CHAPTER 25: CHAPTER25-HOUSE TASCHER

The deeds of Minister of War Nock could only be described as the darkest of crimes.

Aurek had no intention of sparing him.

His order was absolute—every member of Nock’s family was to be executed. Not one would be left alive.

And as for Nock’s allies, his collaborators, his so-called friends? They too would be hunted down. None of them would escape.

The city of Eryndor trembled.

For three days straight, tension hung in the air like a storm cloud pressing down on the people’s hearts.

No laughter was heard in the streets. Conversations dropped into whispers. Every door was shut early, and the markets emptied long before dusk.

At the same time, Aurek’s personal shadows multiplied.

Sixty more Elemental Assassins had been summoned to his service.

Sixty—an increase so sharp and sudden it shocked even those who thought themselves unshakable.

With the Gold Assassin at their head, this hidden legion had become a nightmare made flesh.

Even a Hero Rank powerhouse, the kind of warrior who stood as the greatest pillar of strength for smaller factions, would not be safe if Aurek turned his assassins loose.

For some factions, a Hero Rank fighter was the pinnacle of their might, the very foundation of their survival.

But in just three days, Aurek had created a force that could threaten such foundations.

It was as though, from nothing, he had conjured the strength of an independent faction.

And this was only the beginning.

His system would continue to evolve.

As his level rose, the number of assassins he could summon would grow as well. One day, that number would become a vast, unseen army stretching across the empire.

The thought filled Aurek with a grim confidence.

On the walls of Valoria Palace, he stood in silence, looking out over the countless lamps that dotted the capital like fallen stars.

Every light was a household.

Every light was one of his subjects.

They were his people, and he swore he would protect them, no matter the cost.

Behind him, Angie watched.

Her eyes were wide, her heart beating faster as she looked at his back, tall and unwavering against the night.

Her emperor had changed.

The world knew the empire was dying. Everyone knew it.

And yet Aurek had chosen to rise against that tide, to set himself against the world itself.

To Angie, still young, it was dazzling.

What girl would not admire a man who chose to fight fate itself, even knowing it was hopeless?

To her, Aurek was like the prince of every dream, the knight who fought an impossible battle with unshakable courage.

And yet she also knew the truth.

She was but Angie. A servant. A small shadow in the light of his majesty. She could never stand at his side as an equal.

Her head lowered.

Her messy thoughts were gathered and locked away deep in her heart.

When she lifted her eyes again, they were clear and pure.

"Your Majesty," she said softly, "I may be weak, and perhaps I cannot help you much. But I will always stand by your side."

Her words were quiet, but they carried a firm strength.

She understood what his actions meant. By destroying Nock and his household, Aurek had invited chaos upon the empire. Turmoil was inevitable.

Against such tides, she was powerless.

But she could remain close. She could serve him faithfully. And if the day came when her body was needed to shield him from death, she would give it willingly.

If she could protect him, even for a single heartbeat, Angie thought that her life would not have been wasted.

Aurek nodded slightly, his face calm, his eyes still fixed on the horizon.

No one could guess what thoughts lingered in his mind.

After a long pause, his voice broke the silence.

"Send word to House Tascher. I will be paying their family a visit."

Angie bowed deeply and hurried to obey.

Aurek, meanwhile, called forth the Gold Assassin.

"Send watchers," he ordered. "Jacoff and Troy. I want every movement, every word. Report everything to me."

For Aurek, the Elemental Assassins were far more than mere killers.

Their greatest strength was not the dagger in the dark.

It was their invisibility. Their ability to dissolve into the very elements themselves, slipping through shadows and walls, unseen and undetected.

Even Expert Rank warriors could not sense them.

Only those who had reached the Hero Rank, whose spiritual energy could extend outward, had any chance of detecting their presence.

And even then, that chance was slim.

Secrets could not remain secrets before Aurek.

Every man had things hidden, but with his assassins, Aurek could uncover them all.

That was the true terror of the Elemental Assassins.

Assassination was only the surface of their purpose.

With them, Aurek dreamed of scattering his shadows across the entire Crossbridge Empire.

Every movement, every whisper, every betrayal—none would escape his gaze.

A faint smile touched his lips.

"It is also time," he murmured to himself, "to see my empress."

Far across the capital, in the great fortress of House Tascher, one of the most powerful families of the empire, the clan’s patriarch sat with his elders in heavy council.

Their castle was nearly the size of Valoria Palace itself, a monument to their wealth and influence.

The chamber was filled with solemn voices.

"Tell me," one elder asked, "do you believe what happened to Nock’s household was truly the emperor’s doing?"

Another nodded grimly. "It seems likely. Think back to the Royal Council chamber. Recall how Aurek looked at Nock. The hatred was clear."

"If that is true," a third muttered, "then we face trouble. The Unicorn Trading Guild will not swallow this humiliation. If they discover the emperor was behind it, they will certainly move against him."

The room fell quiet for a moment before another voice rose.

"What matters now is not guessing. We must learn exactly what strength Aurek commands. We cannot afford to underestimate him."

The elder hesitated, then added, "There is another piece of intelligence. From the Ordon Theocracy. A prodigy has emerged among them. His name is Sacco. The church has begun training him with the highest priority."

The air in the chamber grew heavy at once.

"Sacco? Impossible! How could he have risen so far?"

"Have you forgotten?" another demanded. "He came here once, seeking to fulfill his engagement with Josephine. And we cast him out! We humiliated him before the entire family, without the slightest courtesy."

The elders shifted uneasily. That memory was a wound they had all but buried, and now it returned with venom.

The elder who had spoken first continued, his voice low.

"I have heard that in only half a year, Sacco raised his strength to the Expert Rank. Half a year. Such speed... it is monstrous, the work of a true prodigy."

Silence spread across the council chamber.

They did not wish to admit it, but their judgment had been wrong.

Fear crept into their hearts.

Yule Tascher, the patriarch, frowned deeply. Of them all, he understood most clearly what Sacco’s rise meant for their family.

But what was done could not be undone. The rejection had been absolute. The bridge had been burned.

At the time, Sacco’s engagement to Josephine had seemed laughable, an insult to their noble blood. Refusing him had felt natural. Perhaps it had even been correct.

But the cruelty of how they had done it—that was the true mistake.

One elder finally broke the silence. "Yule, we must consider leaving ourselves a retreat."

Another quickly added, "Yes. The empire itself is crumbling. Even the protection of the crimson-robed cardinal will not last forever. And when Sacco grows stronger, it may take only a single word from him to strip away that protection."

The words lingered in the air, heavy as stone.

And when that day came, the elder said with dread certainty, neither Josephine nor House Tascher would be spared.