"Junyu is arrested."
The words did not feel real.
For a moment, the red glow from Salim's arrow seemed to drain from the room, leaving only darkness and silence behind.
Ton blinked slowly.
"You're joking… right?"
No one answered.
The wind outside howled against the castle walls.
Katsa took a step forward, her voice trembling.
"Salim… tell me this is a joke."
Salim lowered his head.
"I'm not joking."
The sentence struck harder than a blade.
Mil's expression froze.
Michael's hand slipped from Regicide.
Ikiro stared at Salim as if he had stopped understanding the language.
The room itself seemed to grow colder.
"He was arrested a few hours ago," Salim said quietly.
Mil suddenly grabbed Salim by the collar and slammed him against the wall.
"HEY!"
His eyes burned with fury.
"If this is some sick joke, it isn't funny!"
The bunks rattled from the impact.
Salim did not resist.
"I said I'm not joking."
Mil's grip tightened.
"He was arrested for a crime."
Ton whispered, "What crime?"
Michael stepped forward, his face pale.
"For the death of Aurex Valdren."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Even Ton stopped breathing.
Katsa covered her mouth with both hands.
Ikiro slowly sat down on the edge of a bunk, unable to process the words.
"Aurex… Valdren?" Katsa whispered.
Her eyes widened.
"How can Junyu be arrested for something like that? He didn't do it."
Mil released Salim and staggered back a step.
"And how did Aurex Valdren die?"
Salim took a long breath.
"He was poisoned."
The blue flames outside the window flickered violently as thunder rolled across Noctharis Isle.
"Junyu was framed," Salim continued. "Someone planned this perfectly. He spent the night investigating the murder, collecting clues, trying to find the killer…"
Salim clenched his fists.
"And every clue he found was turned against him."
Michael's jaw tightened.
"The blue stone…"
"The poison vial…"
"The note…"
Salim nodded.
"All of it was planted."
Katsa shook her head repeatedly.
"No… no, this can't be happening."
Her voice cracked.
"He was just here tonight. He was talking to us. He was laughing with us."
Ton sat down heavily on the floor.
"Junyu? The guy who can't even keep a secret for five minutes? They think he assassinated a king?"
Salim looked at each of them.
"The execution will happen when the auction ends."
The room seemed to stop.
"We have maybe six hours. Eight if the auction is delayed."
Mil's eyes slowly darkened.
Six hours.
Six hours before their captain died.
The silence that followed was worse than any scream.
Mil reached behind his back.
Black flames gathered around his hand.
With a metallic cry, Yoru no Kiba emerged.
The ancient blade filled the chamber with a violent pressure.
"Aurex is already dead," Mil said coldly.
His voice no longer sounded human.
"Then no one is left to stop me."
Dark energy spread across the floorboards.
"The Black Meeting will drown in blood."
Katsa stared at him in alarm.
"Mil—"
Michael instantly drew Regicide.
The purple blade flashed between them.
"Blade down, Mil."
The two swords faced each other.
Blue fire.
Purple lightning.
For a heartbeat, it felt as if the room itself might split apart.
Mil glared at Michael.
"You want me to stay calm while Junyu is waiting for execution?"
Michael's voice was steady, though his hands trembled.
"I want you to think. If we start a war now, Junyu dies before we even reach the prison."
Mil's breathing grew heavy.
Then, slowly, he lowered Yoru no Kiba.
The pressure vanished.
Ton exhaled loudly.
Katsa wiped tears from her eyes.
Ikiro looked up at Salim.
"So where is he?"
Salim answered without hesitation.
"In the underground prison."
The words hung in the air like a death sentence.
No one spoke after that.
Outside, lightning illuminated the windows.
And deep beneath the castle, far below the sleeping sea, Junyu sat alone in his cell, unaware that his crew had finally learned the truth.