The Bloodbound Veil

Chapter 3 Shadows in the Bureau

​"Open this door, Silas, or we will destroy everything," called the cold voice that spoke his name from outside.

​Silas took a deep breath to calm his still-racing heartbeat. He quickly sheathed the silver dagger back into its scabbard. He slowly walked toward the wooden apartment door that continued to be shaken from outside.

​The cold air from the apartment corridor immediately struck his face as soon as the door opened. Two fully uniformed security officers stood rigidly in front of the doorway. Their faces looked stiff and cold beneath the dim corridor lights.

​They stared at Silas with sharp gazes filled with obvious suspicion. Silas stood straight without showing the slightest fear or hesitation in their presence. He knew very well that his every move was always being watched by the department.

​"Director Voss is summoning you to headquarters right now without exception," said the burly officer bluntly.

​Silas gave a brief nod to show that he understood the sudden summons. He took his long coat draped over the wooden chair near the window. He walked out, leaving behind his cramped apartment, messy and full of bad memories.

​He locked the apartment door tightly before leaving the floor. The morning atmosphere in the Upper District felt very different from the lower district where he lived. The air here was bone-chillingly cold and smelled strongly of metal from the massive steam pipes.

​Silas walked along the clean paved streets toward the nearest hydraulic lift station. He boarded a special lift car that took him directly to the black iron tower. The lift rose at high speed through the thick fog of the gray city of Aethelgard.

​Upon reaching the upper floor, the lift doors opened automatically with a soft hiss. Silas walked along the long, silent corridor without the sound of any other footsteps. The thick dark red carpet muffled every step of his shoes along the hallway.

​The Department of Aether Affairs office looked extremely austere, with walls decorated in pitch-black iron. Government bureaucracy and ancient occult science blended together in the vast room filled with secret archives. Every corner of the room radiated an aura of power that weighed heavily on the minds of anyone who entered.

​Silas stopped directly in front of the large, imposing mahogany door. He took another breath to suppress the lingering pain in his head. He knocked on the door three times in a steady rhythm until a voice answered from inside.

​"Come in," called the deep, authoritative voice that Silas knew very well.

​He turned the brass doorknob and stepped into Director Voss's office. The room was brightly illuminated by the reflected light of crystal lamps powered by pure aether. Various important documents were neatly arranged on tall iron shelves behind the main desk.

​Director Voss sat behind a very large teakwood desk. The middle-aged man was busy examining a stack of case files while sipping hot coffee. Thin steam still rose from the ceramic cup near his right hand.

​Silas stood straight in front of the desk while fastening his long coat. He had to hide all his involvement in the bloody m******e from this highly corrupt superior. If his secret were exposed, he would certainly be executed immediately without a trial.

​"You are ten minutes late compared to your usual arrival time, Silas," said Voss without taking his eyes off the file in his hand.

​"There was a minor personal problem at my residence that I had to resolve last night, Sir," Silas replied in a flat and controlled tone.

​Voss slowly raised his head and stared intently into Silas's eyes. His superior's gaze conveyed deep and dangerous suspicion. There was no room for lies in front of the old man.

​"The written report regarding the bloody incident in the Lower District is already on my desk," Voss said while tapping the desk with his index finger, which wore a gold ring.

​Without waiting for further orders, Silas handed over a sheet of false report regarding the incident. He had carefully composed the report with fabricated details to deceive the department. He deliberately invented a story so that the department's attention would shift away from his true objective.

​Voss read every sentence in the false report very carefully and slowly. There was no particular expression or change in the cold look on his superior's face. He appeared to be digesting every detail of the information written on the paper.

​"You say those mad cultists killed one another because of the influence of their own ritual?" Voss asked probing with a cynical tone.

​"That's right, Sir. The wild aether there made them lose their sanity and slaughter one another without mercy," Silas replied calmly without showing any doubt.

​Voss snorted softly and then tossed the report back onto his desk. He leaned back in his cushioned chair while folding his arms across his chest. His gaze grew sharper, piercing through Silas's mental defenses.

​"Don't even think about playing with fire behind my back, Silas," Voss said in a quiet but threatening voice.

​Voss was indirectly warning Silas about the danger of investigating the Bleeding Hollow cult independently. The warning sounded like an early sentence for anyone daring to cross the line. The department did not like agents operating outside central control.

​"I am only carrying out the investigation according to the official orders from the department, Sir," Silas replied, defending his argument with his head held high.

​"Your main duty is to obey every order I give, not act on your own like some foolish hero looking for a death wish," Voss snapped quietly with emphasis.

​The atmosphere inside the spacious office suddenly became extremely tense and oppressive. Silas clenched both hands inside his coat pockets to suppress his burning emotions. He had to restrain himself from punching the arrogant face before him right then and there.

​Voss slowly rose from his imposing chair and walked toward the large glass window. He gazed at the city of Aethelgard shrouded in thick smog from the height of the tower. His rigid back radiated absolute power over the entire city.

​"Remember, a pet dog that dares to bite its own master will always be put down without mercy," Voss said coldly without turning even slightly toward Silas.