The royal ball still echoed with the dulled thrum of music and clinking goblets, yet Keal had long slipped into the darker halls of the Zeheir Palace. The velvet of the night outside mirrored the quiet tension now wrapping around the polished corridors within. His expression, cool and distant, barely flickered even as soft footsteps trailed behind him.
Zack had, as usual, pushed a little too far with his teasing. Bringing up noble daughters as "perfect matches" and dragging Keal into dances he didn't ask for. It was exhausting. He needed air. Silence. Control.
But silence didn't follow him.
"You're not as invisible as you think, Keal,or should I say kev" came a voice—a female's, smooth and oddly familiar.
He turned, and from the shadows stepped a woman draped in elegant black and silver. Her eyes, too calm for someone who'd been stalking, held the weight of intent. A sudden shift in her stance and a blade glinted under the moonlight seeping through the hallway's long windows.
A killer.
She moved fast. A low-ranked general by estimation, and yet well-trained. Her aura flickered faintly with bloodlust—hunter path, most likely. But before she could strike, her arm froze mid-air.
A terrifying silence swept in like a blade slicing sound itself.
From behind her, a regal presence emerged. She didn't walk. She commanded space. Eyes like deep oceans locked onto the assassin, and a simple motion from her delicate fingers twisted the woman's mind. The attacker screamed silently, eyes rolling up before her body dropped—lifeless.
Keal stared.
Queen Zellene Zeheir.
He hadn't seen her closely during the ball. The older sister of Zackline. Rumors painted her as beautiful, but no words had prepared him for the truth. Ethereal in presence, elegant in movement. Every thread of her gown glowed faintly, woven with rune-silk. And those eyes… piercing into the soul.
"You have many eyes watching you," she said, voice soft but heavy with power.
Keal's stance remained guarded, but he bowed slightly, as custom required. "My Queen."
Zellene's smile was faint. "The shadow around you isn't something born of mortals, Keal."
He flinched slightly.
"You've used a veil—clever. Most wouldn't notice. But I," she stepped closer, her eyes glowing faintly violet, "have the Mind Dominion skill with my energy amp of lord tier you cannot hide thoughts from me."
He didn't reply. What could he say?
"You are not Keal." She didn't ask. She declared. "You are Kev, the crazed lunatic of noctera"
He stiffened.
"And no," she added, "I'm not here to betray you. The shadows that whisper through your soul… they scream loud to someone like me. I'm simply curious."
The shadows stirred.
"She sees more than she should. Tread carefully."
Kev's jaw clenched.
The Queen tilted her head, intrigued. "Fascinating. So… it speaks to you?"
"You heard that?"
She smiled. "Mind control is my path, Kev. I hear what others cannot bear."
A moment of silence passed before she added, "And your little secret about Zack? Safe with me. He's… special. More special than even he knows."
Kev narrowed his eyes. "You know about his… void?"
Zellene nodded. "He was chosen young. A rare case. But fear shaped his silence. He only confided in Zackline. As for the royal court? They think my children are... useless. Unchosen."
Her voice darkened slightly. "Fools."
"Did u just say energy amp?" he asked.
The Queen smirked. "Sharp eye. Yes. By infusing your raw energy into a skill, you amplify its scale. It wasn't easy reading u i heard to use full energy amp of a lord tier .But be careful. It drains faster, and if you misalign the energy flow..."
She trailed a finger across her own neck.
Kev nodded. "Thanks."
Zellene studied him for a long while. "Be careful of Veltric."
Kev raised a brow.
"My son—the First Prince. He plays calm, polite. But his heart is poisoned."
Kev recalled the cold-eyed prince from earlier, his disgust barely hidden behind perfect etiquette.
Zellene continued, "He seeks power, and he's not above betrayal to get it. The woman he's enamored with Lady Meira is not who she claims to be."
Kev's instincts stirred.
"She serves someone… higher. Dangerous. And together, they've been whispering into the ears of my nobles. Including…" she hesitated, "...the Duke."
She didn't name him.
Kev's gaze darkened. "What do you want from me?"
Zellene smiled. "Survive. And protect my son Zack. He's light-hearted, but loyal. The deeper you get into the rot of Weton's court, the more you'll protect him."
As she turned to leave, her gaze flicked back. "And one more thing, Kev…"
"Yes?"
"Your shadows… they fear you. But they also worship you. Be careful what you become."
With that, she disappeared into the hall.
Kev stood there for several moments.
"She knows too much."
"And yet... she's not an enemy. Not yet."
He sighed.
And the whisper of the shadows still pulsing beneath his skin.
And then he went back to his room after the ball
The door creaked open with a slam, shattering the quiet tension of Keal's dimly lit room.
"I brought you a gift!" Zack's boisterous voice echoed in, followed by a tipsy chuckle.
Keal looked up, seated by the window, his white hair glowing faintly under the moonlight. His right eye shimmered red; the left, a subdued violet. Shadows in the corners of the room stirred faintly at his annoyance.
Zack stumbled in, grinning like a fool, dragging along a blushing young woman dressed in far too little for the chill of Weton's night.
"She's cute, right? Thought you could loosen up a bit. You're too stiff, like an old blade left in the cold." Zack winked.
Keal stared. No words. Just silence. The woman looked uncertain between the two of them, sensing something was wrong—off.
Zack leaned on a chair, grinning. "No need to thank me. Just, y'know, enjoy the—"
"Get out," Keal said quietly.
Zack blinked, confused. "Huh?"
The shadows behind Keal pulsed once, snaking up the walls like coiling smoke. His eyes, especially the red one, glowed more intensely.
"I said... get out."
The room dimmed unnaturally. The woman gasped and ran out. Zack followed, raising his hands in surrender, laughing nervously.
"Alright, alright! No fun. You're the most boring butler ever."
Keal leaned back, exhaling slowly.
And then Zack threntened him for them to go after the woman.
so keal had no choice