~ZEPHYRUS' POV
Lucian was seated at his desk, hunched over a collection of papers with his brows furrowed even as he wrote.
His black hair fell slightly over his forehead, giving him a rare human-like vulnerability in that moment.
I crossed my arms, studying him. "You look displeased," I spoke.
He exhaled slowly, as if releasing a weight. "Displeased doesn't begin to cover it," he started. "The masked figure at the banquet is gone. Without a trace. No record of his movements, no evidence of where he went after the event."
I leaned against the edge of his desk, narrowing my gaze slightly. "Gone? Disappeared?"
Lucian's fingers tapped lightly against the parchment. "Exactly. I searched the guest list, cross-referenced every magical trace left in the hall, scoured the surveillance wards... nothing. It's as if he was never there. No signature, no energy, no residual aura. Nothing."
