Chapter 520: Of Shadows and Bloodlines, and the Kiss that Changed Everything
The lava dome shimmered red above Jayden and Comfort. The heat seared their skin, oxygen thinned, and the Red Beast charged with fury in its eyes.
Jayden's breath grew ragged.
Comfort's hands trembled — not from fear, but from something else. Her body was glowing. Pale veins of silver light began to trace across her skin, symbols neither of them could understand.
"I don't know what's happening to me," she gasped.
Jayden looked at her — and knew.
It wasn't just a gift.
It was a curse.
"Hold on," he whispered, and slammed his palm into the ground.
A hidden glyph — one he had drawn in invisible ink before the trap was sprung — lit up.
From beneath, the earth cracked.
The dome shattered.
The Red Beast screamed as Jayden launched a vial of freezing gas into its throat. One final leap — and he pinned it down with a glowing spear of pure will.
---
The crowd erupted as Riverborne's team emerged victorious.
But in the shadows, watching from the VIP box, Lucien smirked.
Wearing all white — the color of false innocence — and sipping something redder than wine.
His eyes mirrored Jayden's exactly. But colder.
He turned to Gloria beside him. "So… that's my brother?"
Gloria didn't answer. She tightened her grip on Lucien's arm — as if trying to forget someone else's.
Lucien leaned closer. "Don't worry, darling. I'll take everything he has. Including you."
Gloria's expression didn't change.
But her fingers twitched beneath the table.
She had her own plans.
---
Later that night, the League hosted a masquerade ball under silver moons. The music was haunting, played on cursed instruments that responded to emotion.
Jayden wore a mask of black feathers.
Comfort, in midnight blue.
But as the music shifted to a waltz, a mysterious woman in crimson stepped toward Jayden.
Saphira.
Her mask was lace, her body a silhouette of danger and desire.
"Dance with me," she whispered.
He didn't ask questions. He took her hand.
Their bodies moved like shadows melting into each other.
With every step, Saphira whispered truths:
> "Your mother is not who you think she is."
> "Your father had a second family."
> "Lucien was never meant to survive."
> "And you, Jayden… are destined to destroy one of us."
Then, just before the final twirl, she leaned in and kissed him.
It wasn't lust.
It was a transfer.
Pain. Memory. Blood. Secrets.
The moment their lips touched, Jayden saw flashes.
A throne buried under bones.
A city burning.
A girl — looking like Comfort — screaming his name as she was dragged into darkness.
And then—
She was gone.
All that remained was a whisper in the air: Find the Crimson Vault before Lucien does… or you'll lose her forever.
---
Back at the Riverborne quarters, Comfort collapsed.
Silver veins pulsed wildly.
She was convulsing. Her eyes rolled back.
Jayden held her tightly, shouting for help.
But instead of fading — her body rose off the bed.
Hair floating. Eyes glowing.
She spoke in a voice not her own.
> "The seal has broken. The Crimson Bloodline has awakened. He will come for her heart."
And she collapsed again — lifeless.
---
The next morning, tabloids exploded:
> "Jayden rejects trillion-dollar proposal from Lady Valencia."
He made it public.
"I belong to no one," Jayden said. "Especially not those who think money buys loyalty."
Valencia was humiliated.
Comfort still hadn't woken up.
And Lucien… had already made his next move.
He invited Jayden to a private duel.
Not for glory.
Not for land.
But for truth.
---