“You know me.”

The temple trembled after he spoke.

Dust drifted from the massive marble ceiling.

Blue light pulsed through the glowing runes beneath his feet.

The priests stepped backward in terror.

Because the statue had never responded to anyone before.

Not in hundreds of years.

“The prophecy…” one priest whispered weakly.

The soldiers tightened their grips on their shields.

But none of them moved closer.

Because now—

the giant goddess statue was watching the boy.

Watching him.

The stone cracks across its face glowed brighter.

Like veins of living light.

The boy stood perfectly still in his dark cloak.

Small against the enormous temple.

Yet somehow—

nothing in the room felt more powerful than him.

“The cursed beast is waking,” another priest warned desperately.

Deep beneath the temple floor—

something growled.

Low.

Ancient.

Massive.

The candles flickered violently.

The captain of the soldiers stepped forward.

“Take the child away,” he ordered.

But before anyone could touch him—

the glowing runes exploded with blue light.

The soldiers stumbled backward.

The entire sanctuary shook.

The boy slowly raised his eyes toward the towering goddess statue.

“My mother said you would remember me,” he whispered softly.

Silence.

Because that sentence—

felt forbidden.

The oldest priest stared at the child in horror.

“Impossible…” he whispered.

Then he dropped to his knees.

Because he recognized the symbol glowing faintly on the boy’s hand.

A mark hidden beneath the sleeve of his cloak.

The Mark of Selene.

The royal bloodline that vanished fifteen years earlier.

“No…” the priest breathed.

The captain looked between them in confusion.

“What does it mean?” he demanded.

The old priest’s voice trembled.

“It means…”

A pause.

“…the temple belongs to him.”

The room fell silent.

Because everyone there knew the legend.

Only one bloodline could awaken the goddess.

Only one child could command the beast sleeping beneath the temple.

And that bloodline was supposed to be extinct.

The boy slowly stepped closer to the statue.

Then placed his small hand against the glowing marble.

The entire temple roared.

Ancient stone cracked.

Blue light burst across the sanctuary walls.

And deep beneath the temple—

something enormous began moving.

The soldiers panicked immediately.

“Seal the gates!” someone shouted.

But it was already too late.

The giant stone eyes of the goddess slowly opened.

The priests gasped in terror.

Because statues were never meant to move.

The goddess looked directly at the boy.

Then slowly lowered her enormous head.

As if bowing.

The soldiers froze.

The captain stepped backward in fear.

Because now—

this wasn’t prophecy anymore.

It was real.

The boy looked calmly into the glowing eyes of the goddess.

Then whispered softly—

“Where is my mother?”

The temple suddenly became silent.

Too silent.

Even the growling beneath the floor stopped.

The goddess raised one giant stone hand slowly.

Then pointed toward the darkness beneath the sanctuary.

Toward the sealed underground gates.

The oldest priest’s face lost all color instantly.

“No…” he whispered.

Because behind those gates—

hidden beneath the temple for fifteen years—

was something the kingdom swore had died alongside the royal family.

And suddenly—

something inside the darkness whispered the boy’s name back to him