The secured room Irina led them into was hidden deep within the factory, separated from the rest of the activity outside. Thick concrete walls surrounded them on all sides, muffling the distant sounds of werewolves training and talking among themselves. A single lamp hung from the ceiling, casting a soft yellow glow over the room and giving it a strangely intimate atmosphere. It felt less like a meeting hall and more like a place reserved for conversations too dangerous for wandering ears.

Tatiana quietly moved to one side of the room, her hands folded together as she stood near the wall. Even now, she still had not completely accepted the fact that Liam had casually elevated her status earlier as though it was the most natural thing in the world. Irina remained standing with her arms crossed while Mary adjusted the sleeves of her dark clothing, her calm eyes sweeping across everyone present.

Then she began to speak.

"The witches council has spent generations searching for one answer," Mary said, her voice steady and matter-of-fact. "The origin of magic."

The room immediately fell silent.

"We devoted our entire existence to it. Where did magic come from? Why can humans wield powers that defy the laws of nature? How can ordinary flesh manipulate fire, heal wounds, control minds, or bend reality itself?"

No one interrupted.

Even Liam, who normally wore an amused expression whenever conversations became too serious, found himself paying close attention.

Mary continued.

"We traced its roots back to ancient Egypt."

Irina’s expression remained calm, but Tatiana’s eyes widened slightly.

Ancient Egypt.

The same place where countless myths and legends had been born.

"We uncovered records that were never meant to survive," Mary said. "Fragments hidden beneath temples. Scrolls sealed away from human civilization. Testimonies written by people who witnessed impossible things with their own eyes."

Her gaze sharpened.

"And those records all spoke of powerful beings."

She paused.

"They called them the Aet-khenu-ra."

Liam immediately straightened.

His ears practically perked up.

The name hit him like a jolt of electricity.

Vanessa.

He had heard this before.

He remembered the conversation vividly. The Divine Flame of the Sun. Beings worshipped as gods and feared as monsters. Ancient entities buried beneath lies disguised as history.

Mary noticed the subtle shift in his expression immediately.

Her observant eyes lingered on him for a second longer than necessary.

But she said nothing.

Instead, she continued.

"For centuries, nobody knew where the Aet-khenu-ra came from. Every theory contradicted another. Some believed they descended from heaven. Others claimed they manifested from the sun itself."

Her voice lowered.

"But recently..."

The room became even quieter.

"The witches council discovered the truth."

She looked directly at Liam.

"They came from a distant planet within the Andromeda Galaxy."

Silence.

Complete silence.

Tatiana blinked.

Irina frowned.

Liam’s eyebrows immediately knitted together.

"The Andromeda Galaxy?" he repeated.

Mary nodded.

Liam stared at her for several seconds before speaking again.

"That’s impossible."

He uncrossed his arms.

"The Andromeda Galaxy is 2.5 million light years away from Earth."

This time, both Tatiana and Irina looked at him.

While neither of them fully understood what the Andromeda Galaxy was, they understood numbers.

Two point five million light years.

Tatiana’s mouth slowly parted.

Her voice trembled slightly.

"H-How far is that exactly?"

Liam looked toward her.

"It means even if you traveled at the speed of light..." he explained slowly, "...you would need two point five million years to arrive there."

Tatiana’s face drained of color.

Irina’s usually composed expression cracked ever so slightly.

Two point five million years.

The number itself sounded absurd.

Tatiana stared at Mary as though hearing the ramblings of a madwoman.

"That’s impossible," she whispered.

"How can anyone travel that far?"

She genuinely looked overwhelmed.

Everything she had heard since entering this room felt like it belonged in some ridiculous fantasy story.

They were talking about ancient gods arriving from another galaxy.

She finally understood why Irina had insisted this conversation remain secret.

Mary remained calm.

"They didn’t cross the distance conventionally," she said.

"They used portals."

The word hung heavily in the room.

"Portals?" Liam repeated.

Mary nodded.

"An array of magical formations capable of transporting matter across incomprehensible distances. The Aet-khenu-ra used them to bridge worlds."

Liam’s eyes narrowed.

"And you have one of these portals?"

Mary immediately shook her head.

"No."

Her expression remained serious.

"It isn’t an object."

Liam frowned.

"What do you mean?"

Mary folded her hands together.

"It is an art."

