Confession under the crown of thorns

Montague Family Genealogy Room 23:17 PM

Moonlight filtered through the stained-glass windows, casting blood-red diamond-shaped patches of light onto the family tree. William's silver letter opener—a gift from his father on his eighteenth birthday—suddenly began to tremble on the table, emitting a faint humming sound.

"Damn it..."

He reached out to press it, but the blade sprang upright with a clang, as if pulled by an invisible thread, slowly moving toward the family tree on the parchment. When the tip touched the gilded text reading "No Montague male lives past 35," the parchment suddenly curled and darkened, revealing newly added notes in dark red liquid:

Unless the fragments of the Soul Mirror are found. —M

William jerked backward, the chair scraping across the floor with a screech. In the moonlight, he clearly saw his shadow split into two—the shadow on the right raised its hand a full thirteen seconds later, and on its ring finger was a purple gemstone ring he had never seen before.

Secret Passage 23:43 PM

The stone wall behind the tapestry was cold and damp. William held a brass oil lamp, its light casting a flickering circle in the narrow passageway. Dried lavender lay scattered on the stone steps, and with each step, he crushed a few flowers, releasing an unnaturally intense fragrance.

Look at what your father didn't burn properly.

The old woman's whisper suddenly echoed in his ears, causing William's hand to tremble, nearly dropping the oil lamp. When the light illuminated the front, he gasped in horror—

Seven shattered mirrors were arranged in a fan shape, surrounding a bronze coffin. On the coffin lid lay his uncle Edmund's pocket watch, its glass surface covered in spiderweb-like ice crystals. Most eerie of all, as he approached, the pocket watch lid clicked open on its own. Inside, there was no dial, only a yellowed photograph: a young Edmund embracing a woman wearing a black veil, with the clock tower of St. Mary's College in the background. William recognized the shape of the woman's eyes—exactly like Emily's.

Key Interaction 00:02 AM

As his fingers touched the edge of the pocket watch, the entire room suddenly hummed.

All the mirrors simultaneously oozed seawater, and the salty, fishy liquid gathered into streams on the bronze coffin's surface before quickly crystallizing into clusters of amethyst. These crystals grew extremely rapidly, forming three arrows in an instant, each pointing toward...

The largest broken mirror,

the rose crest carved on the head of the coffin, and the ring finger of his shadow's right hand.

The mirror devoured thirteen years at the root of the rose."

Margaret's voice was clear this time, as if she were right beside him. The largest mirror rippled, revealing the guardian spirit's bust. Her aged hand pierced through the mirror, her palm cradling the same purple sapphire ring worn by the shadow.

William found his hand rising uncontrollably, synchronizing with the guardian spirit in the mirror to make a grabbing motion—

The thirteen years that the mirror swallowed up at the root of the rose.Thud. Thud. Thud.

Fifty-three times in total, each sound like a blow to his skull. When the last echo faded away, the pocket watch suddenly became scorching hot in his palm. Tiny inscriptions appeared on the metal casing:

**"When two souls meet, the mirror will spit out the stolen time. —E to M, 1893