Not far from the site of the attack, Gawain found the remains of a small cabin, reduced to ruins. It lay amid the trees, charred from an intense, inward-burning fire. The blaze had not spread further, perhaps saved by a timely rain that preserved the forest.
Sir Byron examined the remnants around the cabin and concluded that the fire had occurred over half a month ago. Hetty detected faint magical traces lingering at the scene.
"What we saw in the Shadow Realm was likely just an echo…" Gawain remarked, gazing at the burned-out cabin in the forest clearing. "This wild mage lived here in seclusion for years, well outside our territory, in a place even hunters wouldn't venture. No one knew he existed."
"The question is… how did the accident happen?" Hetty frowned. "This spot only has a weak magical focus, and the wild mage who lived here was relatively powerless. Even if a spell of his went out of control and destroyed the cabin, it shouldn't have generated a lasting reflection in the Shadow Realm or created that powerful vengeful mist. The amount of magic required would be far beyond what a single wild mage could provide."
"Perhaps this notebook holds the answer," Gawain replied, handing Hetty the worn notebook he had retrieved from Betty in the Shadow Realm. It contained the anonymous mage's diary and research notes.
Hetty opened it to the latter entries and began reading carefully.
"Year 729, Month of Fire, Day —: It's been half a year since I moved here. I found a magical focus near the edge of the Cecil family's lands. It's nowhere near as powerful as the public foci of Thousand Towers City, but it's sufficient for my laboratory. The elemental energies here are simple and stable, which should help alleviate Annie's condition.
"Year 729, Month of Harvest, Day —: Annie's condition seems to be improving. She hasn't had an episode in a while, though I'm unsure if it's due to the environment here or the efficacy of my rituals and potions. The focus here is weak, and even with amplification arrays, my rituals are still limited. I may need to rework some of the formulas I previously derived… Though the Arcane Society often mocked my calculations, I'm no longer under their oversight."
"Year 730, Month of Mists, Day —: The formulas and derivations aligned perfectly with expectations! No, it would be more accurate to say that reality unfolded precisely as my calculations predicted. With the new amplification method, the magical focus has been greatly strengthened. With this additional magic, I can finally proceed to the next stage of Annie's treatment. Though she hasn't had any episodes for months, the treatment must continue—she cannot endure further relapses."
"Year 731, Month of Frost, Day —: After treatment, Annie could get out of bed and even made a meal for us! Sausages and vegetable soup. I feel as though it's been a century since I tasted anything so delicious, even though the sausages were burned, and she forgot to add salt to the soup… My treatment appears to be effective, and as long as this magical focus remains stable, Annie's recovery is in sight."
After this, the entries focused on daily life with his daughter, which Hetty skimmed through until reaching the last few pages, where the writing grew frantic and disordered.
"Year 734, Month of Frost, Day —: Annie had an episode. Damn it! I don't know what went wrong. All treatments have proceeded as planned; every step of the ritual was flawless, and the potions I've been using for years have never failed. Yet Annie still fell ill, and worse than ever before. I must find the cause. I'll record every detail… Annie will be alright…"
"Year 734, Month of Frost, Day —: Annie shows no improvement, and the new potion has had no effect. She continues to weaken… drifting further from this world. This morning, I saw her hands turn transparent like mist, and her face was covered in blisters. This world is rejecting her, pushing her toward the Shadow Realm. What should I do…"
"Year 734, Month of Mists, Day —: That damned sun, with its crimson patterns, mocks my helplessness! I've finally identified the problem, but I'm powerless to resolve it. The elements are gathering in unusual concentrations; the magic is surging, and this weak focus can't contain the overflow. Removing the amplification arrays did nothing to help. Taking Annie away from this elemental concentration would be wise, but she's been here too long. Her body resonates with the elemental environment, prolonging her life… and it could end her life too!"
