Amina suddenly raised her hand, stopping Ryo mid-sentence.
"Ryo, before you get into this… s-scary being…" she hesitated, her voice barely above a whisper. Clearly, she didn't even want to say the name of the terrifying entity.
Ryo blinked, then chuckled, though there was a nervous edge to it. "Oh! Right, hahaha… I almost forgot. Talking about the… uh… 'thing' is a bit sensitive around here, huh?" He carefully avoided saying its name, as if just mentioning it might summon something dreadful.
Amina: "Ummm, yeah, but that's not why I stopped you."
Ryo tilted his head. "Huh?"
Amina pointed at him, her expression serious. "You just said the thief already knows how to activate the Celestial Compass… but how do you know that?"
The king's brows furrowed as he nodded in agreement. "Exactly. And what makes you so certain that there are specific conditions needed for activation?"
The crowd murmured, now looking at Ryo with doubt.
"Wait a second, detective—how do you know all this?"
"Yeah! Where's your proof?"
"Come on now, don't just drop shocking revelations and then move on!"
"Are you making this up for dramatic effect?!"
"We're all panicking here, at least explain before you scare us half to death!"
Amina crossed her arms. "Do you have a habit of skipping details, Ryo?"
For a second, it looked like Ryo might actually entertain their doubts.
Then, with a completely straight face, he casually responded:
"Which is why I gotta talk about the Ancient… 'Thing' first."
The way he deliberately replaced the entity's name out of consideration for everyone made the entire room pause.
"Oh… okay."
Everyone collectively nodded, suddenly on board again.
Amina narrowed her eyes. "Wait, why did that work?!"
Ryo continued.
"As you all know, the Ancient 'Thing' was summoned by Malakar Rami out of desperation to defeat that 'Zayd hero guy' and his rebellion, as well as to destroy this kingdom back in the 5th century."
The crowd nodded.
"But there's one thing that's been bothering me."
The king leaned forward, intrigued. "And that is?"
Then, Ryo dropped a question that sent a chill through the room.
"Sure, the Ancient… 'Thing' gave Malakar the Celestial Compass… but do you really think it just handed it over so easily?"
A wave of murmurs spread through the hall. Some people looked confused, while others frowned in realization.
Shahira, her curiosity piqued, asked, "Umm, what do you mean, Ryo?"
Then, Ryo uttered the words that sent a deep unease crawling up everyone's spine.
"If something as grand and sinister as the Ancient 'Thing' gifted an artifact as powerful as the Celestial Compass… wouldn't it have demanded something in exchange?"
The murmurs stopped.
The air grew thick with tension.
Amina and Shahira exchanged uneasy glances, while the king's expression darkened.
King Malik, his voice barely above a whisper: "Mr. Detective… could it be…"
Ryo met his gaze and smirked, but this time, there was no amusement—only a chilling certainty.
Then, with an ominous edge to his voice, he delivered the unsettling bombshell.
"Looks like you figured it out, Your Majesty… Because accepting something from an ancient, malevolent being from a dark realm…"
He paused, his gaze sweeping over the crowd, letting the weight of his words settle.
"…wouldn't that be like making a deal with the devil?"
The room turned ice cold.
Some gasped. Others shuddered.
And among the crowd, hidden in plain sight, the real thief clenched their fists, feeling their heartbeat quicken.
Because Ryo… was getting dangerously close to the truth.
Ryo glanced between Amina and the king, crossing his arms.
"Now then, you two asked me, 'How do I know that the thief already knows how to activate the compass?' and 'What makes me so certain that there are specific conditions needed for activation?'"
Amina and the king both nodded, their curiosity piqued. "Yes! So, what is it?"
Ryo smirked, letting the tension rise. Then, in a suspenseful tone, he said, "That's when I start talking about the first condition of activating the compass."
Immediately, Amina, the king, and Shahira leaned forward in their seats, their mouths slightly open, anticipation filling their eyes.
The queen, however, was still lost in her own sorrow, too consumed by her thoughts of Jamil to pay full attention.
Ryo took a breath and started explaining.
"According to this kingdom's historical and magical records that I found in the library, back in the 5th century, summoning magic was actually a very common thing. People used to draw magic circles and make whatever was inside them pop out of nowhere—summoning all sorts of otherworldly creatures. Cute dragons, small flying dogs, little floating creatures—basically, fantasy-like beings from another realm."
Then, mid-sentence, Ryo suddenly cringed at himself, squeezing his forehead as if he had a headache.
"Ugh… I can't believe I'm talking like some guy with eighth-grade syndrome."
