In the council chamber of the Ouroboros clan, Atrum's voice echoed with a heavy, solemn finality.
"I have chosen our clan's fate in the coming war," he declared, his gaze sweeping over the gathered elders, his wife, Lady Kalani, and their daughter, Esmeralda.
Lady Kalani lifted her chin, a single brow arched in question. "Paradise?" she asked. "It would be the logical path, after all."
But instead of answering, Atrum slipped his hand into the sleeve of his robe and produced a small, gleaming object—the Returning Jade Stone. Its surface shimmered with an ethereal light, unmistakable to all who saw it.
"This is my decision," Atrum replied quietly.
Esmeralda's eyes widened as they fixated on the stone, and murmurs rose among the elders. Lady Kalani's expression shifted from questioning to startled understanding. "Empyrean?" she breathed, her brows rising.
