For a moment, I was truly confused. I narrowed my eyes at him and asked, “Why would someone like you need help from me?”

  He looked me dead in the eye and began, “I am from the Nightveil Clan.”

  My breath caught. The Nightveil Clan… A name buried in history and fear. A rare bloodline born from both human and demon origins. A hundred years ago, after the War of the Kingdoms, both humans and demons turned against them. Neither side could accept their existence. Eventually, the Nightveils were hunted down and wiped out—at least, that’s what everyone believed.

  They were powerful—frighteningly so. Their hybrid bloodline granted them strength few could match. But if this man was really a Nightveil... then everything we knew was wrong.

  I frowned. “Do you take me for a fool? The Nightveil Clan is extinct. They were all slaughtered long ago.”

  His answer came in the form of raw power. He unleashed his soul aura, and in an instant, I felt it—something ancient, wild, and unfamiliar. I’d never sensed anything like it before. A chill ran through me, but I kept my expression calm.

  “So what?” I said coldly. “That just proves you’re one of the demons. If that’s the case, I could start a war to wipe out the last of your kind myself. Why did you call me here? What do you want?”

  His voice lowered, touched with desperation. “There are only two Nightveils left in all 51 kingdoms—me and my sister. We never fought for the demons. We stayed hidden, healing from the war, cultivating in silence. But Queen Riva found out about us. She saw our bloodline not as a threat, but as a tool. She attacked us. I fought back, but… my sister was captured. I had no choice but to surrender. Now, if I disobey, she’ll kill her. That’s how she broke me. She gifted me as a ‘disciple’ to Erwin Alther, her new ally.”

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  My fists clenched. Riva’s cruelty knew no bounds.

  “So,” I asked, “why come to me?”

  He looked directly into my soul. “Because I’m being watched. If I make one wrong move, Erwin will execute my sister. But you… you’re not being monitored like I am. If you help me rescue her and grant me a place among humans, I’ll give you something in return—everything I know about the Demon Kingdom, our clan’s rare techniques, and more.”

  He paused, then added, “Also… there’s no way you can recover the Heavenly Flame Dragon without the actual Heavenly Flame. And only one place holds it now—Queen Riva’s territory. That’s why Hai Ri can’t go herself—she’d be discovered immediately. Why do you think she’s gathering people like Rihanna? She’s building a team strong enough to retrieve the flame… quietly.”

  I stood silent, trying to process it all. “They're blackmailing you with your sister’s life… shameless.”

  Every instinct told me to doubt him, but something about the way he spoke, the look in his eyes—it wasn’t a lie. It was pain. Real pain.

  “I think I’ll help you,” I said cautiously, “but I need to speak to Kyle first.”

  Just as I spoke his name, I felt his presence. Kyle arrived like lightning, spirit energy surging, ready to strike. He must’ve sensed something was wrong. An advanced skill began forming in his hands.

  “Stop, Kyle!” I shouted. “It’s not what you think!”

  He hesitated. I stepped in, quickly explaining everything to him.

  When I finally asked, “Can we accept him as one of us?” Kyle paused for a moment, then nodded.

  “Yes. Why not? There will be resistance from the other kingdoms, sure. But having someone with that kind of power on our side? That’s a risk worth taking.”

  The man offered a small, tired smile. “Sorry,” he said. “I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Lucen Nightveil. I need to leave now. If I stay any longer, they’ll suspect something.”

  Kyle reached into his cloak and handed him a glowing stone. “Take this summoning stone. Crush it if things get too dangerous. We’ll come for you.”

  Lucen nodded, eyes filled with gratitude. “Thank you. Both of you.” And then he vanished into the trees.

  As we turned back toward the castle, worry pressed into my chest like a blade.

  “I hope Ravel is all right,” I muttered.

  Kyle’s voice was sharper than usual. “You shouldn’t have left him alone.”

  My heart sank. He was right.

  And something in the air told me… we weren’t out of danger yet.