Amina raised a brow. "Eighth-grade syndrome?"
Ryo sighed dramatically. "Yeah, you know, those guys who act all cool and mysterious, talking about forbidden techniques and secret bloodline powers…" He made finger gestures like some edgy anime protagonist. "'The dark flame within my soul cannot be contained!' Ugh, what have I become…?"
The room went awkwardly silent for a second.
Then Shahira let out a small snort.
The king sighed. "Mr. Detective, please focus."
Ryo cleared his throat, snapping back into his serious character. "Ahem, anyway—because of Malakar, summoning magic was banned, made illegal, and completely prohibited from being used ever again. And I would assume that everyone here already knows why from their school days."
The king nodded grimly. "Because Malakar summoned the Ancient Evil… 'Thing.'"
Snap! Ryo clicked his fingers. "There we go!"
Amina, still processing everything, gasped. "W-Wait a second! Are you telling me… you got all this information from that massive stash of books in the library… in just two hours?!"
Ryo chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Studying quickly has kinda been my forte. Plus, I was able to piece together everything from those books and come to a conclusion. Simple detective work, really."
Amina's eyes widened, amazed. "W…woooow…"
Shahira muttered, "Okay, that's kinda impressive…"
Then, Ryo's face darkened. His eyes sharpened with a chilling gaze.
"Now then, as for the first condition, to be granted the Celestial Compass by the Ancient 'Thing'…"
A heavy silence filled the throne room.
Everyone tensed, bracing themselves for his next words.
Ryo slowly raised his right hand.
Then, with an ominous tone, he lifted his first finger.
"The first condition…"
A long pause.
"…is to offer the Ancient 'Thing'… a human sacrifice."
The entire room gasped in horror.
Amina's hands flew to her mouth.
The king's face darkened even more.
Shahira visibly shuddered.
Even the queen, despite being lost in her sorrow, reacted to that revelation.
Then, Ryo slowly lifted a second finger.
"The second condition, for activating the compass…"
More tension.
"…is to discard your humanity."
The murmurs of everyone escalated into fearful whispers.
"Discard… your humanity?!"
"Does that mean becoming a monster?!"
"Or worse… a servant of the Ancient 'Thing' itself?!"
The king clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white.
Amina and Shahira exchanged anxious glances, their breathing unsteady.
Then—
Ryo, with perfect suspenseful timing:"And as for the third condition…"
The tension skyrocketed.
Everyone leaned forward.
The air became so thick with anticipation, you could cut it with a knife.
Amina gulped. Shahira gritted her teeth. The king's grip on his armrest tightened.
"I'll tell you that later."
"…"
"…"
"…"
A collective groan of frustration erupted through the room.
"ARE YOU SERIOUS RIGHT NOW?!"
Shahira and the king both facepalmed at the exact same time.
Amina, beyond frustrated, grabbed her sandals again and waved them menacingly.
"DO YOU WANT TO EXPERIENCE THE SANDAL OF DESTRUCTION, RYO?! STOP DROPPING CLIFFHANGERS!!"
Ryo smugly crossed his arms, looking completely unbothered by her rage. "Sorry, but I need to go through these things in order to give you that anime-style detective reveal you love so much."
Amina's eyes twitched in pure annoyance.
Then, with a deep sigh of defeat, she lowered her sandal.
"…Damn it, you do know me too well."
Ryo smirked. "Now then, shall we continue?"
Ryo took a step forward, his sharp eyes scanning the tense faces in the room. "First off, we'll go through the human sacrifice offering."
Everyone leaned in, fully engrossed, full of anticipation.
"Malakar was given two choices on this matter," Ryo continued, his voice steady but ominous.
"He could either sacrifice himself…"
The room fell silent.
"…or someone he was close to."
A heavy weight settled on the atmosphere as murmurs broke out among everyone. "Who did Malakar choose?"
Shahira furrowed her brows. "Wait… If he sacrificed himself, wouldn't that have been the worst-case scenario? Wouldn't that mean the Ancient 'Thing' itself would gain direct control of the compass?"
Ryo nodded, his expression grave. "Exactly. If Malakar had sacrificed himself, the Ancient 'Thing' wouldn't have just granted him the compass—it would've taken control of it completely, found the gate on its own… and opened it."
A chill ran through everyone's spine.
The king's face darkened. "That… would have been disastrous."
Ryo let out a breath. "But that didn't happen, right?"
The king nodded slowly. "Yes… Instead, Malakar got the compass and went to find the gate himself."
