Chapter 99


    Chapter 99 Recreation of ancient sorcery


    This text is property of N?/velD/rama.Org.


    ASHER


    The moment Kane left my study, I ran to the dungeon at once. I wasted no time, and the moment I


    reached the man’s cell, I held the small crest in front of the bars.


    me-”


    “What is this?” I demanded, my voice surging with power.


    The imposter’s face paled, but he shook his head swiftly.


    “That… that isn’t mine,” he insisted. “I don’t know why you think it belongs to


    “It was found on your person, was it not?” I retorted, and then I took a step forward. “Dark Abyss,


    right?”


    own.


    When the man remained silent, I continued on.


    “Is your name really Spi ke Nox?” I asked him directly.


    The imposter refused to answer the question but followed up with one of his


    “Have you considered my offer, young Alpha?” he wondered. “The one I gave you yesterday?


    Information about your beloved Cora Felix in exchange for my freedom?”


    “You aren’t in any sort of position to bargain,” I seethed as I shook my head. “Besides, that’ll never


    happen. You were involved in her death. I’d never grant you freedom. You can rot in that cell for the


    rest of your life for all I care.”


    The man frowned. “I meant what I said yesterday. I will help you find the true murderer-”


    “There’s no need,” I interrupted him. Because I would find it out eventually. Now


    that I’d found my mate, everything else didn’t seem as important. If she wanted revenge, I would deliver


    it for her. If she didn’t want to bring up the past, I would


    remain silent.


    When it came to Ca ssandra, I’d do whatever she asked.


    The man suddenly looked panicked. He was probably baffled by my sudden shift in attitude.


    “I have other things I can tell you,” he insisted as he gripped the iron bars of his cell.


    “Nothing you have to offer is worth your freedom,” I replied.


    “Then I don’t need it,” the man said. “But I need you to keep me alive, young Alpha.”


    His light brown eyes darted around suspiciously, as if he were being watched.


    “Someone will attempt to take my life,” he said in a hushed tone. “I need you to ensure my safety. In


    exchange, I’ll tell you anything you want to know. I need a safer ce to stay. This cell isn’t safe.”


    I frowned. “This dungeon is one of the safest ces in Anemond. No one is going to get to you down


    here, not without my express permission.”


    For the first time since his imprisonment, the man looked scared. He didn’t seem to be lying.


    Something was troubling him.


    What did he fear? An idea came to my mind.


    “Are you afraid of Oliver Moses?” I asked, and when he frowned, I spoke again. “The man who wanted


    to kill you in the corridor?”


    “I don’t know who the one is,” the man said. “I was always masked when I saw him. But I know that he


    would try to kill me if I confessed everything I knew to the


    Alpha King. It’s him I’m afraid of.”


    Masked?


    My confusion grew stronger and I tried to read the imposter’s face. What in the world was he talking


    about? Half of the sentences and phrases that poured from his mouth made little to no sense.


    Was he insane?


    I took a moment to consider how to proceed. I could always walk away and regroup, but I had too many


    questions.


    “Spi ke,” I addressed him. “Can I call you Spi ke?”


    The man nodded.


    “Spi ke, let’s see what you can tell me,” I decided, and I crossed my arms against my chest. “But before


    you get to that, I need you to tell me about Dark Abyss first.”


    Spi ke nced around. His eyes searched every corner of the dungeon, as if he were afraid of


    someone eavesdropping. Nearly a minuteter, he nodded and took a deep breath.


    “Dark Abyss is where Ie from,” he exined. “It’s a small Pack, one that few know about, with a


    group of talented individuals who worship sorcery.”


    He leaned in closer. “Your Majesty, have you heard of Ewonmiams, the most famous academy of


    sorcery in history.”


    I nodded. “Yes, I’m familiar.”


    “Well, those within my Pack wanted to duplicate its sess,” Spi ke continued.


    in my pack wanted to duplicate “There were whispers and tales that some of my Pack members were


    actually descendants of the old sorcerers themselves, but without a record of the spells and magics


    practiced by the ancient spellcasters, it was hard for them to learn or recreate those rituals with any


    sort of sess.”


    “Interesting,” I remarked. Ca ssandra had been correct after all. This man had ties to the Ewonmiams,


    or at least his people did. I thought sorcery was long dead. and buried, but there were still practitioners


    trying to continue the legacy.


    “My Pack found ourselves in a tough situation,” Spi ke said, and a sad expression settled over his


    features. “We were attacked by an army led by the former King of Yurene. I had run, you see, to evade


    the war, and I was saved by the masked man. That same masked man brought me here and used me


    as a pawn for his own selfish agenda.”


    I tried to make sense of his tale. Spi ke’s exnations made sense, but there were still so many holes


    in his story. I wanted more information about Dark Abyss, the sorcerers, and the former king of Yurene.


    I didn’t know him that well, so any sort of information I could get was vital.


    I didn’t trust the Northerners, and now that I knew they had something to do with this strange,


    diminished Pack, I needed to know more.


    “Were you the one who stole the book in the library?” I asked. “The one about the Ewonmiams? I


    assume you were the one who trashed the ce and left it in ruins.”


    Spi ke nodded without pause. “Yes, it was me.”


    “What was in the sealed box?” I asked. “And where are those materials now?”


    “The box contained a few more books,” he replied. “But I’m not sure where they are now. The masked


    man told me to ce them in a specific location so he could pick them up. It used to be the basement,


    but after the basement was discovered and exposed, I just dropped them off in a random ce. As far


    as I know, they’re still in a trash bin out on the street.


    My head began to pound as I considered his answers. I took a step away from the bars and turned


    toward the opposite wall.


    This masked man seemed to being up a lot. Who was he? And did he have something to do with


    Cora?


    One thing was certain, he was an important yer in all of this, and we needed to uncover his identity if


    we were going to make sense of things.


    Pain shot through me. I needed to lie down for a bit as Kane suggested, but before I left, I had one


    more question.


    “Were you the one in the basement that day?” I asked as I turned around. “When we went to catch the


    vipers?”


    Spi ke shook his head. “No. I was in the pce that day.”