Chapter 73: Witness
The east gate district was quiet at this hour, the streets empty save for the occasional watchman and the whisper of wind through old stone. Florence moved through the shadows, her steps silent on the cobblestones. The notice board stood near the Silver Boar, just as the rider had said, an old wooden board, weathered and crowded with tattered notices.
She'd left the notice board twenty minutes ago, the chalk marks fresh on the corner: two vertical lines. It was a good code. Simple. Easy to miss. The nervous rider had been telling the truth about that much.
Now she was waiting.
The rooftop was cold beneath her, the tiles slick with pre-dawn dew. Below, the street wound between buildings too old for proper names, their facades patched with brick and spells. A single lantern burned at the far corner, its light thin and greasy, barely reaching the notice board.
A man in a dark cloak emerged from the side of a boarded-up shop.
He didn't look at the board. Not directly. He passed it like anyone else, but his head turned just enough to catch the marks. Then he continued, his pace unchanged.
Florence followed.
She stayed high, moving across the rooflines with a silence born of years of practice. The man below was careful, doubling back once, then twice, cutting through alleys too narrow for a cart. But he never looked up.
At last, he stopped at a nondescript door on a quiet street. Two fast knocks, one slow. The door opened. He disappeared inside.
Florence settled onto the roof opposite and waited.
Minutes passed. A carriage arrived, unmarked, its wheels creaking. A figure stepped out: Aldric, the Harwick steward, his face grim in the thin lantern light. But he wasn't alone. Two others followed: a woman in dark robes, her face hidden by a deep cowl, and a man whose presence made Florence's skin prickle with warning.
They entered the same door.
Florence crept closer, moving along the roofline until she reached a cracked shutter on the building's upper floor. The voices from inside were low, but she caught fragments through the wood.
"—the core must not go with Vora—"
"—Eidolon cannot be allowed to take possession—"
"—the witness will testify that the consignor is compromised—"
"Kane must be removed before the Tribunal convenes—"
The man's voice was calm, measured, utterly without emotion. It was the kind of voice that made Florence's hand itch for her halberd.
Then he went silent.
Florence felt it before she saw it, a sudden pressure, like a cold hand closing around her awareness. The man inside was reaching out, searching. She didn't wait. She moved before he could lock onto her position, slipping into the crawlspace between two buildings, her body flat against the stone. The pressure passed over her like a wave, searching, probing.
The man hadn't seen her. But he'd felt her. That was warning enough.
Florence retreated the way she'd come, moving fast across the roofs, her heart hammering but her breathing steady. The city blurred beneath her as she ran. She'd heard enough.
Aldric was working with dangerous people. They wanted to stop the core from reaching Vora. They had a witness ready to destroy Dominic at the Tribunal. And at least one of them was strong enough to sense her.
She dropped into the manor courtyard as the first grey light of dawn touched the spires.
The Fountain of Sighs was a pool of black glass in the pre-dawn dark. The old city was silent, the kind of silence that pressed against the ears like water. Dominic approached alone, the Ward of Truth cold against his wrist. Through the bond, he felt Theresa's focus, a steady golden thread, ready to pull him back if needed.
Vora was waiting by the fountain.
She stood with her back to him, her grey cloak blending with the shadows. When she turned, her bronze eyes caught the faint light of the dying lanterns, and her face was calm, unreadable.
"You came," she said.
"You knew I would."
"I hoped." She tilted her head slightly, studying him. "And you came alone. In body, at least. But there's a tether to you. Something anchored elsewhere. You're never truly alone, are you?"
Dominic didn't flinch. "I came as close to alone as I could afford. You didn't specify that I couldn't bring protection."
Vora's lips curved. "Fair enough. I wouldn't have believed you if you'd come truly alone. It would have suggested you were reckless, and you're not."
"Then let's stop playing games. You said you know why Harwick is interested in the tenth floor."
"I know part of it." Vora stepped closer, her voice dropping. "The core was never the real prize. Harwick has been searching for something in that dungeon for years. Something older than the empire. Something that should have stayed buried."
The ward pulsed. Truth.
"What is it?"
"The corrupted heart. He knows it exists, and that the dungeon was the place it could have surfaced. The core proved that the right monster that should have it appeared on the tenth floor during your raid. So if you found the core, you might also have found the heart."
"And why does Harwick want it?"
"Because he's afraid it might reveal what it truly is, because he knows what it truly is." She paused. "The heart is not just a monster's organ, Lord Kane. It's a fragment of something that was sealed away centuries ago. Something the dungeon was built to contain. Harwick's family was one of the houses that helped build that prison. They've spent generations making sure it never opened."
