"The morning report hasn’t co in yet, but I’ve already heard from one of the night guards. There have been fatalities. Five as of dawn."
Evelina’s hand froze halfway to her mouth, her appetite vanishing. "Five?" she echoed, her voice barely above a whisper.
Damian nodded grimly. "The symptoms are progressing faster in so than in others. The healer believes the severity might depend on their exposure to the toxin."
Jasper, ever the one to break the tension, leaned back in his chair and sighed dramatically. "Fantastic. A murderous toxin that’s selectively efficient. Can’t this day get any better?"
Evelina shot him a look, but there was no real bite to it. She knew his humour was a defence chanism, one she almost envied.
"We’ll figure it out," Damian said firmly, though the dark circles under his eyes betrayed his weariness. "But we need to work faster. Whatever’s left in that well needs to be dealt with imdiately."
They quickly ate in a tense atmosphere filled with unspoken worries, then returned to the lab. Evelina’s determination was strong, but anxiety still lingered in her mind.
When they entered the lab, they were greeted by an unexpected sight.
Lord Luther stood by one of the tables, examining the equipnt with a critical eye. His expression was unreadable, though his sharp gaze flicked to them as they entered.
"Well," he drawled, straightening to his full height. "I wasn’t expecting a full alchemical set up in the palace this morning. Care to tell your findings so far, Lady Evelina?"
Damian’s expression darkened slightly, though he kept his tone respectful. "Lord Luther, what brings you here?"
Luther’s sharp gaze lingered on the array of vials and burners before him. "Is it so strange for to take an interest in unusual activities within the palace, Your Highness?"
He folded his arms casually. "This little... unsanctioned experint of yours—do we all agree the King should remain unaware of it?"
Evelina stiffened, and her stomach twisted, but she kept her expression calm and neutral. "Are you planning to tell him?" she asked directly, her tone laced with caution.
Luther chuckled softly, a sound that seed both amused and condescending. "No, Lady Evelina. I have no intention of informing the King. For now, my curiosity outweighs my loyalty to protocol. I’d like to see what exactly you’re working on."
Damian folded his arms, his eyes narrowing slightly. "With all due respect, Lord Luther, I don’t think this is the best place for an observer. This work requires great attention to detail and, to be honest, it’s not particularly exciting."
"I promise to stay out of your way, Your Highness," Luther said with a slight smile. "I don’t plan to interrupt you. You won’t even notice I’m around. Besides," he continued, looking at the equipnt with mild interest, "this kind of work is... interesting."
Evelina glanced at Damian, who gave a subtle nod, leaving the decision to her.
After a brief pause, she sighed. "Fine. But please, Lord Luther, if you’re going to stay, make good on your promise to stay out of the way. This isn’t a spectacle."
"Of course, Lady Evelina," Luther said with a slight incline of his head and a trace of mockery in his gesture. He leaned back against the wall, his posture relaxed but his sharp gaze taking in every detail of the room.
With that, the three returned to their work. Evelina’s focus quickly shifted back to the array of vials and samples spread out before her, though she couldn’t help but glance at Luther now and then.
He was standing quietly in the corner, his piercing gaze tracking every movent she made. It was unsettling, and Relia was quick to comnt.
"He’s watching you like a hawk," Relia said with a growl in her mind. "I don’t trust him."
Evelina kept her face neutral, pretending to adjust the fla under a beaker. "Neither do I. He’s been all over our business."
"This is more than curiosity."
"He’s not just curious," Evelina thought to Relia. "He’s looking for sothing. But if he’s here, we may as well let him see we have nothing to hide."
"Or he’s here because he’s hiding sothing," Relia countered. "Don’t take your eyes off him for too long."
Evelina exhaled slowly, refocusing on her work. She carefully asured a reagent into a vial of the blood sample, her hands steady despite the tension coursing through her body.
The liquid fizzed slightly before settling into a pale green. She noted the reaction, wiping her forehead with her sleeve.
Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Luther watching her closely, his face showing no clear emotions. When she looked at him directly, he quickly turned his attention to the equipnt, as though feigning disinterest.
Minutes turned into hours as they worked.
Damian and Jasper kept to one side, combing through texts and preparing additional samples, while Evelina remained focused on her task.
Luther’s voice interrupted her focus, sounding casual yet curious. "You’re really good at this, Lady Evelina. I didn’t expect you to have any training in alchemy."
Evelina didn’t look up. "I’ve had experience," she said simply, her hands moving as she set up another test. "Enough to know what I’m doing."
"Clearly," Luther remarked.
Every now and then, Eve would catch Luther’s gaze flicking to her, especially when she perford certain techniques.
It was subtle—the way he leaned forward slightly when she used a specific motion to strain a solution or how his eyes narrowed when she added a stabilising agent in a precise sequence.
His interest wasn’t idle curiosity; it was as though he recognised sothing in her thods.
"Why does he keep staring?" Relia muttered. "If he wants a lesson in alchemy, he should just ask."
Evelina ignored her wolf, though her own suspicions were growing.
She couldn’t shake the feeling that Luther wasn’t just watching for entertainnt—he was studying her.
The way his eyes lingered when she adjusted the burners or wiped a bead of sweat from her brow suggested familiarity, as though he’d seen it all before.
Finally, Luther broke the silence. "Tell , Evelina, where exactly did you learn such... refined techniques? They remind of thods I’ve seen before, but surely that’s impossible."
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