The council hall remained silent long after Lucius and the Five Great Elders departed.
No one moved.
No one dared to.
The pressure left behind still lingered heavily within the chamber like an invisible weight pressing against every wall.
Even the torches burning along the ancient pillars flickered unnaturally low.
⸻
Then—
Elder Marcus slowly rose from his seat.
Beside him, the hooded figure stood as well.
The soft movement of the black cloak alone was enough to make several elders tense instinctively.
Some immediately lowered their eyes.
Others avoided looking at the figure altogether.
Because despite everything that had happened—
none of them truly understood what Elder Hunter had brought into the council hall.
And somehow—
that frightened them more than the power itself.
⸻
Marcus calmly began walking toward the side exit.
The hooded figure followed silently beside him.
But before they could leave—
Elder Ruby suddenly spoke.
Her voice sliced through the silence sharply.
Coldly.
"Is it truly wise," Ruby asked, "to involve a royal who abandoned their duties?"
The room instantly became tense again.
Ruby slowly stood from her chair, her eyes fixed directly toward the hooded figure.
"She fled while the Queen faced the fiends alone."
Several elders immediately lowered their heads.
Others remained frozen in place.
No one interrupted her.
"If the Queen were truly alive today," Ruby continued bitterly, "she would never allow this."
⸻
Marcus stopped walking.
So did the hooded figure.
Silence consumed the chamber completely.
Then—
slowly—
the hooded figure turned around.
And the moment they did—
the atmosphere changed.
Not slightly.
Completely.
The air itself suddenly felt heavier.
Colder.
Dangerous.
One pale hand slowly emerged from beneath the cloak.
Then—
a single finger pointed toward Elder Ruby.
⸻
Instantly—
Ruby froze.
Her eyes widened violently.
Both hands immediately clawed at her throat as an unseen force tightened around her neck.
She couldn't breathe.
Panic spread across her face as she stumbled backward.
The invisible pressure crushed tighter.
Harder.
Her knees buckled beneath her.
The chamber fell into absolute silence.
No one moved.
No one dared interfere.
Several elders immediately lowered their heads in fear.
Others stared in horror.
Because some of them remembered.
The old laws.
The ancient rules that existed long before the council itself.
And one of those rules was absolute—
Never disrespect the royal bloodline.
⸻
Ruby collapsed onto her knees, choking violently.
Tears formed in her eyes as she desperately struggled for air.
The anger she once carried vanished completely.
Only fear remained now.
Pure fear.
Then Elder Marcus calmly placed one hand against the hooded figure's shoulder.
"They are beneath you," Marcus said quietly.
"Let us leave."
⸻
For a brief moment—
nothing happened.
The pressure around the room remained unbearable.
Then slowly—
the hooded figure lowered their hand.
Ruby instantly collapsed against the floor, coughing violently while gasping for breath.
The elders remained completely silent.
No one spoke.
No one moved.
Marcus and the hooded figure simply turned away once more before disappearing through the side doors of the council hall.
Leaving behind only fear.
⸻
For several long seconds—
the chamber remained completely still.
Then Elder Malachi slowly rose from his seat and approached Ruby carefully.
"Are you injured?" he asked quietly.
Ruby struggled to steady her breathing before slowly shaking her head.
"No…"
Her voice trembled weakly.
"I'm fine."
But she was lying.
Everyone in the room could see it.
⸻
Ruby lowered her eyes toward the floor.
For the first time in centuries—
she had felt powerless.
"I served the royal family faithfully," she whispered quietly.
"I followed every law… every tradition…"
Her hands trembled slightly.
"But that person…"
She stopped speaking.
Even now, merely remembering that presence made her chest tighten.
Ruby slowly realized something she never wished to admit.
She was not strong enough to stand against whatever had just entered the council hall.
And that terrified her more than death itself.
⸻
She slowly looked toward Malachi.
"Have you heard anything regarding the royal bloodline?" Ruby asked quietly.
Malachi remained silent for a moment before shaking his head.
"No."
His eyes darkened slightly.
"But I will investigate what we felt here tonight."
The chamber grew still once more.
"The power from earlier…" Malachi continued quietly.
"It felt ancient."
His gaze slowly shifted toward the sealed side doors.
"Far beyond ordinary royal blood."
A few elders visibly stiffened.
Malachi narrowed his eyes.
"I once believed the Queen died long ago."
He paused briefly.
"But after tonight…"
For the first time, uncertainty crossed his face.
"I no longer know."
⸻
Ruby slowly clenched her fists.
"If the Queen truly lives…" she whispered, "then perhaps the Blackwell clan can return to what it once was."
Bitterness slowly entered her voice.
"We are no longer feared."
"We lost our authority."
"Our elegance."
"Our kingdom."
Her gaze slowly swept across the council chamber.
"I once served directly beneath the Queen herself."
Then disappointment filled her eyes.
"And now look at us."
⸻
"Lucius may carry royal blood," Ruby continued quietly, "but he is not a true royal."
A few elders shifted uncomfortably.
"And Silas…"
Her voice darkened.
"He once dreamed of becoming king."
The room grew tense again.
"But now?"
Ruby laughed bitterly.
"He behaves like a puppet hiding behind politics."
Her fists tightened harder.
"I still cannot understand how the royal family fell so completely."
⸻
As Ruby spoke openly, the atmosphere inside the chamber slowly grew heavier once more.
No one interrupted her.
No one argued.
Even Elder Hunter remained silent.
But unlike the others—
Hunter was not disturbed.
He was fascinated.
⸻
Every fearful word.
Every mention of royal power.
Every weakness within the council—
he absorbed all of it greedily.
And deep within his mind—
a single thought repeated endlessly.
I need that power.
His eyes darkened coldly beneath the shadows of his hood.
If that power becomes mine…
I will kill Silas.
I will kill Lucius.
I will crush every elder beneath my feet.
And this broken kingdom…
will belong to me.
⸻
A faint smirk slowly crossed Hunter's face.
"Fools," he whispered quietly beneath his breath.
⸻
Elder Celeste heard him.
But she said nothing.
Because despite the darkness growing within Hunter—
she still admired him.
Perhaps far more than she should.
⸻
Not long after the meeting adjourned, the elders departed toward their assigned territories.
Some searched for the source of the royal presence.
Others quietly prepared for war.
And secretly—
many began searching for ways to strengthen their armies.
Because deep down—
every single one of them felt it.
Something ancient had awakened.
Something the world was never meant to witness again.
⸻
Far beneath the Blackwell castle…
Below the ancient chambers…
Below the underground ruins…
Deep within endless darkness—
a single glowing eye slowly opened.