The system flared.
```
[Hidden Quest Progress: The Capital's Game]
[Objective: Determine why House Harwick is interested in the tenth floor.]
[Progress: 50%]
[New information: House Harwick is a warden family.]
```
Dominic kept his expression neutral. "So the Harwicks are trying to seal it?"
"No." Vora's voice sharpened. "The Harwicks were guardians once. Generations ago. But the house fell, and it didn't fall by accident. It was turned. Slowly. Carefully."
"Turned?"
"The same way any noble house is turned. Money. Influence. Pressure. Promises. It could be any or all of them." She paused. "The main thing, however, is that the Harwicks of today are not protectors. They are agents; they answer to something else now. I know it. But I hold no proof."
Dominic's ward remained still—truth, as far as she believed it.
"And you want proof?"
"I want the truth to come out before it's too late. The Harwicks and allies have been erasing evidence for decades. They tried to erase your family when your father became a symbol, a problem to their cause." Vora's eyes met his. "Your father was killed because he threatened their plans."
The ward pulsed. Truth.
"You knew my father?"
"I knew of him. Eidolon watched him rise. We were preparing to approach him when he was arrested." Vora's expression flickered, something like regret. "We were too slow. They reached him first."
Dominic felt something cold settle in his chest. "Who killed him?"
"The Church of the Eternal will, they call themselves." She spoke the name without hesitation, and the words seemed to hang in the air like frost. "It has existed as long as your empire, longer perhaps. It worships a being they say will bring salvation, but truly it's only destruction."
The ward pulsed. Truth.
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Because the Church is moving. The Tribunal thing is about control, control over a massive power source, control over every other thing related to it. And the Church will do anything to keep it from Eidolon." She paused. "I know what they are. I need proof. And so do you."
The system pulsed quietly.
```
[Hidden Quest Progress: The Capital's Game]
[Objective: Determine why House Harwick is interested in the tenth floor.]
[Progress: 60%]
[New information: The Church of the Eternal Will.]
[Remaining: Identify the nature of the sealed entity and the Church's ultimate objective.]
```
Dominic read it. Then he looked at Vora.
"What are you asking of me?"
"I'm certain you already know. My people can't move because they are expected, and for other political reasons." Vora stepped back, merging with the shadows. "I'll be in touch and provide aid when you require it."
Before Dominic could respond, she was gone, simply no longer there, as if the darkness had swallowed her.
He stood alone at the fountain. The night was cold and still.
The system pulsed once.
```
[Major Faction Identified: Church of the Eternal Will]
[Known Associations: House Harwick, The Fall of House Kane.]
[Current Objective: Determine the Church's connection to the tenth-floor seal.]
[Progress: 60%]
```
Dominic read it, then turned and walked home.
The manor was warm as Dominic stepped inside. The first grey light touched the windows. Wobbly sat in the center of the main room, its glow soft. Lysandra was awake, her rods propped beside her. Theresa was at the table, waiting. Her golden eyes found his immediately.
Florence was already back, leaning against the kitchen table. She looked tired but sharp.
"The mark worked," she said. "Aldric took the bait."
"What did you find?"
Florence pushed off the table. "A safe house in the slums. Aldric met with two others. A woman in dark robes. A man strong enough to sense me." She paused. "I moved before he could lock on, but it was close."
"What did you hear?"
"They're worried about the core going to Vora. They said Eidolon can't be allowed to take possession." Her voice dropped. "Harwick says he has a witness. Someone to discredit you at the Tribunal. But the strange man wanted you removed before the hearing."
Silence.
Theresa's hand found Dominic's arm.
"They want to block the sale," Dominic said slowly. "Keep the core from Eidolon."
"That's what it sounded like."
"Did the witnesses name?"
Florence shook her head. "No, but I suspect they're bringing someone from Caldmore."
"Then we find them first."
The system pulsed.
```
[New Quest: The Witness]
[Objective: Identify the witness Aldric intends to use at the Tribunal.]
[Reward: 100 GT Tokens]
[Bonus: Prevent the witness from testifying without harming them.]
[Bonus Reward: 75 GT Tokens]
[Time Remaining: 3 days]
```
Dominic closed the notification. He looked at the three women around him. Wobbly glowed softly in the corner.
"We're not waiting for them to move first," he said.
"No," Florence agreed. "We're not."
The sun rose over the capital. Inside the manor, the war had already begun.