Shockwaves slammed into Kaedros’ shield. He groaned as mana drained from him at an alarming rate, but the barrier had held. That was enough, he let it fade as the dust settled.
"How are you able to shield against that?" Rauk asked, scanning the wreckage. He was breathing hard and his face was still filled with fear.
Dust still clouded the corridor, but his eyes weren’t on the debris. Deep gouges marred the floor and walls, wide, unnatural slashes that glowed faintly.
"This is a very powerful explosion, a very very powerful one."
Kaedros grimaced and nodded in agreement. "My mana is almost dried up."
"But still, a rank one doing this." Rauk studied him for a beat, then gave a slow nod. "We all have secrets, I suppose. Even Vexa couldn’t shield against that explosion."
"Good for her," Taria muttered.
They all turned to look at what was left of the woman.
Vexa was a ruin of flesh and twisted metal, drenched in so much blood they couldn’t tell where human ended and metal began, and the crumbled heap has been driven into the crater in the ground.
Rauk turned away, his eyes burning. He tried to hide it, but Kaedros could see that the betrayal had cut deep and was trying to keep his calm.
Rauk stepped toward her crumpled form and...surprisingly, she was still alive.
Her hand trembled, as she pointed at him. Her voice sounded like it had been dragged across broken glass and was leaking through her lung. "Rauk... you... you think you’ll succeed?"
A broken, pain-laced laugh escaped her lips. "You’re nothing but mistake, a bastard, a......"
Rauk’s eyes turned the color of stormclouds. With a slashing gesture, he summoned magical energy. It struck Vexa cleanly. She shuddered once, then was silent forever.
He stood still, his hand shaking. He had just killed the one who had once been closest to him. Maybe she had deserved it. But that didn’t stop the knot in his chest.
Kaedros gave him space. He walked over to Taria, who sat slumped on the floor. Dust coated her hair, and her eyes, dull grey, met his.
He patted her gently on the head as one would do a pet. "It’s going to be alright. I will get you out of here."
She offered a weak smile. "I don’t think so."
She pointed toward the wall Thandor’s vines had once sealed. Past that, where the portal had been.
Kaedros turned to look.
The spinning darkness, the swirling arcane vortex, it was gone only smooth stone met his eyes.
"We have a problem," Kaedros muttered.
Louder now, so Rauk could hear, Kaedros said, "We have a problem."
Rauk looked up from beside Vexa’s body. His face had returned to the hard mask of a prince. "What?"
He followed their gaze. It was true.
The silence that followed cracked as Rauk began to laugh. It was wild and ragged, laced with something dark.
"What did you say, Kael?" he asked, spinning around. "That you’d make me a king? A king of the corridor, then! Ruler of corpses and a black gate that eats all!"
Kaedros stared at the bastard prince. He was unraveling, everything that had happened was making his head spin.
So, Kaedros used some of his mana and snapped his fingers, producing a small spark and a sharp, muted crack sound echoed through the chamber like lightning trapped in velvet.
Rauk and Taria jumped.
"Let’s think logically," Kaedros said. "The portal is gone, but we’re alive. That means there’s still a way out. And I, for one, am not dying in an unknown dungeon. Not today."
Rauk took a deep breath, forcing his expression into the iron mask he had spent years perfecting.
Kaedros nodded slowly. "You have a spatial mana cultivation method path right? Can’t you open a new portal?"
"Maybe... when I hit rank three or higher."
"Spatial skill?" Taria raised a brow. "No wonder the second prince tried to keep you weak."
Rauk gave a bitter laugh. "It wasn’t just him. My father was the one who ordered me to live as Rauk Lythienne. My identity, and my ability, had to remain hidden."
"What changed?" Taria asked.
"My father changed. He began ruling poorly. The Grand Lords grew bold. The Celestial Order and the bounty hunter’s Association started taking over everything. Then he fell ill, and..." Rauk shrugged, looking away. "I smelled a conspiracy."
Kaedros snorted. "You probably smelled right. It’s either a Grand Lord aiming for the throne, or your half-brothers. Either way, someone’s pulling the strings."
"This could lead to civil war," Taria said softly, already imagining the devastation.
"If he’s dead... then I’ll take the head of whoever did it." Rauk’s voice was ice.
"And that’s why you came to Solmere. To control at least one town. For funding. For Ascendants. For loyalty." Kaedros nodded to himself.
Rauk scowled. "Exactly. But I didn’t expect the Celestial Order bounty hunter’s Association to already have their hooks in Solmere. Deep hooks."
"That just means we’ve got a lot more work to do," Kaedros said.
"Em... Kael? What work?" Taria asked, her voice dry.
Kaedros looked at her like it was obvious. "We’re going to fight a war. A war until Rauk becomes king of Thalvaris."
"I’m not doubting you, Kael. You’ve always surprised me. But this? This is suicide. We’re all low rank ones! We barely beat Vexa, how do we fight monsters out there at Grade five, four and higher?" Taria said with a tremble in her voice.
Kaedros waited calmly for her to finish. Then said, "Then w advance. And take the kingdom."
Kaedros had already made up his mind to play in the human territory before returning to the Draconic City. Because although he had been dealt with since he arrived in the new world, he knew he still lacked a lot experience.
He want to use the humans to gain that.
Taria stared at him. Helpless. Hopeless. She turned to Rauk.
He was beginning to understand Kael. He was a man who meant every word he spokezas long as there was any path forward. No matter how thin. Even if only a mouse could crawl through it.
Rauk opened his mouth to speak...
And the black gate collapsed.