Chapter 25: The Queen’s Sudden Disappearance?!

It started with… silence.

For the first time in weeks, I woke up to a completely silent apartment. No mysterious glowing eyes in the dark corner. No faint humming of ancient spells from the bathroom.

And definitely no Shadow Queen lounging on my couch, bullying my poor fridge into producing "royal snacks."

She was gone.

I sat up, heart pounding.

My room felt… colder.

A faint trail of black mist hung in the air, fading quickly.

And on the coffee table—

A single note written in her flawless, terrifyingly elegant script:

"Stay alive, Liam. This isn't goodbye… yet."

I ran out the door without thinking, my mind racing.

Where could she have gone?

Was this some test? Some ancient queen-level hide-and-seek game?

Or… something worse?

I searched everywhere—The rooftop where she liked to watch the stars.The 24/7 convenience store snack aisle.Even that cursed arcade where she broke the claw machine.

Nothing.

By the time I stumbled back to the apartment, exhausted and soaked in sweat, a voice echoed from behind me.

"Took you long enough, Caretaker."

I spun around.

And there she was—standing by the window, wearing my hoodie again, holding a half-empty bottle of that ridiculous glitter soda.

Her expression was unreadable, eyes glowing faintly crimson under the moonlight.

"W-Where did you go?!" I demanded, my voice cracking embarrassingly.

She took a slow sip, then tilted her head, watching me with an expression I couldn't quite place.

"I wanted to know… if you'd actually miss me."

My heart just about gave out right there.

"And?" I managed, swallowing hard.

She took a step closer. Then another.

Until she was so close I could feel the cold mist of her shadow aura mixing with the faint warmth of her breath.

"You did," she whispered. "That's all I needed to know… for now."