He Fed Me to the Serpents So I Came Back to Ruin Him

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00:00:07I was born to kill serpents, so the Hargrows used me as their perfect shield.

00:00:12In my past life, I entered their cursed hall for Callum, the man I loved.

00:00:17But when the serpent gate opened, he chose Jenna, locked the door, and left me to be devoured.

00:00:23Death gave me one chance to return.

00:00:25I traded my beauty for silver sight, and woke up with a scar no man was supposed to love.

00:00:30But I did not come back for love.

00:00:32I came back to watch Callum's devotion rot, expose Jenna's snake magic, and let the serpents choose their real prey.

00:00:39My name's Rowena Whitmore.

00:00:41In my past life, I loved Callum Hargrit so much that it cost me everything.

00:00:45I knew exactly what Hargrit Hall was, a century-old estate built over a sealed serpent gate, rotting from the

00:00:51inside out with ancient venom.

00:00:52I still walked in, for him.

00:00:55Whitmuster blood ran through my veins, and that blood was born to suppress serpents.

00:00:59So when the curse came for Callum, I threw myself in its path and let the poison tear through me

00:01:04instead.

00:01:04What I did not know, what I never saw coming, was that he and Jenna had already decided how my

00:01:09story would end.

00:01:10The venom spread through my body like fire through dry wood.

00:01:12My flesh began to rot from the inside.

00:01:14I still remember every second of that night, the freezing rain, the iron door, and my bloody hands clawing at

00:01:19the gap in the frame.

00:01:20Callum, please, just open the door!

00:01:21My nails split down to the quick. Blood smeared the cracks. Still, nothing.

00:01:25Then his voice came through, flat and cold, without even a flicker of hesitation.

00:01:29Shut up. Your screaming is scaring Jenna. I'm not opening this door.

00:01:33You're useful in there, so stay there. Keep those monster snakes inside, even if they eat you alive.

00:01:39From the other side of the door, I could hear Jenna crying softly.

00:01:41Then came Callum's voice again, low and gentle, saying things he had never once said to me.

00:01:48You're safe. I've got you. Nothing is going to touch you. I promise.

00:01:52The lock turned.

00:01:53I will never forget that sound.

00:01:56Callum had one arm around Jenna as he sealed me inside.

00:01:59He left me there to die in the dark, surrounded by serpents, and he never looked back.

00:02:04The pain was beyond anything I had words for.

00:02:07It felt like I was being torn apart from the inside out, piece by piece, until even screaming became impossible.

00:02:12When I died, I drifted in silver light, endless, cold, and silent.

00:02:16There was nothing left of me but a thin thread of soul, too broken even to cry.

00:02:19Then a voice fell through the dark like a blade through silk, clear, ancient, and completely without warmth.

00:02:24Child of Whitmore, you died badly.

00:02:28What I offer is not mercy.

00:02:30It is a contract.

00:02:32Give me something, and I will give you what you want.

00:02:36I'll give up my face, my beauty in this life, all of it.

00:02:39In exchange, I want the Lunar Hunt Covenant, the Silver Sight, and one more life.

00:02:43Do you understand what it means to give up your face?

00:02:46I do. Last time, my beauty made it easy for them to use me.

00:02:49I don't need anyone to love my face.

00:02:51I just need to see clearly.

00:02:53Silver light crapped through me like lightning, and I was thrown back into the world of the living.

00:02:58When I opened my eyes, the hissing was gone.

00:03:00The air smelled of incense.

00:03:02I raised a hand to my face and felt it.

00:03:04A scar across my cheek.

00:03:06Faint silver light pulsing beneath it like a wire.

00:03:08It was the mark of the covenant.

00:03:09The price Artemis had carved into my skin.

00:03:12I was back.

00:03:13Back to the morning, Eleanor Hargreff came to beg.

00:03:15I stood in front of the mirror and traced the scar with my fingers.

00:03:18Then I smiled, but there was nothing warm left in it.

00:03:23I did not come back to love him.

00:03:25I came back from hell to collect what they owed me.

00:03:28One debt at a time.

00:03:40The old woman dropped to her knees in front of me, clutching the hem of my dress with both hands

00:03:44and crying like she had nothing left.

00:03:46The death mark carved into Calum's forehead was the final outbreak of decades of serpent resentment buried beneath the Hargrove

00:03:53state.

00:03:54As long as it stayed on him, the curse would keep spreading, and every Hargrove tied to this land by

00:03:59blood would carry the same death sentence.

00:04:03Only a Whitmore could even see the mark.

00:04:05Only a Whitmore could remove it.

00:04:07They needed me.

00:04:09That was a fact.

00:04:10But the only reason I was here was to take back what the Hargroves stole from us.

00:04:14The silver arrow of Whitmore.

00:04:16I stood over Eleanor, looking down at her shaking shoulders, and all I could think of was how she used

00:04:20to call me sweetheart while she watched the flames swallow me alive.

00:04:23I slowly pulled my skirt out of her grip.

00:04:25I can't break the Hargrove curse.

00:04:27There was not a single trace of emotion in my voice.

00:04:29I did not owe her that much.

00:04:31Eleanor nor froze.

00:04:32The invitation in her hands crumbled at the edges.

00:04:34Then Calum walked in from the hallway.

00:04:35He was younger than I remembered.

00:04:37Sharper and more arrogant, with all that ugly pride still sitting right on the surface.

00:04:40His eyes swept over me and stopped on the scar crossing my face.

00:04:43For one second he went still.

00:04:45The scar was silver, winding across half my cheek and glowing faintly in the morning light.

00:04:49It did not look like an ordinary wound.

00:04:51It looked like something ancient had pressed itself into my skin and left its mark there.

00:04:55His disgust was almost impossible to miss.

00:04:57He turned his face away slightly like he could barely stand to look at it.

00:05:00I noticed.

00:05:01I said nothing.

00:05:03In my past life I had walked through this same door with an untouched face and he had smiled at

00:05:07me so beautifully.

00:05:08Every warm word had been perfectly calculated.

00:05:10Now that I had a scar, the mask slipped at once.

00:05:13That told me everything.

00:05:15He did not need a person.

00:05:17He needed a tool.

00:05:18And apparently he preferred his tools pretty.

00:05:20Callum stepped closer, his voice sharp with disbelief.

00:05:23What the hell is that supposed to mean?

00:05:25We came here in good faith and you won't even give us a reason?

00:05:29You're telling me one curse is too much for a Whitmore?

00:05:32He moved into my space like he was used to people backing down when he did.

00:05:35I only looked at him.

00:05:37Go ahead.

00:05:39Look down on me, Callum.

00:05:40You have no idea that the mark on your forehead is getting darker every day.

00:05:44And the only person in this entire world who can see it, the only one who can take it off

00:05:49you, is standing right in front of you while you make that face at her.

00:05:53Eleanor started crying harder.

00:05:55Her hands shook as she pulled a heavy envelope from her coat.

00:05:58The wax seal bore an old, dark gold crest.

00:06:02We have nowhere else to turn.

00:06:04Please, just look at this.

00:06:06For the sake of what our families once meant to each other.

00:06:10I almost did not bother.

00:06:12But the moment my eyes touched the seal, my silver sight flared.

00:06:16A pulse of silver light cut through the surface of the wax.

00:06:19And beneath it, clear and understakeable, was the trace of a Whitmore silver arrow.

00:06:27The silver arrow was the most sacred relic of the Whitmore bloodline.

00:06:30The Hargroves had stolen it from us, and it had been lost for generations.

00:06:37I only learned the truth as I was dying in my past life, when it was already too late to

00:06:42do anything about it.

00:06:43Now I knew exactly where it was.

00:06:46That was the real reason I would walk into Hargrove Hall.

00:06:49Not Callum.

00:06:50The arrow.

00:06:52Callum saw me take it, and his whole body relaxed.

00:06:55He lifted his chin slightly, satisfaction spreading across his face.

00:06:59He had already decided I was still hung up on him, that I had finally given in because of old

00:07:05feelings.

00:07:06Then he turned on that warm, reasonable voice.

00:07:08The one that used to make me believe every word.

00:07:11Good.

00:07:12All you have to do is come with us, and suppress the curse.

00:07:15Once I'm better, I'll make sure you're rewarded.

00:07:18The Hargroves take care of people who prove useful to us.

00:07:21He said it like he was doing me a favor.

00:07:23Like I was something he could summon, use, and dismiss whenever it suited him.

00:07:28I looked at him slowly.

00:07:29The way you look at something that does not know it is already finished.

00:07:33I'm going to Hargrove Hall to take back what belongs to the Whitmore family.

00:07:37I was never doing this for you.

00:07:39The smile on his face died, died completely.

00:07:45The next morning, the man had everything packed before I came downstairs.

00:07:49Lady, the carriages are here.

00:07:51He was the boy the Whitmore family had taken in years ago.

00:07:54Quiet, precise, and so still that most people mistook him for cold.

00:07:58Since I came back, he was the only person who looked straight at the scar on my face without flinching

00:08:03or glancing away.

00:08:04Two Harkron carriages were waiting outside.

00:08:07Eleanor had one to herself, and the other was meant for Callum and me.

00:08:11Jenna, who supposedly could not handle the mountain road, was supposed to have her own space.

00:08:15I was about to step into the second carriage when a voice cut across the courtyard.

00:08:20Wait!

00:08:20Callum, I want to ride with you!

00:08:22She ran toward us with her skirts gathered in both hands, her cheeks flushed and her eyes red at the

00:08:27rims, as if she had already been crying.

00:08:30She was the girl the Hargroves had taken in years ago, the orphan daughter of some distant relation.

00:08:35She had grown up inside the estate walls, right beside Callum.

00:08:39Everyone said she was sweet and innocent, the one person Callum protected more than anyone else.

00:08:44She had a white silk scarf in her hands.

00:08:46Before Callum could answer, she was already looping it around his neck and smoothing it down with both palms.

00:08:52The mountain road is freezing.

00:08:53I don't want you getting sick again.

00:08:55Callum did not move away from her hands.

00:08:57In my past life, I thought she was only being kind.

00:09:00This time, my silver sight caught the edge of the scarf the moment it touched him.

00:09:03Faint dark lines were woven into the silk, forming the exact pattern of a serpent mark.

00:09:08Callum did not see any of it.

00:09:09He was already brushing a loose strand of hair away from Jenna's face.

00:09:13Jenna turned to me with wide, apologetic eyes.

00:09:15Lady Rowena, I hope you don't mind.

