Edwin Lunar Chapter 71: The Heart of All Things

Read chapter 71 of Edwin Lunar by MananTayal on NovelPedia.

Volume 3 Finale The heavens shattered. The war was over. For the first time in years, peace had returned to the Noor System. The Final Expanse had stabilized. The First Enemy was destroyed. The Devourer had returned to its ancient duty as the Balance Keeper. And humanity finally stood united with the Void. Months passed. Life slowly returned to normal. Or as normal as life could be after witnessing the end of reality. The academy reopened. Students once again filled the halls of the Lunar Dominion Academy. Training fields echoed with laughter instead of alarms. The scars of war remained, but so did hope. Edwin stood atop the academy's highest tower. The silver oceans of Noroel stretched endlessly below. Beside him stood Carl, Iris, and Lucien. The same team that had survived impossible battles together. Carl stretched lazily. "So." He grinned. "No cosmic horrors this week." Iris raised an eyebrow. "Please don't challenge fate." Lucien nodded. "Bad idea." Edwin laughed. For the first time in a long time, it felt genuine. His mother was home. The galaxy was healing. The future finally seemed bright. Yet far below the academy... In levels unknown to students... Below even the First Gate Chamber... A sealed vault remained hidden. A place protected by countless Orion locks. A place only one person could enter. Headmaster Humming. The old headmaster walked slowly through the underground corridors. His expression was unusually serious. Something had awakened. Something he had hoped would remain silent forever. The massive vault door stood before him. Ancient symbols covered its surface. Not Orion symbols. Not Builder symbols. Something older. Something unknown. The door opened. BOOOOM. Cold air escaped from the darkness beyond. Rows of artifacts lined the chamber. Ancient relics gathered across centuries. Weapons. Fragments. Lost technology. Objects that could change history. Yet Humming ignored them all. His eyes remained fixed on the center of the room. A pedestal. And upon it— The Red Box. The mysterious crimson artifact sat exactly where it had for decades. Silent. Unopened. Waiting. The object that even Humming feared. The object that had survived every war. Every catastrophe. Every age. Then— Click. Humming froze. The sound echoed through the vault. One of the locks had moved. For the first time in decades. The Red Box began glowing. A faint crimson light spread across the chamber. The ancient runes carved into its surface awakened one by one. Humming's face paled. "No..." The glow intensified. He immediately activated every security seal in the room. Barrier after barrier surrounded the pedestal. Yet the box continued glowing. Unaffected. Another click echoed. A second lock opened. The old headmaster stared in disbelief. During the Great War— Nothing happened. When Groader activated the Signal— Nothing happened. When the Devourer awoke— Nothing happened. Yet now... After the First Enemy's destruction... The box had suddenly reacted. Then a voice emerged. Soft. Ancient. Barely audible. Not from outside. From inside the box. Humming's eyes widened. Because he recognized the voice. A voice he had not heard in over fifty years. A voice that should have been impossible. The box trembled. Crimson light flooded the vault. Ancient symbols appeared throughout the chamber. Symbols unlike anything from Orion, the Builders, or the Void. Then the voice whispered again. This time clearly. "The Key has awakened." Humming stepped backward. His hands trembled. For the first time in years— The legendary headmaster looked afraid. Far above, Edwin suddenly stopped walking. The ring on his finger pulsed once. A strange sensation passed through him. As if something far away had noticed him. Watching. Waiting. Calling. Deep underground— The Red Box continued glowing. Another lock clicked open. Then another. And another. Something inside was awakening. Something older than the Builders. Older than the Void. Older than the Devourer. Humming stared at