As the first morning light touched the skies of Thule and stretched across the Qings’ land, brown leaves drifted from their empty farmhouse and flew in the air like untold memories.

At the front of the fourth floor’s window, the scent of old books and lavender surged into Darian’s nose as he leaned back and took a deep breath.

"Are these the recent records of the country?" he asked as he walked toward the shelf, then shifted his gaze to the left, where a large brown table was.

A metal creaking sound echoed as Hu Qing swung both himself and his chair as he shifted his gaze to Darian. "These are the ones that couldn’t be transported to Seol-Mujin."

Darian threw a shocked glance at his father, then laughed. "So you still report to that ancient city?"

Hu Qing’s still gaze remained on Darian for a moment before shifting to the open window. "Not only do we report to them, they decide who is to live and who should not."

"Really, Dad," Darian said in a joyous tone, then shifted his gaze to Hu Qing. "Then we don’t need to struggle on Leon; they should do it, not us."

Hu Qing shook his head, while a faint smile tore on his lips. "You’re not looking at the right place."

"How?" Darian said in a loud voice, then shifted his full attention to Hu Qing. "You lost your dignity because of the Storm family."

He walked toward the brown table, then slammed his palms on it. "Dad, Leon Storm is just a disposable being. He’s only dangerous if we allow him to be."

Hu Qing closed his eyes for a brief second and cracked them open with a sharp exhale. "Lord Hayes would be the right person to know what needs to be done next."

"Dad, Hayes thinks like a soldier," Darian said as he watched his father pick up his smart device. "Hayes would kill Leon in Tartarus, but what about his family? Think about it."

Hu Qing’s fingers hesitated on the dial button before placing the device back on the table.

Darian walked toward the window and placed his hands behind his back. "If Leon dies in Tartarus while his family remains untouched, the Storm name will forever remain a name to be praised."

Hu Qing pushed himself off his seat, then walked to Darian’s side at the window and began watching the birds leaping into the skies.

"The Council has already sealed the sector," Hu Qing said in a soft voice, then placed a heavy hand on Darian’s shoulder. "Then what is your plan, son?"

Darian looked back at his father with a wide smile on his face. "I already have everything in place."

He pulled out a device containing the entire map of the Storm Mansion from his pocket and placed it in Hu Qing’s palms. "This is everything about their mansion, Dad."

Hu Qing glanced at the map on the screen of the device, then shifted his gaze back to Darian. "Is this even the right map of the Storm Mansion?"

Darian yawned as he crossed his hands at the back of his head, then stretched his shoulders. "Straight from their maid, Min-ji."

Hu Qing’s eyes narrowed as he zoomed in on the map and began studying it.

"With this," Darian said while walking to his father’s seat, "we can do anything we want to destroy the family, even use their automated water filtration system."

Hu Qing turned and smiled when he saw Darian sitting in a chair he once warned Darian not to even place his hands on. "Their automated water filtration system is the right side to use."

"We can contaminate it," Darian said with a nod while whirling himself and the chair around. "We can use the bio-inhibitor that hasn’t been tested after it was developed by our men."

Hu Qing sighed as he moved forward and sat halfway on the table. "It works within a twenty-four-hour time frame, have you forgotten?"

"That is the best one, Dad," Darian said as he stopped and placed a hand on Hu Qing’s lap. "Within twelve hours, the blind mother’s senses will begin to dull. And by the time the twenty-four hours are reached, the little girl will drop into a deep sleep that no medical team from here or Agatha can wake her from without us giving them our antidote."

"That’s why you bear my blood," Hu Qing said as he placed a hand on Darian’s, then looked straight into his eyes, "not that burnished sister of yours."

’Leon thinks he is a hero,’ Darian said in his head as he shifted his gaze to the window and watched the golden-shaded clouds forming in the sky. ’Let’s see how he becomes when he comes and sees his family to be no more.’

Hu Qing shifted his gaze to the wall that still bore the name Andrew Storm carved in it. ’Your name will finally be erased entirely, Andrew.’

"And Leon?" Hu Qing shifted his gaze to Darian. "How do you think his reaction will be when the news reaches him?"

"That’s the beauty we are all waiting to see," Darian said with a wide smile on his face, then slowly closed his fingers into a fist. "That’s when the world will know how devilish he is."

"You have surpassed me, son," Hu Qing said as he stood up and placed both hands on Darian’s shoulders. "You now deserve to bear the Qing name and also have your name in the books of the world leaders."

...

As Darian and Hu Qing exited side by side, two black crows leaped to the window and watched the black books that had been left open on the table while flapping their wings slowly.

They exchanged sharp glances before ascending into the clouds with a loud cry.

Just as they vanished into the clouds, two of their feathers broke loose from their wings and drifted downward until they landed before Darian’s feet the moment he pushed the main door open and stepped out.