00:09:17I won't take up much space, I promise.

00:09:19She did not wait for my answer.

00:09:21She climbed in ahead of me.

00:09:22I watched her settle beside Callum and push me toward the window seat without even looking at me.

00:09:27I said nothing.

00:09:29Jenna, last time I missed every move you made.

00:09:31This time I'm gonna watch every single one.

00:09:35The carriage wound its way up the wet, cobblestone road towards the Hargraaf estate.

00:09:39There was barely enough room for two people to sit comfortably,

00:09:42and Jenna had made sure she stayed pressed against Callum for the entire ride.

00:09:46Every time the wheels hit a rough patch, she let out a soft, breathy sound and leaned into his shoulder.

00:09:51The timing was perfect.

00:09:52Always within my line of sight.

00:09:54Like a little performance stage just for me.

00:09:56Callum, I feel so dizzy.

00:09:58I can barely breathe.

00:09:59She twisted her fingers into the front of his shirt, lifting her eyes just enough to catch the light,

00:10:05looking soft and helpless and miserable.

00:10:07In my past life, watching this would have made me want to shrink into myself and disappear.

00:10:11Now I only sat still and watched her work.

00:10:14Callum noticed me looking.

00:10:15His expression hardened at once.

00:10:17He tightened his arm around Jenna and turned his face away from me.

00:10:20Like even the air on my side of the carriage disgusted him.

00:10:23Rowena, stop staring.

00:10:24Jenna is kind and gentle, not that you would know anything about that.

00:10:27And stop using that face to scare her.

00:10:28Jenna reached over and touched his arm gently.

00:10:30Callum, don't.

00:10:32Lady Rowena probably doesn't mean it.

00:10:34She knows exactly what she's doing.

00:10:35She's had it out for you since the moment she saw you.

00:10:38Maybe she just doesn't like me.

00:10:40It's alright, I'm used to it.

00:10:41That is her problem, not yours.

00:10:42I don't care what she thinks.

00:10:44I did not answer.

00:10:45In my past life, that exchange would have hollowed me out for days.

00:10:49Now I only filed it away.

00:10:50Every word, every dismissal.

00:10:52I was keeping track.

00:10:53At the same time, through the silver sight, I could see what was really happening.

00:10:57Dark energy was seeping from the coral bracelet on Jenna's wrist, winding along Callum's

00:11:02collar and pushing inch by inch into the skin at the back of his neck.

00:11:06She was not dizzy.

00:11:07She was feeding the serpent.

00:11:09Callum, the sweet innocent girl you're so desperate to protect, is poisoning you right

00:11:13now.

00:11:13And you're holding her tighter.

00:11:14He pulled her closer and pressed his cheek against the top of her head, completely blind.

00:11:20By midday, the carriages stopped in front of the Hargreth family's main residence.

00:11:24This was not Hargreth Hall, not the old estate with the serpent gate buried beneath it.

00:11:29The hall stood deeper inside the grounds, behind a locked inner courtyard that almost

00:11:33never opened.

00:11:34This was only where the family lived.

00:11:35When Jenna stepped down from the carriage, she grabbed the doorbraim, her face going pale,

00:11:39and sagged into Callum's side.

00:11:41I'm fine.

00:11:42Just cold.

00:11:43My legs feel strange.

00:11:44Callum wrapped an arm around her at once.

00:11:46The look he sent me over her shoulder made it clear that somehow this was supposed to be

00:11:50my fault.

00:11:50We passed through the front entrance hall.

00:11:53The moment we crossed the threshold, my silver sight erupted.

00:11:56Dark serpent energy crawled across every wall and ceiling, coiling and shifting like something

00:12:01alive.

00:12:01It hulged at anyone with Hargreth blood, then recoiled the second it touched the silver light

00:12:06of my mark, shrieking back into the cracks.

00:12:09Jenna was walking ahead.

00:12:10I watched her cross the threshold, and I saw the exact moment.

00:12:13Her shoe came down on the protection line hidden beneath the doorframe.

00:12:18It was not an accident.

00:12:19The movement was too precise.

00:12:21The line snapped.

00:12:22The energy that had been held down broke loose all at once, and a wave of freezing air tore

00:12:27down the corridor like a blade.

00:12:29Oh God!

00:12:30Help me!

00:12:31She stumbled backwards straight into his arms, clean and practiced, like a stage fall.

00:12:36Callum caught her without even looking.

00:12:37One arm locked across her chest, and his first words were for me.

00:12:40Rowena!

00:12:42What the hell are you doing just standing there?

00:12:46You're a Whitmore!

00:12:47You're supposed to handle this!

00:12:50If Jenna gets hurt because of you, I swear you'll answer for it.

00:12:55I raised one hand, a silver seal dropped across the corridor, and the serpent energy shrank

00:12:59back into the walls.

00:13:01The hallway went still.

00:13:02I looked at Callum.

00:13:04You're welcome.

00:13:05I let the silence stretch for a moment.

00:13:07Then I lowered my gaze to the broken line on the floor.

00:13:10Before slowly lifting my eyes to Jenna's shoes.

00:13:13You might want to ask how that line broke in the first place.

00:13:17Callum's brow tightened.

00:13:18In his arms, Jenna's eyes filled with tears at once.

00:13:21Her lower lip trembled as she looked up at him, as if she was the one being attacked.

00:13:25Callum looked between us, and clenched his jaw.

00:13:27What exactly are you accusing her of?

00:13:29Nothing.

00:13:30Just giving you advice.

00:13:32While you're in this house, pay attention to what's right in front of you.

00:13:35Then I walked toward the sitting room without looking back.

00:13:43When we settled into the sitting room, Eleanor came in herself with a tray of peach blossom tea.

00:13:48Steam curled slowly from each cup.

00:13:50You must be exhausted after that ride, sweetheart.

00:13:52I made this myself.

00:13:54Drink it while it's hot.

00:13:55It will calm your nerves.

00:13:57She had the warmth turned all the way on.

00:13:59Deep smile lines.

00:14:00A gentle voice.

00:14:01Every inch the loving grandmother.

00:14:03Jenna sat beside Callum.

00:14:04She picked up his cup first.

00:14:05Blew on it softly.

00:14:06And placed it in his hands.

00:14:08Drink it while it's hot.

00:14:09It'll warm you up.

00:14:11In my past life, I fell for all of it.

00:14:13I drank the tea.

00:14:14And by nightfall, my silver sight was almost blind.

00:14:16The poison had worked slowly and silently the whole time.

00:14:19When I tried to suppress the serpents that night,

00:14:21I kept making the wrong calls, and one of them tore my palm open.

00:14:24I burned with fever for three days straight.

00:14:27And Jenna had been there the entire time,

00:14:29smiling sweetly as she added a spoonful of sugar to my cup.

00:14:32Something sweet makes everything less bitter, Lady Rowena.

00:14:34This time, I looked into my cup through the silver sight.

00:14:37The tea should have been pale amber, but beneath the surface, it was deep crimson.

00:14:40Something small and dark moved along the bottom.

00:14:42I picked up the cup and drank most of it.

00:14:45I let none of it touch me.

00:14:47Under the cover of my sleeve,

00:14:48I pressed two fingers to my wrist and sealed my throat and chest with a silver seal.

00:14:52The poison slammed into the barrier and thrashed like a trapped thing,

00:14:56but it got nowhere.

00:14:57Jenna kept her eyes on my face the whole time.

00:14:59She was waiting for my gaze to blur, waiting for the sight to go dark.

00:15:03When I set the cup down, breathing evenly and looking straight back at her,

00:15:06I saw the corner of her smile crack.

00:15:08Just a twitch.

00:15:10Just one second.

00:15:11But it was there.

00:15:12Lucian picked up his own cup, gave it one slow sniff,

00:15:15then turned and poured the whole thing into the planter beside his chair.

00:15:19Too sweet.

00:15:20Hides the taste of rot.

00:15:22Eleanor's expression flickered.

00:15:24Calatin's eyes sharpened.

00:15:25My grandmother made that tea herself.

00:15:27You want to explain what the hell you're doing?

00:15:29I just did.

00:15:30Lucian looked at him calmly.

00:15:32Callum's face turned ugly.

00:15:33He was about to snap back when Jenna laid a hand on his arm.

00:15:36Callum, don't.

00:15:37We asked them to come here.

00:15:38It's fine, really.

00:15:39She said it in that soft, peacemaking voice.

00:15:42But as she lifted her own cup back to her lips,

00:15:44her eyes slid sideways to me,

00:15:47patient, calculating,

00:15:48waiting to see something that was never going to happen.

00:15:51I looked at her and said nothing.

00:15:53Jenna, I'm just getting started.

00:15:55Next time, I'll make sure you see it coming.

00:15:59The welcome dinner that night was exactly the kind of show the Hargroves love to put on.

00:16:04Candles stretched down the table.

00:16:06Silver gleamed at every place setting,

00:16:07and there was more food than anyone could finish.

00:16:10Jenna sat to Callum's left,

00:16:12cutting her food with careful, effortless grace.

00:16:14Then she set down her knife,

00:16:16turned to me,

00:16:16and spoke in the softest,

00:16:17most concerned voice she had.

00:16:19Ladies, Rowena,

00:16:20I've been meaning to ask you something.

00:16:22With a scar like that on your face,

00:16:24do people avoid you when you go out?

00:16:26You must feel so lonely.

00:16:28I can't even imagine.

00:16:30Perfectly worded,

00:16:31perfectly gentle,

00:16:32loud enough for every servant in the room to hear.

00:16:34I held my knife and fork and did not respond.

00:16:37Jenna, don't say it like that.

00:16:39She's a guest, you'll embarrass her.

00:16:41In my past life,

00:16:42I had actually been grateful for that.

00:16:44I thought he was standing up for me.

00:16:45Now I could see it clearly.

00:16:47He did not care whether I was humiliated.

00:16:50He just needed me to walk into that hall tomorrow night,

00:16:52and a scene at dinner would make things harder.

00:16:54That sentence was for him,

00:16:56not for me.

00:16:57Jenna's face crumpled at once.

00:16:59Her eyes filled.

00:17:00I didn't mean it that way.

00:17:01I was worried about her.

00:17:03Callum, why are you making it sound like I did something wrong?

00:17:06Her voice broke on the last word.

00:17:08Two tears slipped down her face.

00:17:10And just like that,

00:17:11Callum changed.

00:17:12The hardness left him,

00:17:14and his voice turned low and gentle.

