The capital’s veins pulsed with noise.
While Karl climbed the palace steps, drawing the roar of the crowd and the fire of his father’s gaze, another current ran beneath the mountain.
Lucian and Lucy moved through it.
They had slipped from the tavern hours before, cloaks low, steps steady. The city above might have been drowning in whispers of dragons and traitors, but down here the air was colder, heavy with the hum of wards and the churn of soldiers moving to their posts.
The eastern quarter was no marketplace. It was a fortress carved into the mountain’s ribs. Armories stood shoulder to shoulder, blacksteel doors sealed with runes that glowed faint crimson. Barracks sprawled in rows, their walls scarred from years of drilling. At the center rose the ward channel—an obelisk of obsidian taller than any tower, veins of molten light crawling across its surface. It thrummed with each beat, carrying power up through the mountain to the palace itself.
Lucy’s eyes moved across it all as they walked the shadowed alleys, her voice low. "You weren’t wrong. Reinforcements start here. If we cut this, they’ll choke inside their own walls."
Lucian didn’t answer at once. His gaze lingered on the obelisk, the way the molten veins pulsed in rhythm with the city’s wards. Each beat pressed faint against his chest, like the mountain itself was breathing down his throat.
Finally he said, quiet, "I’ll need time."
Lucy gave a short nod, her fingers brushing the hilt of Infernal Eclipse. "Then I’ll buy it."
They didn’t waste another word.
The barracks gates opened as squads poured out, their armor clattering, tusks gleaming, claws sharpened. Wolfkin ran in disciplined lines, their eyes sharp even through exhaustion. Serpents slithered, their coils rippling with muscle as their commanders barked orders. The air stank of sweat, steel, and the cold fear no one dared name.
Lucian and Lucy slipped through it unnoticed, shadows folding around their steps. The noise from the palace filtered even here—distant roars, muffled gasps, the sound of Karl baiting half the capital into staring only at him.
Lucy spoke without looking at Lucian. "Karl’s reckless."
Lucian’s cloak shifted as he moved, his face unreadable. "He’s exactly where he needs to be."
They reached the base of the obelisk. Guards ringed it, armor heavier, auras thicker. Their spears glowed brighter, tips dripping with runes meant to pierce even scaled hides. Behind them, priests of the King stood in circles, their claws pressed against the stone as they chanted low, their voices weaving with the molten glow of the obelisk.
Lucy’s eyes flicked to Lucian. "You’ll never work undisturbed."
Lucian’s hand lifted, fingers brushing the air. The space around his palm rippled, bending faint as if the world itself bowed to him. "You’ll make sure I do."
Lucy exhaled once through her nose. Then she stepped forward.
Her cloak slid back as she drew Infernal Eclipse. The blade caught the molten light of the obelisk, drinking it until the edge burned black-red. The nearest guard snapped to attention, spear lowering, aura pressing hard.
Lucy cut him off. Literally.
Her blade moved in a silent arc, black fire trailing behind it. The guard collapsed without a cry, ash spilling where his armor had been. The circle of priests broke into startled shouts, their chants faltering.
Lucian sat cross-legged at the obelisk’s base, cloak folding around him. He placed his palm against the stone, eyes shutting, space bending faintly at his touch. The molten veins shivered, their rhythm stuttering like a heartbeat skipping.
Lucy’s voice was low, calm. "How long?" ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by novel(ꜰ)ire.net
Lucian’s reply was just as quiet. "Don’t count."
Infernal Eclipse whispered through the air, its trail of black fire eating through spear and armor alike. Each swing was clean, efficient, never wasted. She stepped between them like water slipping through stone, her cloak snapping with every turn. A wolf lunged—she pivoted, blade cutting his throat before his fangs found her. A serpent whipped its tail—her strike severed it mid-motion, black fire racing up the scales until the body writhed into nothing.
But there were many. More poured from the barracks, their shouts echoing against the mountain walls.
Lucy planted her feet, eyes narrowing. She raised her free hand, flames gathering along her arm. With one breath, she swept it outward. Black fire roared into a wall, cutting the path between Lucian and the rushing soldiers. The stone itself cracked under the heat, molten edges glowing faint red.
Lucian didn’t move. His hand pressed deeper against the obelisk, his aura folding space tighter. The molten veins twisted, their glow breaking into jagged pulses. Cracks spidered along the surface, each one widening with every beat of his Dominion.
Lucy’s voice cut through the clash. "They’ll bring more."
"Let them," Lucian said. His voice was calm, almost quiet, but the space around him quivered. "The more eyes on us, the fewer on him."
Lucy stepped forward into the wall of fire she had created. The flames bent around her, licking her cloak but never burning. She vanished into the soldiers pouring through, her blade carving arcs of silence through their roars. Blood sprayed, ash scattered, armor clanged against stone.
Inside the obelisk, the rhythm faltered again. One vein dimmed completely. The wards across the city flickered, silver lanterns guttering in the streets above. A hush spread through the barracks as even the soldiers felt it—the pulse of protection weakening in their bones.
Lucian’s eyes opened faint, light bending inside them. "Almost."
Lucy returned to his side, cloak torn at the edges, blade dripping black fire. Her breathing was steady, but her eyes were sharp, locked on the next wave charging the steps. "Make it faster."
Lucian smirked faintly, though his gaze stayed fixed on the cracks spreading across the obelisk. "I am."
The next surge came harder. Dozens, maybe hundreds, their roars shaking the stone. The priests screamed their chants louder, trying to force the veins back to rhythm, their voices breaking into hoarse cries. The obelisk shuddered under Lucian’s hand.
Then, with a low groan like the mountain itself splitting, the first fissure snapped down its side.
Light burst out, molten and violent.
The soldiers stumbled, fear flashing in their eyes.
Lucian’s voice was soft, almost inaudible. "Now."
Lucy stepped forward, raising Infernal Eclipse high. Her black fire surged brighter, swallowing the molten light pouring from the obelisk’s cracks. With one strike, she brought the blade down.
The shockwave tore through the quarter, a wave of warped space and black fire rolling across the barracks. Soldiers were hurled back, armor snapping, bodies scattering into the walls. The priests screamed as the molten veins burst, their chants breaking into silence.
Above, the wards flickered once more. Then they shattered.
The city gasped as the silver glow that had wrapped its towers vanished, leaving only night.
Lucian rose, cloak falling silent around him. His hand slipped from the broken obelisk, the light bending faint around his fingers. His gaze lifted toward the palace looming above.
Lucy wiped her blade clean with a single motion, the black fire dimming along its edge. "It’s done."
Lucian nodded once. His voice carried no triumph, only certainty. "Then the capital bleeds."
The barracks groaned under the weight of the broken wards. Soldiers still alive crawled back, eyes wide, fear written into their bones.
And above, in the distance, Kaelis roared.
His voice split the night, fire spilling across the horizon.
The city turned its eyes skyward, just as planned.