Kael didn’t move immediately after saying that. The information was already obtained, the main objective defined, and all that remained now was organization. There was no longer any urgency in the chaotic sense, only sequence. He kept his gaze fixed for a moment on the woman inside the cube, as if assessing whether there was still anything useful to extract from that state. There wasn’t. At least not without methods that would require time he didn’t intend to spend there.

He then looked away.

To Vlad.

The second cube remained intact, smaller, denser, containing not only his body but his very capacity to react. Vlad was still conscious, but limited to the point of not even being able to fully comprehend what was happening around him. The energy that had previously enveloped him now existed in isolated fragments, unable to align, unable to grow. He breathed, but that was practically all he still did on his own.

Kael raised his hand again.

There was no visible accumulation of energy, no sign of effort. The structure around Vlad responded immediately, as if it had been prepared for it. The invisible lines that supported the cube began to move, neither expanding nor collapsing, but rearranging their own scale.

The space around him was reduced.

Not violently.

But absolutely.

The cube began to shrink, its edges maintaining the same precision, the same density, while the internal contents were compressed along with it. Vlad was not crushed. His body suffered no physical impact. The compression did not operate at that level.

It operated on the structure.

The relationship between him and space was reduced.

And that was enough.

In a few seconds, the cube was no longer the size of a human body. Then, it ceased to be the size of a large object. It continued to shrink, always maintaining the same integrity, the same impossibility of rupture.

Until—

It stopped.

The size of a palm.

A small, translucent dome, perfectly stable, containing within it a reduced, yet still functional, version of Vlad. There was no distortion. No deformation.

Only absolute containment.

Kael reached out.

The dome moved toward him without resistance, floating for an instant before resting in his palm. He observed it for a second, assessing its stability once more.

Nothing had changed.

It was complete.

Without saying a word, he simply tucked the dome into his coat pocket, as if it were any object, without immediate value, but potentially useful later.

Unceremoniously.

Without emotional significance.

Resolved.

Then he turned his attention to the other cube.

The woman was still frozen, trapped in the interrupted instant, her attempt at self-destruction thwarted, her mind newly invaded, her answers already extracted. Unlike Vlad, she was no longer useful in that state.

But she still had value.

Kael stepped forward.

His hand rose again, and the cube responded in the same way as before, but with a fundamental difference. While Vlad’s had been designed to contain and segment, this one had already served its purpose.

Now, it would be transformed.

The structure began to close.

Not only reducing the internal space, but altering its very form. The edges tightened, the angles ceased to be merely geometric and began to follow a more refined, more compact pattern.

The woman did not react.

She couldn’t.

Her body was still frozen, her mind still under the effect of what Kael had done moments before. The shadows around her tried to respond for a brief instant, but there was no impact.

There was no more room for resistance.

The cube continued to compress.

Smaller.

Denser.

Until its form ceased to be a cube.

The lines softened, the surfaces adjusted, and the final object took on a new configuration.

A pendant.

Small.

Dark.

Dense.

But absolutely sealed.

Kael reached out, and the object rested on his palm with the same silence with which everything had been done until then.

He didn’t observe it for long.

There was no need.

He then turned slightly toward Exelia.

And reached out.

"Keep this," he said directly.

Exelia didn’t hesitate. She reached out and took the pendant, immediately feeling the unusual weight it carried—not physical, but structural. This wasn’t just an object. It was a complete prison.

She analyzed it for a second before closing it in her hand.

"For now," added Kael, already partially turning his gaze back to the hall.

He continued:

"When we get back, we’ll take her straight to my grandmother."

Exelia raised an eyebrow slightly.

"So she can do what you didn’t do?"

Kael answered without looking at her.

"Recover everything."

A short pause.

"Without losing anything in the process."

Exelia nodded, immediately understanding the difference. What Kael had done was efficient, but limited to what was necessary. What he was suggesting now was something much deeper.

More complete.

She put the pendant away.

Meanwhile—

Kael didn’t stop.

His shadow, until then steady around his feet, began to expand slowly, not as a threat, but as a functional extension. It spread across the hall floor, seeping into the cracks, the destroyed areas, occupying space without causing direct impact.

And then—

It moved.

Not forward.

But upward.

From the ground, forms began to emerge.

First, outlines.

