#because then the relationship between the mystery and katrielle becomes incredibly indirect

[smile-files]

hershel's logic for wanting to solve the mystery of the relic stones is incredibly fascinating to me, considering how it isn't straightforward at all.

katrielle's biological father is likely dead, and her biological mother, kamilla azan, is the same: in fact, kamilla had been returning to london on the ship where she died after giving birth to katrielle because she was still actively working on the relic stone mystery. hershel had falsely believed she was returning to london to buy back the relic stones, having first used them to triangulate the cave and then sold them to fund what would be an expensive expedition; katrielle currently believes she was returning to locate a seventh relic stone, which is possibly the real truth of the matter.

either way, even if hershel hadn't known the exact context which led to kamilla being on the ship when she died... he knew that kamilla lied about katrielle's father investigating the relics mystery because she wanted hershel to solve it himself, in that he would do so on the pretense of finding katrielle's "real father". he knew that kamilla died trying to solve the relic mystery herself, willing to put herself and her baby daughter (as well as her chance to have a normal, or any, relationship with her) at risk by taking the ship to london instead of waiting in lengullan to give birth. he knew that kamilla's desire to see the mystery solved was deeply embedded in every choice she made, and that, if not for this desire, katrielle would not be in his care in the first place.

i assume, then, that hershel's logic is as follows: katrielle's mother died trying to solve the relics mystery, and thus that he only exists as katrielle's father in any capacity because of that mystery and the desire to solve it. indeed, he became katrielle's "fake father" on the pretense that solving the mystery would help him find katrielle's "real father". thus, on account of the latter no longer being a tangible, existing entity, hershel seeks to become katrielle's "real father" by doing what her mother did: risking life and limb in uncovering the secrets of the relic stones, just as this nonexistent "real father" was said to have done. and katrielle doesn't know the circumstances behind her relationship to hershel, the events that led to him becoming her father at all... hershel believes that he cannot be her "real father" if this truth isn't revealed to her in its entirety: in other words, he cannot become her "real father" unless he first explains that he's her "fake father", which (to him) necessarily involves solving and uncovering the grand puzzle making him her father in the first place. he cannot fathom their familial relationship being real if he leaves any stone unturned: perhaps he feels he doesn't deserve it otherwise.

this is all particularly pertinent for someone like hershel to believe, as the fervent desire to uncover an archeological secret also wrenched a parent out of his own life: and, too, his other parent having died as well, he was also left to be adopted and take up the last name "layton". and other people in hershel's life have an obsession with the archeological too, particularly in relation to family matters: descole (most importantly) pursued the azran to avenge his broken family; randall wanted to solve the mystery of the akbadain partly in spite of his dismissive father; henry uncovered much of the akbadain's mystery himself for the sake of finding randall, whom he saw as a brother. indeed, we don't yet know why kamilla was so fixated on solving the mystery of the relics treasure, so perhaps she, too, was doing so for the sake of her family - even when, at the same time, doing so also forced her to relinquish her right to a relationship with her daughter. and, as kat says, she already saw hershel has her "real father": his desire to solve the mystery of the relics treasure to become her "real father" has actually come in the way of his ability to father her!