00:17:16I know you didn't.

00:17:17I'm sorry.

00:17:19I shouldn't have said it like that.

00:17:21Lucian set down his silverware.

00:17:23I have a question.

00:17:24Is this how the Hargroves treat guests they begged for help?

00:17:27Every sound at the table stopped.

00:17:29Jenna's tears paused mid-fall.

00:17:32Callum's head snapped up,

00:17:33and the look he gave Lucian was full of real anger.

00:17:36Who the hell do you think you are?

00:17:37Nobody asked for your opinion.

00:17:39Lucian did not move.

00:17:40He only held Callum's gaze and took his time answering.

00:17:43I came with Lady Whitmore.

00:17:44As long as she is here,

00:17:46I have every right to speak.

00:17:48Callum pressed one hand flat against the edge of the table.

00:17:51His jaw tightened,

00:17:52and his face went pale with fury.

00:17:53Rowena, control your people.

00:17:55I set my wine glass down slowly and looked at him.

00:17:58He's right.

00:17:59Callum, I came because your family begged me to save you.

00:18:02I did not come here to be insulted at your dinner table.

00:18:04If you can't understand the difference,

00:18:06I don't need to enter that hall tomorrow.

00:18:09I can leave tonight.

00:18:10Silence fell over the room.

00:18:12Then Callum exhaled through his nose,

00:18:14forced down his anger and ground out the words like they hurt.

00:18:17After dinner,

00:18:17I'll have Chester bring out the legacy book.

00:18:20I picked up my wine glass again and said nothing.

00:18:24Dinner ended,

00:18:25and I asked for the Hargro legacy book,

00:18:27the family's hand-print record dating back to 1840.

00:18:30It dorted how the serpent gate was first sealed,

00:18:32and why.

00:18:32If the silver arrow was hidden somewhere on these grounds,

00:18:35there would be a trace of it in those pages.

00:18:38Callum's face tightened at once.

00:18:40It's a dusty old record book.

00:18:43You're here to deal with the curse,

00:18:45not dig through our family history.

00:18:47If I'm going to suppress what's down there,

00:18:48I need to know what caused it.

00:18:49The answer is in that book.

00:18:51Is that too hard for you to understand?

00:18:52He opened his mouth to argue,

00:18:53and Jenna let out a sharp little cry.

00:18:55Her elbow caught the wine bottle at the edge of the table.

00:18:56It tipped over and spilled half its contents

00:18:58across the tablecloth in a dark red wave.

00:19:00Servants rushed forward,

00:19:01and the moment broke apart.

00:19:06Callum leaned over and took her hands in his,

00:19:08checking them with a deep frown.

00:19:12Then he looked at me sideways,

00:19:14contempt clear in his eyes.

00:19:15All this over one old book?

00:19:17Did you really have to push that hard

00:19:19and scare her like that?

00:19:20What is this, an interrogation?

00:19:21I was not looking at him.

00:19:23Through the silver sight,

00:19:24I watched dark serpent energy

00:19:25pour from Jenna's sleeve

00:19:26and curl around the cabinet

00:19:28where the legacy book was kept

00:19:29like a hand pressing the door shut.

00:19:32She had not dropped the bottle

00:19:33because her hands were unsteady.

00:19:35She had dropped it to keep that cabinet closed.

00:19:37I raised one hand.

00:19:38A silver seal shot across the room

00:19:40and pinned the serpent energy

00:19:41flat against the cabinet doors.

00:19:42Jenna went white.

00:19:43Lucian walked to the cabinet,

00:19:44opened it without asking,

00:19:45and looked calmly at Chester in the corner.

00:19:47Chester, bring out the legacy book.

00:19:49Chester hesitated.

00:19:49Then he lowered his head,

00:19:50took the yellowed leather-valume wooden box

00:19:52inside the cabinet,

00:19:53and held it out with both hands.

00:19:54I took it and opened it.

00:19:55I caught sight of the serpent brand

00:19:56running along the edge of Chester's sleeve.

00:19:57I filed it away.

00:20:01The first several pages of the legacy book

00:20:03had been cut out.

00:20:04Clean cuts.

00:20:05Blade cuts.

00:20:06Nothing old about them.

00:20:07Callum glanced over and dismissed it

00:20:09without missing a bead.

00:20:10It's a 150-year-old book.

00:20:11Pages go missing.

00:20:13That's not suspicious.

00:20:14That's time.

00:20:15Jenna stepped in right on cue.

00:20:18Exactly.

00:20:19Lady Rowena,

00:20:20the Hargroves have been a respectable family

00:20:21for generations.

00:20:22There's nothing to hide here.

00:20:24Don't you think you're reading too much into this?

00:20:26I ignored them both

00:20:27and bent over the torn edges,

00:20:28looking through the silver sight.

00:20:29There it was,

00:20:30buried in the yellowed fringe,

00:20:32the faint silver glow of dried Whitmore blood,

00:20:34ancient and thin.

00:20:35Tangled through it was the serpent energy

00:20:36from the bracelet on Jenna's wrist,

00:20:38the exact same signature.

00:20:40She was the one who had cut out those pages,

00:20:42which meant she had known about the silver arrow all along.

00:20:45I was about to speak

00:20:46when the death mark on Callum's forehead split open.

00:20:49Serpent energy burst through his veins all at once,

00:20:52and the whole study shook.

00:20:53From deep inside Hargrove Hall came a low,

00:20:56grinding sound,

00:20:57like something massive turning in its sleep.

00:20:59Callum's legs buckled.

00:21:01He caught the edge of a shelf,

00:21:02his face white,

00:21:03his teeth clenched,

00:21:04his breath coming in sharp pulls.

00:21:06Eleanor rushed across the room and grabbed my arm.

00:21:09Rowena, please,

00:21:10go tonight,

00:21:11you're the only one who can stop it.

00:21:13Please.

00:21:14I closed the legacy book.

00:21:16I'll enter Hargrove Hall tonight,

00:21:17but I'm going to question the serpent,

00:21:19not break the curse.

00:21:20Get that straight now.

00:21:22Then I turned to Jenna.

00:21:22My voice stayed calm,

00:21:24but every person in the room heard me one more thing.

00:21:26During the ritual tonight,

00:21:27Jenna does not come anywhere near the main hall.

00:21:28Her energy is corrupt.

00:21:29If she gets close,

00:21:30she'll provoke what's down there,

00:21:31and the entire formation will collapse.

00:21:33This is not a request.

00:21:34It's a condition.

00:21:35The study went completely silent.

00:21:37Jenna blinked.

00:21:39Then her head lowered,

00:21:40and tears rolled down her face without a sound.

00:21:44Callum pushed himself up from the shelf,

00:21:46still pale and tight with pain,

00:21:48and turned on me at once.

00:21:49On what grounds?

00:21:51Jenna came all this way because she was worried about me.

00:21:53You don't get to throw her out in the cold just because you hate her!

00:21:55On the grounds that if I walk in tonight,

00:21:58you live.

00:22:02Callum stayed quiet,

00:22:03but it was not over.

00:22:04He steadied himself against the shelf

00:22:06and started again a few seconds later.

00:22:08Even if you have to enter the hall tonight,

00:22:10that does not give you the right to leave Jenna outside alone.

00:22:12She scares easily.

00:22:14What if something happens and you are not there?

00:22:16Are you going to take responsibility for that?

00:22:17Jenna's tears fell faster,

00:22:18but she still reached out

00:22:19and grabbed Callum's sleeve with both hands.

00:22:21Callum, please don't fight with Lady Rowena.

00:22:23This is my fault.

00:22:24I shouldn't have come.

00:22:25You go in and let her do what she needs to do.

00:22:26Don't worry about me.

00:22:27I'll wait outside.

00:22:28I just want you safe.

00:22:29That's all I want.

00:22:30Every word landed exactly where she wanted it to.

00:22:33Callum's chest rose and fell hard.

00:22:35Then he turned all that anger on me.

00:22:38You hear that?

00:22:39She's willing to stand out there alone in the dark

00:22:41just to make things easier for you.

00:22:43What kind of person are you?

00:22:44Jenna stays by the door tonight.

00:22:46No one is stopping her.

00:22:48I looked at them without anger.

00:22:50I was not even surprised.

00:22:52This was the same performance they had put on in my past life.

00:22:55Jenna cried, Callum exploded,

00:22:57and every bit of blame in the room landed on me

00:22:59while they clung to each other.

00:23:01Perfectly timed.

00:23:03Perfectly practiced.

00:23:04I turned toward Hargrim Hall and spoke without looking back.

00:23:10Fine.

00:23:10Then keep your eyes open tonight.

00:23:14Whatever happens, don't come crying to me.

00:23:19Behind me, I heard Callum murmur to Jenna.

00:23:22You're okay.

00:23:23I'm right here.

00:23:24I walked into the dark of Hargmite Hall without turning around.

00:23:28I already knew he would open that door for her when the time came.

00:23:31And the harder he fought to protect her tonight,

00:23:32the worse the backlash would hit him.

00:23:35Midnight.

00:23:36The main hall of Hargrave Hall.

00:23:38The wind howled through the walls like something was trying to claw its way out.

00:23:42The old chandelier swung overhead,

00:23:44its candles throwing long, crooked shadows across the room.

00:23:47The estate had gone still,

00:23:49except for the dull shiver that rolled up from beneath the floor every few minutes.

00:23:52Whatever had been sleeping down there was starting to wake.

00:23:55I stood in the center of the hall and focused.

00:23:58Whitmore blood ignited in my veins.

00:24:00Silver seals poured out of me in rings,

00:24:02spreading across the floor like a net of cold light,

00:24:05pressing the serpent energy back into the walls in stone.

00:24:08Building a formation like this burned through everything I had.

00:24:12Power, focus, and sheer will.

00:24:15But I did not let it show.

00:24:17My hands were steady.

00:24:18My face was calm.

00:24:21Callum stood on the far side of the formation,

00:24:24supported by the old butler.

00:24:26The death mark on his forehead pulsed blood red in the silver light.

00:24:29He was shaking,

00:24:31yet he still looked at me like he was doing me a favor by letting me help.

00:24:34How sure are you about this?

00:24:36I did not look at him, sure enough.

00:24:39A pause.

00:24:40I need more than questions.

00:24:41I need the death mark gone completely.

00:24:43Can you actually do that?

00:24:44I turned and looked at him properly for the first time.

00:24:48Callum, the only reason I'm standing in this room is because the silver arrow is here.

