The moonlight pierced through the shattered Rose Window, casting a slanted glow on Aelia's face. Fragments of the Alchemical Ring cut a winding Bloodline across her Palm.
Qin Si hurried to bandage her, but was caught by the wrist by the lady—an Eerie Blue Mist flowed along the patterns of the Contract Parchment, forming an illusion of Leonard kissing a Blonde Woman at White Rose Manor.
"Ten years..." Aelia let out a broken laugh from her throat, her Skirt, embedded with Stardust, sweeping over the Judgment Scale and Remains. "He said that during those nights hunting the Frost Dragon in the Extreme North Land, he was actually a guardian knight in someone else's warm nest."
Luna clung to the edge of the Crystal Cradle, emitting a Yiya Sound, as the residual power of the Dragon Blood Ink Crystal etched new patterns onto the Judgment Scale's Base.
Brother San suddenly stumbled back a step; a mark on his neck misdiagnosed as a Magical Talent disorder perfectly overlapped with the Curse Totem from the Contract in the box.
"Mother!" The elder brother's Wheelchair rolled over scattered Jing Yu Que feathers. His incomplete right hand suddenly erupted with an Ice Blue Magical Flow that hadn't appeared in seven years. "Did Father use this kind of Contract Medium when awakening our magic?"
Amidst the thunderous crash of the Gilded Column collapsing, Aelia's Alchemical Robe moved on its own without wind.
She dipped her Fingertip in the blood mixed with Luna's and drew the Breaking the Curse Totem of their Family Legacy in the void.
The Betrayal Ice Spike at Second Brother's Waist suddenly resonated, pinning a Parchment that floated out of the Obsidian Box to the wall. The dense Dark Pattern of Mama revealed a more terrifying truth: within every child's birth Contract lay a dark curse to transfer the fortune of the Magic Castle.
As the Loud Cry of a Night Owl echoed from the West Tower, the Magic Resonance of the three brothers enveloped half of Glory Hall.
The Crystal Array on the elder brother's Wheelchair Armrest shone bright as Daylight, reflecting his Pale cold smile. "No wonder my research into Space Magic always backfires; Father used Awakening Holy Water..."
"It was mixed with Illegitimate Bloodline." Aelia suddenly became eerily calm. She held Luna in front of the Contract Projection; the baby’s Silver Eyes glimmered with a purifying golden light that instantly tore away the last disguise—the Rose Wax Seal in the corner of the Parchment was unmistakably forged from Leonard’s wedding vows.
Luna suddenly grasped Second Brother's Betrayal Ice Spike with all her strength, biting down hard on its center with her drool-covered Milk Tooth.
A roar reminiscent of a dragon awakening echoed through the underground of the Magic Castle, and suddenly, a starry array emerged beneath everyone's feet. This was the "Devouring Kin Curse" from the Original that had caused the collapse of the Magic Castle, but now, due to the intervention of the Great Mage's reincarnation, it began to operate in reverse.
"Mother, look here!" Brother San suddenly raised the Talent Detection Scroll. His talent tree, once deemed erroneous in his youth, was now twisting and reorganizing under the influence of the Contract. "If the Devouring Kin Curse reverses, will the pain we endure transform into…"
His unfinished words were abruptly interrupted by Luna's loud cry.
In the golden light erupting from baby Mei Xin, everyone clearly saw an illusion of Leonard's conversation with Leonard's Concubine from seven days prior in a secret chamber—"Once Luna's First Birthday Celebration activates the final Contract, the fortune of the Aelia Family will completely belong to Our Child."
The shadow of the East Corridor Pillar flickered slightly, unnoticed by anyone as Lucius clenched his Duel Gloves, his knuckles turning white.
The Third Young Master Lucius, proud of his Father, took a step back and bumped against the Dragonbone Sword gifted by Leonard during last year's Ailya's Birthday Rune—the hilt Ankeli concealed Violet Spice, which shared its origin with the Obsidian Box.
When Luna finally curled up in exhaustion and fell asleep in Aelia's neck, a long-forgotten Longyin emitted from the Magic Castle Dome's Defensive Formation.
