I walked through the double doors, and the voices in the main hall didn’t stop so much as pivot. Marcellus was at the head of a long oak table, his golden hair disheveled, a dozen documents spread before him like a fan of bad news.

Julius stood at his right shoulder, arms crossed, his expression the same unreadable mask he wore in the arena. Azrael had claimed the far corner, his presence somehow making the vast room feel smaller.

And Evelina.

She sat at the table’s opposite end, her white hair spilling across the dark wood, her crimson eyes finding mine the moment I entered. The ring on her finger caught the chandelier’s light, its grey surface shifting through patterns I couldn’t follow.

"You took longer than expected," she said.

"The bait talks a lot when you get him going."

"Did you get what you needed?"

"Some of it."

Marcellus looked up from his documents, the shadows under his eyes darker than they’d been this morning.

"Some of it? We’re four days from the ritual. ’Some of it’ isn’t—"

"He’s been locked in a cell for weeks," I cut in, moving to stand beside Evelina’s chair. "Being told he’s going to die, and now we’re asking him to walk into the lion’s den as bait. Forgive him if he’s not in the most forthcoming mood."

Julius uncrossed his arms. "Did he say anything useful at all?"

"He confirmed that the church is planning to use his blood to stabilize the celestial alignment. He also said he doesn’t believe the God of Light actually sanctioned what they’re doing."

Azrael stirred in his corner, his eyes glinting. "That’s... significant."

"Care to elaborate?" Lillian asked, taking a seat at the table.

"If Elion is not supporting the purification," Azrael said slowly, "then the church’s ritual may not have divine backing. Which means their power is not absolute."

"It also means they’re heretics," Evelina added. "Acting against their own god’s will."

Marcellus leaned back in his chair, rubbing his temples.

"Unfortunately, it’s information I already know. So the plan isn’t changing, be ready for a long discussion."

***

"Well, that was certainly obvious information."

Evelina stretched as we left the estate, her back arching like a cat, a bored look settled on her face. The plan was fine, don’t get me wrong, but after all the life-and-death situations I’d been through, that briefing wasn’t exactly riveting.

"You just took it straight out of his head, didn’t you?"

"Yeah..."

"You could’ve excused the two of us out of there, then."

"Didn’t want to be rude. Besides, it’s best to assume my mind-reading has holes. Even I’m not that careless."

"Marcellus did have a point, though. We should probably train."

"Yeah. Still planning to physically train me again?"

"That’s already a given."

"I’m looking forward to it." She smiled. "Seeing your shirtless body, I mean. Not the training."

"Most people would say the opposite."

"Do you want me to lie, Cael?"

I just laughed at her response.

She really is a succubus.

***

The sounds of fighting and training echoed throughout our estate as Evelina honed her body. She wore nothing more than a simple white tunic and trousers, clothes that granted her maximum mobility without any risk of tearing. Practicality always won, after all.

"Am I doing well?"

"Your footing needs work, but it’s great," I called out from the ground, taking a break after our duel.

She was a fast learner. An absolutely fast one. Barely our fifth session, and she was already becoming an incredible hand-to-hand fighter. But what really excited me was watching her body.

Sexy Evelina was great, but I was also curious what a toned Evelina would look like. The thought alone was enough to make me drool.

"If you keep thinking about things like that," Evelina yelled out, panting as she continued training with my shadows as sparring partners, "you’re going to distract me."

"Maybe you should stop reading my mind, then."

[Dark Fireball]

She launched a fireball straight at me. The Hydra’s grotesque head devoured it instantly before I even needed to move.

"Never!" Evelina shouted, sticking out her tongue as she kept fighting the shadows with nothing but a wooden stick we’d found lying on the ground.

She needed to learn to fight without magic, after all.

[The Serpent’s Amulet]

I glanced down at the amulet still resting around my neck. It had been a while since I’d last seen it take effect. Other than the False Hydra fight, it had remained dormant ever since.

Its [Primordial Pressure] was useful, but it wasn’t exactly game-changing compared to something like [Shadow Domain]. I still needed to unlock its other abilities, but I had no idea how to achieve that.

I just hoped that whatever the church had planned, this amulet would prove useful.

Maybe that was wishful thinking on my part.

The wooden stick in Evelina’s hand splintered against one of my shadows, and she tossed the remains aside with an irritated flick of her wrist. Her chest rose and fell with each breath, a thin sheen of sweat glistening on her collarbone.

"That’s enough for now," she said, stepping out of the training circle.

"Calling it quits already?"

"I’m not a masochist." She grabbed a towel from the bench and draped it over her shoulders. "Unlike some people."

I stood, stretching muscles that had gone stiff from sitting. The amulet against my chest was warm, almost hot, and I resisted the urge to touch it. Every time I focused on it, the thing seemed to pulse with something that felt like anticipation.

"Your amulet is acting up again," Evelina observed, toweling her face.

"You noticed."

"Hard not to. I can feel it from across the yard. It’s hungry, Cael."

"Hungry?"

"For something." She tossed the towel aside and walked toward me, her bare feet leaving faint impressions in the grass. "Don’t know what, though."

"Maybe I should’ve asked the archmage about this when we were still in his library."

"Considering he didn’t comment on it, I doubt he even knows about it himself. If he did, he would’ve said something, just like he did with that Hydra of yours."

Evelina wrapped her arms around my neck and gave my cheek a light peck.

"But don’t be too disappointed. It’s a long-lost artifact that my father found. It’s kinda its entire purpose being mysterious."

"Yeah, you’re right."