"Year 734, Month of Mists, Day —: The magic in this entire region is in turmoil, raging fiercely. The boundary of Cecil territory seems caught in the legendary 'Sea of Magic.' I can no longer reverse the transformation occurring in Annie. Half her body has already left the material world. This morning, she even said she saw the whole cabin turn black and white. Perhaps… I have no choice but to find an alternative…"
"Year 735, Month of Fire: After long preparation, the ritual is complete, and Annie's weakness has reached its peak.
"This is my only chance. There is no other choice. Since I cannot sustain Annie in the material world, I may as well try another path. The ritual for shadow transformation is well-documented, though it demands immense magical power. But for me, perhaps it's not impossible. I've applied new amplification formulas and array designs, and I'll harness the power of the magical surge. The magic in this region is highly active, and I've been containing the energy in the focus for months. Today, it's finally enough."
**"Then, as long as I wait for the sun to reach its zenith, when magic is at its peak, I can begin the transformation.**
"Annie, hold on. Daddy will save you, and we'll go to the Shadow Realm together, where we can live for a long time… and you'll never feel pain again."
The diary ended there.
Hetty was about to close the notebook when Gawain pointed to a corner of the last page. "There are actually a few more words here."
Hetty looked closer and noticed a dark blotch in the corner, which she had initially assumed was just a spilled ink stain. But upon closer inspection, she realized it was a few hastily scrawled words, written with a finger dipped in ink: "Magic is out of control… The sun is red…"
Hetty repeated the words in confusion, "The sun is red… How could the sun be red?"
Rebecca's face lit up with sudden recollection. "Could it have been during the recent solar flare event? About half a month ago, the sun's surface showed a lot more red spots than usual. If that wild mage was already losing his sanity, he might have thought the sun itself had turned red…"
Hetty blinked, seeming to accept Rebecca's explanation. She shook the notebook. "With this, a lot of things make sense. It appears that this unknown mage set up an extensive magical array here to treat his daughter and later devised the mad idea of transforming himself and his daughter into shadow forms to prolong their lives. But his transformation ritual spiraled out of control due to the magical surge, causing the fire two weeks ago, the formation of the vengeful mist, and what you saw in the Shadow Realm."
"That's not the main point…" Gawain suddenly interrupted Hetty. "While the vengeful mist and the shadow cabin have direct explanations in the notebook, what I want you to focus on are two particular details: the dark red patterns on the sun's surface and the large-scale solar flare event."
Hetty noticed the grave expression on Gawain's face and felt a twinge of anxiety. "Ancestor, are these two events…?"
Gawain raised a hand. "Additionally, the magical surges mentioned by this wild mage—surely you two, as mages, have felt something similar?"
Hetty and Rebecca exchanged a glance and nodded. "There have indeed been several magical surges in the Cecil territory recently. However, fluctuations in magic are quite normal. All magical power originates from the sun, which constantly changes. Therefore, magic on the ground ebbs and flows as well. Recently, the magical activity has been more frequent but not to a concerning degree."
Gawain looked at the two of them and spoke slowly, "In the year 1736 of the Gondor Calendar, imperial records noted the appearance of large dark red patterns on the sun's surface. In 1738, the largest solar flare event in recorded history was observed, covering nearly half of the sun's surface with red patches. That same year, reports from 26 imperial provinces documented widespread magical surges—not individually powerful, but collectively affecting nearly two-thirds of the empire's territory.
"In 1739, under a blood-red sky, the entire empire was bathed in a crimson haze. Yet no disasters occurred. Instead, a significant number of magically gifted infants were born. Nearly one-third of all newborns on that day possessed innate elemental affinity, creating a shortage of resonance stones in newborn screening facilities across the land. Court scholars declared that day the 'Dawn of Magic.'
"But that same year, near the capital of Gondor, the empire's largest magical power facility, the 'Deep Blue Well,' experienced a catastrophic explosion. The cause was a sudden infusion of chaotic and intense magic into the well's focus, which overwhelmed the extraction array and ultimately led to a core meltdown…"
Gawain paused, and Hetty's face grew pale as she continued, "Then, in 1740, the magical tide erupted, and the greatest human empire in history fell within months…"