"A spiritual art," she corrected.

"You study it. You master it. You weave reality itself according to ancient principles and formulas. The same way a witch learns spells, the Aet-khenu-ra learned to construct pathways between worlds."

Tatiana struggled to comprehend it.

"So..." she said hesitantly, "...it’s magic?"

Mary looked toward her.

"Magic," she replied softly, "is simply a word humans use for things they don’t yet understand."

Liam remained quiet.

His mind raced.

Ancient beings from another galaxy.

Portals.

Spiritual arts.

A father who supposedly discovered something buried beneath history.

A System residing inside his mind that operated with impossible sophistication.

The pieces were beginning to overlap in ways he wasn’t sure he liked.

Mary noticed his expression.

She inhaled slowly.

Then exhaled.

"But..."

The single word immediately drew everyone’s attention back to her.

Liam’s eyes sharpened.

He had sensed it coming from the beginning.

There was always a catch.

Always.

He looked directly into Mary’s eyes.

"But?" he asked quietly.

The witch stared back at him.

For the first time since entering the room, even her calm demeanor seemed heavier.

Darker.

"The portal art still exists," he repeated. "And you want to use it."

Mary nodded.

"Yes."

Then her expression became slightly complicated.

"But there is a problem."

Liam looked at her.

"Of course there is."

For some reason, his tone almost sounded disappointed if there wasn’t one.

Mary crossed her arms loosely over her chest before continuing. "The portal won’t take us that far unless we can gather an enormous amount of energy."

She paused.

"A truly absurd amount."

The room fell quiet again.

Tatiana blinked. "How absurd?"

Mary glanced toward her before answering.

"The combined energy of ordinary witches wouldn’t even scratch the surface. Even if the entire council participated, it still wouldn’t be enough to force open a stable pathway to another world."

Tatiana’s eyes widened.

Irina frowned.

Liam slowly lowered his hand from his chin.

"And you planned to use me as the anchor?" he asked.

Mary froze for a second.

There was genuine surprise in her usually calm eyes.

He had grasped the situation instantly.

"You figured that out quickly," she admitted.

Liam shrugged.

"You’ve been staring at me like I’m a walking battery since this conversation started."

A snort escaped Irina before she could stop herself.

Even Tatiana looked like she was trying not to laugh.

Mary rolled her eyes.

"You’re not wrong."

Then her expression turned serious again.

"Yes."

She looked directly at Liam.

"You contain an amount of energy unlike anything I have ever encountered."

The dry humor disappeared from her voice.

"I’ve studied witches my entire life. I’ve encountered magical creatures, ancient artifacts, cursed objects, even touched remnants left behind by powerful beings from centuries ago."

Her gaze sharpened.

"But none of them compare to you."

The room grew quiet.

"When I held your hand during Leonid’s ritual..." Mary said slowly, "...the energy flowing through you nearly overwhelmed me."

She remembered it vividly.

That warmth.

That purity.

That endless ocean hidden beneath flesh and blood.

Even now, recalling it caused a chill to travel down her spine.

"It wasn’t simply large," she continued.

"It was vast."

She hesitated.

"It felt... divine."

Liam scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

"You really know how to make a guy uncomfortable."

Mary ignored him.

"If we use your energy alongside the witches council, then yes. Opening the portal becomes possible."

Liam nodded slowly.

"So how many people are going?"

Mary answered immediately.

"The three of you."

Her eyes moved across the room.

"Liam."

"Irina."

"Tatiana."

Tatiana blinked rapidly.

"Huh?"

Mary then pointed toward herself.

"Me."

"And another witch from the council."

She paused.

"And Leonid."

Liam’s relaxed expression finally shifted.

Irina’s eyes widened slightly.

"Leonid?" Irina repeated.

Mary nodded.

"Yes."

Irina folded her arms.

"As much as I care about him, why?"

"He can barely control himself," Irina said. "And now you want to drag him into another world?"

Mary met her gaze calmly.

"Because he is still our strongest link to the vampires."

She didn’t sugarcoat it.

"The connection between newly turned vampires and the Ancient One is still active."

Her eyes darkened slightly.

"If answers truly exist on that world, Leonid may help us recognize them."

Liam finally spoke.

"Then what exactly are we going there to do?"

The amusement disappeared from his face.

His voice became serious.

"What do you need our help for?"