Chapter 26 – The Dance of Shadows

The burning heat in Blackwood's underground passage felt like the breath of an ancient dragon, yet for Alex, the piercing cold from the black curtain before him was far more daunting. The threads of shadow that formed the curtain pulsed, inviting, like a door to a realm of nothingness. From behind it, the incomprehensible whispers now sounded clearer, a melody of suffering calling, trying to embrace his soul.

Alex gripped his steel sword tightly, his knuckles white. Sweat beaded on his forehead, not from the heat, but from burning anticipation. He stepped forward, through the curtain of shadows. A piercing cold immediately embraced him, as if he had just stepped into an ice well in the middle of a fiery desert.

The smell of sulfur mixed with the suffocating stench of death, like the air in a mass grave. A faint light from a hidden furnace in the distance cast strange silhouettes on the walls, creating dancing shadows. And in the center of that room, under the fading dim light, he saw it.

It was a shadow. Not a shadow cast by light, but the shadow itself, alive. It was nearly twice Alex's height, with a thin, hunched body that looked like a wisp of thick black smoke. Its arms were unnaturally long, hanging almost touching the floor, ending in pointed fingers like sharpened eagle talons. Its face, if it could be called a face, was merely an empty void without eyes, nose, or mouth, yet Alex felt a boundless gaze observing him.

The aura of death he had felt since the city gates now centered on this creature, emanating from it like a heatwave from the core of hell. This was the 'Essence Extractor,' a creature whose sole purpose was to empty souls. Alex's instinct screamed: this was an entity whose single goal was to void souls.

"So... it's you," Alex whispered, his voice hoarse, echoing in the silent room. He felt not paralyzing fear, but burning determination. He had seen this creature. This was the trace he was looking for. The Shadow did not move, made no sound, yet Alex felt an increasing pressure in the air, as if the creature was spinning invisible threads around him. His heart pounded. He knew, this steel sword probably wouldn't do much. How do you 'kill' a shadow? How do you wound something intangible?

He remembered Magistra Elaira's lesson: "Magic is a conversation between will and reality." And Pastor Borin's lesson: "Essence Extractors come from unfulfilled desires." What reality could wound a shadow of desire? Alex took a fighting stance, his sword raised. He concentrated mana in his palms, channeling basic magical energy—fire, wind, water. He would try everything. If he couldn't physically harm it, he would harm it essentially.

Suddenly, the Shadow moved. It didn't run, didn't jump. It floated, gliding with terrifying speed, almost silently. Its long arms extended, its sharp talons aimed at Alex's chest, as if wanting to grasp his soul. Alex reacted instinctively. He swung his sword, not expecting to cut, but to disrupt its movement. His sword passed through the shadow's body, like cutting through smoke. Nothing. However, Alex didn't despair. He unleashed a magical burst of fire from his hand, aiming at the center of the shadow's body. The fire simply passed through the creature, without effect. Then magical wind. The same. Magical water. Also the same.

The Shadow moved closer, floating directly in front of Alex. He felt an extraordinary cold pierce him, sharper than the coldest blade. The lulling hum now surrounded him, trying to pull him in. Alex felt his soul being pulled, like a thread being drawn from its spool. He felt the same pressure as when he woke up in his bed.

'This is it!' Alex focused his mana. If he couldn't harm its body, he would attack its will. Alex closed his eyes for a moment, recalling Elaira's lesson on harmonic magic. He imagined fire, wind, and water uniting, not to destroy, but to balance, to suppress. He opened his eyes, and at that moment, a faint silvery-blue light pulsed around Alex, creating a small protective field. It was his harmonic magic circuit, which he used in his test. He let the elements swirl, not attacking, but suppressing. The aura of death from the Shadow faltered slightly, disturbed by Alex's magical harmony.

"It doesn't like harmony!" Alex muttered, a small realization dawning on him. If it was a manifestation of unfulfilled desires, of emptiness, then harmony was its opposite. The Shadow roared—not a physical sound, but a soul-piercing wave of suffering, trying to break Alex's concentration. Its long hands reached out, its sharp claws piercing the harmonic field, trying to grasp his soul's core. Alex felt a sharp pain, like a thousand needles piercing his body. Blood flowed from his nose. 'This isn't enough! I need strength!', Alex knew he couldn't defeat it alone.

At that moment, he heard the rumbling of approaching footsteps from the passage, and the flickering light of torches. Reinforcements were coming. Lena and the others had succeeded. "Young Master Alex!" Garel's voice boomed from the passage entrance. He, Pastor Borin, Magistra Lyra, and Detective Theron rushed closer, followed by several Blackwood guards. "Don't come closer!" Alex yelled, his voice choked. "It can't be harmed by ordinary swords! It attacks the soul!"

