Savra leaned back slightly. She still glanced at the vial on the table. "Now that I understand how you learned about this mysterious group, tell me, How did you get your hands on this blood essence?"

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    Lucius only smirked. He gestured toward the vial. "This essence was actually from Astra Academy."

    Savra was surprised, as she never thought it was in that place. She turned to Lucius for confirmation. "Did you say that you got it from the academy?"

    Lucius chuckled and leaned back into his seat. "You heard me. This vial came from the academy itself but it was not the academy but an unfortunate student."

    Lucius then shook his head. "I don''t know how he managed to get their hands on it, but the assassins from the mysterious group came for it."

    Savra''s expression darkened as she thought about it. "So how did the blood essence end up in your possession?"

    Lucius''s smirk widened as he nodded toward Liora. "Liora here happened to be in the area. She noticed the assassins and engaged them immediately, holding them off."

    Savra turned to Liora. "But those assassins were stronger, weren''t they?"

    Lucius became serious and nodded. "Yes. But fortunately, an academy elder arrived in time. A 6-Star Tamer. He dealt with the assassins easily."

    Savra leaned forward. "Then how did you get the blood essence? Surely the elder would have claimed it."

    Liora stepped forward and smiled. "My beast played a role. During the fight, it managed to bite off the hand of one of the assassins."

    Liora then held her spatial ring. "I then moved quickly and retrieved the spatial ring from the severed hand and kept it hidden."@@@@

    Savra smirked. She never thought about it. She turned to Liora. "Pretty clever. You really are quite resourceful."

    Liora bowed her head respectfully. "Thank you, Matriarch. It wasn''t without risk, but it was worth it."

    Inside a dimly lit, hidden chamber deep within the empire, Patriarch Ragnar Volcaria sat comfortably in one of the chairs.

    He wasn''t alone in the room—two other figures shared the space with him.

    One was Anselm, the Empire''s Minister, a shrewd and calculating man known for his precise control over imperial matters.

    The other was an older man whose sharp features bore a striking resemblance to Kaelix and Kaltrik—Karion Kryndal, the patriarch of the Kryndal family.

    Karian''s face was twisted in anger. "What are we supposed to do now?"

    He then slammed his fist onto the table before him. "One of our most important hubs has been destroyed, and the Garran family has been wiped out! How do we recover from this?"

    Anselm raised his hand to stop him. "Please, Patriarch Karion, I understand your frustration. But we must be patient."

    Anselm lowered his hand and glanced at Karion. "I have already dispatched a general to investigate both the destroyed hub and the Garran estate."

    Anselm then shook his head. "So far, we''ve found nothing—no evidence, no survivors, and nothing to link anyone to the attack."

    Karion clenched his fist as he glared at Anselm. "Nothing? You expect me to believe that someone obliterated my hub and the Garran family, yet left no trace behind?"

    Ragnar, who had been silently observing the heated exchange, suddenly burst into laughter.

    Karion turned toward him sharply. He was immediately enraged. "What''s so damn funny, Ragnar? Are you enjoying this?"

    Ragnar leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. "Oh, I am, Karion. I never thought I''d see the day when the great patriarch of the Kryndal family would be so shaken."

    Karion''s face darkened. "Careful, Ragnar. This isn''t the time for your games. My family''s influence is at stake."

    Ragnar''s smirk widened as he leaned forward slightly. "And whose fault is that? You were the one so obsessed with expanding your reach, meddling in places you shouldn''t have. Now, you''re paying the price for it."

    Karion clenched his jaw. He knew Ragnar wasn''t entirely wrong, but admitting that was out of the question.