Unholy Player-Chapter 85: Malrik Azven

As Adyr continued eating, the others at the table took only a few bites, more out of politeness than hunger. The atmosphere was too heavy, too formal to enjoy the meal. Only Vesha appeared comfortable, calmly filling her plate.

When the silence stretched on, King Vale finally spoke.

"Lord Adyr, over the past few days, my wife, my daughter, and I have listened with amazement to the stories of your heroism. Especially the tale of you saving an entire village from wolves under the influence of a Rank 2 Spark. My daughter couldn’t hold back her tears."

Adyr glanced at the girl seated beside the queen. She appeared a few years younger than Vesha and was nearly as beautiful. She likely wasn’t married, and it was clear to Adyr why she was at this table. The king had brought her here with political intentions.

He paid it no mind. Every compliment was met with the same neutral expression, and whenever the king tried to steer the conversation toward politics, Adyr skillfully deflected it.

To him, neither the king nor his daughter mattered. They held no value.

Throughout the conversation, his eyes remained fixed on one of the servants in the room. That was the only person who truly caught his attention.

When the king, wise enough to sense Adyr’s disinterest and realizing his daughter wasn’t to his taste, shifted topics, he asked, "Have you had a chance to meet any of the other practitioners in our kingdom?"

Now Adyr’s interest stirred. The real reason he had endured this dull dinner had finally come up.

He kept his tone calm, his eyes openly resting on the same servant he’d been watching all along. "Yes. I’ve met one."

The king’s surprise was immediate. He tensed and glanced toward the queen, who returned his look with concern. He was just about to speak when a laugh interrupted him.

"Hahaha, this brother here has sharp eyes, doesn’t he?" Said the servant, approaching the table with amusement in his voice. He wore the standard black and white servant uniform, with dark hair and deep brown eyes.

"Lord Malrik." The king and queen stood at once, not surprised, but clearly respectful. They lowered their heads in reverence as they greeted him.

Though Lord Orven, Vesha, and the others didn’t understand what was happening, they stood as well, confused expressions quickly turning to shock as they witnessed what came next.

As the man neared the table, his short black hair lengthened to just past his neck, becoming straighter and more refined. His eyes shifted from deep brown to a pale green, and his facial features subtly rearranged themselves with faint, skin-deep sounds, reshaping into the face of a charismatic middle-aged man. The servant’s plain appearance dissolved. Only his height had remained the same—nearly reaching Adyr’s, though still about ten centimeters shorter.

"It’s alright. Let’s keep eating," Malrik said, taking the seventh chair and gesturing for the others to sit. He turned to one of the servants. "Please, set a place for me."

Then, looking at Adyr’s calm expression and faint smile, he laughed again. "So, brother. How did you notice?"

Adyr chuckled softly, but instead of answering, he posed a question of his own. "Was that a Spark ability?"

Adyr had encountered three Sparks so far, all of which he had captured. But Malrik’s ability was something else entirely. It demanded his attention.

"Yes. It’s called Maskborne. Technically, it’s a Rank 1 Spark, but it’s quite popular among Astra path users and almost as expensive as a Rank 2. Its ability makes it extremely rare, and the difficulty of locating and capturing one is what drives the price so high," Malrik said, waiting as his plate was set, then studying the food placed in front of him.

Adyr raised an eyebrow and gave a small nod. The Spark’s ability had genuinely piqued his interest. "But it seems it only changes facial features, doesn’t it? It couldn’t hide the training marks on your hands or the practiced rhythm in your walk."

Malrik turned his eyes to Adyr, clearly surprised. "So that’s how you noticed? Impressive observation."

Adyr chuckled and added, "The way the king and queen kept glancing at you didn’t help either. And the empty chair at the table only confirmed my suspicions."

At that, the king and queen looked noticeably tense, their expressions shifting to apologetic. But Malrik reassured them.

"Haha, it’s not your fault. It’s only natural for a practitioner to pick up on odd behavior."

He then turned back to Adyr. "Apologies for the secrecy. My intent wasn’t to spy on you. But when I heard a foreign practitioner was roaming the kingdom—and that Vale would be meeting with you—I didn’t want him going in unprotected."

"I can understand your concern," Adyr said. He didn’t blame him. This was their kingdom, and it was their duty to stay cautious.

"Well, I won’t ask why you came here or where you came from. That might be a secret you’d rather keep," Malrik said, calmly taking a bite of his food. But beneath his calm tone, there was a subtle edge—something between a warning and a test. "I just need to know one thing. Is your intent good or ill?"

"I’m only here because the path led me here. I have no larger goal," Adyr replied, speaking the truth without hesitation.

He had entered the game out of curiosity. He never expected it to lead him this far. And as he spoke, he was careful to be honest without revealing too much. By now, he understood well enough—this world was full of Sparks with strange and unpredictable abilities. Malrik having one that could detect lies wasn’t out of the question.

"I see. A free soul, huh? Being young really is something special," Malrik said with a genuine smile, finding nothing to challenge in Adyr’s answer. To him, this young man simply seemed like a wanderer—someone guided by nothing but his own will.

While Adyr and Malrik spoke casually, the room was wrapped in an almost unreal silence. Even the king and queen seemed to be holding their breath, as if afraid any sound might disrupt the delicate balance.

Everyone present understood that, despite appearing like a friendly exchange, this was a conversation between two powerhouses. And even the slightest chance of tension between them carried the risk of catastrophe. If either of them were to lose their temper, there wouldn’t be a single person left in that room to witness the aftermath.

That knowledge hung in the air like a weight, and with it came not just tension, but deep respect.

Even Vesha had set aside all distractions, her full attention locked on the two practitioners. She had traveled with Adyr for some time and had grown used to his presence, but Malrik Azven was different. She had held deep respect for him since childhood, and this was the first time she was seeing him up close.

He was a Rank 2 practitioner who had served the kingdom since before Vesha was even born. A man who had stood against the dark for decades and earned not only the respect but the admiration of every soul in the kingdom.

As the tension in the room began to ease, Malrik asked the question everyone had been silently anticipating.

"Would you be willing to help us in the upcoming battle against the Rank 4 Spark?"

It was a question that would determine the future of the kingdom—and the fate of everyone living within it.