Seraphina hesitated for a moment, the silver dagger trembling in her hand. Her eyes flicked to Marcus, uncertainty flickering behind her greed. “Are you sure about this, Marcus?” she asked softly, voice trembling with a strange mixture of doubt and anticipation. “Once you drain her, there’s no going back.”
Marcus’s face twisted into a maniacal grin, eyes gleaming with a savage, unhinged hunger. “Oh, I’m sure,” he cackled, a harsh, manic sound that echoed through the mountain like a madman's chorus. “I want her utterly empty, completely dead. And I’ll rip every ounce of magic from her if I have to. This isn’t just about power anymore. It’s about breaking her entirely, making her mine in the most final way possible.”
His laughter grew louder, a wild, unrestrained sound that reverberated th
