Chapter 115: Vessel

The door stood open. Nobody moved. A figure was standing on the other side.

For a moment, Rin couldn’t see his face. The room beyond the doorway was almost completely dark, and only a faint light from the symbols on the walls illuminated the figure’s outline.

He was tall. Much taller than Kaan. Much taller than the other Divine Knights. He stood completely still, as if he had been waiting there for years.

Kaan stared at him. His lips parted.

"No..."

Lucien immediately stepped in front of him.

"Who are you?"

The figure didn’t answer. Instead, he slowly raised his head.

Rin’s breath caught. There was something strangely familiar about his eyes. Not because Rin remembered him.

Because the moment he looked at him, something inside his chest reacted. A strange ache. A sense of recognition without a memory attached to it.

The System appeared.

[Unknown individual detected.]

[Scanning...]

[Identity cannot be established.]

[Age cannot be established.]

[Soul signature—ERROR.]

Rin stared at the messages.

"Another error..."

Kaelith immediately looked at him.

"What does it say?"

Before Rin could answer, the figure finally spoke.

"Kaan."

Kaan froze.

The voice was calm. Almost gentle.

Kaan’s eyes widened.

"You..."

He took a hesitant step forward.

"I know you."

The figure smiled faintly.

"You used to."

Kaan stopped.

"What does that mean?"

The figure looked at him for a long moment. Then he glanced toward the other eleven Divine Knights.

"You all used to."

Nobody spoke. The figure walked into the room. His clothes were old and worn, but there were traces of something once magnificent about them.

A faded emblem rested against his chest. Lucien noticed it first.

"That insignia..."

The figure looked at him.

"You recognize it?"

Lucien’s expression became serious.

"It’s the emblem of the Divine Knights."

"Yes."

"But that’s impossible."

The figure smiled.

"Why not?"

Lucien stared at him.

"Who are you?"

The figure’s smile disappeared.

"I don’t remember."

Silence. Kaan looked confused.

"You don’t remember your own name?"

"No."

"Then how do you know us?"

The figure lowered his gaze.

"Because you were the last things I was allowed to remember."

Rin felt a chill.

"What happened to you?"

The figure looked directly at him.

"I was erased."

The words were simple. But Rin understood immediately. Not killed. Not imprisoned. Erased.

The same thing that had happened to so many people throughout the strange history of this world. Rin stepped forward.

"By World?"

The figure’s eyes narrowed.

"You know about World?"

Rin nodded.

"A little."

The figure looked at Kaelith. Then his expression changed.

Not fear. Not hatred. Recognition.

"You."

Kaelith’s eyes narrowed.

"Do I know you?"

The figure stared at him.

"You don’t remember me."

Kaelith didn’t answer. The figure slowly shook his head.

"Of course you don’t."

Rin looked between them.

"What happened?"

The figure didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he looked at the symbol on the wall.

"The Fallen God was never the creator of this place."

Rin’s expression tightened.

"We already figured that out."

"No."

The figure looked back at him.

"You haven’t."

His voice became serious.

"He wasn’t merely given the curse."

Rin waited.

"He was given something much worse."

"What?"

"Permission."

The room went silent. Lucien frowned.

"Permission for what?"

The figure looked toward the ceiling.

"To experiment."

Kaan’s face went pale. The other Divine Knights exchanged uneasy looks. Rin slowly clenched his fists.

"The experiments..."

"Yes. They weren’t meant to turn you into children."

Kaan swallowed.

"Then what were they meant to do?"

The figure’s eyes moved toward the twelve of them.

"To remove something from you."

Rin’s heart skipped.

"What?"

"Your divine authority."

Lucien immediately stepped forward.

"That doesn’t make sense."

"It does."

The figure pointed toward Kaan.

"He was a Divine Knight."

Then toward the others.

"So were they."

His gaze shifted toward Lucien.

"And you were something more."

Lucien’s expression hardened.

"What are you talking about?"

"You were blessed."

Lucien froze.

"By the God of Life."

The figure’s voice became quieter.

"And three others."

Rin looked at Lucien. That was true. Lucien had told them before that he had been blessed by several gods but what did that have to do with the experiments?