The crystal on Brother Wheelchair flew into the air, while Second Brother's Ice Spike intertwined with Brother San's heavy sword to form a dazzling Light Web. Meanwhile, Aelia's bloodied fingertip hovered three inches above Leonard's heart.
"Mother!" The brothers' exclamations overlapped as they watched Aelia tremble and inject the remaining energy of her Alchemical Ring into Luna's swaddling.
Suddenly, a Guardian Crown woven from moonlight sprouted from the silver hair of the baby. This was the "Parricide Curse" that had led to the downfall of the Magic Castle in the Original; now it transformed into a flowing Galaxy Shield within the Reversal Formation.
A crisp sound of Demon Binding Shackles breaking echoed from the dungeon direction as Leonard's Wedding Ring Youguang surged uncontrollably.
In her sleep, Luna grasped a wisp of Blue Mist without awareness. The light climbed up her wrist towards Judgment Scale Remains, dyeing what originally belonged to Lord into inches of Aelia Family’s Snow Eagle Emblem.
Lucius finally stumbled out from the shadows; his cherished Duel Gloves were reduced to ashes by his uncontrollable Fire Magic.
The young man stared blankly at the Violet Totem left behind on the Judgment Platform, suddenly realizing how similar it was to the golden hair he had picked up in the corner of the secret chamber last night. The image of his Mother’s Dowry Necklace clearly depicted a hair ornament identical to that of the young Leonard.
Lucius stumbled back against the Gilded Column, the Violet Fragrance spilling from the Dragonbone Sword Hilt mingling with the Blood Stench lingering on the Judgment Platform, creating a nauseatingly sharp scent.
He gazed at the Crimson Flame dancing at his fingertips—once praised by his Father as "the purest Pure Glory Fire," it now scorched the remnants of his glove into a charred Skull Pattern.
"The image in Mother’s Dowry Necklace..." The boy trembled as he reached for his neck, where the Silver Pendant hiding a Micro Alchemy Array suddenly grew hot.
As he forcefully broke open the Dark Compartment with his flame magic, he found a yellowed Parchment depicting Leonard's Ear adorned with a Purple Gold Hairpin, identical to the Decorative Thread entwined in the golden hair he had collected from the secret chamber.
A sharp sound of chains breaking echoed from the dungeon direction, and Lucius abruptly plunged the Dragonbone Sword into the Ground.
The Spice Powder that burst forth from the sword's hilt filled the air with memories of Lucius meeting with his Father and Leonard's Concubine. Suddenly, young Third Young Master Lucius recalled how his Father had taught him last year during the Winter Demon Hunt to use Violet Fragrance to mask Bloody Smell.
"So even breathing is deceiving." The boy's palm erupted with an Ice Blue Flame he had never experienced before, and the uncontrolled Magic Torrent turned the entire Dragonbone Sword crimson.
As the Sword Body emerged, revealing dense patterns of betrayal from Mama’s Contract, he viciously bit his tongue and used his blood to inscribe a Reversal Spell on the hilt—this was a Dispel Spell Aelia had taught him last month, at which time he had laughed at Mother for being overly cautious.
The Longyin of the Magic Castle Dome suddenly sharpened, and Lucius looked up to see a Spider Web-like crack forming in the Defensive Formation.
Compelled by an unseen force, he reached out to catch a falling Starshine Fragment. The light coalesced in his palm into a gentle Lucius reminiscent of when Aelia taught Luna to read.
Suddenly, he pressed the searing Dragonbone Sword against his heart, allowing the Violet Fire of Contract Backlash to singe his front: "Mother, please let me guard true glory."
The East Corridor suddenly erupted with a Space Rift, and Leonard's Silver Gray Cloak swept in, carrying Ice Shards from the Extreme North Land.
His chest bore a suspicious rose-colored lip print on the Family Crest, yet it froze into a twisted ice crystal upon seeing the reversed Devouring Kin Curse on the Judgment Platform.
"Dear, this is the Divisive Spell set by the Black Sorcerer..." Lord reached out to touch Aelia's shoulder, but was met with the Galaxy Shield that erupted from Luna's Swaddling, along with Ailina's Burn and Fingertip.
