Chapter 7: The Radiant Truth and a New Beginning

The timer hit: 00:10:00.
The cave trembled like shifting paper. Arthur, driven by total madness, screamed, "I won't let the memories vanish! That is power! That is fortune!" He lunged toward the center of the hall, trying to pry a glowing crystal—one containing a vast scientific secret—from the wall.
But the moment his fingers touched it, the crystal acted like a magnet, anchoring him. Johan's father spoke with deep sorrow, "Arthur... I told you this place is not for the greedy. Anyone who seeks to exploit the past becomes a part of it."
Arthur began to merge with the crystalline wall, his arm turning to stone. Johan rushed to help, but his father stopped him. "It’s too late for him, Johan. Save Emma. Save yourselves."
Johan looked at his father, tears streaming down his face. "Dad, if I set the device, you’ll disappear. I don’t want to lose you again."
His father placed a hand on Johan’s shoulder. Though it was made of light, Johan felt a strange warmth. "I will never be lost, my son. I live within the courage you are showing right now. The true treasure isn't gold; it’s the future you and Emma can build together. Do it now!"
Johan looked at Emma, who gave a firm, supportive nod. With a steady hand, Johan placed the device into the swirling vortex at the heart of the hall.
00:00:01...
A blinding white light exploded, consuming the entire hall. Johan and Emma felt themselves being pulled upward, weightless. His father’s voice echoed one last time: "Live a good life..."
One hour and twenty minutes later...
Johan and Emma opened their eyes. They were lying on the grass, exactly where the cave entrance had been. But now, it was just a solid mountain wall. The device was gone. The cave was gone. And Arthur was nowhere to be found.
Emma checked her wristwatch. "Johan... look at the time. Exactly eighty minutes have passed since we ran from your house."
Johan stood up, feeling a strange sense of peace. He felt something hard in his pocket and pulled it out. It was a tiny fragment of blue crystal. Inside it was a frozen image of three people: his father, Emma’s father, and a young Johan.
Emma smiled, her eyes misty. "So, not everything was lost."
"No," Johan replied, looking toward the horizon. "This is a new beginning." They walked back toward the village as the sun began to rise—a symbol of a bright future no longer haunted by the ghosts of the past.
- THE END -