00:24:52Not because of you.

00:24:54Whether that mark comes off at all,

00:24:57depends on whether the Hargroves start paying what they owe the Whitmans.

00:25:00We can discuss that later.

00:25:02He wanted to argue.

00:25:04Then the death mark tore at him again.

00:25:06And the sound that left his throat was not one he meant to make.

00:25:09He swallowed it down hard.

00:25:11Palm up.

00:25:12Catch the light from the core of the formation.

00:25:14Whatever you hear, whatever you see, do not move.

00:25:17This creature follows Hargrove blood.

00:25:18If you move, the backlash will bury you and I will not be able to pull you out.

00:25:21Callum raised his trembling right hand.

00:25:23This time, he said nothing.

00:25:26The last seal fell into place.

00:25:29The stone floor cracked with a deep, grinding boom that rose through the soles of my feet.

00:25:35The eternal flame in its copper lamp guttled until it was almost gone,

00:25:39and the temperature dropped so fast it felt like the walls themselves were breathing out ice.

00:25:44The floor began to shake in small rapid tremors.

00:25:48White mist bled up through the cracks, spreading low and thick across the ground,

00:25:52catching the faint silver light of my formation.

00:25:56Then, from the center of the mist, she came.

00:26:00Althea.

00:26:01A thousand-year-old serpent, white as bone, as large as a river dragon,

00:26:06with golden-slit eyes burning in the dark like two cold fires.

00:26:10Decades of rage, grief, and imprisonment moved through the air around her,

00:26:15like a physical force.

00:26:18The servants screamed.

00:26:21Eleanor collapsed to her knees.

00:26:23Calum made a sound he probably did not mean to make,

00:26:26as the death mark nearly tore itself open under the pressure of her presence.

00:26:31But when those golden eyes swept across the hall and found him, they stopped.

00:26:46Althea went still in a way she had not been still in years.

00:26:50Then she lowered her slowly, all the way to my feet.

00:26:54A low, grieving sound came from her throat, like a creature finally standing before the person it had been waiting

00:27:00for.

00:27:01No one in the room could speak.

00:27:03Calum's breathing was loud, ragged, and stunned.

00:27:06He had spent his whole life under the shadow of what she had done to his family.

00:27:11He had never expected to see her bow.

00:27:13I crouched and touched her scales.

00:27:16They were cold, smooth, and faintly luminous.

00:27:19Althea, I need to ask you something.

00:27:23The silver arrow, the one taken from the Whitmore family a hundred years ago and brought into this estate.

00:27:27Where is it?

00:27:29Her whole body convulsed.

00:27:30She reared halfway up, her great tail striking the stone floor,

00:27:34as she pointed deeper into the estate.

00:27:38Somewhere farther in.

00:27:39One more step.

00:27:40One answer.

00:27:42That was all it would have taken.

00:27:45That was when the screaming started outside the hall doors.

00:27:49Calum!

00:27:49Calum, help me!

00:27:50It's going to eat me!

00:27:51Please!

00:27:52Every note was perfectly pitched.

00:27:53Every word landed right at the weakest seam of the ritual.

00:27:57I did not move.

00:27:58But Althea's head snapped up, and her golden eyes flooded red.

00:28:03I turned to Calum.

00:28:04Do you remember what I told you earlier tonight?

00:28:07His hand had already curled into a fist.

00:28:09Something broke behind his eyes when he heard Jenna's voice.

00:28:13He stared at the door, throat working, and then he ran.

00:28:16Calum!

00:28:17That's Jenna!

00:28:18I don't care!

00:28:20He threw the doors open.

00:28:21Jenna crashed into him from the other side, shaking, soaked with tears and buried her face in his chest.

00:28:27I was so scared.

00:28:28I just wanted to make sure you were okay.

00:28:30I needed to see you.

00:28:32That thing is terrifying, Calum.

00:28:34I couldn't stay out there.

00:28:35The second her foot crossed the threshold, Serpent Energy burst free from her coral bracelet.

00:28:40It came in a dark, thick wave, carrying a resonance, that matched Althea's imprisoned resentment.

00:28:49Frequency for frequency.

00:28:51A signal going both ways.

00:28:55Althea felt it.

00:28:57The red in her eyes deepened.

00:29:00Her scales lifted all across her body, as she rose higher.

00:29:04And the sound she made was no longer grief.

00:29:08I stood still with my hands behind my back.

00:29:11In my past life, I had thrown myself in front of that rage.

00:29:14I took all of it so they would not have to.

00:29:17Afterward, I burned with fever for three days and nearly died twice before the fever broke.

00:29:21When I woke up, Calum stood beside my bed with Jenna at his side and said,

00:29:25She needs me more than you do.

00:29:27You're tough.

00:29:28You'll be fine on your own.

00:29:29This time, I breathed out slowly and quietly.

00:29:33And I let it happen.

00:29:37Althema hit them like a wave, smashing into a wall.

00:29:41The formation shattered.

00:29:43The eternal flame died.

00:29:45The silver seals cracked all at once.

00:29:48With a sound like breaking ice.

00:29:50And the core of the ritual collapsed.

00:29:54The whole hall convulsed.

00:30:00Calum was thrown backward and slammed into the offering table hard enough to knock it over.

00:30:05He hit the ground, coughing blood.

00:30:08Jenna went down beside him, white-faced, with blood at the corner of her mouth.

00:30:13The ground shook.

00:30:16Serpent Heeks rose from every crack in the stone.

00:30:20Growing louder.

00:30:22And closer.

00:30:24If the formation stayed broken,

00:30:26the serpents under the estate would come up through the floor.

00:30:31Everyone in this house would die.

00:30:33That included me and Lucian.

00:30:36I pressed my fingers together, like a blade and cut across my own palm.

00:30:44Silver blood fell onto the extinguished flame.

00:30:47The fire came back like an explosion.

00:30:51Three feet of silver flame roared up from the lamp.

00:30:55Flooding the hall in cold light.

00:30:57Althema hit that light and went rigid.

00:31:00The red drained from her eyes.

00:31:02She lowered herself to the floor, pressed her head against my feet, and went still.

00:31:09Breathing, slow and deep.

00:31:11Like something finally put to rest.

00:31:14The hall went quiet.

00:31:19Then Calium dragged himself up from the floor with one arm around Jenna.

00:31:24He looked across the ruined hall at me, standing in the silver light with blood, still running down my wrist.

00:31:30For one moment, he just stared.

00:31:33Then he opened his mouth.

00:31:35Rowena!

00:31:35You could control that thing the whole time!

00:31:38So why the hell did you just stand there and let it go after Jenna?

00:31:41What is wrong with you?

00:31:44What sick game are you playing?

00:31:47He said it like he was the victim.

00:31:50Like he was not the one who had opened that door, after a direct warning.

00:31:54Like I was not standing in front of him, bleeding to hold the ritual together.

00:32:00I looked down at my palm.

00:32:02The silver blood was already slowing.

00:32:05I did not answer him.

00:32:07In Calium's arms, too quietly for him to notice, Jenna lifted her head.

00:32:12Her face was wet, her hair a mess, tears still drying on her cheeks.

00:32:17But from an angle he could not see, the corner of her mouth curved.

00:32:21Less than a second.

00:32:22I caught every bit of it.

00:32:23I almost wanted to laugh.

00:32:25It was the same in this life as it had been in the last.

00:32:29Jenna worked in the dark.

00:32:30Soft and sweet and untouchable.

00:32:33And Calum, righteous, devoted, completely blind Calum,

00:32:37picked up every knife she left behind and walked it straight into me.

00:32:41Except this time, I was not the one bleeding out on the floor.

00:32:46This time, I was the one still standing.

00:32:51I stood in the ruined hole.

00:32:53The cold serpent energy still lingering in the air like frost on my skin.

00:33:01Calum's accusation hung between us.

00:33:04I was sharp and accusatory.

00:33:06I didn't rush to defend myself.

00:33:09Instead, I raised my hand and let the silver seat flare.

00:33:16Silver light swept over Jenna, amplifying the dark serpent patterns twisting on her coral bracelet.

00:33:23They projected clearly onto the wall, writhling like living shadows.

00:33:31The exact energy that had provoked Althea.

00:33:34The servants gasp.

00:33:36Eleanor's face drained of color.

00:33:39Jenna's expression crumpled as she threw herself into Calum's arms, sobbing violently.

00:33:45Calum, I don't know what that is.

00:33:47I really don't.

00:33:50Did Lady Rowish do this on purpose to scare me?

00:33:55Calum pulled her tighter, his voice rising in fury as he glared at me.

00:34:00Rowena, enough!

00:34:02You already hurt her tonight, and now you want to humiliate her in front of everyone?

00:34:07The disbelief hit me hard.

00:34:09Evidence right in front of him, and still he chose her.

00:34:13Lucian stepped to my side, his voice like ice.

00:34:15Are you blind?

00:34:17Or has your brain rotted too?

00:34:19You have no right to speak here!

00:34:21I held Lucian back with a hand on his arm.

00:34:22No need to argue with him.

00:34:23Serpent energy recognizes its own, and so does Althea.

00:34:26Calum, you can keep pretending not to see it, but the formation collapsed tonight because you opened that door yourself.

00:34:30Calum's face stiffened.

00:34:31Jenna cried even harder.

00:34:32I turned away from them, crouching beside Althea and placing my hand on her head.

00:34:35The great white serpent calmed under my touch, lowering her head like a tamed beast.

00:34:38Everyone saw it.

00:34:39The serpents didn't fear me.

00:34:40They feared the Hargroves.

00:34:43Lucian helped me back to my room.

00:34:46The cut in my palms still seeped silver blood, and the Lunarn Hunt scar on my face burned.

00:34:52Every use of the Covenant reminded me of the price I had paid.

00:34:56My face for this power.

00:34:58Lucian banded the wound with careful hands, his touch gentle, as if afraid to break me.

00:35:04Don't cut so deep next time.

00:35:06If I hadn't, this entire estate would have collapsed tonight.

00:35:10That's not your burden alone to carry.

00:35:12I looked up at him.

00:35:15He met my eyes steadily, never flinching from the scar, only seeing me.

00:35:21After my re-rebirth, I had accepted that trading my beauty meant no man would love me again.

00:35:28Others saw fear or disgust first, but Lucian never did.

00:35:32I pulled my hand away, my voice turning cold.

00:35:36Don't be too good to me.

00:35:38I don't need it.

00:35:40Whether you need it is your business.

00:35:43Whether I do it is mine.

