Chapter 91: Shadows in the Blood**
The palace was **shrouded in mourning**, its grand halls quieter than usual, but beneath the sorrow, a storm was brewing.
Lucian **hadn’t spoken to Seraphina** since their last encounter.
Not once.
Not even when their paths crossed in the palace corridors.
He **refused to look at her**, refused to acknowledge her presence, as if she had become a ghost—an unwanted fragment of the past he was determined to bury.
And Ava?
Ava was **thriving** in it.
She walked beside Lucian **as if she belonged there**, her hand occasionally grazing his, her soft words laced with **sweet poison**.
*"You’re doing the right thing, my love,"* she had murmured that morning, her voice **dripping with satisfaction**. *"She doesn’t belong here anymore."*
Lucian had given no response, his golden eyes dark with exhaustion, but he hadn’t disagreed either.
And that was enough for Ava.
Now, she stood beside him in the royal hall, where the **council and nobles had gathered to discuss the king’s burial**.
The air was heavy with grief and formality.
Lucian, clad in black and gold, stood at the head of the table, **silent and unreadable** as the elders discussed the **final rites** for his father.
Ava, always eager to **sink her claws deeper**, took the moment to lean in, her voice soft but deliberate.
*"The kingdom needs an heir, Lucian,"* she whispered. *"Your father would have wanted you to strengthen your bloodline."*
Lucian didn’t react.
Ava pressed on.
*"We are husband and wife. It is our duty to ensure the future of eldoria."*
This time, Lucian turned.
And when his eyes met hers—**there was nothing but ice**.
*"My father is dead."* His voice was calm, but it held **a razor-sharp edge**. *"And you think now is the time to speak of heirs?"*
Ava swallowed but didn’t back down.
*"Lucian, I—"*
*"Enough."*
Ava stiffened as Lucian **rose to his feet**, his chair scraping against the floor. The room fell **deathly silent**.
His golden eyes **pinned her in place**.
*"You disgust me, Ava,"* he said, voice cold enough to **freeze fire**.
Ava’s face **flushed with anger**.
*"I am your wife—"*
*"You are nothing to me."*
The words **hit her like a slap**, her breath catching in her throat.
Lucian didn’t spare her another glance.
Without another word, he turned and strode out of the hall.
Ava’s **fingers curled into fists**, her nails digging into her palms.
But she said **nothing**.
Not here.
Not now.
She would bide her time.
And when the moment came, **Seraphina would be the one to suffer for this humiliation**.
\---
\### **Seraphina & the King’s Body**
Seraphina stood in the **dimly lit chamber**, staring at **the cold, lifeless form of the king**.
His once-powerful frame lay stiff on the stone slab, his body wrapped in **golden ceremonial cloth**, his face eerily **peaceful**—but beneath the surface, she could feel it.
**The rot of dark magic.**
It coiled **deep within him**, like poison trapped beneath the skin, preventing his spirit from passing into the afterlife.
He was **not at rest**.
And until the dark magic was purged, **he never would be**.
Seraphina took a slow, **shaking breath**.
She could do this.
She **had to**.
Summoning her magic, she stepped closer, pressing her hands against the king’s chest.
The instant she touched him, **a violent force slammed into her**.
She **gasped**, her knees buckling as **whispers flooded her mind**—twisted voices, dark laughter, the remnants of something **ancient and cruel**.
*"She dares to touch what is ours?"*
*"Foolish girl."*
*"This body belongs to us now."*
Seraphina **gritted her teeth**.
*"Not anymore."*
She closed her eyes and **pushed her magic deeper**, calling on the power that ran through her very bones.
Light **poured from her hands**, seeping into the king’s body, clashing violently against the black veins of corruption.
The dark magic **fought back**.
Seraphina gasped as a **searing pain** tore through her, like claws raking down her spine.
The room **shook**.
The torches lining the walls **flickered wildly**.
The very air **crackled with power**.
And then—
The dark magic **screamed**.
It **lashed out**, writhing like a living thing, trying to **sink its claws into Seraphina**.
But she **did not yield**.
She **forced it back**, her body trembling under the strain, her magic burning brighter, brighter—
Until suddenly—
The darkness **broke**.
A **violent burst of energy** exploded outward, shattering the black tendrils of magic, burning them away **until nothing remained**.
The king’s body **shuddered**.
His form **stilled**.
And then—
Silence.
Seraphina **staggered back**, her vision **blurring**, her breath ragged.
She had done it.
She had freed him.
But then—
Something was **wrong**.
Her body **seized**.
A sharp, unbearable **pain tore through her chest**, burning from the inside out.
She **choked**, her fingers clawing at her throat.
And then—
She **spat out blood**.
A thick, **dark stream of it**.
It hit the stone floor **with a sickening splatter**.
Her **head spun**.
Her **lungs screamed**.
Her vision **darkened**.
And then—
Seraphina **collapsed**.
\---