The moment those words left Cassius’s lips, Grace’s face went pale.
The fragile hope she had clung to shattered like glass. In her mind, she saw the horrifying image of her father not being healed but instead turning into a monster—his body twisted, his soul devoured by the very elixir meant to save him. The despair hit her like a tidal wave, leaving her breathless.
Stevie dropped to her side, catching her as her knees wavered, eyes brimming with tears of her own.
Logan stood quietly nearby. He didn’t speak. He didn’t try to comfort her. Some truths could not be softened—they simply had to be faced.
Cassius looked at Grace, his ancient eyes full of quiet sympathy. He sighed. “Child, it’s not that I wish to deny your filial devotion—it’s fate itself that toys with you. To draw upon the Ruin Dragon’s power is to drink poison to quench thirst. It might bring temporary relief, but it will also hasten the breaking of the seal. When that happens, life will perish, the earth will wither, and everything you hold dear will be destroyed. That is a burden no one can bear—a sin too great for any mortal to carry.”
He paused, his gaze sweeping over Logan and the others. “Emmitt, another guardian, and I—we are the keepers of this seal. The duty has passed through generations: to ensure that the Ruin Dragon never rises again. But your intrusion, however unintentional, has already shaken the balance. My advice is simple—leave this island while you still can. Some of the herbs you’ve found here may indeed help with mortal ailments, but to think they can reverse death itself… that is nothing but a dangerous illusion.”
Cassius’s voice carried the weight of centuries. His words revealed the cruel truth behind Fairyharbor Island—the elixir they sought was not salvation, but damnation itself.
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