⚖️ The Balance of Power
The Mind Palace had settled—
but the air within was still sharp.
Kaen and Gon sat atop the Twin Thrones, energy subdued but pulsing.
The golden clouds of memory hung low in the dream-sky, shimmering with every breath the palace took.
Then—footsteps.
Kurapika entered through a rising bridge of thought, his scarlet eyes glowing beneath the golden light.
He didn't smile.
Didn't bow.
Didn't speak.
Only silence, coiled tight as a blade.
Melody stood behind him, her face torn between wonder and unease. Her fingers rested on her instrument—but even she didn't dare strum.
Kaen rose.
"You came into my palace knowing what I am," he said calmly.
"What I've done. You watched me open the Forbidden Wing."
Kurapika's voice cut like a chain.
"I came to judge if you should ever leave it."
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👁️ The Chain of Judgment
Kurapika stepped forward, conjuring Holy Chain: Judgement Eye—a chain that wraps around the heart of its target and reveals one truth:
What crime lies deepest in their soul?
Kaen did not resist.
He raised his arms.
The chain struck—and wrapped tightly around his chest.
Kaen's Nen pulsed.
Suddenly, an image blasted across the sky of the Mind Palace.
A version of Kaen—eyes wild with ambition—standing over the broken forms of countless Hunters, their auras stolen, their dreams shattered.
He stood alone, seated on a throne of skulls, weeping silently.
"This is… a version of you?" Gon whispered, wide-eyed.
"A future I imagined once," Kaen said. "But never wanted to admit. Not even to myself."
Kurapika's chain pulsed again.
The vision faded.
Now Kurapika stood silent… and stunned.
"There is no crime."
"Only grief. And fear."
He slowly lowered his arm, chain dissolving into light.
"You've caged your darkness. That… is rare."
Kaen blinked.
Gon grinned.
"Told you."
But the tension wasn't gone.
Not completely.
"I didn't say I trust you," Kurapika added.
"Only that you may still be trusted."
⸻
🎵 Discord Beneath the Harmony
Melody plucked one soft note—
and her eyes widened.
"Kaen… something's wrong."
"What do you mean?"
She turned toward the edge of the dream-sky.
"That dream-eater child wasn't the only one."
The Mind Palace groaned.
In a distant corner, once thought sealed forever, a strange clocktower rose—
Its hands turning backward.
"That area wasn't built by you," Melody whispered.
"Was it?"
Kaen stepped forward, confused.
"No… I've never even seen that structure."
Suddenly—
The hour struck.
A bell rang out—ominous, shattering the peace.
From the tower's face spilled black feathers…
And from them, a voice—soft, sharp, feminine.
"So this is what my brother built without me."
⸻
💀 The Sister of the Dream
From the darkness emerged a figure cloaked in lace-like Nen.
She was a girl, maybe fifteen, eyes covered by a blindfold. Her aura was delicate—terrifyingly delicate.
"You caged my brother, Kaen."
"But I remember when you dreamed of me, too."
Kaen stepped back.
"Who are you?"
"I am the echo of your first lie."
"The one you buried beneath your Mind Palace when you were six years old. I am the fear that you might become your father."
"I am—Corone. The Dream's Blade."
Kaen's aura reacted violently.
"I didn't mean to—"
"Intent is irrelevant," she interrupted.
"You sealed part of your soul. And now, I've become my own story."
She drew a blade made of spiraling thought—
And pointed it at Kurapika.
"You wear chains like our father wore silence."
"Let's see if they can bind a dream."
⸻
🩸 Clash Begins Again
Corone launched forward.
Kurapika barely had time to block as her blade sliced through one of his chains, something nearly unheard of.
"Impossible!"
Gon sprang to defend, but was instantly met with a reflection of himself—an illusion, pulled from Kaen's own memories.
Even Kaen faltered.
"She's not an enemy. She's… me. But not me."
Melody played a violent chord—throwing up a wall of sound. Corone snarled, halted momentarily.
Kaen yelled:
"She's using the Backgate! She has access to parts of my Palace I never finished!"
Kurapika's scarlet eyes flared.
He re-summoned Judgment Chain—this time with intent to kill.
⸻
👑 A King's Burden
Kaen stepped between them.
"Don't!"
"She's my mistake. I'll face her."
Kurapika froze.
Corone lowered her blade, tilting her head.
"You would bleed for me now? After sealing me for years?"
Kaen bowed.
"I would. Because a true King owns his shadows."
"Then prove it," Corone whispered.
"Survive the Trial of the False Queen."
She vanished into the clocktower—
And the Mind Palace began to reshape again.
⸻
🕰️ Next Chapter: Chapter 60 – The Trial of the False Queen