Soulbound: Dual Cultivation

The weight of everything Cecilia had said did not leave Lucas as he stepped out of the bath, the warmth of the water fading quickly against the cold clarity that had taken hold of his mind, because now there was no longer just a mission of reconnaissance, there was a deadline, and it was dangerously close. A few days. That was all the time separating Sage Raph and Isabelle from execution, and every moment wasted would only tighten the noose around them. Still, he forced himself to remain disciplined, because rushing blindly into Valerion without understanding the situation would only lead to failure, and failure was not an option anymore.

He dressed quickly, his movements efficient, his expression calm but far more serious than before, then made his way downstairs where the others had already gathered. The earlier liveliness from the bath had settled into a more grounded atmosphere, the men now seated with food laid out before them, eating with the quiet satisfaction of those who had not had a proper meal in far too long. The scent of warm food filled the room, and for a brief moment, it almost felt like a normal evening.

Almost.

Lucas stepped in, and the subtle shift in his presence was enough for Patrick to look up immediately, his instincts picking up on the change. "Something's wrong," he said before Lucas even spoke.

Tom followed, setting his food down slightly. "What is it?"

Lucas didn't sit right away. He stood where they could all see him, his gaze moving across each of them, making sure he had their full attention before he spoke. "Sage Raph has been captured."

Tom's eyes widened slightly. "Sage Raph?"

Lucas nodded again. "And Lady Isabelle, you might not know her."

Silence followed.

Patrick exhaled slowly. "That's bad," he said. "Very bad."

"They're not just detained," Lucas added. "They're scheduled to be executed."

The room went completely still.

"When?" Tom asked, his voice tighter now.

"In a few days."

Tom swore under his breath, leaning forward, his hands pressing against the table. "Then we don't have time," he said.

"We don't," Lucas agreed.

Patrick looked at him carefully. "So what's the plan?"

Lucas finally took a seat, but there was no relaxation in him, no ease, only focus. "We stick to the mission," he said. "At first light, we move to Valerion. We confirm everything ourselves. Layout, patrols, defenses, the extent of the Abyss… everything."

Tom frowned slightly. "And after that?"

Lucas's eyes hardened.

"Then we come back with what we need," he said. "And we plan how to get them out."

Patrick held his gaze for a moment, then nodded slowly. "So this just turned from scouting to rescue."

Lucas didn't deny it.

"It was always going to," he said quietly.

Cecilia listened as Lucas finished speaking, her eyes fixed on him the entire time, and as the weight of his words settled in, something shifted in her expression, not the fear that had been there moments ago, but something softer, something fragile yet undeniable. Hope. It wasn't loud or overwhelming, but it was there, a small light breaking through the heaviness that had surrounded her for days.

Flora was the first to speak, her voice calm but carrying quiet emotion. "You have no idea what this means," she said, looking at Lucas with a steady gaze. "For weeks, all we've had are rumors, fear, and silence. No one daring to resist, no one daring to even speak of change."

Gwen nodded beside her, her voice softer but just as sincere. "People have already started losing hope," she admitted. "They think this is how things will be now… that no one is coming."

Cecilia stepped closer, her eyes still on Lucas. "And now you're here," she said. "You and your men… you're the first real hope we've seen in a long while."

The room grew quiet again, but this time, it wasn't heavy with dread.

It was filled with something else.

Lucas didn't react outwardly to their words, but he understood what they meant, and more importantly, what it placed on his shoulders. Hope was not something he could afford to carry lightly, especially in a situation like this.

Cecilia's expression shifted again, the earlier light dimming slightly as another thought surfaced. "But…" she hesitated, her voice tightening just a little, "…this isn't just any rescue."

Lucas looked at her.

"They've taken the capital," she continued. "They're controlling everything, and now the Abyss is covering it. If you go in there…" she paused, her eyes searching his face, "…you could get captured too."

The concern in her voice was clear.

Not just for the mission.

But for him.

There was a brief silence before Lucas responded.

And when he did, it wasn't with a long explanation or a detailed assurance.

He simply leaned back slightly, a faint, almost amused expression touching his face despite everything.

"Don't worry," he said calmly.

Cecilia frowned slightly. "Xavier"

"I've always had a knack for trouble," he added.

The simplicity of it caught them off guard.

Tom let out a small breath that almost sounded like a chuckle, shaking his head. "That's one way to put it," he muttered.