00:35:45Footsteps sounded outside.

00:35:47Callum stood in the doorway, his face dark.

00:35:51Seeing Ljubian holding my hand made his expression twist with jealousy.

00:35:57So you have time for your servant to fawn him over you.

00:35:59I smiled coldly.

00:36:01At least he knows who was bleeding.

00:36:03Unlike some people, who only held the real Colfrit while accusing me.

00:36:09Callum's face darkened further.

00:36:11Tomorrow morning, you're coming with me to the family cemetery.

00:36:14I need to know why this serpent clings to the Hargroves.

00:36:18Fine.

00:36:18But Jenna stays behind.

00:36:20You're meddling too much.

00:36:22I said nothing.

00:36:24I knew Jenna would come anyway.

00:36:29Jenna appeared the next day, wrapped in a pale cloak, looking frail as she clung to Callum's side.

00:36:38Callum, I can't let you go alone.

00:36:40Let me come.

00:36:42I promise I won't cause trouble.

00:36:45Callum glanced at me, waiting for protest.

00:36:49I stayed silent.

00:36:51Let her.

00:36:52The closer she gets to the truth, the faster her mask slips.

00:36:57Jenna's eyes flickered before she looked down.

00:37:00We reached the Hargrove Cemetery, where serpent energy coiled around every grave.

00:37:05My silver sight revealed snake bones, pressed beneath each male Hargrove tombstone.

00:37:12This was no simple curse.

00:37:13It was a betrayal.

00:37:15What do you see?

00:37:17Your family wasn't cursed by serpents.

00:37:20You used them first, then betrayed them.

00:37:25Jenna suddenly cried out and stumbled, her hand landing precisely on a formation node.

00:37:31Serpent energy erupted.

00:37:35Callum rushed to her.

00:37:38Jenna!

00:37:39I saw dark energy flash between her fingers.

00:37:42In my past life, I thought it was an accident.

00:37:48Now I knew better.

00:37:50Lucian stepped in front of me, and the underground bones recoiled from him, as if terrified.

00:37:57A question stirred in my mind.

00:38:02Who exactly was Lucian?

00:38:05Jenna clung to Callum, claiming her legs had simply given out.

00:38:10He held her protectively, but turned on me in anger.

00:38:16You knew it was dangerous here.

00:38:18Why didn't you clear it first?

00:38:22Did you see her step on the note?

00:38:24Callum paused.

00:38:26Jenna lifted her tear-stripped face.

00:38:30Lady Rowena, I know you dislike me, but...

00:38:34But I didn't touch any node.

00:38:36I was just scared.

00:38:38Callum's gaze softened toward her immediately.

00:38:42Rowena, enough.

00:38:44Stop pinning everything on her!

00:38:47I didn't argue.

00:38:48I extracted the serpent energy from her palm, and held it suspended in the air, a rivaling black thread trying

00:38:58to return to her sleeve.

00:39:01Jenna paled.

00:39:04Still need an explanation?

00:39:06Callum saw it.

00:39:07Everyone did.

00:39:09But after a moment, he muttered.

00:39:13Maybe the node latched onto her.

00:39:15I laughed bitterly.

00:39:16In my past life, I thought he was blind.

00:39:19Now I realized he saw.

00:39:20He just refused to admit it.

00:39:23Lucian spoke softly behind me.

00:39:25He doesn't deserve a single word from you.

00:39:27His words eased some of the cold weight in my chest.

00:39:31I turned back to the graves.

00:39:34Keep digging.

00:39:37Jenna's desperation to interrupt means, there's something important down there.

00:39:43I used silver blood on the tombstone.

00:39:47A fragment of memory rose.

00:39:50Centuries ago, Althea had willingly guarded the Hargroves, shielding them and even giving her white scales as a token.

00:39:58They repaid her by stabbing her with the stolen silver arrow while she slept, turning her into a living lock

00:40:05for the Serpent Gate.

00:40:07She was no monster.

00:40:09She was a betrayed protector.

00:40:12When the vision faded, Callum looked grim.

00:40:17I expected him to ask about Althea.

00:40:20Instead,

00:40:21If she's the living lock,

00:40:24she can still hold the gate, right?

00:40:26I turned slowly,

00:40:28anger flaring.

00:40:31That's all you take from this?

00:40:33The Hug family cannot fall.

00:40:36I need to know how to save it.

00:40:39His selfishness drained even my rage.

00:40:41In my past life,

00:40:43my pain,

00:40:43my blood,

00:40:44my life had only ever been tools to him.

00:40:47Jenna squeezed his hand gently.

00:40:49Callum,

00:40:50you're just worried about the family.

00:40:52Lady Rowena wouldn't understand your burden.

00:40:54Her voice was soft,

00:40:55but her eyes smiled.

00:40:57Lucian's hand tightened on his sword hilt.

00:41:00Don't rush.

00:41:01Let them dig their own graves deeper.

00:41:05The filthier their words now,

00:41:07the cleaner the reckoning later.

00:41:11Later,

00:41:12Jenna sought me out alone.

00:41:15Her gentle mask dropped completely

00:41:17as she leaned against a cord's ear,

00:41:20twisting her coral bracelet.

00:41:21You must feel so smug right now,

00:41:25making Callum look bad,

00:41:27making everyone doubt me,

00:41:29enjoying yourself.

00:41:31It's nowhere near as entertaining

00:41:34as you feeding serpents

00:41:36while playing the helpless victim.

00:41:39She laughed,

00:41:41her eyes turning venomous.

00:41:42You're much smarter than last time.

00:41:44So you remember too?

00:41:47Jenna didn't answer directly.

00:41:51She stroked the bracelet.

00:41:54Whether I remember doesn't matter.

00:41:57Callum will always believe me.

00:42:00You can shove proof in his face,

00:42:02and he'll still make excuses for me.

00:42:05Her words cut deep,

00:42:06laced with malice.

00:42:08Look at you.

00:42:10Traded your face for power,

00:42:13and still no one loves you.

00:42:16How pathetic.

00:42:18You think I still want Callum's love?

00:42:20Jenna stepped closer,

00:42:21lowering her voice.

00:42:22Of course you do.

00:42:24Once a woman has been loved,

00:42:26she always craves it back.

00:42:28You're just pretending to be clear-headed now.

00:42:31She reached toward my scar.

00:42:33Lucian emerged from the shadows

00:42:34and seized her wrist.

00:42:36Touch her again,

00:42:36and I'll cut off your hand.

00:42:39Jenna winced in pain,

00:42:41but quickly shifted to a pitiful expression

00:42:43as Callum's foot stems approached.

00:42:46Callum!

00:42:47He's trying to kill me!

00:42:54I only wanted to apologize to Lady Rowena,

00:42:57but he suddenly grabbed me.

00:42:59I was so scared.

00:43:01Let her go.

00:43:04Lucian,

00:43:05release her.

00:43:07Rowena, control your people.

00:43:09Don't forget,

00:43:11this is the Hargro estate.

00:43:16I remember perfectly.

00:43:17That's exactly why

00:43:19it's so filthy here.

00:43:33See that?

00:43:34Every time she touches you,

00:43:36your mark deepens.

00:43:37What trick did you pull?

00:43:39Wonderful.

00:43:40She poisons you,

00:43:41and I get blamed.

00:43:43You really are her perfect blade.

00:43:45Lucian stepped beside me.

00:43:49Let's go.

00:43:50Don't waste time on fools.

00:43:54This time,

00:43:55I didn't disagree.

00:44:00Late that night,

00:44:00Chester knocked on my door,

00:44:02holding a lantern with perfect servant deference.

00:44:04Lady Whitmere,

00:44:04the old madam asks if you will enter the hall again tomorrow.

00:44:07Eleanor,

00:44:07did the serpent send you,

00:44:08did she?

00:44:09Chester's expression stayed neutral.

00:44:11You're overthinking.

00:44:12I sealed the room with silver seals.

00:44:14Only Lucian and I remained with him.

00:44:16Chester finally looked up.

00:44:17The silver site lives up to its name.

00:44:19How many years have you hidden in the Hargroves?

00:44:21Forty-three.

00:44:22He spoke calmly.

00:44:23The Hargroves think they can control the serpent gate,

00:44:25but those behind it have waited for them to walk into the trap.

00:44:27I asked about the silver arrow.

00:44:30You want the sacred relic?

00:44:31The serpent court wants it.

00:44:33Callum wants it to survive.

00:44:34Jenna wants it to open the gate.

00:44:36Everyone is waiting for you to act,

00:44:37Lady Whitmore.

00:44:52Callum,

00:44:53Callum immediately accused me of colluding with the serpent court through Chester.

00:44:59I didn't deny seeking the arrow.

00:45:04It was my goal.

00:45:05He seized on it,

00:45:07turning everyone against me.

00:45:11You were never here to save us.

00:45:15You came for Hargrave possessions from the start.

00:45:18That relic belongs to Whitmore,

00:45:21not Hargrige.

00:45:23Jenna spoke softly.

00:45:26Callum,

00:45:28I've long felt Lady Rowena's hostility.

00:45:31I didn't dare say it before.

00:45:34I feared you'd think me petty.

00:45:36Her eyes reddened again.

00:45:39Callum's disgust towards me deepened.

00:45:41Hand over your silver seals.

00:45:46From now on,

00:45:47any ritual needs my approval.

00:45:50You want to control my power?

00:45:52To manage the gate?

00:45:54This is my home!

00:45:56I have the right to know

00:45:58what you're doing.

00:46:00I summoned a wisp of Althea's white serpent shadow.

00:46:03It coiled around Callum's death mark.

00:46:07He cried out in pain,

00:46:09face paling.

00:46:10You have the right to know this,

00:46:12for example.

00:46:13You're still standing,

00:46:14only because I allow it.

00:46:17Jenna stumbled back in fear.

00:46:20Callum stared at me

00:46:21with a mix of rage

00:46:22and newfound terror.

00:46:24Lucian spoke quietly at my side.

00:46:26She saves you by choice,

00:46:28not obligation.

00:46:30Remember that.

00:46:38Eleanor called a family meeting.

00:46:40Summoning all Hargroff branches.

00:46:44It was framed as discussing the gate,

00:46:47but clearly meant to force me to submit publicly.

00:46:51Many saw my scarred face for the first time.

00:46:55Whispers spread.

00:46:56How terrifying the scar was.

00:46:58How no wonder Callum preferred Jenna.

00:47:03I heard every word.

