Chapter 186 CHAPTER 186
Time in the Silver City did not move the way it did in the human realm.
At first, neither Liam nor Lisa had noticed it. The city was too beautiful, too peaceful, too different from everything they had known for them to think about clocks or passing hours. But after the first day, when Elder Caelion had casually mentioned it over their evening meal, Liam finally understood why everything here felt suspended in a gentle stillness.
Three days had passed for them in the Silver City.
Yet in the human realm, barely a single day had gone by since they stepped through the portal.
The realization had felt strange at first, almost unsettling. But slowly it began to feel like a gift.
A pause.
A breath the world had given them.
Caelion had proven to be a gracious host in every sense of the word. From the moment they arrived, the people of the Silver City had welcomed them with a warmth that felt genuine rather than ceremonial. They did not treat Liam like a stranger who had simply wandered into their realm. They treated him like someone who belonged there.
Like someone they had been waiting for.
He and Lisa had been given rooms in Caelion’s residence, though calling it a residence hardly did it justice. The structure rose high above the surrounding buildings, its silver towers spiraling upward like something grown from the very light of the city itself. From the outside it resembled a palace. From the inside it felt quieter, more intimate, like an ancient tower that had been standing long before Mooncrest ever existed.
Their room sat near the very top.
From the wide balcony windows, the entire Silver City stretched out beneath them like a living constellation. During the day the buildings shimmered softly, their surfaces reflecting light in ways that seemed almost alive. But at night, the city became something even more breathtaking.
Small lights floated through the air above the streets.
Some were shaped like moons, pale and glowing gently. Others resembled tiny stars drifting lazily through the night sky. They moved slowly through the air as if carried by an invisible current, illuminating the pathways and towers below with a soft silver glow.
It was magical in a way that did not feel overwhelming.
It felt… peaceful.
Both Liam and Lisa had fallen in love with the city in those three quiet days.
Even the necklace Lisa wore had responded to the place. Since their arrival, the pendant had continued to glow faintly against her skin. The light it gave off was soft and steady, almost like a heartbeat of its own.
Giving comfort to the two hearts that needed it most at this time.
The light seemed to calm them both whenever they noticed it.
Celia and Kane had felt it too.
For the two wolves, being in the Silver City had been something extraordinary. It was a place that resonated with ancient magic, something deeper than the wolf realm itself. With Caelion’s guidance, Liam had experimented with his abilities as the warden and discovered something remarkable.
He could summon them fully.
Not just within their minds, but into physical form.
The first time Celia and Kane had appeared within the city streets, the reaction from the residents had been immediate and unforgettable. At first the people of the Silver City had stared in shock at the sight of the two massive wolves standing beside the warden.
Then the shock turned into awe.
The wolves were not treated with fear. Instead, they were welcomed with fascination and delight. Children ran their hands along their soft fur. Some of the residents even lifted them into their strange floating vehicles and carried them through the city so they could see its wonders from above.
It had been a once-in-a-lifetime experience for them.
Even now, late into the night, Celia and Kane were still exploring somewhere within the glowing streets of the city.
Through the mind link, Liam could sense exactly where they were.
They were happy.
Peaceful.
That alone made something inside him settle.
Inside the tower room, the quiet felt deeper.
Lisa slept beside him on the wide bed that seemed to have been woven from something softer than any fabric he had ever touched. The surface adjusted gently beneath their weight, almost as though the bed itself understood comfort.
Liam lay on his side, watching her.
Her hair spilled loosely across the pillow, catching the faint glow of the floating lights drifting outside the tall windows. The soft rise and fall of her breathing filled the quiet room with a calm rhythm that soothed something restless inside him.
He felt closer to her here than he ever had before.
It was strange.
In the Silver City, the connection between them seemed stronger, clearer. He could sense her emotions more easily, almost like hearing the echo of her thoughts beneath the surface.
He could feel her heartbeat.
He could feel the warmth of her presence like a quiet flame beside him.
It made the world feel smaller.
Safer.
Lisa shifted slightly in her sleep and let out a soft, sleepy sound.
Liam smiled faintly.
He reached out and brushed his fingers gently along her cheek.
The moment his touch reached her skin, Lisa stirred again. Her eyes remained closed, but her hand lifted slowly and found his. She held it loosely, as if recognizing him even in her dreams.
Then she lifted his hand to her lips and pressed a soft, feather-light kiss against the back of it.
“Are you still awake?” she murmured drowsily.
Liam chuckled quietly.
“How can I sleep,” he said softly, “with such a beautiful woman beside me? I’d rather spend every second of my life watching how beautiful she is.”
Lisa opened one eye slightly, a faint smile touching her lips.
“You’re ridiculous,” she murmured.
But she moved closer to him anyway, turning onto her side so they faced each other on the bed.
“If that’s how you feel,” she said quietly, running her fingers along his jaw, “then it feels like a waste for me to sleep next to you too.”
Her hands moved up to cup his face gently.
For a moment they simply looked at each other.
The floating lights outside the window drifted slowly past, casting soft silver reflections across the room.
Lisa leaned forward first.
Their kiss began softly.
It was slow, hesitant in the way that comes from affection rather than urgency. Their lips moved together carefully at first, like they were rediscovering something familiar.
Then the warmth between them deepened.
The quiet emotions they had carried over the past days - relief, gratitude, love, the fragile peace they had found in this city - rose between them all at once. The kiss grew stronger, fuller, but it never lost its tenderness.
Liam’s hand slid gently into her hair while Lisa’s fingers curled lightly against the back of his neck.
They paused once, just long enough to look at each other again.
There was no need for words.
The connection between them spoke clearly enough.
Lisa rested her forehead briefly against his, their breaths mingling as they smiled softly at one another. The closeness between them felt natural, like something that had always existed and was only now allowed to bloom fully.
When they kissed again, it carried all the quiet emotion they had been holding inside.
Their movements remained gentle, guided more by affection than by urgency. Each touch felt meaningful, each moment filled with the quiet certainty that they were exactly where they were meant to be.
Outside, the silver lights drifted slowly through the sky.
Inside the tower room, time seemed to slow even further as the warmth between them grew deeper and more intimate. They held each other close, their hearts beating steadily together as if the Silver City itself were protecting the peace they had found.
Eventually the intensity softened again into quiet closeness.
Lisa rested her head against Liam’s chest, listening to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat beneath her ear. His arm wrapped securely around her, holding her against him as though he never wanted to let go.
The glowing necklace at her collarbone pulsed faintly once in the darkness.
Neither of them noticed.
Sleep came slowly but naturally.
And for the first time in what felt like forever, they both drifted into it with calm hearts, wrapped safely in each other’s arms while the silent lights of the Silver City continued their gentle dance beyond the tower windows.