"Then that means he… he sacrificed someo—"
The realization hit the king like a sudden blow to the chest. His eyes widened, and his voice faltered.
His words cut off as the horrifying truth dawned upon him.
Ryo, unwavering, asked in a firm tone, "Your Majesty… According to the records I've read, Malakar had a wife, correct?"
The king's throat felt dry. "Y-Yes… she remarried after Malakar was exiled from the kingdom."
Ryo's gaze sharpened like a blade.
"And she remarried to Amir Murad… Malakar's former right-hand man."
The king clenched his fists, his breath unsteady. "Yes, that… that was the most unforgivable part of our history. I didn't mention this detail before because—"
Then it hit him.
His eyes widened in horror.
His hands trembled.
He gasped sharply, unable to form the words.
Ryo's piercing gaze didn't waver. "Your Majesty… she died from an illness… right? Or….?"
The king's mouth opened, but no words came out. He struggled to speak, his mind racing.
Shahira, noticing her father's distress, stepped closer in concern. "Father…? Are you okay?"
Slowly, shakily, the king pressed his right hand against his face, piecing together the unspoken horror.
Then, in a heavy sigh, he admitted:
"To think… that we don't even know the full truth of our own kingdom's history."
Amina, watching the king's shaken expression, turned to Ryo. "Ryo… What's going on? Why does the Sultan look terrified?"
Ryo closed his eyes, arms crossed. "Because someone—amongst Zayd's descendants—before Sultan Malik took over… covered up a crucial piece of unsolved history."
Shahira grew impatient. "Spit it out already!"
Ryo opened his eyes.
And then—
"Malakar's wife, Hania… was said to have died from a disease. But that's just a fabricated story meant to protect children from the terrifying truth. A previous ruler of Al-Munira erased the real story from history lessons."
Amina gritted her teeth. "Then what's the real truth?!*"
BAM!
The sound of the king slamming his fist onto his armrest shook the entire throne hall.
A powerful gust of wind surged from his sudden movement, rattling the torches and banners.
Everyone jumped, stunned by the king's reaction.
Beads of sweat formed on his forehead as he gritted his teeth, struggling to say the words.
Then, in a hoarse, shaken voice—
"The real truth… is that Malakar… used his wife as a human sacrifice… for the Ancient 'Thing'…"
The air turned ice cold.
Shahira's breath hitched.
Amina's eyes widened in horror.
Even the queen, lost in her own grief, snapped her head up, her face drained of color.
Everyone began murmuring in disbelief.
"No way…"
"He sacrificed his own wife?!"
"That's monstrous…!"
"But why?! Why would he do that?!"
The king, still tense, exhaled shakily.
"…For revenge."
Amina paled. "R-Revenge?"
The king clenched his jaw. "She betrayed him… for Amir Murad."
Amina and Shahira covered their mouths in shock.
Ryo remained silent, allowing the weight of the revelation to settle before he continued.
After a moment, he spoke again, his voice steady but grim.
"After Malakar executed Amir… he enslaved Hania, locking her away in a cell."
The king shut his eyes, thinking about the darkest chapters of his kingdom's unknown past.
Ryo pressed on. "But when Zayd's rebellion began, Hania saw a chance for freedom—a ray of hope. She was rescued by Zayd's forces and finally freed from Malakar's grasp."
Amina's hands trembled. "Then… she escaped?"
Ryo's eyes darkened. "Yes… but that ray of hope didn't last long."
The silence grew suffocating.
Then—
Ryo's voice came, low and eerie.
"As Malakar faced his final defeat… he snuck into Hania's tent one night…"
Amina felt a lump in her throat.
Shahira swallowed hard.
Ryo's gaze sharpened.
"…And he killed her in her sleep."
The gasps echoed through the throne room.
Ryo continued, "It was the perfect way to fulfill his end of the deal. A clean kill. No resistance. A perfect offering… fueled by his burning hatred for her."
Amina shuddered. "That's… awful…"
Shahira whispered, "That's evil…"
Ryo took a slow breath before delivering the final blow.
"Then, Malakar carried her body all the way to the Ancient 'Thing.' And in the darkness… that monstrous entity took her soul."
The room felt colder than ever.
Everyone was speechless.
The queen—previously silent—covered her mouth, visibly disturbed.
Even the king, despite knowing much of his kingdom's past, looked shaken by the full truth.
Ryo, standing firm, exhaled.
Then, in a tone that sealed the grim revelation, he spoke:
"And that, everyone… is how the Ancient 'Thing' handed the Celestial Compass over to Malakar."