00:47:05In my past life,

00:47:06such talk would have crushed me.

00:47:09Now it was just noise.

00:47:11Eleanor sat at the head,

00:47:12voice heavy.

00:47:16Lady Whitmora,

00:47:17your power is great,

00:47:20but we've seen your emotions are unstable.

00:47:23For the family's safety,

00:47:26the sealing arts cannot remain solely in your hands.

00:47:30Callum didn't intervene.

00:47:33He sat silently,

00:47:36endorsing the ambush.

00:47:38Jenna added fuel.

00:47:42I'm only worried Lady Roeth might resent me

00:47:46and take it out on the entire Hargroff family.

00:47:50All eyes turned to me.

00:47:51I stood and activated the silver sight.

00:47:54Behind every person,

00:47:56shadows of sacrificed women appeared.

00:47:58Maids,

00:47:59adopted daughters,

00:48:00wives offered as tribute.

00:48:02Those who had mocked my scar

00:48:03dropped to their knees in terror.

00:48:06You wanted to talk safety?

00:48:08Then look at how many lives

00:48:09you've trampled beneath your feet.

00:48:12Jenna's smile finally shattered.

00:48:18Chaos erupted after the ghosts appeared.

00:48:20Some begged me to withdraw the sight.

00:48:22Others accused Eleanor.

00:48:23She paled and instinctively protected the legacy book.

00:48:25I saw it.

00:48:26The sacrifice ledger is inside the book.

00:48:28Eleanor's hand froze.

00:48:29Callum tried to block me.

00:48:30Rowena, don't make this uglier.

00:48:31The ugly one is your family's centuries of blood debt.

00:48:34Jenna clutched her chest,

00:48:35collapsing into a chair.

00:48:37I can't breathe.

00:48:38Callum, I'm so scared.

00:48:40Callum moved to help her,

00:48:41but a white serpent shadow blocked him,

00:48:44staring coldly at Jenna.

00:48:46She stopped aggravating her sobs.

00:48:49I approached Eleanor.

00:48:50Give me the ledger.

00:48:52Eleanor forced a smile.

00:48:54Child, those are old matters.

00:48:56You already died once.

00:48:58Why keep pursuing?

00:49:00I leaned close.

00:49:03Because I died once.

00:49:05I know exactly what being chosen

00:49:07by you feels like.

00:49:09Callum watched with fleeting complexity

00:49:11before Jenna's sobs pulled him away again.

00:49:15My cold laugh deepened.

00:49:18He was never worth it.

00:49:21Callum tried a softer approach that evening,

00:49:24coming to my room with a gentler tone.

00:49:27Roland,

00:49:28we can cooperate.

00:49:30You want the silver arrow?

00:49:32I want the Hargroves to survive.

00:49:35Our goals...

00:49:36McLean.

00:49:37I knew what came next.

00:49:39The same fake, fake concern from my past life.

00:49:42I know some words hurt you before,

00:49:44but now isn't the time to dwell on it.

00:49:46Some words?

00:49:48I turned my face so he could see the scar clearly.

00:49:51You mocked my face,

00:49:54protected Jenna as she harmed me,

00:49:56demanded my seals.

00:49:59And you call it some words?

00:50:01Callum frowned.

00:50:03You're too sensitive now.

00:50:04Lucian entered with medicine and overheard.

00:50:07She died once because of you all.

00:50:10And now you call her sensitive?

00:50:12Who do you think you are?

00:50:13Her servant?

00:50:14Guard?

00:50:15Or just the dog she keeps?

00:50:17Lucian remained calm.

00:50:18I can be anything she wants.

00:50:20But you?

00:50:21You're different.

00:50:22How?

00:50:23Even when she bleeds,

00:50:24you only ask why she didn't protect others.

00:50:27The room fell silent.

00:50:28I looked away,

00:50:30no longer wanting to hear Callum.

00:50:33Give me the key.

00:50:34Tomorrow we enter the underground chamber.

00:50:38Callum gritted his teeth

00:50:40and placed the key on the table.

00:50:45The underground chamber lay behind Hargrot Hall,

00:50:48dust and serpent energy rushed out as the door opened.

00:50:52Whitmore hunting tools,

00:50:53silver blades,

00:50:54short bows,

00:50:55chains,

00:50:56hung on the walls like trophies.

00:50:58My chest tightened.

00:50:59These belonged to my family,

00:51:01displayed as Hargrok spoils.

00:51:03As I approached,

00:51:05the tools hummed in recognition.

00:51:07Several blades tilted toward me.

00:51:09Callum's eyes gleamed with greed.

00:51:12If these can suppress the gate,

00:51:14why not lend them to the Hargroves first?

00:51:17After stealing them for centuries,

00:51:18you still want to borrow more?

00:51:20Jenna followed us in.

00:51:22Seeing the tools respond to me,

00:51:24jealously flashed in her eyes.

00:51:26Impressive.

00:51:28Too bad it all came at the cost of your face.

00:51:31Lucian took a loosened silver blade from the wall

00:51:34and placed it in my hand.

00:51:36They recognize you,

00:51:37not because of your face,

00:51:40but because you are Whitmore.

00:51:42His words settled warmly in my heart.

00:51:44I gripped the blade.

00:51:46Silver light bloomed.

00:51:47All the tools vibrated in univine.

00:51:49Jenna's expression soured completely.

00:51:51What she hated most wasn't my strength.

00:51:54It was that even scarred,

00:51:55I still had someone standing by my side.

00:51:57Deepest in the chamber hung an old painting.

00:52:00The first Whitmore lunar huntress

00:52:02beside a golden-horned white deer.

00:52:04The deer shielded her from serpents.

00:52:07Its antlers wrapped in moonlight.

00:52:10Lucian's face changed when he saw it.

00:52:12He looked away too late.

00:52:14You've seen this painting?

00:52:15No.

00:52:16He answered too quickly.

00:52:17Callum noticed,

00:52:18his expression turning dangerous.

00:52:19Seems your servant knows quite a lot.

00:52:20I stepped in front of Lucian.

00:52:22None of your concern.

00:52:23Callum sneered.

00:52:24Rowena, you'd shield a mere servant from me?

00:52:25Lucian's eyes chilled.

00:52:26I spoke calmly without turning.

00:52:27He is not a mere servant.

00:52:29Lucian fell silent.

00:52:29My own heart stirred unexpectedly at the words.

00:52:32Jenna watched with a light laugh.

00:52:34Lady Rowena was so enviable.

00:52:36Face ruined,

00:52:38yet still so protected.

00:52:40How much of that protection is real, I wonder?

00:52:42At least more than what you stole.

00:52:44Her face darkened.

00:52:46Suddenly,

00:52:47her bracelet glowed.

00:52:48Serpent energy corrupted the tools,

00:52:51turning them against me.

00:52:53Jenna cried out in fake alarm.

00:52:55Callum, watch out!

00:52:56The tools have gone out of control!

00:52:58But excitement burned in her eyes.

00:53:01The tools lunged at me.

00:53:04They heard their silver lament.

00:53:07They didn't want to harm their true owner.

00:53:10Jenna's serpent energy forced them.

00:53:12Callum's first instinct was to shield Jenna.

00:53:15Rowena, control them!

00:53:17Don't let them touch Jenna!

00:53:18I ignored him and summoned the moon's silver bow.

00:53:22Moonlight formed the string.

00:53:25I fired arrows,

00:53:27tearing serpent energy from the blades one by one.

00:53:31They fell obediently at my feet.

00:53:34Each shot burned my scar like a fresh blade cut.

00:53:37Pain seared through me.

00:53:38I grit my teeth and kept drawing.

00:53:40Lucian suddenly grabbed my hand.

00:53:41Enough!

00:53:42Not yet cleared!

00:53:43I said enough, you're hurting.

00:53:44Everyone else fixated on my scar,

00:53:46fearing, hating, using it.

00:53:47Only Lucian cared if it hurt.

00:53:49This isn't the time for your intimacy.

00:53:51Rowena, continue.

00:53:52Lucian turned on him.

00:53:54Shut your mouth.

00:53:55Callum's face darkened.

00:53:58I released the bowstring,

00:54:00refusing his order for the first time.

00:54:02The rest can wait until I decide.

00:54:04Jenna looked furious.

00:54:06She had wanted to exhaust me.

00:54:08She never expected Lucian could make me stop.

00:54:11Or that I would choose to for him.

00:54:13I followed Jaina into the underground water chath.

00:54:16She stood on the stone steps before the outer serpent gate.

00:54:20Her innocent mask finally debardened.

00:54:22Do you know where the silver arrow really is?

00:54:24I remained silent,

00:54:25gripping the hilt of the silver blade,

00:54:27see the sound echoing coldly off the walls.

00:54:29It's not in the chamber.

00:54:31It's buried in Althea's heart.

00:54:33The first Hargroves used it to nail her into the earth vein

00:54:37and create this gate.

00:54:39My fingers tightened painfully.

00:54:41The weight of generations of betrayal pressed down on me.

00:54:44Jenna stepped closer,

00:54:45her voice dripping venom.

00:54:47If you want Whitmore's relic back,

00:54:49you'll have to pull the arrow.

00:54:51But the moment you do,

00:54:53the gate opens.

00:54:54Everyone will blame you for destroying Hargrove Hall.

00:54:56Callum will hate you.

00:54:58Eleanor will hate you.

00:54:59They'll say you did it because no one could love your scarred face.

00:55:02The words stung,

00:55:03but not as deeply as they once would have.

00:55:05I met her gaze steadily,

00:55:06the lunar scar on my cheek pulsing with silver light.

00:55:09You still think I care what Callum thinks of me?

00:55:12Jenna's smile faltered for a split second.

00:55:14I continued,

00:55:15my voice low but firm.

00:55:17You're wrong.

00:55:18I didn't come back to prove I'm worthy of love.

00:55:21I came to make sure all of you pay what you owe.

00:55:24Her expression turned ugly.

00:55:25She spat one last barb

00:55:27before leaping deeper into the waterway.

00:55:30You really think Lucian will keep protecting you?

00:55:33Men are all the same.

00:55:35Once he gets tired of looking at that face,

00:55:37he'll leave too.

00:55:39I stood there as her footsteps faded,

00:55:41the cold water lapping at my boots.

00:55:43Her words tried to burrow into old wounds,

00:55:45but Lucian's steady presence in my mind pushed them back.

00:55:47I turned and climbed back to the surface,

00:55:50the truth now clear in my heart.

