CHAPTER 156: LOOKING FOR ANSWERS

Aelin

Her answer was quiet simple

"I liked his sincerity," she said.

I blinked. "Sincerity?"

She nodded once. "He never lied about who he was. He wanted me for what I was, and didn’t dress it up in honeyed words. I could respect that more than those who smiled and schemed behind closed doors."

I frowned. "That’s not enough reason to live through what you did. That’s no reason to let them lock you away like that."

She chuckled so softly, I could barely hear it, "Sounds bad, doesn’t it."

"It is bad," I said, " You didn’t fight back. You didn’t try to escape. You aren’t like Darcelle—they fear her. They had to chain her in the tower because she would have burned the world down. But you... you just stayed. You let them hide you away. You were free, and you chose silence. Why would you willingly choose that?"

Seraphine looked out the window, eyes distant now, voice quieter. "It sounds strange, doesn’t it?"

"Very strange," I replied, "And I didn’t want to pry but it’s been on my mind for weeks. Why would someone choose that life willingly?"

She finally looked at me then, her expression unreadable.

"Because I kept dreaming about the savior," she said softly.

I blinked. "What?"

"I told you about my family right. How there was a prophecy secretly passed amongst us."

"Yes..."

"Our belief was quite strong about the prophecy being true and mine became particularly strong when I began to dream."

"Dream?"

She nodded. "The dreams started long before I ever met the king. They weren’t just glimpses. They were calls. Warnings. Visions. And they always led to the same place. To him. To this. To you."

My breath caught. "Me?"

Seraphine smiled, and this time it was warm—filled with something deeper than just kindness. A quiet knowing. "I didn’t accept the king’s love for no reason, Aelin. I didn’t stay in that tower because I was weak. I did it because I knew I had to. Because the dreams told me to. And I trusted them."

!!!

She held my gaze. "I stayed because I had to be here. For when the prophecy fulfills. For you."

My skin stood up

I stared at her, unsure what to feel. Confused. Awed. A little bit angry, even. And yet beneath it all, I believed her.

"If I didn’t come here. The book would never have reached you. You would not have awakened your powers."

A chill ran down my spine

"And I knew I had to be here to teach what I knew. So you can face the darkness."

"...." I couldn’t bring myself to say anything to her. It was hard to believe how much faith she had in the prophecy no one else knew about.

And

How much faith she had in me...

Her humming returned, and she tilted her face back toward the sun again, eyes fluttering shut.

***

Draken

The last of the rubble gave way with a low, grinding sigh, stone scraping against stone as it shifted under the weight of time. I stepped through the newly opened passage, brushing broken dust from my shoulder, and motioned for Vesper to follow. The air was heavy with the scent of mildew and decay, the kind that settles in forgotten places. Cold. Still.

We had finally reached the underground temple.

The main hall was a broken husk of what it must have once been. Massive pillars lay cracked and scattered across the floor, half-buried in the debris that had collapsed with them. The domed ceiling above was fractured, a little of it was open, the rest hidden with more rublle, its murals chipped beyond recognition, and a strange, damp silence echoed in the space between the shattered stone.

I stepped forward slowly, boots crunching against loose gravel. Black streaks marred the floor and stretched along the bases of the ruined columns—like old bloodstains dragged across the stone. I crouched down beside one of them and ran my fingers along it.

"Black mold?" Vesper asked from behind me, her voice low.

"No," I said. "It’s what’s left of the black milk... but it’s inert now. Just stains. Nothing left to extract."

Vesper’s eyes glimmered in the dim light, her gaze fixed on the far side of the ruined hall. "We should keep moving," I muttered, pushing to my feet.

Without another word, we slipped into one of the tunnels leading deeper into the temple’s buried veins. The air grew colder the further we walked, the silence even more absolute.

Vesper picked up a torch log from the wall, charred but intact. She held it before her mouth, drew in a slow breath, and exhaled a thin stream of fire. The log ignited instantly, casting long flickering shadows across the tunnel walls. The warm light danced across her face, reflecting in the gold flecks of her eyes.

She walked beside me, the torch lighting our path. "It’s weird," she said after a while. "How all of this just... started. Out of nowhere. The Abyss creatures... they’re too strong. Someone without training wouldn’t stand a chance."

"They are strong," I agreed, voice low. "Stronger than anything that we encountered before. They’re the only creatures I’ve ever known that can injure us dragons." I glanced at her. "Despite our natural scale defenses."

Vesper turned to me with a curious look. "Did that... rattle you?"

I didn’t answer right away. My gaze remained fixed ahead, watching the twisting dark ahead of us. "Yes," I said finally. "It did. Dragons were always taught we’re impossible to wound. Indestructible. Part of the reason why we rule the demon kingdom. But these things..." My jaw tightened. "That’s why I want this over."

The tunnel fell into silence again, save for the crackle of flame.

Vesper nudged me gently with her elbow. "Hey," she said, attempting to lighten the mood, her voice a little too cheerful to be casual. "Don’t worry, alright? If anything happens, I’ll protect you."

I stopped walking. The look she gave me was playful—confident. Trying to reassure me with her usual charm. I looked at her for a moment, and then let out a low chuckle.

"I know you will," I said.

Her expression faltered, just for a second. Not from insult or confusion, but surprise. Like she hadn’t expected me to take her seriously. Her eyes widened a little, the firelight casting a soft glow across her face.

For once, she didn’t have a quick response.

But then she beamed, "Aha! So you still have that blind trust in me? Like when we were kids!" She ran up to me and wrapped her arm around my shoulder in joy

"Hm," My reply was calmer, "It seems so,"

Right then something happened.

A sound reached our ears that startled us.

***

Ariston

I stared at the piece of paper I got from Drakkar

It’s been days but I couldn’t bring myself to go face dad... I wonder if he left already.

I crumpled the paper in my hand and looked at the bright blue sky as I let out a sigh.

But I still have to ask him that.