Mad Hatter's Guide to Clearing The Game
Chapter 66: Ch64. Regretful secrets

Chapter 66: Ch64. Regretful secrets

Diego followed Nadia as they descended the spiral staircase, the air growing heavier with each step. The dim glow of arcane lanterns flickered along the walls, casting long, shifting shadows that seemed to stretch unnaturally, moving in ways they shouldn’t.

The deeper they went, the more the distant hum of the city above faded, swallowed by an eerie silence that pressed against his ears.

The Hall of the Seers lay at the heart of their domain, a chamber untouched by the outside dangers, refurbished with the Seers’ arcane skills to suit their needs. As they reached the bottom, the narrow passage widened into an open expanse. Diego’s breath hitched slightly at the sight before him.

The chamber was vast, its ceiling stretching impossibly high, as though it had no end. Luminescent roots crawled along the walls, pulsing faintly like veins carrying liquid light. At the center, a circular pool of still, glass-like water reflected no ceiling, no torches. Only the endless black void of the unknown.

Diego had been here before, but it never ceased to unnerve him.

Nadia moved without hesitation, approaching the pool and standing at its edge. She turned slightly, her gaze piercing as it landed on him.

Diego sat near the pool’s edge, the ethereal glow of the roots casting long shadows along the polished floor. It felt alive, in a way that made his skin crawl.

Across from him, Nadia regarded him with a calm expression, though her glowing violet eyes held an edge of something unreadable.

"So," she said, folding her hands in her lap. "You seek knowledge about Miles..."

"Yes." Diego exhaled sharply, nodding. "Something’s different about him. He has a new Attribute, and I’m afraid that..." His fingers tightened around the small wooden box in his lap. "I’m afraid it might put him in danger... He’s been through many strange situations ever since he... Came back from his quest."

"Curious..." She mused. "His strings feel... Different, this time."

Nadia’s eyes flashed, a ripple of energy passing through the chamber. Diego felt the shift immediately. The Seers’ power reacted to fate itself, and at the flick of Nadia’s will, something unseen twisted in the air.

He watched Nadia carefully. She was still, eerily so, her violet eyes glued to the empty surface of the black pool. Not even her breath seemed to move in her chest. The glow of her eyes deepened, the violet light intensifying, casting strange patterns on the walls.

The chamber seemed to hum, responding to her silent call. Nadia inhaled slowly, closing her eyes for a brief moment before she kneeled, reached two fingers into the water. A ripple spread outward, as though the black surface itself were fabric and she had just disturbed its weave.

Diego had seen the Seers do this before, reading into the unseen lines that connected all things, gazing into the possibilities woven into the world. But something about this felt wrong. The air grew heavy, the lanterns dimmed, as if the entire building held its breath.

Then, Nadia’s eyes snapped open, locking onto Diego’s with a force that sent a cold shudder down his spine.

"What have you allied yourself with, boy?" She asked, her voice barely above a whisper, but filled with something bordering fear.

"What did you see?" Diego felt a pit form in his stomach.

Nadia did not answer immediately. She withdrew her fingers, the ripple in in the water sealing itself instantly. Whatever she had seen, it had shaken even her, and Diego had never seen something like that happen before.

"I cannot tell you." She said finally.

"Nadia, please... If it’s dangerous, I need to know." Diego’s jaw clenched.

"No." The word was final. Not cold, not cruel. Just absolute. "Whatever I glimpsed, it is not knowledge you are meant to hold. Even if not yet."

"So, you’re just going to let me walk away, knowing Miles is tied to something that made even you react like that? Nadia... I thought the Seers-"

"I will not speak of this again." She cut him off, her expression unreadable. But there was something beneath the surface. Not defiance. Not arrogance.

Regret.

"You expect me to just let this go?" Diego’s fists tightened.

Nadia sighed, standing. She moved toward one of the roots, tracing her fingers over its bark. The light shifted under her touch, rearranging into a symbol of something he could not read.

"I can only promise you one thing, Diego," she said at last. "What I saw will remain with me. It will not leave this room."

He stared at her, searching for something in her expression. A sign that she was lying. But her gaze was unwavering. She meant it.

"Then tell me why you won’t tell me," he pleaded. "At least give me that."

"Because some truths are cages, not keys. And you, my dear boy, are not ready for the weight of this one." She turned back to him, her violet eyes dimmer than before.

Diego wanted to argue. He wanted to push, to demand more, to shake the answers from her if he had to. But something about the way she looked at him, the sadness there, made his frustration falter.

"Leave this place, Diego," Nadia said softly. "And do not return ever again."

"You’re kicking me out?" Diego took a step back, his eyes wide as his heart skipped a beat.

"I am begging you," she corrected. "For your sake. For his. For ours. Do not cross our doors again."

A heavy silence settled between them. Diego had never felt so unwelcome here before, not even when he had first come, when they had treated him like a child who knew nothing about the game. This time, it was different.

This was fear.

"Fine. Whatever. I’ll figure it out myself." He exhaled sharply, shoving his hands into his pockets, fighting back the tears that threatened to burst out from his eyes.

Nadia didn’t stop him as he turned on his heels and stormed toward the entrance.

She didn’t call after him, didn’t try to explain herself further. The only thing that followed him as he left the Hall of The Seers was the unsettling weight of her words, echoing in his mind long after the doors closed behind him.