00:55:51The silver arrow rested in Althea's chest.

00:55:55Back above ground,

00:55:57I found Lucian waiting in the shadows of the hall.

00:55:59His quiet strength grounded me

00:56:01as I told him what Jenna had revealed.

00:56:03He listened without interruption,

00:56:05his eyes never leaving mine.

00:56:07Will you pull it?

00:56:08I have to,

00:56:09but not recklessly.

00:56:11I'll use Callum's blood,

00:56:12Jenna's serpent contract,

00:56:14Chester's serpent court mark,

00:56:16and Eleanor's sacrifice ledger to form a new seal.

00:56:19Lucian studied me carefully,

00:56:21no fear in his gaze,

00:56:22only unwavering resolve.

00:56:24Then we do it.

00:56:26A small smile tugged at my lips despite everything.

00:56:28You won't ask if I'll turn into a monster?

00:56:31You won't.

00:56:33How can you be so sure?

00:56:34He paused,

00:56:35then stepped closer,

00:56:37and gently re-wrapped the bandage on my palm.

00:56:40Because even when you could have let Callum die tonight,

00:56:43you still saved the entire estate.

00:56:45His words pierced through the armor I had built around my heart.

00:56:48I had hated them all so fiercely,

00:56:51yet I refused to become the destroyer they feared.

00:56:54Lucian saw that in me when no one else did.

00:56:56The scar on my face burned less fiercely in that moment.

00:56:59Tomorrow we go to Eleanor.

00:57:01Good.

00:57:01I lingered in his presence a moment longer,

00:57:05drawing quiet comfort from the way he stood guard beside me,

00:57:09unflinching.

00:57:11Eleanor refused to surrender the sacrifice's ledger.

00:57:13She sat in the main study,

00:57:15cradling her peach blossom tea.

00:57:17Her grandmotherly facade finally stripped away to reveal cold calculation.

00:57:21Rowena,

00:57:22you already know too much.

00:57:24A smart girl knows when to stop.

00:57:26The memories flooded back.

00:57:28Her smiles as she fed me poison.

00:57:30Her indifference as she watched me die.

00:57:33Anger surged through my veins.

00:57:35When you sent me into the serpent gate,

00:57:37in my past life,

00:57:39did you also think I should have stopped?

00:57:41Her hand trembled slightly on the teacup.

00:57:43Do you remember?

00:57:44I remember everything.

00:57:45Your sweet words.

00:57:47The poisoned tea,

00:57:48how you locked me inside,

00:57:50without a flicker of remorse.

00:57:52I sealed her teacup with a silver seal.

00:57:55The liquid inside turned black.

00:57:58Serpent shadows thrashing wildly.

00:58:00Lupien stood behind me.

00:58:02His presence a wall of silent fury.

00:58:05Eleanor's composure cracked.

00:58:07What do you want?

00:58:09The ledger.

00:58:11She resisted.

00:58:13I stepped forward and sealed her throat with silver light.

00:58:18Her mouth opened,

00:58:20but no sound emerged.

00:58:22You lied so many people to their deaths.

00:58:25This mouth of yours deserves rest.

00:58:27I retrieved the ledger from her hidden compartment.

00:58:30Page after page listed women's names.

00:58:32The final entry was my own.

00:58:35Rowena Whitmore.

00:58:36My fingers clenched until my knuckles whitened.

00:58:39This life,

00:58:40I would cross it out myself.

00:58:44Callum learned of the stolen ledger quickly.

00:58:47Instead of confronting Mimi directly,

00:58:49he lured Lupien away

00:58:51and trapped him in the old underground chapel

00:58:53beneath Hargrove Hall,

00:58:54an ancient altar etched with serpent arrays

00:58:57designed to suppress Lunarn Hunt blood.

00:58:59When I arrived,

00:59:00Lucien knelt in the center of the array,

00:59:02covered in wounds,

00:59:02yet his eyes glowed with a faint golden light.

00:59:05Callum stood outside the formation,

00:59:06a silver blade in hand.

00:59:07Don't come closer, Rowena.

00:59:08One more step and he dies for you.

00:59:10Eyes alight with vicious excitement.

00:59:12Lady Rowena,

00:59:13you're so powerful.

00:59:14Choose the silver arrow or him.

00:59:16Lucien looked at me through the pain

00:59:18and shook his head wiltly.

00:59:19Leave me.

00:59:20The plea tore at my chest.

00:59:21In my past life,

00:59:22I had told Callum the same thing,

00:59:24only for him to abandon me.

00:59:25I would not repeat his cruelty.

00:59:27Power erupted from my Huntress mark.

00:59:29Silver light shattered the serpent array,

00:59:31inch by inch.

00:59:32Callum paled.

00:59:33You're mad!

00:59:34The Covenant will backlash!

00:59:36That's not for you to decide.

00:59:39I rushed into the formation,

00:59:42grabbed Lucien's hand,

00:59:43and dragged him free.

00:59:44His silver-gold blood touched my pie palm,

00:59:48and the lingering, dark energy

00:59:50recoiled as if burned.

00:59:54Lucien's blood was not red.

00:59:55It shimmered with faint silver-gold light.

00:59:58The realization hit me

00:59:59as the serpent array's rainness fled from him.

01:00:01Who are you, really?

01:00:03Lucien remained silent for a long moment

01:00:05before answering softly.

01:00:06I promised to stay by the Whitmore heir's side.

01:00:08Promised whom?

01:00:10He didn't reply.

01:00:12But Callum had seen the blood.

01:00:13Greed twisted his features.

01:00:15So he's even more special than you.

01:00:17She laughed cruelly.

01:00:19Callum, if we use him as the new living lock,

01:00:21we won't need Rowena anymore.

01:00:23Callum didn't deny it.

01:00:25Cold fury settled in my chest.

01:00:27Touch him,

01:00:29and I will end the hog-rave bloodline tonight.

01:00:33You care about him that much?

01:00:35So even you can feel fear.

01:00:37I helped Lucien to his feet,

01:00:39my voice steady despite the storm inside.

01:00:43Yes, I fear.

01:00:45I fear him suffering the same fate I did.

01:00:48Being sacrificed by people like you

01:00:50who treat lives as disposable.

01:00:53Lucien glanced at me,

01:00:55emotion flickering in his eyes.

01:00:57I avoided looking back,

01:00:59afraid my own feelings would spill over.

01:01:04Callum and Jenna united against us.

01:01:07They spread rumors that Lucien's non-human aura

01:01:10was the true cause of the gate's instability.

01:01:14Jenna wept publicly,

01:01:16claiming she saw his golden blood

01:01:18and couldn't sleep from fear.

01:01:22Callum played the responsible family head.

01:01:24I don't want to hurt anyone,

01:01:26but for the Hargroves,

01:01:28I must uncover what he is.

01:01:30The hypocrisy made me want to laugh.

01:01:33This was their old game.

01:01:35One crying,

01:01:36the other forced to act.

01:01:38Only now,

01:01:39the knives were aimed elsewhere.

01:01:43I stepped in front of Lucien.

01:01:45Anyone who wants to investigate him

01:01:47goes through me first.

01:01:49Callum's face darkened.

01:01:51Rowena,

01:01:51you'd abandoned the entire Hargrove family's safety for him?

01:01:55I protected him.

01:01:57You don't deserve it.

01:01:58Lady Rowena,

01:02:00have you forgotten Lucien's just an outsider you picked up?

01:02:02An outsider cleaner than you'll ever be.

01:02:05Lucien spoke quietly behind me.

01:02:07You don't have to shield me like this.

01:02:09I want to.

01:02:13The words surprised even me.

01:02:15We retreated to the forest behind the hall.

01:02:18Serpent energy pursued us to the edge,

01:02:21but dared not enter.

01:02:24Moonlight filtered through the trees

01:02:25as I tended Lucien's wounds.

01:02:28Why do you remember the past life?

01:02:30He was quiet for a long time.

01:02:33Because when you died,

01:02:34I was there too.

01:02:36My hand stilled on the bandages.

01:02:38I was trapped in the formation.

01:02:39I heard you begging him to open the door.

01:02:42I couldn't break free.

01:02:43I could only watch it close.

01:02:45The memory of that freezing night crashed over me.

01:02:48Not everyone had abandoned me.

01:02:51Someone had tried.

01:02:54My throat tightened.

01:02:56I always thought if I were stronger,

01:02:58you wouldn't have died.

01:03:00That wasn't your fault.

01:03:01But I was still too late.

01:03:03I looked at him,

01:03:04the urge to embrace him nearly overwhelming.

01:03:07Instead,

01:03:07I whispered,

01:03:08this time,

01:03:09you weren't too late.

01:03:11Lucien met my eyes

01:03:12and smiled faintly for the first time.

01:03:14It was small,

01:03:16but it lit up the darkness around us

01:03:18like moonlight on water.

01:03:20My huntress mark began spiraling out of control.

01:03:25Visions of blood deeds and deaths

01:03:28flooded my silver sight.

01:03:32I saw Eleanor dragged by ghosts.

01:03:39Chester devoured by the serpent court.

01:03:42Jenna consumed by her own power

01:03:46and Callum begging on his knees.

01:03:51Ardus's voice echoed in my mind,

01:03:54commanding me to hunt those

01:04:00who fed the serpents.

01:04:04I nearly summoned the oath arrow.

01:04:07Lucien seized my shoulders.

01:04:09Rowena, look at me.

01:04:10The silver light and blood

01:04:12blurted my vision.

01:04:13Pain tore through the scar on my face.

01:04:16Move!

01:04:17I need to kill them!

01:04:19Lucien held firm.

01:04:21You can take revenge.

01:04:24But don't give yourself to the covenant.

01:04:27He cut his own palm

01:04:29and pressed the silver gold blood

01:04:30against my scar.

01:04:32The divine fury retreated.

01:04:34I could breathe again.

01:04:36You are not the goddess's blade.

01:04:38You are Rowena.

01:04:39Tears stung my eyes.

01:04:42He had shown me I could hurt,

01:04:44hate,

01:04:45and still remain myself.

01:04:47I closed my eyes.

01:04:49Don't let go.

01:04:51Don't let go.

01:04:53Chester stole the sacrifice ledger,

01:04:55hoping to trade it to the serpent court for freedom.

01:05:00We tracked him to an old underground room

01:05:03where he knelt before a black serpent mirror.

01:05:07A pale hand reached out and took the ledger,

01:05:11offering no promise.

01:05:15Executors have no freedom.

01:05:17Only the next order.

