Chapter 79 – On the Eve of the Tournament (Part 2)
Artemis, The City of Awakened, was, by most standards, one of the most technologically and magically advanced Smart Cities on Earth. Skyscrapers glistened like diamond spires, and floating vehicles darted across layered highways in perfect rhythm.
But like all glittering utopias, Artemis had its shadows. Beneath the towers and bright façades lay a very different world—one of alleys, rusted corners, and whispers. Scattered across the city were slums—forgotten zones carved out by the weight of class and lineage.
Tonight, in the heart of the western slum, inside a dimly lit and rundown motel, a secret gathering was underway.
Nine figures sat around a long, uneven table, feasting in silence. The food was lavish—imported meats, enchanted wines, and rare delicacies that had no place in a place this filthy. Yet not a word was spoken. They were waiting.
These nine youths weren’t ordinary. Each one carried the blood of powerful lineages—bastards born of Super Families and Nobility Houses. Many had never met before, but all knew of one another. Names carried weight in their world.
And in this world, legitimacy was everything.
A slender youth with spiked yellow hair leaned back in his chair and downed a tall can of glowing green beer in one gulp. He belched loudly, the sound echoing through the cracked ceiling tiles.
Everyone frowned.
"Two hours," he snapped. "Two whole hours sitting in this piss hole. Where the hell is that damn bitch?"
The insult lingered in the air. His eyes locked on the girl sitting across from him—his real target all along.
The girl—Maeve Greystone of House Greystone—stared at him coldly, her fingers tightening around the base of her glass.