Chapter 7
Chapter 7
A quiet room bathed in soft golden lamplight.
The walls were lined with thick bookshelves and glowing crystal monitors. At the center sat a man with tousled, wavy blonde hair and piercing blue eyes, tapping steadily on a sleek black tablet.
His fingers paused mid-stroke as a cold voice echoed through the room.
"Marcus. Have you found it?"
Marcus looked up, his sharp gaze locking with the figure across from him—a young man with wavy black hair and golden eyes that shimmered like dusk before a storm.
"Before I answer that..." Marcus said calmly, "is it true, Daelen? That a large number of mana bombs have been planted in the Human Continent’s top academy—led by a Rank 9 awakener?"
Daelen Voncrest quietly closed the book he’d been reading, adjusting his glasses with a soft click. His voice was steady, but something in his eyes flickered—shame? Guilt?
"I overheard it from members of the Dark Order," he said. "When I was kidnapped."
Marcus didn’t speak for a moment. His stare was hard, searching. Suspicion curled around the silence like smoke.
Finally, he sighed and sat back. "I’ve already informed my network. If any of my people find the bomb’s trigger, they’ll report to me immediately."