01:05:21Chester protested his 43 years of service.

01:05:25The mirror cracked,

01:05:27and dark energy retaliated,

01:05:29rotting his brand.

01:05:37I didn't save him immediately.

01:05:40Lady Whitmore, save me!

01:05:43I can tell you how to close the gate!

01:05:48How many have you helped kill?

01:05:51Let him die.

01:05:53I stabilized the energy

01:05:55in Chester's body with a silver seal.

01:05:59You won't die yet.

01:06:02You'll watch what you served devour you.

01:06:07I reclaimed the ledger.

01:06:10The path to the silver arrow lay clear.

01:06:13The path to the silver arrow clear.

01:06:16Jenna publicly revealed the arrow's location

01:06:19in Althea's heart.

01:06:20She stood in the meeting hall,

01:06:23crying convincingly.

01:06:26If we get that arrow,

01:06:28can the Hargroves be saved?

01:06:31Callum, I don't...

01:06:33want you to die.

01:06:38The branches went wild with desperation.

01:06:41Callum pretended to restrain them,

01:06:43but I saw his agent slipping

01:06:45toward the hall depths.

01:06:47I blocked the entrance.

01:06:49Call them back.

01:06:51Callum stayed silent.

01:06:53Jenna tried to soften it.

01:06:55Lady Rowena,

01:06:57why must you think the worst of Callum?

01:06:59He only wants to save his family.

01:07:02Shut your mouth.

01:07:04I faced Callum directly.

01:07:06Do you want to save your family

01:07:08or steal my arrow?

01:07:10If it can save the Hargroves,

01:07:12it shouldn't belong only to Whitmore.

01:07:14His true nature stood bare.

01:07:17The man who once wore affection like a mask

01:07:21now showed his greed openly.

01:07:25I descended into the Earthvein with Lucian,

01:07:28crossled as the strage

01:07:29and several clansmen forced their way after us.

01:07:32Serpent energy parted before me

01:07:34and recoiled even more from Lucian.

01:07:38At the core,

01:07:40Althea was pinned to the gate,

01:07:42the silver arrow buried in her heart.

01:07:44She lowered her head,

01:07:46exposing the wound,

01:07:47begging for release.

01:07:49I grasped the arrow's hilt.

01:07:51Lucian stepped protectively behind me.

01:07:54Careful.

01:07:57Callum pressed a silver blade to Lucian's throat.

01:08:00Pull the arrow, Rowena,

01:08:02or he dies.

01:08:05I held the hilt motionless.

01:08:07Blood, silver gold,

01:08:08trickled from Lucian's throat,

01:08:10exciting the gate further.

01:08:12Jenna's eyes lit with greed.

01:08:13Callum,

01:08:14his blood can replace hers.

01:08:16Use him as the new lock.

01:08:17Callum didn't deny it.

01:08:19Choose the arrow or his life.

01:08:22Don't mind me.

01:08:23The familiar cruelty broke something inside me.

01:08:26Why must everyone I cared for

01:08:28become their leverage?

01:08:29Do you know what disgustes me most about you?

01:08:32Callum frowned.

01:08:33You treat other people's sacrifices

01:08:35as natural rights?

01:08:36I released the arrow

01:08:37and slashed my plomb instead,

01:08:40spilling silver blood

01:08:41to summon the debts.

01:08:44Ghosts of sacrificed women rose,

01:08:46their eyes fixed on Callum.

01:08:49This time,

01:08:50judgment fell on the Hargraves.

01:08:53The ghosts surrounded Callum.

01:08:55They whispered their names.

01:08:57Wives,

01:08:58maids,

01:09:00daughters,

01:09:00and my past self.

01:09:02He stumbled back,

01:09:04the blade leaving Lucian's throat.

01:09:06I pulled Lucian behind me.

01:09:10Jenna launched for the arrow.

01:09:13Serpent energy from the gate seized her instead,

01:09:17merging with her bracelet.

01:09:19Jenna laughed wildly

01:09:21as she began transforming.

01:09:24Finally my turn.

01:09:26You knew it wanted your body?

01:09:28So what?

01:09:30At least I'll drag you all down with me!

01:09:33She yanked the arrow partially free.

01:09:36Althea screamed.

01:09:37The gate cracked.

01:09:39Jenna, stop!

01:09:40Now you're scared?

01:09:41You protected me only because I was youthful!

01:09:47They're mutual betrayal lay exposed.

01:09:49Only I had once believed in their false bond.

01:09:52Lucian took my hand.

01:09:54Galene,

01:09:55don't watch them.

01:09:56Do what you must.

01:09:57I nodded,

01:09:57stealing myself.

01:10:00The gate's opening caused Hargrove Hall to collapse.

01:10:04Black rail tents insurged from the ground.

01:10:07Clack Sertman fled,

01:10:08only to be caught by their own ghosts.

01:10:11Eleanor was dragged before the fireplace,

01:10:14forced to confront the ledger.

01:10:17Rowena, save me!

01:10:18I was forced!

01:10:20It was all for the family!

01:10:22That's exactly what you said

01:10:24while watching you die last time.

01:10:27She trembled.

01:10:28I was wrong!

01:10:30You're not sorry.

01:10:33You're just afraid,

01:10:35afraid to die.

01:10:37The ghosts pulled her into silver flames.

01:10:40Chester was devoured by his own masters.

01:10:43I asked Lucian if I seemed cool.

01:10:45No.

01:10:46They owed you.

01:10:48His words erased my final hesitation.

01:10:51Callum seized the silver arrow

01:10:53and fled toward the main hall

01:10:54to reseal the gate.

01:10:56I chased him.

01:10:57To the iron door.

01:10:59The same one from my past life.

01:11:01Move aside, Rowena.

01:11:02And I'll let you go.

01:11:04We can settle the past later.

01:11:07The past?

01:11:07You speak so lightly of it.

01:11:10Jenna screamed for rescue in the distance.

01:11:12Callum barely glanced at her before turning away.

01:11:15He activated the mechanism to crap Lucian and me.

01:11:20Inside, Lucian pushed me aside and shattered the door with explosive silver-gold light.

01:11:25A golden-horned white deer phantom appeared behind him.

01:11:28The serpents recoiled in fear.

01:11:31At last, I understood.

01:11:32Lucian was the sacred beast guardian of the Whitmores.

01:11:36Lucian knelt by the broken door,

01:11:38the deer phantom fading.

01:11:39Callum stared in shock.

01:11:42What are you?

01:11:45Something far cleaner than you.

01:11:47The serpent court envoy emerged, terrified.

01:11:50Moon, dear guardian.

01:11:53You still live.

01:11:55Lupien looked at me with apology.

01:11:57I didn't mean to hide it.

01:11:58We'll settle accounts after we get out.

01:12:00He smiled.

01:12:02I grasped the silver arrow.

01:12:05The huntress covenant fully awakened.

01:12:08Artemis warned of the price.

01:12:11Use mine.

01:12:12No.

01:12:13I'm the guardian.

01:12:15I should pay for you.

01:12:17I already died for others once.

01:12:20This life...

01:12:23I pay for my own choices.

01:12:29The oath arrow formed in cold white light.

01:12:32Jenna, half-serpent, charged in hatred.

01:12:36Why can you still stand?

01:12:41Why do you still have someone protecting you like that?

01:12:44Because I never gave myself to you.

01:12:47Lucian shielded me as the deer phantom repelled the energy.

01:12:51Callum begged on his knees.

01:12:53Roe, save me!

01:12:54I was wrong!

01:12:55In the past life, I had no choice!

01:12:57You had choices.

01:12:59Every time, you chose to hurt me.

01:13:02I drew the bow.

01:13:03Artemis demanded a span of lifespan.

01:13:06I accepted.

01:13:07Lupien cried out.

01:13:08But I reassured him with a glance.

01:13:11Don't worry.

01:13:11I still need to settle your secret with you.

01:13:14I released the arrow.

01:13:16It pierced Jenna.

01:13:18The gate.

01:13:19The blood contracts.

01:13:21And buried deep into the earth vein.

01:13:23Silver light exploded.

01:13:26The serpent-tort passages collapsed.

01:13:30The gate sealed.

01:13:31Althira's wound healed.

01:13:35Althira's wound healed.

01:13:36She placed a final white scale in my palm.

01:13:39Before dissolving into light.

01:13:42Finally free.

01:13:43Jenna lay dying.

01:13:44Her body rejecting the serpent energy.

01:13:47I'm not willing.

01:13:49Why did someone like you win?

01:13:51Because I lost once.

01:13:52And I refused to lose again.

01:13:55Her body was consumed.

01:13:56Leaving only shattered coral.

01:13:58Callum's death mark vanished.

01:14:00But so did his family's power.

01:14:02He knelt broken in the ruins.

01:14:07Rowena.

01:14:08Save me once more.

01:14:11As the hall fully collapsed.

01:14:12Callum chased after me one last time.

01:14:15Desperate.

01:14:16Rowish.

01:14:17I was deceived by Jenna.

01:14:19Now I see clearly.

01:14:21You weren't deceived.

01:14:23You chose convenient lies every single time.

01:14:26Lucien stepped forward.

01:14:28Blocking Callum's view of me.

01:14:30Don't look at her.

01:14:31You have no right.

01:14:33Callum froze.

01:14:35I allowed the protection.

01:14:36Embracing it fully this time.

01:14:41At dawn.

01:14:43Hargrove Hall sank completely into ruin.

01:14:47I stood.

01:14:48At a distance.

01:14:51Watching the last serpent's stench blow away on the wind.

01:14:55My huntress mark and scar remained.

01:14:59But so did my resolve.

01:15:07Lucien stood beside me.

01:15:09Does it still hurt?

01:15:12Why do you always ask that?

01:15:13Because you always pretend it doesn't.

01:15:16I laughed genuinely for the first time in ages.

01:15:19Lucien.

01:15:21How long have you guarded the Whitmans?

01:15:23Long enough.

01:15:24That I feared I'd always arrive too late.

01:15:26This time you didn't.

01:15:27Rowena.

01:15:28I never loved your face.

01:15:32His gaze held mine.

01:15:34Never wavering to the scar.

01:15:37I love that you crawled back from hell to claim your debts.

01:15:41And still chose to save the innocent.

01:15:47I took his hand willingly.

01:15:49Then don't be late again.

01:15:51I won't.

01:15:51We walked away from the ruins together into the morning light.

01:15:55This time...

01:15:58I didn't look back.

01:16:00All right.

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