Chapter 120 CHAPTER 120
The dungeons grew colder the moment Seraphine stepped inside.
It was not the kind of cold that came from stone or damp air, but the kind that pressed against the skin and settled in the bones, the kind that made breathing feel like a mistake. The boys felt it before they saw her. One by one, their bodies stiffened, thin shoulders curling inward, bare feet retreating instinctively against the rough stone floor. Chains rattled softly as they shifted, fear moving through them like a whispered warning.
Seraphine walked slowly, her long dark robes barely brushing the ground. Her presence filled the space without effort, as if the dungeon itself bent to acknowledge her. Her eyes swept across the cages, sharp and unblinking, taking in every tremor, every shallow breath. She had come here countless times before, yet something was different now. She felt it the moment her foot crossed the threshold.
Something foreign lingered in the air.
She stopped.
Her fingers curled slightly at her side as her senses stretched outward, sinking past stone and iron, past flesh and fear. The magic was faint, almost gone, but it was unmistakable. A residue. A signature that did not belong to this place.
Her lips pressed into a thin line.
Someone had been here.
Seraphine moved closer to the cages, her gaze locking onto the boys huddled together in the far corner. Their eyes darted toward her and then away, terror stripping them of even the courage to beg. She could hear their hearts racing, feel the frantic pulse of life they clung to so desperately.
“What happened here?” she asked calmly.
Her voice was soft, almost gentle, but it carried an edge sharp enough to cut through stone.
No one answered.
The silence stretched. One boy’s lip trembled as he shook his head, his hands gripping the bars so tightly his knuckles had gone white.
Seraphine’s eyes narrowed.
“I will not ask again,” she said. “If you do not speak now, something unpleasant will follow.”
Still, nothing.
She exhaled slowly, disappointment flickering across her face before vanishing beneath cold resolve. With a simple lift of her hand, magic surged through the space. One of the boys was yanked violently upward, his thin body lifted off the ground as invisible fingers closed around his throat.
His feet kicked uselessly in the air.
The others cried out in panic, scrambling forward until the chains around their ankles snapped them back. The boy’s hands clawed at nothing, eyes wide and bulging as his breath came in broken gasps.
“Ten,” Seraphine said evenly.
Her gaze never left their faces.
“Nine.”
Tears streamed down the cheeks of the boy in the air.
“Eight.”
“Please,” one of the others sobbed. “Please, we didn’t do anything.”
“Seven.”
Seraphine tilted her head slightly. “That is not an answer.”
“Six.”
“Wait!” another boy shouted, his voice cracking. “There was someone. There was… there was some…thing.”
Seraphine’s hand stilled.
The magic tightened, but she did not drop the boy.
“Continue,” she said.
The boy swallowed hard, his entire body shaking. “She just appeared. Out of nowhere. We thought we were imagining it. She was only here for a moment.”
Seraphine’s eyes burned. “Who was she?”
“I don’t know,” he said quickly. “She looked… confused. Scared. Like she didn’t belong.”
The boy in the air coughed violently as Seraphine loosened her grip just enough to let him breathe.
“And then?” she prompted.
“The caregiver came in,” the boy continued. “The one who brings food. The one everyone calls Queen.”
Seraphine’s breath caught, just for a fraction of a second.
“And the girl,” the boy whispered, “she called her… Mom.”
The dungeon fell silent.
Seraphine released her hold. The boy collapsed onto the ground in a heap, coughing and gasping as the others dragged him back, clinging to him as if their bodies could shield him from her wrath.
For a long moment, Seraphine did not move.
“She did?” She finally asked “What did she look like?”
“We didn’t see her clearly, but she was young - twenty or so. One moment she was here and the next something yanked her off.”
There was a moment of silence.
“Mmmhhh… Interesting.” Seraphine finally said then she turned sharply and strode out of the dungeon without another word, her robes snapping behind her like a living thing.
The corridors leading to her chambers blurred as her steps quickened. Her mind raced, piecing together fragments she did not like. The presence she had felt. The residue of power. The name spoken in the dungeon.
Mom.
She reached the stairs just as a servant hurried toward her, head bowed low.
“Summon the servant Queen to my chambers at once,” Seraphine said without slowing. “I need her to explain something to me.
” “Yes, Madam,” the woman said quickly, already turning, then hesitated. “You asked to be informed of any visitors.”
“Seraphine did not slow. “Speak.”
“Your daughter is waiting in your chambers.”
Seraphine stopped abruptly.
Her eyes flashed. “I never summoned her.”
The servant flinched. “She said it was urgent, Madam.”
Seraphine closed her eyes briefly, irritation pulsing through her like heat. “Tell Queen Helena to wait. She will not be summoned until I say so.”
“Yes, Madam.”
Seraphine turned and continued on, her steps heavy now, deliberate. When she pushed open the doors to her chambers, Sarah was already standing near the window, her posture too eager, her smile too quick.
“Mother,” Sarah said, stepping forward with open arms.
Seraphine passed her without a glance.
“I did not call for you,” she said coldly. “If you continue coming here without permission, you will expose yourself.”
Sarah faltered. “I thought it was important. I wouldn’t have come if it wasn’t.”
“You do not decide what is important,” Seraphine replied, turning at last to face her. “You are supposed to be at school. If questions are asked about your absence, your cover weakens.”
“I was careful,” Sarah said quickly. “I left during free period. No one noticed.”
Seraphine studied her for a long moment. “Speak. What did you come to say?”
Sarah straightened. “I found her. The princess. She’s attending Lunaris School.”
Seraphine’s expression did not change. “I know.”
Sarah blinked. “You… know?”
“I have my ways,” Seraphine said.
“Then why didn’t you tell me?” Sarah asked, frustration slipping through her voice.
“Because you are not my equal,” Seraphine said calmly. “You receive what you need, when you need it. Nothing more.”
Sarah clenched her fists. “What do you want me to do about her?”
“Nothing,” Seraphine replied. “Watch her. Do not act.”
Sarah hesitated. “She has a bodyguard, but not always. They think she’s safe at school. I could—”
“You will not,” Seraphine snapped. “You are underestimating her.”
Sarah scoffed. “She’s just Cindy.”
“No,” Seraphine said sharply. “She is Lisa. Cindy was hiding. Lisa is not. She is stronger than you think.”
Sarah’s voice softened. “Sebastian is wavering. He barely looks at me anymore. His father told us to stay away from each other.”
Seraphine’s gaze hardened. “Is this about the mission,” she asked slowly, “or have you fallen in love? Is that it – has your wolf side taken over?”
Sarah stiffened. “Of course not.”
“You had better be telling the truth, your wolf side is your weakness,” Seraphine said. “If you let it win and stand between me and my purpose, you will fall with the rest of my enemies.”
Silence stretched between them.
“Go back to school,” Seraphine said at last. “Do not return unless summoned.”
Sarah nodded, disappointment clouding her face as she turned and left.
Seraphine turned back toward the door and lifted her voice to the servants. “You may bring the slave queen now.”
As she walked through the outskirts of the village, she nearly collided with Queen Helena.
Sarah paused, her eyes tracing the woman’s face. The resemblance struck her now, undeniable. The same eyes. The same quiet strength worn thin by suffering.
Understanding crept in slowly, cold and sharp.
Queen.
Sarah had always thought this was just a title the villagers used to mock the dungeon caregiver. She had never thought she was the true queen of Mooncrest – Lisa’s Mum. A truth her mother had never explained.
She smiled to herself, this was not over – she still had one more hidden card.