CHAPTER 221: THE TRUTH

The Empress’s words hung in the air like a blade. She did not raise her voice, yet every syllable carried an invisible force that pressed against the walls of the chamber. "That," she said slowly, "is why you are dangerous."

Lucas’s breath caught once again. He had been accused of many things in his life...recklessness, arrogance, but never this. To be called dangerous by someone who ruled a kingdom and saw through souls was something else entirely.

He forced himself to meet the faint outline of her form through the silk curtain. "Dangerous... to whom, Your Majesty?"

"To the balance of things," she said without hesitation. "To fate itself. You carry knowledge not meant for this age. Power that does not belong here. And yet, you speak of alliances, of unity. Tell me, Xavier of Valerion....what is it that you seek in truth?"

Lucas was silent for a moment, thinking carefully. The Empress’s gaze was piercing even from behind the curtain. Every lie would be useless here, and every half-truth would burn under her sight. He drew in a long breath and said, "I seek survival, Your Majesty. Not mine alone, but that of many. The storm that’s brewing will not spare anyone, no matter how strong or proud they are. Not even Lechia."

There was a pause, brief but heavy. Then she said, "You speak as though the world is already doomed."

Lucas gave a faint, bitter smile. "Not doomed. But watched. Something dark has already begun to move beneath our feet. It hides in plain sight, planting itself inside the very systems we trust...courts, academies, sects, kingdoms. Most won’t even notice until it’s too late. That is why Valerion needs the alliance. That is why we need Lechia."

She said nothing for a while, as if weighing his words. The silence stretched long enough for Lucas to hear the faint sound of his own heartbeat.

Finally, her calm voice came again. "Then tell me this," she said. "What assurance do you have that Lechia has not already been touched by this so-called darkness you speak of?"

Lucas lifted his gaze slowly. "Because Lechia is different," he said. "Your kingdom is built on strength and order. The inner court is loyal, bound to you in ways that no outsider could easily corrupt. Lechia stands as the light that others look to in times of uncertainty. If there’s any realm still untouched by shadow, it must be this one."

There was a moment of stillness, and then, unexpectedly, the Empress gave a quiet laugh..a sound not of amusement but of disbelief, tinged with something older and sadder. "You speak with conviction," she said softly. "But conviction alone is not truth."

Lucas frowned slightly, unsure what she meant.

The curtain shifted as a faint breeze moved through the chamber. Her voice came again, calm yet distant. "You think loyalty can shield a kingdom from darkness. You think power can preserve purity. But you are mistaken."

He said nothing, listening.

"The stronger the light, the deeper the shadow it casts," she continued. "Even Lechia, in all its might, is not untouched. You are not wrong to fear what grows unseen, Xavier of Valerion. The darkness you speak of is not coming...it is already here. It walks among us, smiles at us, eats at our tables. And one day, it will devour everything that breathes."

Lucas’s heart sank a little as her words echoed across the room.

The Empress fell silent for a while, and when she spoke again, her tone was quieter, almost thoughtful. "Darkness is coming," she said, her voice steady and cold. "And it is coming for us all."

The chamber fell into a silence so profound that even the faint hum of energy in the air seemed to fade. Lucas could only stand there, the weight of her words pressing down on him, knowing that whatever she had just spoken was not prophecy...it was truth.

The Empress’s voice grew colder, quieter, yet somehow it carried even more weight than before. "You have no idea what’s coming," she said, each word heavy with meaning. "You think you’ve seen the edge of this storm, but you have not even glimpsed its heart. The corruption you speak of is not merely spreading...it is already everywhere. Faster than any of us anticipated. Deeper than anyone dares to admit."

Lucas stood still, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Then you’ve seen it too," he said. "You’ve felt it."

"I have felt it," she admitted. "But it is not something you can simply feel and trace back to its source. It is like poison in the veins of a dying man. You may know it is there, but by the time you notice, it has already reached the heart."

Lucas clenched his fists slightly. "Then we must act fast, Your Majesty. That is why I came here...to unite the realms before the disease consumes them one by one."

The Empress turned slightly behind the thin veil, her silhouette casting a long, elegant shadow against the dim golden light of the chamber. "And that is precisely what they want you to do," she said in a tone that sent a shiver down Lucas’s spine.

He frowned, his brows drawing together. "What do you mean?"

"Forming an alliance," she said slowly, "will only strengthen the enemy."

Lucas took a step forward, his voice sharp with disbelief. "How could unity strengthen an enemy that hides in the dark? That makes no sense...unless..."

"Unless the darkness is already within," the Empress interrupted gently. Her tone was not scolding, but grave. "You do not understand yet, Xavier. The enemy you wish to fight does not come from beyond our borders. They are already among us, wearing the faces of those we trust most."

Lucas fell silent. He could feel his chest tightening, the gravity of her words sinking deep. "Are you saying..." he began, hesitant, "...that Lechia too has been infiltrated?"

"Not just Lechia," she said, almost whispering now. "Valerion, Lechia, Rus...all three kingdoms have been touched by it...and many more kingdoms. You think the corruption stops at your borders, but it does not respect walls, banners, or bloodlines. It flows through trade, through secrets whispered in chambers like this one, through hearts that once swore loyalty."

He was speechless for a moment, his mind racing through possibilities. "Then... then what can be done? If alliances are a trap, if even the strongest walls are already breached, what chance do we have left?"

The Empress did not answer right away. Her silhouette was still, graceful, unreadable. The silence stretched long enough that Lucas began to hear the faint rhythm of his own heartbeat again.

Finally, she said, "You must understand, whoever is behind this... they have planned it too well. Too carefully. Every step we take, every word we speak, every treaty we sign...it all feeds into their design. They have ensured that even within their ranks, they remain faceless to one another. No one knows who truly leads, no one knows who serves. They exist in shadows, a web without a center, so when you cut one thread, ten more appear."

Lucas exhaled slowly, a chill running down his back. He knew now that what he had stumbled into was far bigger than an alliance, far darker than any political plot.

"They are everywhere, Xavier," the Empress said, her tone low and steady. "And that is why your discovery, your knowledge, your very existence, is both a threat and a hope. But understand this...." she paused, the faintest trace of emotion slipping through her words, "...if you move too rashly, you will not only fail to save Valerion. You will hand them the keys to all kingdoms."

Lucas swallowed hard, unable to find words for a moment. "Then... the alliance..."

The Empress’s shadow turned slightly toward him. "The alliance, if made now," she said, "will not protect us. It will only feed the enemy more information, more opportunity, more lives."

Her words hung in the air like smoke, heavy and unyielding. Lucas stood frozen where he was, the realization sinking deep into him like a blade turned slowly in the wound.

"Whoever orchestrated this," the Empress continued, her tone darkening, "has hidden themselves so perfectly that even those serving them may not know they are part of it. That is how deep the corruption runs."

Lucas lowered his gaze, his thoughts spiraling as the truth unfolded before him. The Empress’s final words struck him harder than anything she had said before, he was troubled.

"Whoever is planning this," she said, "has already won half the battle. And the most frightening part, Xavier, is that they do not even need to reveal themselves to destroy us."

Silence followed, thick and suffocating, leaving Lucas to stand there...his mind in turmoil...understanding at last that the world he knew was already drowning in a darkness that none of them could yet see.