Ateen moved quickly toward the palace, accompanied by Basil and Hamza.
Ateen's mind was in turmoil, questions crowding her thoughts: how could Nikola still be alive? And where had he been all this time?
When they reached the infirmary, they opened the door slowly, only to see Novitch standing beside the bed, his face carrying a mixture of sorrow and relief.
On the bed lay Nikola, his body frail, his eyes filled with exhaustion.
Ateen stepped closer slowly, her eyes widening in shock, and said, "Nikola… where have you been all this time? And what happened to you?"
Nikola moved his lips with difficulty, trying to say something, but he stopped, and silence filled the room for a moment.
He couldn't speak, as if the words were too heavy to leave his mouth.
Novitch began speaking, his voice filled with anger and sorrow:
"The reason behind Nikola's disappearance… is Counselor Edison."
The shock struck their hearts like an arrow.
Ateen's eyes widened, and she shouted angrily, "Edison?! What did he do? And where is he now?"
Novitch replied, "He restrained him and hid him in the box room beneath the burned laboratory… where everyone believed Nikola had died in the explosion."
Ateen looked at him in disbelief and said loudly, "But why would he do that?!"
Novitch answered, "Edison held a grudge against the King because of what happened to his family. When they tried to escape from the tyrant King of Nibonaki, many of them died from hunger and thirst, including Edison's family. He believed King Boudia the First was responsible for their fate, so he chose revenge."
He paused for a moment before adding, "He was also the one who caused the malfunction in the generator that led to the explosion in the laboratory. He believed this was the only way to take revenge on the King and on everyone he thought had abandoned him. And before causing the malfunction, he kidnapped Nikola to force him to rebuild the gate."
Silence fell over everyone for several seconds before Ateen turned to Nikola, unable to believe what she had heard:
"So all of this… happened because of Edison? All those years of suffering… because of his hatred for King Boudia the First?"
Nikola raised his head with difficulty, his eyes reflecting deep exhaustion, and silently nodded in agreement with everything Novitch had said.
In complete silence, everyone took a moment to absorb what had been said.
It was clear that the long period Nikola had endured was filled with suffering, and Edison had been the driving force behind everything that happened.
Ateen moved quickly and said firmly, "Enough talking. Show us the place now!"
Novitch moved with Ateen, Basil, and Hamza as they headed toward the burned laboratory. The air was heavy with anger and tension. When they reached the box room, Ateen threw the door open violently to find Edison bound in the corner.
Ateen stepped forward with slow, steady steps, staring at Edison with a gaze filled with anger and confusion.
Ateen looked at him in shock and said, "Edison… how did you end up like this? What made you do all of this?"
Edison laughed mockingly, then raised his head and said coldly, "They got what they deserved! All I ever wanted was to return home, nothing else mattered… they meant nothing to me."
Ateen cut him off sharply, "And how many lives were paid because of you?! All this pain and suffering… all of it just because of your hatred for the First King?!"
Edison looked down at the ground without answering.
Ateen turned to Basil and Hamza and said firmly, "This traitor will not escape what he's done. We will take him to the square, and everyone will know the truth."
Ateen began dragging Edison from his chair while he resisted weakly.
She looked at him with contempt and said, "It's time for you to pay the price."
She then left the room, dragging Edison behind her, followed by Basil and Hamza.
Ateen walked through the streets, dragging Edison as people stared in shock.
One of them whispered, "That's the Counselor! Where has he been? Why are they treating him like this?"
She continued walking until she reached the grand square, where the statue of Taige Lee stood, depicting an epic battle against the Black Dragon.
Ateen stopped in the middle of the square and threw Edison before the growing crowd.
People began gathering from everywhere, their curiosity growing to know what was happening. Soon, Scarface, his uncle, Grandmother Aseel, Finn, and the twins Dia and Mori, along with the rest of the kingdom's residents, arrived.
When everyone had taken their places, Ateen stood before the statue, holding a sword.
She looked at the crowd with eyes blazing with anger, then pointed at Edison and said in a strong voice:
"This traitor standing before you was hiding all this time in the burned laboratory. He kidnapped the inventor Nikola Mask, whom everyone believed to be dead, and imprisoned and tortured him mercilessly for fourteen years."
Silence fell over the place, and shock and disbelief spread across the faces of the people.
Ateen continued, "Edison did not stop there. He is also the one who deliberately caused the generator malfunction, which led to the great explosion that destroyed the laboratory and killed the King's relatives. He deprived us of the energy that once gave us light and prosperity, and forced us to live in suffering all these years… all because of his hatred!"
Murmurs of anger began rising among the crowd, and some shouted in outrage:
"How could he do all this?! What he did is unforgivable!"
At that moment, Scarface spoke loudly, "If what you say is true, then where is the inventor Nikola now?"
Ateen answered, "Nikola Mask is in the infirmary now, receiving care after the torture and neglect he suffered at the hands of this traitor."
Anger boiled in the hearts of the people as they looked at Edison with hatred and contempt.
Ateen continued, "The punishment for his actions will be execution here and now, before all of you, as a lesson to anyone who dares to betray the kingdom!"
Ateen raised her sword high and looked at the crowd once more, saying firmly:
"For everyone we have lost, for the light that was taken from us, and for the justice of this kingdom!"
She then turned toward Edison and struck his neck with a single decisive blow, ending his life in an instant before everyone's eyes.
Silence fell for a moment, before the crowd erupted in unified cheers, in support of the justice that had been carried out.