The underground chamber where the "Proof of Kingship" was kept had fallen silent. Even the Father of Oaks, Avalon, who was listening in on this secret, seemed to be stunned—let alone King Quirion, who had learned the truth from Perona.
The elf king's expression was unusually complicated. It wasn't that he didn't believe everything this "ghost" before him had said. Given the current situation, Perona had no reason to lie to him.
The truth about his past, Ilenia's past, and the past of the elven kingdom had all set off a storm in Quirion's otherwise steady mind.
The memories of ancient times had been thoroughly erased, but some instinct deep inside told him that Perona wasn't lying. Still, there were plenty of questions that needed sorting out.
The elf king leaned on his battle blade.
He looked at his wife and the malicious ghost hidden inside her body, then said hoarsely, "Don't make yourself out to be so noble and innocent. Tell me about the Godchild Project."
"All right, all right. You're still as perceptive as ever. I admit it: I led the most inquisitive druids among you to discover the project. Its original data and knowledge came from my research in the Department of Mysteries."
Perona shrugged.
Since she'd already said all that, she didn't mind revealing more after keeping it bottled up for a thousand years. She spoke in the classic fashion of a villain's grand confession at the end:
"But I didn't have any ill intentions at first. I was just a researcher consumed by her work. You know, by then I'd been hiding inside Ilenia's body for so long I was practically rusting away.
"The Creation Engine was locked down, and my clearance wasn't enough to get inside.
"I had no idea where my companions had