Captain Garel and the guards hesitated. They saw Alex, blood on his nose, struggling against an invisible pressure. Magistra Lyra immediately understood. She saw the faint harmonic light around Alex. "He's right!" Lyra exclaimed, her detection crystal shining brightly. "There's a very powerful ethereal distortion! Not normal magic!" She immediately chanted a spell, her hand raised. A pulsating ball of purple light formed in her palm. It was a soul protection spell, rarely used. She cast it at Alex, strengthening his harmonic field. Pastor Borin, with a pale face, stepped forward. His eyes closed, his hand holding the symbol of Dvalin. He began to chant an ancient prayer, a strangely warm melody, contrasting with the cold melody of the Shadow. It was a prayer to bind and purify souls.

"It is the Essence Extractor!" Borin shouted, his voice now filled with power. "It feeds on unfulfilled desires! Defeat it with hope!" Alex felt a surge of new energy seeping into him, the power of Borin's prayer, Lyra's protective magic. His harmonic field expanded, pressing the Shadow. The creature thrashed, its arms clawing at the air, its hum turning into a shriek. 'Hope!' Alex realized. If it was unfulfilled desire, then its opposite was fulfilled desire, real hope. He thought of his aspirations: a large, bustling family, children, a warm home, the promise he made to Aurelia. All of it gave him strength.

Captain Garel and the guards, although unable to see the Shadow, saw Alex struggling and Lyra and Borin using magic. Garel was a soldier. He understood orders. "Protect the Young Master!" he yelled. "Prepare burning spells! We will flood this passage with holy fire!" The guards immediately raised their swords, some beginning to chant basic fire spells taught in the military. Small flames began to dance on the tips of their swords.

Magistra Lyra saw an opportunity. "I need its attention!" she yelled to Alex. "Focus your harmonic magic to bind it!" Alex nodded. He concentrated all his energy. His harmonic field now spun faster, pulling the Shadow into its vortex, locking it in place. The creature writhed, its arms clawing at the air, its hum transforming into a scream. "Now!" Lyra shrieked.

Alex unleashed magic. Not an attack, but an intense burst of harmony, directly into the Shadow's core. At the same time, Lyra unleashed a soul-burning spell from her crystal, Borin completed his prayer, and Garel and the guards cast their fireballs, filling the passage with blinding orange light and searing heat.

A bright white light exploded from the Shadow, accompanied by a piercing scream—a scream not from a throat, but from the depths of the soul itself, an endless suffering, a mixture of shattered desires and plucked hopes. The shriek deafened Alex, making him stagger. Then, like mist blown by a strong wind, the Shadow began to disintegrate. It melted, dispersing into tiny black particles that swirled, then vanished into the hot air. No body, no trace. Only perfect emptiness.

Silent. The hot air still lingered, but the piercing cold from the Shadow had disappeared. Alex gasped, leaning against the wall. His whole body ached, his head throbbed, and his nose was still bleeding. But he succeeded. They succeeded. Captain Garel, Lyra, Borin, and Theron approached, staring at where the Shadow had last been. Their faces were filled with a mixture of relief, confusion, and horror.

"It... it vanished," Garel muttered, his voice disbelieving. "What was that, Young Master?" Alex stared at the spot where the Shadow had been. He felt immense relief, a heavy weight lifted from his chest. However, there was also a nagging doubt.

"It was... an 'Essence Extractor'," Alex replied. "As Pastor Borin said. A manifestation of unfulfilled desires, seeking strong souls." Magistra Lyra touched her forehead, looking exhausted. "This... this is beyond our understanding of magic. We... we actually succeeded?"

Alex looked at the dark, hot passage. He felt something strange. The Shadow had indeed been destroyed. Its main presence had vanished. But... something remained. A faint whisper. An echo.

The powerful aura of death, which he had felt since arriving in the city, had not completely disappeared. It was still there. Very faint, but present. Like a thin thread that had just been cut, but its roots were still deeply embedded. This victory felt... too easy. If it really was an 'Essence Extractor,' a creature that could extract souls without a trace, why could it be defeated by a combination of harmonic magic and a few fire spells? Why was it so easily lured and destroyed after such a brief struggle? It didn't make sense.

Alex observed his surroundings. The passage was empty. Dark. Hot. But he could feel, somewhere in the depths of Blackwood, beneath layers of stone and iron, that aura of death still pulsed. Further, deeper, like a hidden heart. 'This is not the end.' A cold thought crept into his mind.

'This is just... the first layer.' He turned to his still-shocked and exhausted companions. They were celebrating a small victory. But Alex knew, this was just the beginning. The perpetrator who wove this web of death, the mastermind behind all of this, was still beyond reach. And Alex felt, like a needle piercing cloth, that he would soon find them. Even if it meant he had to dive deeper into the unseen darkness. He had to find the source of this lingering aura of death. This was a puzzle that had just become even more complicated.