Then, volume.

And then, definition.

The figures that emerged were no longer the disorganized creatures they once were. There were no traces of monsters, no exposed deformities. What rose were humanoid forms, tall, completely covered in dark armor, molded from their own shadows.

Each one carried a silent, stable presence, without any instability. There were no visible eyes, no breath, no unnecessary movement.

They were... soldiers.

Dead.

But organized.

The energy that sustained them was not chaotic. It was controlled, refined, molded directly by Kael.

The old souls he had taken no longer existed as they were.

They were restructured.

Reused.

Transformed into something functional.

The Knights of the Shadows.

They emerged in sufficient numbers to occupy the hall, automatically positioning themselves at strategic points—entrances, columns, elevated areas. None of them spoke. None of them hesitated.

They simply... stood.

On guard.

The throne room, once the scene of an absurd confrontation, was now under absolute surveillance.

Exelia observed this for a few seconds, without surprise, but attentively.

She then turned her gaze to Kael.

"And now?"

The question carried no doubt.

It was continuity.

Kael didn’t look at her immediately. His eyes scanned the hall, making sure everything was exactly as it should be. The knights were positioned, the seals were stable, there were no more external interferences.

Everything under control.

Then he answered.

"Now we solve the main problem."

Exelia crossed her arms slightly.

"Which is?"

Kael finally turned his head in her direction.

And he said, without any change in tone:

"The Queen."

Silence.

Short.

Direct.

Exelia held his gaze for a second.

"Right," she said. "And where exactly do we find her?"

Kael didn’t hesitate.

"I already know where she is."

Exelia tilted her head slightly.

"And?"

Kael answered simply.

"At the bottom of the dungeon."

A pause.

Then he added:

"Almost dead."

The silence that followed wasn’t long, but it was heavy enough to make clear what that meant.

Exelia didn’t look away.

"Almost dead... by whom?"

Kael didn’t answer immediately.

His eyes narrowed slightly, not out of doubt, but to gather information.

"By the same group that sent her," he finally said, referring to the woman now sealed in the pendant. "Or someone above them."

Exelia uncrossed her arms.

"So this wasn’t just about Vlad."

"No."

"And he didn’t even know."

"No."

She let out a small sigh.

"That makes sense."

Kael was already moving.

Without haste.

But without pausing.

He walked towards the exit of the hall, passing the shadow knights who remained motionless, automatically making way as he advanced.

Exelia followed him without question.

"If she’s in this state," she continued, walking beside him, "either we get there quickly..."

She didn’t finish.

Kael completed.

"Or we don’t get there."

They continued walking.

Without acceleration.

Without visible urgency.

But with absolute direction.

Behind them, the hall remained silent, guarded by figures who needed no orders to fulfill their function.

And ahead—

Only one thing remained.

To descend.

To the very bottom.

Where the true target—

Was still alive.

By a hair’s breadth.

The descent began without any announcement.

Kael simply crossed the hall, passed the damaged columns and the motionless shadows of the knights he had summoned, and headed towards the staircase leading to the lower levels. Exelia followed immediately, maintaining the same pace, without needing to exchange glances or confirmations. Both already knew there was nothing else of relevance above.

The stairs were long.

Ancient.

And, unlike the main hall, they weren’t just damaged—they were... neglected. Accumulated dust, signs of wear, small signs of recent passage mixed with abandonment. There was no active lighting. Only Kael’s presence, enough to keep the atmosphere from becoming completely opaque.

Footsteps echoed.

Dry.

Regular.

Unhurried.

But also without pause.

As they descended, the temperature seemed to drop slightly. It wasn’t extreme, but enough to be noticed. The air became denser, stiller, as if that place hadn’t been made for constant circulation.

Exelia was the first to break the silence.

"If she really is here..." she said, observing the surrounding walls as they descended, "then someone did a very clean job up there."

Kael didn’t answer immediately.

He continued down, his eyes attentive, not only to what was visible, but to what... was missing.

And that’s what began to become evident.

There was no resistance.

No guards.

No residual presence.

No sign that this level was being defended.

They reached the bottom of the stairs.

And the dungeon revealed itself.

Empty.

Not partially.

Not silent with tension.

Simply... empty.

