The Invite

Chapter 3

The deeper we walked into the forest, the darker it became.

The trees seemed taller.

The air felt colder.

And somehow, the silence felt alive.

I folded my arms and glanced at the Third Master.

"Okay. What's going on?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing?"

He smiled.

That smile immediately annoyed me.

Then, without warning, he pulled down the collar of his shirt.

I froze.

"What are you doing?"

"Checking something."

"Checking what exactly?"

He didn't answer.

I narrowed my eyes.

"Are you planning to murder me?"

Still smiling.

"No."

"Kidnap me again?"

"No."

"r**e me?"

His eyebrows shot upward.

"Absolutely not."

"Good. Just checking."

The problem was nobody was around.

Nobody.

No guards.

No servants.

No witnesses.

Just me and a ridiculously handsome man in the middle of a suspicious forest.

Wonderful.

---

Then I noticed something.

Scars.

His entire upper chest was covered in them.

Old scars.

Deep scars.

Some looked ancient.

Others looked like they should have killed him.

My expression softened slightly.

"Did someone do that to you?"

His blue eyes met mine.

"No."

"Good."

I pointed at his shirt.

"Then put it back on. It's freezing."

He chuckled.

For some reason, he kept staring at me.

Not a normal stare.

The kind of stare that made me feel like he was looking straight through my soul.

It made me uncomfortable.

Very uncomfortable.

"Why are you staring at me?"

His expression changed.

"Because you're from the Sixth Family."

My stomach tightened.

Again with that.

The green-eyed man had said the same thing.

Now this one was repeating it.

Who exactly was I?

Before I could ask another question, he reached toward me.

Everything went black.

---

I woke up with a sharp gasp.

Soft.

That was the first thing I noticed.

The bed was unbelievably soft.

The pillows felt like clouds.

The blankets were warm.

Then I noticed something else.

A person.

Sleeping beside me.

I screamed.

The person opened one eye.

"Oh. You're awake."

"What do you mean 'I'm awake'?"

I jumped backward.

"Where am I?"

"My room."

I blinked.

"What?"

"My room."

I pointed at him.

"How did I end up in your room?"

No answer.

"Better question."

I pointed harder.

"Why am I always waking up around you people?"

He sat up slowly.

And that's when I realized he wasn't wearing a shirt.

I immediately looked away.

"Put some clothes on."

He smirked.

"No."

"You're unbelievable."

"You'll understand soon."

I groaned.

"Everybody in this castle says that."

My neck suddenly hurt.

Badly.

I touched it.

Then froze.

Blood.

There was dried blood on my fingers.

I stared at him.

He stared at me.

I stared harder.

He smiled.

"Oh no."

I pointed at him.

"Are you a vampire?"

The smile widened.

"Interesting theory."

"THAT'S NOT A NO."

---

A few hours later, rain began falling outside.

I stood near the window.

"At least rain exists here."

Progress.

Maybe Navigas wasn't completely insane.

Then I noticed something under the bed.

A book.

A huge book.

The thing was enormous.

Dust covered its surface.

I dragged it out.

The cover looked ancient.

Curious, I opened it.

Blank.

Every page.

Blank.

"What kind of useless book is this?"

A voice behind me answered.

"Not useless."

I nearly launched the book across the room.

The Third Master stood near the door.

"Do you people not knock?"

"No."

"That's terrifying."

His gaze shifted to the book.

Immediately.

"Where did you find that?"

"Under the bed."

He walked closer.

Way too close.

My body reacted instantly.

Goosebumps.

Heat.

Confusion.

What was wrong with me?

He knelt down and carefully took the book.

"This is one of the Twelve Ancient Scripts."

I blinked.

"The Twelve Ancient what?"

"Scripts."

I folded my arms.

"No."

"What?"

"You dragged me to another dimension, trapped me in a haunted castle, and now you're telling me this is an ancient magical book?"

"It's not magical."

"That makes it worse."

---

I stood and headed for the door.

"I'm leaving."

His hand wrapped around my wrist.

Instantly.

Firm.

Strong.

I stopped.

"What is your problem?"

His eyes darkened.

"You cannot leave."

I yanked my hand away.

"Watch me."

I opened the door.

And froze.

The hallway wasn't there.

Instead, a long corridor stretched endlessly into darkness.

No end.

No turns.

No doors.

Just endless hallway.

"What..."

I stepped forward.

It kept going.

And going.

And going.

My heartbeat quickened.

This wasn't normal.

Nothing here was normal.

I slowly closed the door.

Opened it again.

Still there.

The endless hallway remained.

"Nope."

I shut it immediately.

Absolutely not.

---

Later, I packed my bags.

I was done.

Finished.

Leaving.

Escaping.

The maid tried stopping me.

"Miss Zilla—"

"Move."

"But—"

"Move."

I marched downstairs.

Determined.

Confident.

Ready.

Then I reached the front entrance.

And stopped.

The door was gone.

Again.

There was only a wall.

A giant wall.

Exactly where the door should have been.

I stared.

The wall stared back.

This place was mocking me.

---

"Where do you think you're going?"

I spun around.

The voice again.

One of the Masters.

Watching.

Always watching.

I pointed at my suitcase.

"You see this?"

He nodded.

"This box is cursed."

"...What?"

"Every time I try leaving with it, reality breaks."

He looked genuinely confused.

I pointed at the missing door.

"Explain that."

For once, even he had no answer.

---

That night, I couldn't sleep.

At midnight, hunger finally won.

Three days.

I hadn't eaten properly in three days.

Quietly, I slipped from my room.

As I wandered through the castle, I noticed something strange.

A large door.

Locked.

Always locked.

I'd seen it since arriving.

Nobody ever used it.

Nobody talked about it.

Which naturally made me want to open it.

I pushed.

The door creaked open.

And I slipped inside.

---

The room was enormous.

Books lined every wall.

Ancient artifacts floated in the air.

A skull hovered above a table.

Actually hovered.

I rubbed my eyes.

The skull was still floating.

"Nope."

I turned.

And froze.

Someone was standing there.

His eyes glowed red.

Deep red.

Scarlet.

The scars across his body pulsed with light.

For a moment neither of us moved.

Then he spoke.

"What are you doing here?"

My survival instincts immediately activated.

I pointed at him.

"WHO ARE YOU?"

He took a step forward.

I took ten backward.

Then I ran.

Fast.

Very fast.

Faster than common sense.

I burst from the library.

Raced upstairs.

Locked my door.

Then locked it again.

And again.

Three locks.

Three.

Just to be safe.

I climbed into bed.

Pulled the blanket over my head.

And decided that whatever was happening in Navigas...

Could wait until morning.