Patrick glanced at Lucas, then at the others. "If there's anyone who can walk into a disaster and walk back out…" he said quietly, "…it's him."

Cecilia looked at Lucas for a moment longer, her concern not completely gone, but tempered now by something else, something that trusted him despite the danger.

The conversation at the table gradually settled, the tension easing just enough for the men to return to their food, though the weight of what had been said still lingered in the air, unspoken but present in every glance and every quiet breath. Plans had been set, at least for the next step, and for now, that was enough to keep them grounded.

Lucas had just begun to eat when he noticed Patrick standing nearby, not sitting, not relaxed like the others, but waiting, his posture firm, his expression carrying something more personal than the earlier discussion.

Lucas set his food down slowly. "What is it?" he asked.

Patrick didn't speak immediately. He stepped a little closer, just enough to keep his words between them, though there was no hostility in his tone, only a quiet weight. "You remember what you told me," he said.

Lucas held his gaze. "I remember a lot of things."

Patrick's jaw tightened slightly, but he didn't look away. "My family," he said. "They're still in Rus."

That was enough.

Lucas's expression didn't change much outwardly, but there was a shift, a recognition, a recollection of that moment, of the promise he had made not lightly, but with full awareness of what it could mean.

"You said you'd help me get them out," Patrick continued, his voice steady but carrying a deeper urgency now. "When all this… started to settle."

Lucas exhaled slowly, leaning back slightly in his seat, his eyes lowering for just a brief moment as the reality of it layered itself over everything else already pressing on him. Valerion was under the Abyss, Sage Raph and Isabelle were days away from execution, the usurpers were spreading control across entire regions, and now Rus stood there as well, another front, another danger, another responsibility.

It wasn't simple.

It wasn't even reasonable.

But it was real.

Lucas looked back up at Patrick, his expression calm, but there was no dismissal in it. "I haven't forgotten," he said.

Patrick searched his face, as if trying to see beyond the words, trying to determine whether that promise still held weight in the face of everything else.

Lucas continued, his tone steady. "I know what it would take to get them out."

Patrick's brows furrowed slightly. "Then you also know it won't be easy."

Lucas gave a faint, almost dry breath. "Nothing about this is easy anymore."

There was a brief silence between them.

Then Lucas leaned forward slightly, his gaze locking onto Patrick's with quiet certainty. "But a promise is a promise," he said.

Patrick didn't respond immediately.

But the tension in his shoulders eased, just a little.

Not because the path ahead had become clearer.

But because the man he had chosen to trust had not wavered.

Lucas watched Patrick for a moment longer after speaking, his thoughts settling not just on the promise itself, but on the man standing in front of him, because this was not just another request added to an already overwhelming list of responsibilities, this was something earned, something justified. Patrick had not come to them as an ally from the start, he had been one of the usurpers, one of the very forces now tearing kingdoms apart, yet even then, there had been a difference in him, a restraint, a sense of awareness that set him apart from the others who followed blindly.

Lucas remembered it clearly, the hesitation in Patrick's actions back then. When the choice had finally been placed before him, stripped of excuses and orders, Patrick had chosen. Not the easy path, not the one that guaranteed his safety, but the one that aligned with what was right.

And that mattered.

It mattered more than most would understand.

Lucas leaned back slightly, his gaze steady, his tone calm but firm as he spoke again. "You didn't have to help us," he said. "Back then… you could have stayed where it was safe for you."

Patrick didn't respond, but his expression tightened slightly, as though he didn't quite agree with that framing, or perhaps didn't want credit for something he felt should have been obvious.

"But you didn't," Lucas continued. "You saw what was happening. You knew it was wrong. And when it came down to it… you chose differently."

There was no praise in his voice, no exaggeration, just a statement of fact, but it carried weight all the same.

Lucas leaned forward slightly, resting his arm against the table, his eyes locking onto Patrick's. "There aren't many like that," he added.

Patrick let out a quiet breath, his gaze dropping briefly before returning. "Doesn't change where my family is," he said. "Or what could happen to them."

Lucas nodded once. "I know."

A brief silence followed, but this one was different from the earlier ones. It wasn't filled with uncertainty. It was grounded.

Lucas's voice came again, steady, unwavering. "And that's exactly why I'll do it," he said. "Not just because I gave my word… but because you earned it."

Patrick held his gaze for a moment longer, searching for any sign of doubt, any hesitation. There was none.