The figure continued.

"The Fallen God wanted to understand why certain souls could survive divine power."

Kaan stared at him.

"And he used us?"

"He used everyone."

Rin felt anger rising inside him.

"Then why did he make you disappear?"

The figure looked at Rin.

"I asked too many questions."

Rin’s expression changed.

"You discovered something."

"Yes."

"What?"

The figure looked at Kaelith again.

"I discovered that the experiments were never meant to create stronger gods."

Kaelith’s eyes narrowed.

"Then what were they creating?"

The figure answered quietly.

"A vessel."

The word echoed through the room. Rin’s stomach tightened.

"For what?"

The figure didn’t answer. Instead, he walked toward the table and picked up one of the old documents.

He turned it over. On the back was a symbol Rin had never seen before. A circle surrounded by thirteen lines.

Kaan stared at it.

"What is that?"

The figure looked at him.

"The reason there were thirteen of us."

Kaan’s eyes widened.

"Thirteen?"

"Yes."

"There were always thirteen?"

The figure nodded.

"But you remember only twelve."

Kaan’s face went pale. Rin immediately understood.

"The missing person..."

The figure looked at him.

"Wasn’t missing."

Rin’s eyes widened.

"He was the vessel."

Nobody spoke. Lucien’s expression darkened.

"You’re saying one of the Divine Knights was chosen to contain something?"

"Yes."

"What?"

The figure’s gaze moved toward the thirteenth door.

"I don’t know."

Rin frowned.

"You don’t know?"

"I was erased before I could discover it."

Kaan stepped closer.

"Then how did you survive?"

The figure smiled sadly.

"I didn’t."

Kaan froze. The figure touched his own chest.

"What you’re looking at isn’t the person who survived."

Rin felt the air grow colder.

"Then what are you?"

"A memory."

Silence.

"A memory given form."

Rin stared at him. The figure continued.

"My body disappeared long ago."

"Then how are you standing here?"

"I don’t know."

His eyes moved toward Rin.

"But when you entered this room..."

He placed a hand over his chest.

"...something woke me."

Rin’s heart began beating faster.

"Me?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

The figure looked at him for a long time. Then he smiled.

"Because you were connected to the experiment."

Rin froze. Kaelith immediately stepped forward.

"Don’t."

The figure looked at him.

"You still do that demon general."

"Do what?"

"Protect him from answers."

Kaelith’s expression darkened.

"I protect him from things that might hurt him."

"And you think ignorance is safer?"

Kaelith’s magic began gathering. Rin quickly stepped between them.

"Stop."

Kaelith looked at him. The figure watched silently. Then he said something that made Rin’s blood run cold.

"You don’t know what he was before."

Rin slowly turned toward him.

"Who?"

The figure’s eyes moved toward Kaelith.

"Kaelith."

Kaelith’s expression changed. Rin looked at him.

"What does that mean?"

The figure shook his head.

"I don’t know his first name."

Rin’s heart started pounding.

"But I know one thing."

"What?"

The figure looked directly at Rin.

"He wasn’t the first Kaelith."

Silence. Kaelith went completely still. The figure continued.

"There was another one."

Rin remembered the chained man. The prison. The enormous chains. The voice that only he could hear.

My love...

Rin’s fingers tightened.

"Where is he?"

The figure’s expression became strangely sad.

"I don’t know."

"Then who does?"

The figure looked toward the ceiling. For the first time, fear appeared in his eyes.

"World."

The room fell silent.

"And if you want to find him..."

He looked at Rin.

"...you must first discover the name he had before World erased it."

Rin’s heart pounded.

"What was it?"

The figure smiled.

"I never learned it."

Then the entire room shook. The twelve doors suddenly slammed shut. The symbols across the walls began glowing.

And the System appeared one final time.

[New information obtained.]

[The Fallen God’s experiments were designed to create a vessel.]

[Thirteenth subject: identity erased.]

[Connection to Host: UNKNOWN.]

Rin stared at the final line. Then another message appeared.

[Warning.]

[The vessel is still active.]

Far below them—

something opened its eyes.