"A script they've run multiple times." I flipped through the journal, showing them the documented cycles. "Aldric the Golden. Seraphine the Pure. Marcus the Brave. Three heroes my family documented. Probably dozens more before that."

Damian's expression was dark. "What happened to them?"

"That's where it gets interesting." I pointed to the notes. "Every single documented hero either became a tyrant or died mysteriously after completing their destiny. Aldric became Emperor and ruled with increasing cruelty until his own generals killed him. Seraphine was poisoned three years after her victory. Marcus vanished without a trace."

"Why?" Marcus asked. "If the Council wanted heroes, why kill them after they succeeded?"

"Because they're not making heroes," I said quietly. "They're harvesting power."

I let that sink in.

I gathered my thoughts. This was the hard part. The part that would sound insane.

"The Council of Fates feeds on this cycle," I began. "Heroes defeating villains. Good triumphing over evil. The classic story structure, played out over and over. Every time a hero complete their journey, the Council harvests the energy from the world. The emotions. The belief. The meaning and the people attach to it."

"That's..." Isabella struggled for words. "That's parasitic."

"That's exactly what it is. They create the hero, and give him everything opportunities to fight the evil of the 'Demons'. Then they make everything bends backwards for that hero."

"But what happens when it doesn't go as planned?" Marcus asked.

"They eliminate the anomaly." I met their eyes one by one. "My parents discovered this. They were investigating the patterns and finding proof. They were murdered for it. Uncle Victor confirmed it today that their 'accident' was an assassination."

Damian's fists clenched on the table. He'd known my parents and served them as his own parents did.

"And you," Lucille said slowly. "You're an anomaly."

"We're all anomalies." I gestured around the table.

Adrian is supposed to be surrounded by loyal followers who worship him. Instead, some of them all chose to leave him or refuse him. Lucille was supposed to be his loyal assassin and yet she's sitting at my table.

Things were supposed to go his way.

"That's the summary, yes."

"And Adrian?"

"Is a victim, in his own way. He doesn't know he's being used. He genuinely believes he's the destined hero. The Council has been manipulating him his entire life, making him think every success is his own, every advantage is earned." I paused. "Though that doesn't excuse his actions. He's still responsible for his choices."

"What about the Demon King? The great evil Adrian is supposed to defeat?"

My eyes hardened.

"That's the really twisted part." I flipped to a specific page in the journal. "We believe the current Demon King is actually the previous cycle's hero."

"Oh gods," Isabella whispered. "So the hero fights the previous hero, defeats them, becomes the new hero, and then eventually either dies or becomes the next Demon King?"

"It's a cycle. Hence the name." I closed the journal. "And it's been running for centuries. Maybe millennia. How many heroes have there been? How many were killed or corrupted? How many became the very monsters they once fought?"

"And you're trying to break this cycle," Marcus said, raising his brows.

I nodded.

And it's not that I'm doing it out of the goodwill of my heart, I'm doing it because if I don't, the world itself would always try to kill me. Because I am a stepping stone.

More silence. They looked at each other. At the journal. At me. They just learned that there's something somewhere pulling the strings of their world.

Finally, Marcus spoke.

"You know what? Fuck them."

I blinked. "What?"

"Fuck the Council. Fuck their cycles." He leaned forward, eyes blazing with the manic energy I'd come to associate with him. "They've been playing god for centuries? Making people dance like puppets? Killing anyone who figures it out?" He slammed his hand on the table. "No. Hell no. I'm an enchanter. I break things and make them better. That's literally my job. So yeah, let's break them and make something better."

"They made me a tool," Lucille said coldly. "A weapon aimed at whoever the hero deemed an enemy. Manipulated my loyalty, my skills, my entire life to serve their story." Her eyes were ice. "I don't appreciate being used. Let's show them what happens when their weapons turn on them."

Isabella's voice was calm but firm. "My family has been fighting economic manipulation for generations. We always thought it was just politics. Just nobles playing games. But if there's a deeper conspiracy? If there's a reason why every time someone tries to change things, they mysteriously fail or die?" She nodded. "The Frostvale family stands with the Ravana."

Finally, Damian spoke. "Young Master, your parents are Just people. Who died trying to make the world better." His voice was quiet but absolute. "If this Council killed them, then they're my enemy. If you're fighting them, then I'm fighting with you. Until the end. Whatever that end may be."

"Thank you," I said.

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