Secrets Buried in Ink

The tent felt heavier now, as if the very air had thickened with unseen eyes. But Seraphine did not waver.

She turned back to the table, flipping through the journal with renewed urgency. If the scholars knew of the Shadowborn, there had to be more.

Her gaze landed on a half-burned scroll. Carefully, she unrolled it, the fragile parchment crumbling at the edges.

"Light cannot banish what has never lived. To fight the Shadowborn is to fight the void itself."

Her stomach twisted.

Further down, another line stood out.

"Only the Bloodbound may stand against them. Only the Marked may command their will."

Seraphine frowned. Bloodbound? Marked?

She had never heard of such terms, yet the words pulsed with importance. If the scholars believed there was a way to fight these creatures, then Kaelith had to know.

But why had he kept this from her?

Her hands trembled slightly as she reached for another text, but before she could read further—

A voice outside the tent.

"Search everything. The princess was seen here."

Seraphine's breath caught.

Kaelith had sent his men.

He knew she had gone looking for answers.

And he was coming for her.

To be continued…

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