The Wedding Ring Fragment clutched by the unaware infant suddenly flew up, assembling in mid-air into a complete scene of him exchanging the Blood Pact with Leonard's Concubine at White Rose Manor during Leonard's Last Night.
The Crystal Array on Brother's wheelchair suddenly emitted a blinding Strong Light, as his incomplete right hand traced an Ice Blue Track: "Father, do you still remember the taste of the Holy Water you made me drink during my magical awakening seven years ago?" From the suspended ice crystal emerged a vision of Leonard dripping Leonard's Concubine's blood into the Judgment Silver Cup during Leonard's Last Night, that eerie purple resembling the Curse Totem on Brother San's neck.
Second Brother's Betrayal Ice Spike let out a mournful cry, its facets reflecting illusions of him training with his close friend in his youth.
As the Ice Spike pierced the black Obsidian at Leonard's feet, everyone clearly saw that "close friend" flash an Ear adorned with the same Rose Tattoo as Leonard's Concubine.
Aelia suddenly handed Luna over to Qin Si, as the Star Sand on her Alchemical Robe automatically arranged into an attacking formation: "Are you even plotting against Children's friendships?"
Leonard stumbled against the Prophecy Mirror in the West Tower, where suddenly appeared a scene of him burning a Letter in the secret chamber last night.
On a corner of an unburned Parchment lay a copy of Brother's research on Space Magic—marginal notes suggesting modifications that matched exactly with the Error Curse causing the Magic Backlash.
"No!" Lord frantically waved his staff, but the Extreme Cold Storm only made the Contract Patterns on Second Brother's Ice Spike clearer.
He failed to notice that his most beloved Third Son was silently repairing the gap in the Defensive Formation.
Lucius’s Fingertip oozed a Blood Pearl that merged into the Starry Array, causing Golden Vines bearing the Aelia Family Crest to sprout from the cracks.
Suddenly, Luna let out a Loud Cry in her sleep, and within the Light Barrier projected by the Guardian Crown emerged a vision of Brother forcibly activating the Spatial Teleportation Array during Leonard's Last Night.
The crowd finally noticed the frost that had formed on his wheelchair armrest—it was not the scar from a magic backlash, but rather the result of excessive consumption of original magic power, leading to the freezing of his meridians.
"Mother, the defensive formation needs your alchemical sigils," Lucius's hoarse voice startled everyone awake.
The boy was half-submerged in the repairing array of Xing Hui, his right hand, still firmly gripping the deformed Dragonbone Sword, was affected by Contract Backlash and Ailina's Burn.
As Aelia pressed the family crest against his Mei Xin with tears in her eyes, the Judgment Platform suddenly rose, revealing seven Twelve Rays—this was the "Testament of Glory" that only a pure heir could awaken from the Original.
Seeing this, Leonard suddenly erupted; the eerie blue mist emitted from his wedding ring coalesced into an ice blade that aimed straight for Aelia's back.
In a critical moment, the remnants of his older brother's right hand unleashed a frost barrier that surpassed its limits. The second brother's Betrayal Ice Spike automatically formed into a Guardian Array, while Lucius's Dragonbone Sword, burning with ice blue flames, was already poised at their father's throat.
"Mother," his older brother's pale face flushed with an unnatural hue. The crystal on his wheelchair armrest emitted faint cracking sounds. "The study in the West Tower..." His unfinished words were swept away by a sudden storm of wind and snow. It was then that everyone noticed the forcibly frozen right hand’s meridian, where a faint purple light spot flowed, reminiscent of the illegitimate bloodline.
A shard of Aelia's alchemical ring suddenly flew toward the dome, casting a starry sky totem pattern on the defensive formation that Lucius had just repaired.
The second brother's ice spike inexplicably trembled; in the reflection of its facets, a star belonging to their intimate friend contract flickered with an imminent explosive red light.
As the storm of wind and snow subsided, his older brother's right hand hung limply, ice crystals forming on his ring finger. The new cracks on his wheelchair armrest bore an uncanny resemblance to the taboo curse marks found in ancient texts from the West Tower. The second brother’s soothing gesture of wiping the ice spike abruptly halted—tiny spider web-like ice cracks had appeared on it, seeping dark red liquid imbued with the fragrance of dark roses.
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