King Valentin cleared his throat, bracing himself for what was to co. He still didn’t understand what Emperor Kaan truly wanted from him, or why the emperor had volunteered the information earlier.
Sothing felt off, and the king needed to get to the bottom of it.
With a nod, he signaled Margrave Boris to allow the emperor inside. Monts later, the handso emperor entered the room and, without waiting for an invitation, seated himself comfortably on the sofa.
King Valentin left his desk, joining the emperor on the opposite sofa, his mind racing with questions.
"Has anyone in this palace ever practiced dark magic?" Emperor Kaan asked.
The king was taken aback. In all the years he had been living in the palace, never had he heard anything about dark magic being perford there.
His father, the previous king, had been obsessed with the idea of vampire supremacy, firmly believing they were superior to all other beings.
Dark magic was rooted in human practices, and it was seen as beneath him. Engaging with it would have been an unforgivable degradation, a mingling with the very beings he deed inferior.
"I don’t believe so, Your Majesty," King Valentin replied, completely certain of his words.
Emperor Kaan had expected the king to be sowhat involved in the matter. After all, whoever had introduced dark magic into the vampire palace must have held significant power.
Otherwise, it would have been exposed by now. Yet, sohow, the magic had been smuggled in and kept hidden—even from the king.
"There are traces of dark magic sowhere inside this palace," the emperor revealed bluntly, not intending to dance around the issue.
King Valentin remained silent, but the news rattled him. He bit his tongue, forcing himself to keep a calm expression and maintain his composure.
The emperor pressed on, "I request permission to investigate."
There was no reason to turn down the request. King Valentin was sure there was no dark magic involved, and Emperor Kaan must have mistaken it for sothing else.
Maybe the residual werewolf energy from Remus’ diary had thrown off his ability to sense dark magic.
Still, King Valentin didn’t want to appear as if he would simply bow to the emperor’s every demand. He wanted Emperor Kaan to respect him as a ruler in his own right, not as one of his subordinates.
Sensing King Valentin’s hesitation, Emperor Kaan said, "The use of dark magic is a clear violation of the rules set by the Nightshade Coven. It’s not only an insult to the vampire association but also to our entire species."
King Valentin didn’t want this issue to escalate and involve the Nightshade Coven, especially since Sir Kai was still away on his mission.
He let out a sigh and said, "I will allow you to investigate, Your Majesty. However, since this is my palace, it will be a joint effort. I’ll assign my best people to assist you."
A satisfied smile spread across Emperor Kaan’s face. He didn’t ntion Riona or the marriage, and he was content with the outco. "I appreciate that. Very well, I won’t keep you any longer. I’m sure you have plenty to attend to."
The handso emperor strolled casually out of the office, leaving King Valentin behind. With a gesture, the king signaled Margrave Boris to assemble a team for the joint investigation with the emperor.
Yet, as soon as the emperor was gone, doubts began to creep in.
"Could soone have practiced dark magic within this palace—without my knowledge?" King Valentin asked, turning his concern toward the margrave.
Margrave Boris took a mont to consider before responding. "The palace security is nearly impenetrable. It would be impossible for an outsider to slip in and perform dark magic unnoticed."
He paused and studied the king’s expression before adding, "The culprit must be soone already within the palace."
The thought had crossed King Valentin’s mind, but he was too unsettled to fully accept it. Who could have done such a thing? If traces of the magic still lingered, it ant the act had been recent. But by whom?
King Valentin clenched his fists, his unease growing. "Find soone capable of tracing dark magic and pinpointing the location."
He gritted his teeth. As Margrave Boris had suggested, the culprit had to be soone within the palace. This ant the suspect was among those closest to King Valentin.
If Emperor Kaan discovered the perpetrator before he did, King Valentin shuddered to think of the consequences for the culprit.
"And form another investigation team—separate from those working with the emperor. I want updates reported to imdiately. Make sure we stay ahead of Emperor Kaan in this."
"Right away, Your Majesty," Margrave Boris bowed.
***
Majora’s parents were forever grateful to Riona for saving their youngest pup. If it weren’t for her, their little one would have been a goner. Their closest friends also welcod her with open arms.
Her heroics had definitely won over a lot of the werewolves. But, of course, a few stubborn ones remained unconvinced.
As the pups chased after Riona, who clearly had no interest in being their plaything, she groaned, "Stop pulling on my hoodie! I’m roasting out here. Can’t you see?"
The pups only giggled at her discomfort, finding her reactions endlessly amusing. The more she protested, the more they delighted in teasing her.
Her attempts to escape the relentless sunshine turned into a slapstick routine, as she darted from one patch of ager tree cover to another, none of which provided much shade.
"Help! Is there a rescue squad around here? Trudy, co save !" Riona cried out dramatically.
But to the onlookers, it just looked like Riona was having a particularly lively ga with the pups. Even Trudy could only laugh, deeply amused as she watched Riona’s theatrical pleas for help.
Morgan and Vesper stood quite a distance from Riona and her mini squad of tornters. Morgan raised her thin eyebrows and snorted, "Look at her! She thinks she’s part of us now. I still don’t trust her. I don’t think I ever will."
Morgan and Vesper stood at a distance, watching Riona try to fend off her mini squad of torntors.
Morgan raised a thin eyebrow and snorted. "Look at her! She actually thinks she belongs here now. Adorable. I still don’t trust her, though. Honestly, I doubt I ever will."
"You read my mind. She’s been working way too hard to fit in—that’s gotta be a red flag," Vesper replied, arms crossed as he glared at Riona.
"But does anyone care about the future of this pack? No. It’s like they’re fine with her inviting her bloodsucking vampire buddies over for dinner—by which I an our entire ho."
Morgan snickered. "Exactly. We’re just supposed to sit around while she quietly tears us apart from the inside. We need to kick her out. For good."
"And her gloomy brother, too," Vesper added with a scowl.
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