator.”

“The secondary line will guard the forbidden path.”

“The third branch must never approach the Core.”

Then—

Darian.

Not the current Darian.

Another.

An ancestor.

He stood before the central Core.

The memory was damaged.

But Kael heard one sentence clearly.

“The Core can rewrite authority.”

The ancient image shattered.

Kael returned to the chamber.

Kael pulled the katana from the throne.

The seven intruders had stopped fighting.

Every one of them was staring at him.

The crimson eye above the throne had changed.

It now contained four smaller symbols.

The System appeared.

[Bloodline memory recovered.]

[Ancient Origin partially identified.]

[Darven Family Origin: Secondary.]

[Bloodline Origin: Unknown.]

[Ancient Administrator compatibility: 99%.]

Kael stared.

Then another message appeared.

[Warning.]

[Bloodline origin remains outside current System authority.]

That frightened him more than the unknown entity.

Even the System couldn't identify the origin.

The leader of the seven intruders stepped forward.

“You saw it.”

Kael raised his weapon.

“You knew.”

“Yes.”

“You brought me here because you wanted me to see it.”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

The man looked toward the throne.

“Because your brother wanted proof.”

Kael's eyes narrowed.

“Proof of what?”

The man answered:

“That the current Darven has reached the threshold.”

Kael frowned.

“Threshold for what?”

The crimson eye above the throne suddenly turned toward the leader.

The man froze.

A wave of pressure swept through the chamber.

The seven intruders dropped to their knees.

Kael remained standing.

The Warden did too.

The voice spoke.

“Enough.”

The leader lowered his head.

“You brought the Administrator.”

“Yes.”

“Then leave.”

The man looked shocked.

“But—”

“Leave.”

The chamber shook.

The seven intruders immediately retreated.

Kael watched them go.

He could have attacked.

But the crimson eye was still watching him.

Kael decided not to waste the opening.

The chamber fell silent.

Kael stood alone beneath the throne.

“You said my brother wanted proof.”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because Darian has been searching for the Origin.”

Kael's eyes narrowed.

“The bloodline's origin?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

The eye dimmed.

“He believes the Origin belongs to him.”

Kael's expression hardened.

“Does it?”

A long silence.

Then—

“No.”

Kael waited.

“It belongs to no Darven.”

His eyes narrowed further.

“Then who does it belong to?”

The crimson eye closed.

“That is what you must discover.”

Kael's frustration rose.

“You've told me almost nothing.”

“I have told you enough to survive the next stage.”

“What next stage?”

The throne began glowing.

The ancient structure underneath Kael's feet activated.

[Ancient Bloodline Trial detected.]

Kael froze.

The System appeared.

[Trial of Origin.]

Objective: Discover the nature of the Darven bloodline.

Requirement: Reach Bloodline Progress 20%.

Current: 13%

Reward: Unknown

Failure: Unknown

Kael stared at the requirement.

Seven percent.

He had been trying to reach 30%.

Now he had another milestone.

Twenty percent.

But the crimson eye wasn't finished.

“You are not ready for the Origin.”

A pause.

“You are barely ready for the truth about your family.”

Kael's expression hardened.

“Then tell me.”

The eye opened again.

“Your father did not send you to this world only to keep you alive.”

Kael froze.

His father's final message.

The portal.

The Space Ring.

The inheritance.

Everything.

The voice continued.

“He sent you here because he knew this place would awaken what the outside world had buried.”

Kael's heart tightened.

“My father knew?”

“Not everything.”

The eye dimmed.

“But enough.”

Kael stared at the throne.

The truth about his father had just become even larger.

His father hadn't simply been trying to save him.

He had been sending him toward something.

Something buried inside the bloodline.

Something even the Darven family had never fully understood.

Then—

a final notification appeared.

[Ancient Darven Structure: Temporary recognition granted.]

[New title acquired:]

Effect: Unknown

Kael looked at the notification.

Outside the structure—

the seven intruders had disappeared.

Darian remained somewhere in the world.

The Severance Order was still active.

The ancient sealed entity was still watching.

And the eastern Fourth Path remained incomplete.

But now Kael had learned something far more important.

His family had not created the bloodline.

His family had inherited it.

And somewhere in history—

someone had decided to build an entire family around a power they didn't understand.

Kael slowly pulled his katana from the throne completely.

The crimson eye closed.

The chamber went dark.

Before the final light disappeared, one sentence echoed through the structure:

“When you reach twenty percent…”

A pause.

“…your bloodline will remember the first name it ever had.”