Warlock Ch 386. Sweat And Bitter
The mont Damian stepped out of the training hall, the hallway felt colder—less like temperature and more like pressure. His clothes clung to him, damp from sweat and mana fatigue, the scent of burnt air and exhaustion trailing behind him as he made his way through the manor.
By the ti he reached the living room, Cassius was already sprawled across the velvet-lined sofa with one leg hanging off the side and a crystal of darkwine in one hand. Two of the shadow servants knelt near the fireplace, their cloaks still damp from the city's shifting weather. Another figure in the corner flickered out of stealth, revealing a third servant.
Cassius looked up lazily. "You sll like sweat… and bitter."
Damian raised an eyebrow, wiping his neck with a half-used towel. "I just got back from training."
Cassius took a sip. "And?"
"I masked it."
Cassius made a face. "The sweat or the power?"
Damian tossed the towel onto a chair, slumping into one of the high-backed armchairs. "If I released everything, I'd have leveled your training hall. Again."
"Fair enough." Cassius sniffed his wine. "Would've preferred the destruction over the stink, though."
Damian smirked. "You're welco."
"Alright, enough joking," Cassius muttered, sitting upright and gesturing toward the shadow servants. "Let's hear it. What do we have?"
"We observed activity near the west sanctum district. Ralvek's inner circle has pulled back from public spaces. Most of their movents have shifted underground—literally. Hidden pathways, teleport anchors, dinsional folds in rchant buildings. They're covering their tracks aggressively."
"There were three ergency etings called today. No records were kept—no scrying allowed. They're scared," another servant said.
Cassius narrowed his eyes. "Scared of us?"
"Scared of sothing," the third servant said, stepping forward now. "Their paranoia has shifted focus. Internal purges have started. One senator was executed last night. They claid it was due to treason, but the body was too clean. No torture. No interrogation burns."
Damian leaned forward. "That's damage control. They're tying up loose ends before it spirals."
Cassius swirled his wine thoughtfully. "They know sothing's coming."
"They also point all to you," one added. "But they don't have any proof. Your na keeps coming up in hushed whispers. Not Kaelan. Damian. The warlock. The witness. The variable."
Damian's brow twitched. "Which ans the mask is slipping."
"And Aria?" Cassius asked.
"She hasn't spoken your na in public. She's kept her posture neutral. But her guards have increased. She's preparing for conflict."
Cassius sighed. "So basically, the entire city's in panic mode, half the senators are sharpening daggers behind their smiles, and everyone's praying they're not next."
"Essentially."
Damian ran a hand through his damp hair, exhaling slowly. "Did you find anything about the anomaly? The one Lysandra ntioned?"
The servant hesitated. Then nodded. "We believe the source is under the central archive vault. The mana concentration is unstable, layered with anti-detection glyphs and corrupted ley energy. Old magic. Possibly older than Haven City itself."
Cassius whistled. "Well. That sounds delightful."
The first servant stepped closer, producing a folded parchnt. "We extracted a magic fragnt from a guard's boot. Traces of blood, demon residue, and—this is important—fae binding script."
Damian blinked. "Fae?"
The second nodded. "And not just any fae. Royal-level constructs. It's ssy. Old treaties are being broken, or worse… rewritten."
Cassius groaned, slumping back dramatically. "Why is it always ancient buried death magic mixed with political sabotage? Can't we get one week of normal assassination attempts?"
Damian took the parchnt, studying the script. His eyes narrowed. "This… is foundational magic. Whoever's doing this isn't just experinting. They're reweaving system laws."
Cassius drained his wine. "So. Giant eldritch conspiracy it is."
"I need access to the vault," Damian muttered.
The servant shook his head. "Impossible. Every entrance is locked under royal override. You'd need a direct key from the Sanctum High Tower or…" he trailed off.
"Or what?" Damian pressed.
"Or soone with blood access."
Cassius arched a brow. "You're suggesting a traitor on the inside?"
The servant nodded. "Or soone from the royal line who's gone rogue."
Damian's mind raced. That narrowed it down—badly. Especially since Selena's testimony had shifted more attention toward his circle than away from it.
Cassius stood, brushing nonexistent dust from his sleeves. "Alright. So what's the move?"
"We wait," Damian said. "Until we know exactly what's brewing down there, I'm not making noise."
"And if the noise cos to us first?" Cassius asked.
Damian's gaze was cold. "Then we answer louder."
The servant bowed. "We'll return to monitoring the leylines. If anything shifts, you'll know first."
"Thank you," Damian said.
The shadow servants faded into the room's dimr edges.
Cassius dropped back into his chair, stretching his arms wide. "So. You ready for the next storm?"
Damian glanced out the tall window, watching the clouds churn above the city, silver lightning flashing across the sky like distant claws scraping reality.
"No," he said quietly. "But I'll be standing when it hits."
Another presence shimred into view—subtle, seamless. No noise, no flash. Just a slow ripple near the corner of the room as the fourth shadow servant materialized.
"Master," the servant said, voice cool and precise. "Forgive the delay."
Damian straightened imdiately, eyes sharp. "What do you know?"
The servant didn't hesitate. "General Lysandra. She's not here as an observer, nor as a representative of neutrality."
Cassius stiffened beside him.
"She ca," the servant continued, "for you."
The words landed hard.
Damian's expression didn't move, but sothing tightened in his jaw. "You an she recognized ."
The servant nodded. "Yes, Master. Not as Damian. But as Kaelan. She has spoken your true na aloud—to her aide, at least once. She's not acting on orders from the dragon council. She ca of her own accord."
Evelyn had entered from the hall, just in ti to hear that. Her eyes narrowed. "So it's personal."
"And that's not all," the servant added, pulling a scroll. "She's also here for whatever the council is building. The anomaly. She traced its core vibration and recognized its signature as sothing forbidden."
Damian took the scroll slowly. "She thinks they're trying to use it."
"Yes, Master," the servant said.
Cassius exhaled long and low. "Well, that complicates everything."
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