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Chapter 210 – The Return to the Castle Cave
Chapter 210 – The Return to the Castle Cave
he journey back to the Castle Cave was not a silent one.
Seraphis led the way, her white cloak billowing slightly as she walked through the dense forest, the shadows clinging to her like familiar companions. The night was deep, the air thick with the scent of damp earth and ancient stone. Lilith and Sena walked behind her, their newly acquired assassin garb melding them into the darkness.
Their breathing was steady. Their movements were controlled. They had changed.
And yet, something in their steps betrayed a nervous excitement.
Because at the end of this road—at the heart of the Castle Cave—was their brother.
And another.
Azrael.
A name newly spoken, yet already carved into the fate of this growing family.
A Presence in the Darkness
The entrance to the Castle Cave loomed ahead, a jagged mouth of stone opening into the earth. The faint glow of torches flickered beyond, casting distorted shadows against the cavern walls.
Seraphis slowed, then stopped just before the threshold.
Lilith and Sena followed suit, their crimson eyes glinting in the dim light.
"This is it," Seraphis murmured.
Lilith exhaled, tilting her head slightly as if listening for something.
Sena remained quiet, her fingers twitching at her sides.
Seraphis could feel it.
The presence.
The one waiting beyond these walls.
She stepped forward, her boots making no sound against the stone as she entered the cave.
Lilith and Sena followed, their forms melting into the shadows.
The torches burned low, casting flickering light along the cavern’s towering walls. The silence was thick. Heavy. Expectant.
And then—movement.
From the depths of the chamber, a figure emerged.
Veylan – The First Sleeper
Veylan.
The first.
The one who had awoken before any of the others.
He stepped into the dim firelight, his long silver hair falling over his broad shoulders. His pale skin seemed almost luminescent in the darkness, his crimson eyes gleaming as they locked onto them.
His gaze swept over Lilith and Sena, lingering for a moment as if confirming what his senses had already told him.
Then, his lips curled slightly.
"Sisters."
His voice was smooth, deep. A whisper against the cold air.
Lilith inhaled sharply.
Sena exhaled, her fingers flexing.
"Brother," Lilith murmured, her voice barely above a whisper.
Veylan tilted his head, his gaze flickering toward Seraphis before returning to them.
"So, she found you too," he mused.
Lilith and Sena stepped closer, their movements measured but deliberate.
Seraphis watched, saying nothing.
This was their moment.
A moment long overdue.
Lilith stopped just in front of him, her crimson eyes searching his face.
"You’re alive," she said, almost as if testing the words.
Veylan’s lips twitched.
"I could say the same to you."
Sena shifted slightly, her expression unreadable.
"We weren’t supposed to be," she murmured.
Veylan let out a breath, a quiet, almost bitter chuckle escaping his lips.
"None of us were."
A New Presence – Azrael
The moment hung between them, heavy with things unsaid.
Then—another movement.
From the shadows at the edge of the chamber, another figure stepped forward.
Azrael.
His form was tall, his posture eerily still. His hair was dark, falling in loose waves around his sharp features. His eyes, a deep crimson, glowed softly in the dim light.
But unlike Veylan, there was something colder about him. Something more calculated.
Lilith’s gaze snapped toward him, her posture shifting slightly.
Sena followed, her eyes narrowing.
Veylan turned his head, his expression unreadable.
Azrael met their gazes, then turned his eyes to Seraphis.
Then, he spoke.
"You brought them."
His voice was smooth, yet laced with something that made it seem older than his appearance suggested.
Seraphis nodded.
"I did."
Azrael’s gaze flickered back to Lilith and Sena. He studied them, his expression revealing nothing.
Lilith squared her shoulders.
"And you are?" she asked, her voice steady.
Azrael’s lips twitched in something that might have been amusement.
"Azrael," he said simply.
Lilith arched a brow.
Sena remained silent, her gaze unreadable.
"Another sleeper," Veylan murmured, his eyes never leaving Azrael’s face.
Azrael tilted his head slightly, his gaze sharp.
"Not quite."
Veylan narrowed his eyes.
Seraphis watched them carefully.
There was a tension here—a subtle friction between old and new.
But it was not hostility.
It was something else.
Something unspoken.
And Seraphis knew that whatever it was—it would shape the path forward.
The Bonds of the Forsaken
Lilith exhaled slowly.
Then, after a long pause, she reached up and pulled off her black mask, revealing her pale face fully.
Her crimson eyes met Azrael’s.
"Then what are you?"
Azrael’s lips parted slightly, as if considering the question.
Then—his expression shifted.
And he smiled.
"The same as you, sister."
Lilith blinked.
Azrael’s smile widened slightly.
"Forsaken."
Lilith let out a quiet laugh, though there was no humor in it.
"That’s one way to put it."
Sena finally spoke, her voice soft but firm.
"Then we have something in common."
Azrael inclined his head.
Seraphis watched as the tension in the air slowly shifted—not fading, but morphing.
No longer a question of who they were.
No longer a challenge.
But an understanding.
Seraphis stepped forward.
"We have work to do."
Four sets of crimson eyes turned to her.
She met each of their gazes in turn.
"We are not finished. Not yet."
Lilith and Sena nodded.
Veylan smirked.
Azrael’s smile lingered.
And with that, the pieces had fallen into place.
The Forsaken had gathered.
And the next step would be taken together.