In the year 26, Dominion Altare was a vast and powerful country. Kael Varyn, a young detective, served in the military faction known as Domtive. He walked through the bustling marketplace, hearing hushed whispers about threats from the country of Zhyrak, but that was just another part of life in Dominion Altare.
Kael glanced at his wristwatch and muttered, "Time to head to the military headquarters."
A while later, Kael arrived at the Domtive base. Soon after, he was summoned by Commander Alaric Drayven. It turned out that Kael had been assigned to investigate a murder case in an old house in the city of Valdoria.
Commander Alaric Drayven greeted him. "Kael, I’ve chosen you for this mission because I know Valdoria is your hometown. I need you to investigate a murder case there."
Kael nodded respectfully. "I understand, Honor. I’ll gladly accept this mission."
The commander added, "I’ll send Rylan and Lira with you. They’re your closest friends and capable of handling this alongside you."
After receiving their orders, Kael and his two companions set off for Valdoria.
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Several days later, they reached the city of Valdoria. Kael looked around, taking in the familiar sights. "Ah, home. The commander was kind to choose me for this case," he said with a small smile.
Lira replied, "You’re lucky, Kael. But we should focus on the mission first."
Rylan chimed in, "Let’s get to that old house and finish this up."
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It wasn’t long before they arrived at the dilapidated house. The trio immediately began their investigation.
"I don’t see anything unusual here—no fingerprints, no evidence. It looks like the local team has already been through this place," Rylan observed.
"You’re right," Lira agreed, "but if the local team already investigated, why did the commander send us here?"
"I don’t know," Rylan muttered, "but we’ll figure it out."
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Suddenly, a loud crash echoed through the house.
"Ah, shit! That hurts!" Kael yelled as the floor beneath him gave way, sending him tumbling into a basement.
Lira and Rylan rushed to the hole, peering down to find Kael lying in a basement filled with old books, resembling a forgotten library.
Lira called down, "Kael, are you alright?"
"Yeah, I think so," Kael replied, wincing as he stood up. "But what is this place? It's full of old books."
Rylan, grinning mischievously, said, "Wait for me, Kael. I’ll try falling down too."
Without warning, Rylan jumped down, landing directly on Kael’s stomach. "Ugh! You’re crushing me!" Kael groaned.
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After a few moments of recovering, Kael and Rylan began exploring the basement while Lira searched for a rope to help them out.
"This library is probably abandoned," Rylan said, his voice echoing in the stillness. "But look at that book. It seems... guarded. Could be important."
Kael walked over to the book, its cover encased in glass, almost like it was placed on an altar. He inspected the title: The Crimes of Altharion in Year 10.
"What's this? Past crimes?" Kael muttered. "That’s typical of our country, always trying to hide things."
Rylan urged, "Open it, Kael. Let’s see what it says."
Kael carefully opened the book to the first chapter, which read, Genocide Against the Netharyn Race. He and Rylan fell silent, both stunned by what they had read.
"Kael, this book... it's too dangerous to hand over to the government," Rylan said quietly. "And it’s too dangerous for us to keep or leave here."
Kael closed the book slowly, his mind racing. "I’ll take it with me."
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Just then, Lira reappeared, and the trio made their way back upstairs. Kael told her what they had found, and they returned to the basement to continue reading. The book had three chapters. The first was Genocide Against the Netharyn Race, the second was Extermination of the 13 Races, and the third was Rebellion of the Year 19.