Before Kraven could finish whatever accusation he was about to throw,
Ethan let out a short laugh.
"Wow," he said, looking Kraven up and down without even trying to hide his disdain. "You really have your head so far up your own ass that you still think you're in a position to shout at anyone."
The words hit harder than a slap.
Kraven stiffened instantly, fury flashing across his face as he finally noticed Ethan sitting infront of Lucian.
"How dare you speak to me like that, you insignificant—"
He never finished.
Ethan lifted a single hand.
Kraven's legs gave out as if something invisible had smashed into him. He crashed to his knees with a brutal thud, his forehead slamming against the concrete floor hard enough to echo through the chamber.
A sharp crack.
Silence followed.
Kraven tried to push himself up, but an unseen force pressed down on him, keeping him bowed, humiliated.
"Before you run your mouth," he said evenly, "be mindful of who you're speaking to."
There was no rage in his tone. No shouting.
That made it worse.
"You're a coward who hides behind politics and borrowed authority. Don't mistake survival for strength."
Kraven struggled, veins straining at his temples, but he couldn't rise. The invisible force pinning him down refused to loosen. To Ethan, he was nothing more than a noisy insect thrashing on the floor.
Ethan stood up and stepped forward and stopped right in front of the kneeling vampire.
"And you might be wondering," he said calmly, looking down at him, "why you have to suffer like this."
Kraven glared up, teeth clenched.
"To tell you the truth," Ethan continued, voice almost conversational, "I'm responsible for all the bad things that happened to you."
Kraven's expression flickered.
"Amelia walking away alive. You becoming wanted by your own coven." Ethan's lips curved slightly. "Everything is my doing."
The words sank in slowly.
"You…" Kraven growled, the sound rough and full of rage. He had believed it was a failed plan, bad luck, betrayal from the Lycans.
Ethan tilted his head. "Are you a vampire or a dog? All you've done since arriving is bark."
Lucian remained silent, watching.
"And one more thing," Ethan added casually, as if remembering something trivial. "Selene didn't return to the coven last night. She was with me the whole night."
He didn't explain further. He didn't need to.
Kraven's face darkened instantly. Jealousy flared openly now, mixing with humiliation and fury. That reaction alone made Ethan laugh softly.
Yes, technically she had been injured and unconscious, but details were unnecessary. The implication was enough.
For anyone getting concerned, relax—he's not the villain. He's our main character. Yes, at the moment he does resemble a highly functional psychopath with excellent strategic thinking, but that's just character development.
Heroes come in many forms. Some brood dramatically in the rain. Some rescue kittens and give inspiring speeches. And some… well, some chase excitement, stir chaos, and occasionally screw people over just to see what happens.
Ours just happens to be that third type.
"Although I can kill you with a snap of my fingers," Ethan said coldly, looking down at him, "I have a better use for you."
His grip tightened just enough to make the point clear.
"You're going to wake someone up from the comfortable little lie they've been living in."
***
In the Coven, deep within the Elders' sleeping chamber, Amelia stood at its edge, Selene and several Death Dealers positioned behind her in silent formation.
One of the attendants stepped forward and rotated the mechanism until the engraved symbol M aligned with the inner ring. A low, grinding rumble echoed through the chamber as hidden gears shifted beneath the floor.
The platform split open.
From below, a vertical sarcophagus began to rise slowly. The lid retracted with mechanical precision, revealing the mummified corpse within—Elder Marcus, preserved like corpse with no blood.
Amelia stepped forward without hesitation. She drew a blade across her palm and let her blood spill into the carved channel at the base of the sarcophagus. The crimson stream flowed through a narrow conduit that led directly to Marcus's mouth.
This was the Awakening Ceremony.
The Elders did not simply sleep—they preserved centuries of memory within themselves. When one rose, blood served as the conduit. Through it, knowledge passed from one Elder to another: wars fought, alliances formed, betrayals uncovered. Nothing was lost to time.
Amelia watched as the blood touched Marcus's lips.
"Hello, all of you."
The voice was light. Almost cheerful.
Every head turned toward the entrance.
A man stood there as if he had been invited, red eyes faintly glowing, an easy smile on his face. Only Selene recognized him.
Ethan.
Confusion flickered across her expression. How did he even know where the Coven was?
Guns were raised instantly, barrels locking onto him without hesitation.
"Don't bother pointing those toys at me," Ethan said mildly.
Before anyone could pull a trigger, the weapons tore free from their hands as if yanked by an invisible force. Metal clattered across the stone floor, sliding to a stop at his feet.
A tense silence filled the chamber.
"You see," Ethan continued, stepping forward with casual confidence, "I came here because we need to discuss the future of vampires and Lycans."
Heavy footsteps echoed from behind him.
Lucian entered the chamber, dragging Kraven along the floor by the collar. Kraven's hands were bound, his composure gone, fury and humiliation written plainly across his face.
"For anyone wondering who I might be," he said, his voice echoing calmly through the chamber, "I'm a fun loving guy."
His red eyes shifted slowly across the room, resting on each of them in turn.
"And I am also very dangerous."
The temperature in the chamber seemed to drop.
"If you decide to test me," he continued, the smile fading into something far less friendly, "this entire coven can be erased before your Elder even takes his first breath."
*****
A/N: The Patreon version is already updated to Chapter 127, so if you'd like to read ahead of the public release schedule, you can join my Patreon
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