Chapter 166

Chapter 166
Lyra's POV

My heart plummeted.

Though I didn't know what exactly Declan meant by "priceless treasure," one thing was crystal clear—he had never cared about peace among the Four Territories. A man who could use his own son as bait wouldn't spare a thought for the lives of werewolves in the other three territories.

I couldn't let him succeed.

I made my decision quickly and was about to turn back to warn Orion when Declan emerged from a side corridor. His face wore that perfectly calibrated smile I'd seen countless times during succession ceremonies.

"Now that the Blood Moon Cult has been destroyed," he began, his tone suggesting something entirely reasonable and minor, "why don't we seize this momentum and eliminate those vampires? They've been hiding in that casino far too long. This is the perfect opportunity to remove that thorn."

Corvin and Thane raised no objections, tacitly accepting the proposal. From their perspective, this was indeed the ideal moment to strike while the iron was hot and eliminate the threat entirely.

Just as Orion was about to agree, I caught his eye through the crowd.

He paused, then said with perfect composure, "Let me confirm the Northern Territory's troop deployment. You discuss the specific routes first." He turned and walked toward me.

I pulled him around a corner and lowered my voice. "Declan's target isn't just the vampires."

"I overheard his phone call earlier. He said the casino holds a 'priceless treasure,' and once he uses the Four Territories' forces to obtain it, all four territories will be his."

After listening, Orion's lips curved into a cold, composed arc. "Don't worry. Whatever Declan is plotting won't come to fruition."

He continued, "The Blood Moon Cult has just been eradicated—this is the perfect time to eliminate Varyn as well." He paused, meeting my eyes. "Haven't you always wanted to avenge your mother? Now is the best opportunity."

Before heading to the casino, we made simple alterations to our appearance, applying basic disguises.

When we approached the casino entrance, the female vampire guard presented her usual two conditions.

Orion said nothing, merely raising his hand in a clean, decisive gesture.

The next second, forces from all Four Territories emerged simultaneously from the shadows and forced their way inside.

The vampires in the main hall were caught completely off guard by the sudden assault. A few quick-thinking ones attempted to summon their blood arts, but silver weapons had already pierced their hearts first. Wooden stakes crafted from white wood were driven with precision into vampire chests by the elite guards of the Four Territories, one after another. The vampires fell swiftly.

I ordered my people to finish off the remaining vampires, then headed straight for the casino's deepest recesses.

Through the corridor carpeted in dark crimson, past the panicked, scattering gamblers, I caught Varyn's scent.

The door appeared at the corridor's end.

When I pushed it open, Varyn sat in a wingback chair by the window, curtains drawn tight, with only a single wall sconce casting dim yellow light. He looked paler than the last time I'd seen him, his body's outline somewhat gaunt. I couldn't tell if it was my imagination, but he seemed weaker than before.

Seeing me, shock flashed through his eyes.

I gave him no time to react.

I rushed forward, pressing a white wood stake against his heart, the tip breaking through his skin until only a membrane separated the wood from his heart.

"Hand over the antidote to that new drug your people developed," I said, my voice ice-cold, devoid of warmth. "Now."

Varyn tried to raise his hand. I increased the pressure, driving the stake in a few more fractions. He let out a muffled groan and finally stopped moving.

He pressed his lips together tightly, then reached into his pocket and handed me a vial.

I took it, unscrewed the cap, and brought it close to my nose. The crisp scent shared origins with vervain, but fainter, carrying an extremely subtle sweet-bitter note.

It was the genuine antidote.

I pocketed the vial, but the stake in my other hand didn't move an inch.

A barely perceptible relief flickered in Varyn's gaze. His fingers lifted slightly, attempting to push away the stake at his chest.

I drove it straight through.

Varyn let out a muffled groan, his body arching violently as the stake pierced through. A trace of dark red blood spilled from the corner of his mouth. His lips moved, voice broken and halting. "Why... I gave you what you wanted..."

"Why?" I looked at him, my lips curving into a cold smile. "When you killed my mother, did you never imagine this outcome?"

Hearing my mother's name, his body went rigid.

Something in those golden eyes seemed to shatter.

"Celine..." He coughed up blood, his words fragmenting. "I only loved her... I never meant to kill her before..."

"Your so-called love—is that repaying my mother's rescue by taking her life?" I watched him, pushing the stake deeper still. "Varyn, your twisted feelings are utterly revolting."

He looked at me, the light in those golden eyes dimming inch by inch.

In that final moment, his lips moved as if to say something, but I couldn't hear it clearly—nor did I intend to.

I drove the stake all the way through.

His body convulsed one last time, then fell into complete stillness.

I stood there, watching this ancient vampire who had murdered my mother and tormented my people for decades finally become a corpse that would never move again. The hatred I'd carried for so many years had finally been vindicated. I thought I would cry, that I would tremble, but I simply stood there, as calm as an undisturbed lake surface.

Extremely light footsteps sounded from the doorway.

I turned my head. Corvin and Thane stood there, their expressions complex.

Corvin glanced at Varyn's body on the floor, then at me, his voice carrying a gravity it hadn't held before. "I never realized you two had that kind of history."

Orion stood behind them, saying little, simply watching me with a trace of understanding in his gaze.

I clutched the vial and slowly rose to my feet.

Just then, my peripheral vision caught a figure slinking furtively past the doorway.

Declan.

He still had no idea I'd overheard every word of his scheme.

I secured the vial and exchanged a glance with Orion.

The Blood Moon Cult had been purged, Varyn was dead—now it was time to deal with Declan.