The cells were open, some damaged, others intact, but unoccupied. Loose chains, old marks of restraint, but nothing recent enough to indicate active use at the moment. The space was vast, but there was no one there.

Neither living.

Nor dead.

Exelia paused for a moment, looking around more attentively, as if expecting something to emerge.

Nothing happened.

She then turned her head slightly towards Kael.

"She was supposed to be here, right?"

The question was direct.

No beating around the bush.

Kael didn’t answer immediately.

He had already stopped.

But he wasn’t looking at the space as a whole.

His focus had drifted down.

To the floor.

And then—

To the wall.

A few meters ahead, there was something.

Small.

But out of place.

He approached slowly, without altering his overall pace, and stopped before the stone wall. At first glance, nothing seemed different—uneven surface, natural wear, old stains.

But there was a mark.

Dark.

Recent.

A dried liquid.

Kael didn’t need to bend down.

He didn’t need to touch.

He just observed for a second.

And sighed.

Exelia noticed immediately.

"Did you find something?"

Kael raised his hand.

And, without looking at her, answered:

"Yes."

A magic circle formed above his palm.

Different from the previous ones.

Simpler.

More direct.

Without unnecessary complexity.

He pointed to the wall.

And activated.

The impact was immediate.

A dry, violent sound echoed through the dungeon as the wall’s structure simply gave way under the applied force. There was no chaotic explosion, but the result was the same—stone being displaced, fragments being thrown back, dust scattering in the air as the surface cracked at a specific point.

The space beyond was revealed.

A chamber.

Hidden.

Closed.

And immediately—

The smell.

Exelia stopped for a second.

Not out of fear.

But out of recognition.

Blood.

A lot.

Not recent enough to still be flowing.

But still present.

Heavy.

Dense in the air.

Kael didn’t hesitate.

He stepped through the opening.

Exelia followed closely behind.

The interior of the chamber was different from the rest of the dungeon. Older, more isolated, built not for common containment, but for something specific. The walls were thicker, the structure more closed, with no visible entrances beyond the one they had just opened.

And the floor—

Stained.

Not in isolated spots.

But covered.

Blood splattered on a scale that left no doubt about what had happened there. It wasn’t the result of a single moment. It was... repeated.

Processed. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Extracted.

Exelia slowed her pace slightly.

Not out of hesitation.

But out of attention.

And then—

She saw.

At the back of the chamber.

Against the wall.

Elevated.

Fixed.

The Vampire Queen.

Crucified.

Not in a symbolic sense.

But literally.

Her body was attached to the structure at strategic points, supported in a way that kept her upright, exposed, unable to fall. Her arms were outstretched, her torso fixed, her legs trapped in a position that prevented any movement.

But what was most striking—

Was her condition.

Her skin, paler than normal, almost devoid of any trace of vitality. The body showed no chaotic injuries, no signs of disorganized mutilation.

It was... clean.

Controlled.

Precisely drained.

The blood.

All of it.

There was no recent buildup in the body.

There was no visible circulation.

Only what remained.

A shell.

Kept alive at the bare minimum necessary.

Or perhaps—

Not even that.

Exelia stopped completely now.

Her gaze fixed on the scene.

"..."

She didn’t comment immediately.

But she didn’t need to.

Kael had also stopped.

A few meters away.

Observing.

Without an altered expression.

Without an exaggerated reaction.

But... attentive.

More than before.

The silence in the chamber was unlike any other they had encountered until then.

It wasn’t the absence of sound.

It was... the absence of something else.

Life.

Kael took a step forward.

Approaching. No rush.

No hesitation.

His eyes scanned the Queen’s body, analyzing not only her physical state, but what remained there in terms of structure.

Because, even in that state—

Something still existed.

Very little.

But enough to be noticed.

He stopped a short distance away.

And spoke.

Not loudly.

But clearly.

"They didn’t want to kill her."

Exelia finally moved again, approaching a few steps as well, still observing attentively.

"No," she replied, now lower, more direct. "If they wanted to, it would have been over already."

A pause.

"That was... extraction."

Kael didn’t disagree.

His eyes remained fixed.

Calculating.

Assessing.

Connecting the dots.

Vlad.

The woman.

The structure.

The plan.

And now—

That.

He let out a small sigh.

Not of surprise.

But of confirmation.

"She’s alive," he said.