Azureveil did not remember the journey back to Flercher Castle.

  All he remembered was the titan’s roar.

  The impossible resurrection.

  The demonic aura that cracked his Resonance Crystal.

  And the words that girl spoke—

  “Flercher only stopped using Overcharge when he died.”

  Words no mortal should ever know.

  Lightning crawled over Azureveil’s fingers as he pushed open the obsidian gate of the castle. Blue sparks crackled from his boots with every step. Servants bowed deeply, but he did not speak to any of them. He walked straight through the ancient hallways and locked himself in his chamber.

  Only then did he tremble.

  Azureveil sliced his palm and let a drop of blood fall onto the Resonance Crystal.

  The device shimmered.

  Lightning spiraled.

  Mana memory replayed the auras he encountered:

  First Rina’s—young, bright, disciplined.

  Then the titan’s—massive, deep, ancient.

  But then—

  A third aura surfaced.

  Vast.

  Cold.

  Demonic.

  So potent that the crystal shattered in a violent burst of light.

  Azureveil staggered back, heart pounding.

  “That… aura…

  That wasn’t the girl.

  That wasn’t the titan.”

  He knew what he felt.

  A presence older than his clan.

  Older than their castle.

  Older than demons themselves.

  No.

  Not reincarnation.

  Lightning demons did not believe in such fantasies.

  There was only one explanation:

  Someone powerful.

  Someone ancient.

  Someone tied to the Sovereign.

  Someone teaching outsiders lightning secrets.

  His fists trembled.

  And Gorvath?

  That titan didn’t die.

  He must’ve escaped the dungeon.

  Someone must’ve freed him.

  Someone must’ve commanded him.

  Azureveil wiped his face, steadying his breath.

  Tonight, he had to face the clan.

  The Great Dining Hall of Flercher Castle glowed faintly with arcane lightning. Blue fire hovered above a long obsidian table. Around it sat eighteen members of the Flercher bloodline — lightning demons draped in elegance and authority.

  Their skin shimmered with faint electrical veins.

  Their eyes glowed soft blue.

  Every breath carried the hum of thunder.

  And at the head of the table—

  Alegor.

  The First Flercher.

  The Lightning Sovereign’s companion.

  A demon of nine centuries.

  Silent for generations.

  His presence alone bent the air.

  Azureveil took his seat quietly — too quietly.

  He normally filled the hall with arrogance and noise.

  Tonight, he did not touch his food.

  A cousin leaned toward him.

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  “You’re strangely silent. Didn’t you go hunt the titan’s killer?”

  Azureveil kept his eyes on his plate.

  “There wasn’t one.”

  Confused murmurs spread.

  Another relative frowned.

  “You’re troubled. What happened?”

  Azureveil swallowed.

  Then he spoke the sentence that froze the entire clan:

  “That girl… said she had a ‘teacher’ in lightning.”

  The hall erupted.

  “A teacher? Impossible!”

  “No outsider can guide lightning demons!”

  “This implies another clan—no, a traitor!”

  Azureveil raised his hand weakly.

  “There’s more.”

  The noise died instantly.

  He whispered:

  “She said… ‘Flercher only stopped using Overcharge when he died.’”

  Every thunder flame flickered out.

  The hall plunged into dim silence.

  Utensils slipped from shaking fingers.

  Even breathing stopped.

  Because these were not just forbidden words—

  They were Flercher’s last secret.

  Known only to those who watched him fall.

  One noble stammered:

  “H-how would she know that?”

  “No outsider witnessed the Sovereign’s death!”

  “Did she see it? Impossible—!”

  A tremor of fear rippled through the table.

  Lightning demons could withstand storms, battles, and centuries.

  But this?

  This truth?

  This was terror.

  And then—

  A voice older than thunder echoed from the head of the table.

  Alegor spoke.

  “…It is true.”

  Every demon bowed instantly, spines folding in dread.

  Alegor rose slowly.

  Lightning crawled beneath his skin.

  His eyes glowed like stormlight.

  “I saw it with my own eyes,” he said softly, but the hall trembled.

  “The Sovereign lived every second of his life in Overcharge.

  Lightning flowed from him even in stillness.

  His breath crackled.

  His footsteps sparked.

  His blood hummed.”

  He lowered his gaze.

  “The only moment his lightning ceased…

  was the moment he died.”

  The room quivered.

  Young demons swallowed in terror.

  Some older ones trembled — Alegor had never spoken of this.

  One demon dared ask:

  “Elder Alegor… does this not mean—someone witnessed his final breath?”

  Alegor did not blink.

  “It means someone knows a truth that should have died with him.”

  Those words chilled the clan deeper than any storm.

  Because if an outsider knew Flercher’s death secret—

  Alegor’s betrayal was no longer safe.

  But no one dared speak that thought.

  Azureveil whispered:

  “She also mentioned a… tome. Flercher’s tome.”

  Alegor’s expression sharpened.

  “Did you retrieve it?”

  Azureveil lowered his head.

  “No.”

  Alegor’s aura crackled like a storm waking from slumber.

  “Then it remains with the woman,” he said.

  He lifted a finger.

  Lightning danced.

  “At dawn tomorrow, every Flercher demon will move to retrieve it.”

  The hall exploded in protest.

  “ALL of us? Even those abroad?”

  “The Western emissaries can’t return for days!”

  “We can’t mobilize the clan for a simple tome—!”

  Alegor’s eyes flickered cold.

  “Three days,” he said.

  “If they are not here by the third dawn—

  they are Flercher no more.”

  One demon rose angrily.

  “Elder, this is excessive for a tome—!”

  He vaporized before finishing the sentence.

  A thin trail of smoke rose from the empty chair.

  Alegor sat again, unfazed.

  “Three days.”

  No one spoke again.

  No one dared breathe loudly.

  Lightning demons feared nothing—

  except the voice of the man who saw the Sovereign die.

  The dinner ended.

  Azureveil dragged himself back to his chamber, sweat soaking through his robes.

  He collapsed to his knees.

  “That girl… her ‘teacher’… that aura…”

  His nails dug into the floor.

  “Someone dares teach lightning outside our bloodline.

  Someone knows the Sovereign’s final truth.”

  He shook violently.

  “And Gorvath… that titan…

  he must have escaped the dungeon.

  He couldn’t have died.”

  Lightning surged around him.

  Fear turned to obsession.

  “Whoever you are…

  Teacher…”

  He grit his teeth.

  “I will find you.

  And I will erase you before you erase us.”

  Outside the castle, thunder rumbled.

  Not from the sky.

  But from within the Flercher bloodline—

  preparing for war.