The anger- part 1

It was not often that the main council got interrupted. Much less by the head of the magician guards who was seldom seen in the main court.

To see a combination of that happen was alarming and caused a wave of comments to begin floating around. Several nobles had even stopped their small talk in favor of paying attention to the kid. Not that it mattered to the kid in this situation.

It was an emergency after all.

"Master Nark, what brought you here this early in the morning? I thought you were heading out to check on our guest?" Lady Ray (curse that woman and all she stood for) asked with a neutral face.

"I did head out but there is a situation that we need to look into. If the emperor would be so kind as to grant this one a solo audience?" Master Nark tried to hint at the urgency of the situation without making it obvious what it was about.

For all their awe of the emperor, the people of the court were like vultures. Any sign of weakness was to be weeded out as soon as possible and the ultimate goal was to get close to their emperor. As such, the young master of the magical division was a prime target.

"Whatever you need to tell your highness can surely be said in front of us all as well. We all are his majesty's limbs as well" a small court official declared as his eyes dared to challenge the magician master.

That was a bold move on his part and the kid felt equal parts admiration and annoyance at it.

"Oh, is it that important? It's not often you step in here on your own Damian" the emperor took hold of the situation before it could get worse.

For all his childish behavior, the emperor had lived longer than anyone else in the court. As such, his sense of such kinds of situations was unparalleled.

"It is of the utmost importance. It's about the topic your highness asked me to look into" master Damian could feel the interested looks aimed at him from all around the courtroom.

They ranged from awe to jealousy to even envy. They were a dangerous combination to be under but the kid was well equipped to handle that. This was, after all, not the first nor the last time he would have to face them all. Those looks were unavoidable for as long as the kid lived in the court.

That was another thing that the kid had no choice in. He had been born into that role and his grandfather had made sure he took over early.

"Lady Ray, dismiss the court for today. Damina, follow me toward the back" the emperor's voice held no room for argument and everyone followed his command.

Damian himself chose not to look in the direction he could feel his grandfather's glare from.

The court's back rooms were not an intimidating space but they did leave an impression on a person. The dark interior paired with the lack of window gave it the feel of an interrogation room rather than a place for a proper talk.

"Did someone manage to sneak Su out? And you allowed it to happen? Damian, why did you even bother to come here and not go after the culprit" the emperor's voice was mild and soft. It sounded safe and lured you into a sense of false security.

But the anger Damian could feel radiating in the emperor's magic was something horrifying. It lay buried beneath a wave of calmness and could devour you in an instant. That magic burned at Damian's consciousness and made him feel faint.

Growing up, Damian's grandfather had told him tales about the emperor's over-consumption of magic. It could take over a soul and still leave you hooked on its after essence. Damian had not understood it then but now he did.

This magic was dangerous and alluring. He wanted to flinch away from it and bask in it all the same.

"I've sent people after the person who captured your bond-mate but has ordered them not to engage. I thought you might want to go after the pair yourself" the kid felt his head almost touch the ground as the pressure increased around him.

It was all too much and too little at the same time.

"Location. Give it to me and retrieve your people from around the place. Make sure no one finds where I have gone and what will happen next" the emperor's orders caused a wave of thrill to go through Damian. The emperor was in a fighting mood and that was rare for him.

Damian wanted to pity the fool who had managed to incur the wrath of the emperor but he could not regret the actions in fact of the display of magic he was seeing. He only regretted not being able to see what would happen next but that was a small price to pay.

"Understood. I will have everything prepared in half an hour" Damian replied with a bow.

"Do it in twenty" the emperor ordered.

In the end, the preparations only took a mere fifteen minutes before the emperor disappeared from the palace.

...................

For Su, waking up was a process that left his head aching. He also felt like puking but that was much easier to manage than his head.

"Finally awake? I'm sorry that I had to knock you out" Erwin's voice slammed into Su's head with a vengeance and brought back all the memories of what happened before his kidnap. It caused Su to groan in pain and annoyance.

"Did you have to hit that hard? Wait, who even hit me? You were in front of me and the blow came from behind" Su held his head as he fought off the incoming headache.

He remembered being surprised and then arguing. The blow to his head had been surprising and took Su out.

"A spy we had planted in the palace helped us escape. But never mind that. How are you feeling? Is your head alright?" Erwin asked with a concerned voice. The alpha looked guilty and was avoiding Su's eyes as much as possible.

"I'm alive and not under any magical compulsion. I was serious when I said I had bargained for a solution with the emperor but you refused to listen to me. Now I need to find a way to slip back into the castle undetected" Su sighed in annoyance as he looked Erwin right in the eye.

The last time this conversation had taken place the stakes had been different. Erwin had been tense as well since he had been in the enemy territory and Su could not fault him for it.

He would have likely reacted similarly had their positions been reversed.

"You were not kidding? Holy, you were serious about this!" Erwin finally seemed to come around to the idea. His eyes looked wide in shock and recognition about this topic.

"I was not kidding. Now think of a way to send me back to the palace before they detect my absence" Su commanded and caused Erwin to let out a sheepish laugh.

Su felt a familiar pair of eyes on him which caused him goosebumps. The feeling of magic was starting to penetrate the place as well.

"I will try to contact the spy once again but I cannot promise you anything. They already took a big risk in getting us out alive" Erwin commented even as he tried to get his network setup. Su could see the struggle but decided not to help.

It took ages for Erwin to connect to the main network and send the message to the other side. It was a waiting game from there.

"How long will it take?" Su asked with an impatient voice. Something was wrong with their current surroundings and it made Su want to run away from there. He felt fearful like he had never felt before.

"Give me a second. The spy is not picking up on my message. No, he isn't even receiving it. Do you think something happened to them? Did they get caught?" Erwin asked and Su wished that it was not the case for the spy.

Death would be a mercy if their spy got caught. There were so many things that were worst than death and the element of magic only enhanced those possibilities.

"Do you think our spy got caught? Should we move before we are caught as well?" Su asked with uncharacteristic nervousness in his voice. The walls felt tighter around him and his senses pointed to his back.

It made Su nervous to even turn around and look behind him.

"Do you think you should move before you are caught? But I do think it is too late to run away" Even the air inside the room froze as the emperor stepped out of the shadows. He looked pissed off and Su felt the omega inside him cry out.