Villain's oath

Chapter 20

Lucien stood in his study, the message still in his hand. The handwriting was unmistakable it was Elias’s.

Maybe Elias wanted him to be surprised on how it got into his chamber

He read it one last time, every word confirming what he feared, Serena was being used.

Without a word, he walked over to the small metal tray near the fireplace. He lit a candle, touched the flame to the edge of the paper, and watched it burn.

The message curled in the fire, turning to ash, but the memory of it stayed sharp in his mind.

“Guard,” he called out

One of his guards appeared. “My lord?” he bowed

“Go and bring Maverick to me. Quietly. No one should notice.”

The guard bowed again and left quickly.

Lucien returned to his desk, sitting down with a slow breath.

He wasn’t surprised Serena was involved, but it still stung. He had seen something in her once or maybe he just wanted to.

Moments later, Maverick entered, head bowed. “You called for me, my lord?”

Lucien nodded. “Follow Serena. Discreetly. I want to know everything who she talks to, where she goes, how long she stays. Don’t let her sense anything.”

“Yes, my lord.”

“And if she meets with someone, anyone, I want their name.”

Maverick gave a short nod and left.

Lucien leaned back in his chair, his eyes narrowed. The timing of Elias’s moves and Serena’s presence, it wasn’t random.

There was a pattern. A deeper plan. One he needed to unravel before it slipped past him again.

He reached for a new sheet of parchment and dipped the quill in ink. Slowly, carefully, he began to write not in his own voice, but as if he were Serena.

The tone was softer, almost hesitant. He made it sound like she was passing along something she’d overheard, something Elias would want to hear.

When he finished, he folded the letter and sealed it.

Another guard was called.

“Deliver this to Elias,” Lucien said. “Make it seem like it came from outside the palace. No connection to me, or to here. Understand?”

“Yes, my lord.” the guard said, bowed and left

Lucien watched him leave, then let out a slow breath.

He had started the game.

Now, it was Elias’s move.

The meeting was already in progress when a guard slipped into the hall.

Elias stood at the head of the long table, surrounded by a few of his most trusted allies.

Maps were spread out before them, and the air was thick with talk of strategy movements, trade disruptions, pressure points to apply.

“My lord,” the guard said quietly, stepping forward with a folded piece of parchment in hand. “A servant gave this to me. Said it was urgent and meant only for you.” he stretched his hand forward to Elias

Elias took the message without a word, his eyes scanned the seal before tearing it open.

As he read, a slow smile tugged at his lips.

He folded the paper again, thoughtful.

“Serena?” one of the men asked, eyeing the paper with curiosity.

Elias didn’t respond at first, Instead, he looked down at the message again, turning it over like it might whisper more secrets if he stared long enough.

“I believe,” he finally said, “Lucien is exactly where I want him.”

The men exchanged satisfied glances.

One of them chuckled low under his breath.

Elias didn’t join in. He was still holding the message, his eyes fixed on it with a strange mix of satisfaction and suspicion.

He waved a hand. “That will be all. Prepare for the next step. I want no delays when the time comes.”

The allies bowed slightly before exiting the hall, their boots echoing softly down the corridor.

Once they were gone, Elias turned and walked slowly back to his private chamber.

The message still sat in his hand, folded neatly, but somehow heavier than before.

He dropped into the nearest chair, resting his elbows on the table, the note placed flat before him.

“She would have come in person,” he said under his breath.

He picked up the message again, sniffed the paper lightly. No scent. Not like her.

His jaw tightened. “She is getting sloppy.”

But even as he said it, something in him twisted.

What if it wasn’t sloppiness? What if it wasn’t Serena at all?

He leaned back, eyes narrowing.

Something about this felt off.

And for the first time since their game began, Elias felt the cold breath of doubt slip down his spine.

Elira woke up on the kitchen floor the next morning, her head aching.

The room was quiet, the soup on the stove still untouched.

Herbs were scattered around her like she had dropped everything.

She tries to sit up but a wave of dizziness hits.

A faint ache pulses behind her eyes, like something trying to surface.

She sat up this time, slowly.

Confused.

How did I end up here?

Her chest felt tight, and one name echoed in her mind Eryndor

She didn’t know why it felt familiar.

But it did.

Looking around the kitchen, she took a deep breath.

Later that day, while attending to a villager’s wound, she catches herself humming a tune she doesn’t remember learning.

One of the older women hears it and frowns.

“That song, where did you learn it?” the woman asked

“I don’t know,” Elira replies, confused.

The woman’s face pales. “That was the battle hymn of the Golden Knight. The one they called Eryndor.”

The name makes her freeze.

She brushes it off with a polite smile, but her hands shake slightly as she finishes her work.

When she got back to her house, she stares at her reflection in the mirror her face calm, her heart anything but the dreams, the flickers of memory, the name.

Something inside her is waking up.

And she doesn't know if she’s ready.

Something was wrong.

And it scared her.