.·:*¨¨* ≈☆≈ *¨¨*:·.Chapter 31: Shadows Between Oaths.·:*¨¨* ≈☆≈ *¨¨*:·.

Eveline’s mansion was cloaked in a dense silence, broken only by the crackle of candles and the soft tread of guards patrolling outside the main rooms. Hidden behind an old velvet tapestry, which concealed a secret passageway, were Marlene, Dante, Lucien, Max, and Adrian. The air was thick with a bitter scent, a mix of expensive wine and burnt herbs, as if the very place breathed conspiracy.

In the grand hall before them, Eveline sat opposite Kael, the young foreign noble. He carried himself with an arrogant air, and his smile was like a blade sheathed in silk. His dark hair fell with studied carelessness over his shoulders, and his amber eyes gleamed like embers in the dim light.

“Eveline,” Kael said in a low, modulated voice, each word a command disguised as a caress. “Your resentment is useful, but it must be directed with precision. Dante, Max, Lucien, even that boy Adrian… they all orbit around that girl, Marlene. If she falls, the others will lose their balance.”

Eveline clenched her fists, her nails digging into the fabric of her dress as if to tear it. “I can’t stand her existence. She’s always so serene, always with that ridiculous light that attracts everyone. They should have looked at me, not at that… interloper. And Max, and the others. They all defend her as if she were something special!”

Kael laughed softly, leaning towards her with poisonous complicity. “Envy is a fire, Eveline. But a misdirected fire consumes itself. I can give you the right spark. Imagine this: a rigged tournament, an accident that doesn’t look like an accident, a rumor that devastates her reputation. The glory surrounding her could crumble in an instant.”

Eveline’s eyes narrowed, fascinated and afraid at the same time. “What do you gain from all this?”

Kael let the silence hang before replying, swirling the wine in his glass. “A kingdom is not conquered with swords, but with connections. Mine seeks alliances, and if I can join your nobility, everything will be simpler. You, Eveline, will be the door… and I, the key.”

The young noblewoman swallowed. For a moment, she hesitated. Then, her voice trembling but firm, she agreed: “If your key opens the door to destroy Marlene, then I will open it without hesitation.”

From their hiding place, Marlene felt a shiver run down her spine. Her heart pounded so hard she feared the others could hear it. Dante placed a firm, silent hand on her shoulder, as if to remind her she wasn’t alone. Lucien, on the other hand, frowned, his calculating eyes analyzing every word. Max gritted his teeth in contained rage, while Adrian seemed to be torn between prudence and the impulse to burst out immediately.

Suddenly, Kael stood up and extended his hand to Eveline. “A pact must be sealed, not just with words.”

She looked at him with a mix of fear and fascination, and finally took his hand. As she did, a strange dark mist rose from Kael’s palm, running over Eveline’s fingers like living roots. Marlene felt a wave of dizziness as she watched it: it wasn’t common magic, but something forbidden, almost corrupt.

“By this pact,” Kael whispered, “your vengeance will be my vengeance, and my ambition will be yours.”

Eveline nodded, her lips trembling, but a dangerous spark glinted in her eyes.

Marlene could no longer hold back. She barely moved her lips to whisper to Dante: “We have to stop this…”

But Dante shook his head. “If we act now, we won’t know how far they plan to go. We need to listen more.”

Kael, as if he had read their thoughts, looked up towards the tapestry that concealed them. For a second, Marlene felt his amber eyes pierce through the fabric and reach her. Her breath caught. Had he discovered them?

However, Kael smiled again and turned back to Eveline. “Soon, very soon, everyone will see how that girl’s light is extinguished. And when she falls, the men who surround her will be free to choose where to swear their loyalty. Believe me, Eveline, this is only the beginning.”

The silence grew even denser. The group remained motionless, holding their breath. Every word of that dark alliance was a poison now flowing through the veins of everyone present.

At that moment, Kira appeared, visible only to Marlene, like an invisible spark to the others. Her voice echoed softly in her mind:

[Kira: Secondary mission detected. “Shadows in Alliance.” Objective: discover the true nature of Kael and Eveline’s pact before it’s too late. Warning: risk of imminent betrayal.]

Marlene swallowed, her eyes fixed on the handshake between Eveline and Kael. A chilling certainty ran through her: what they had just witnessed was not simply an agreement between nobles… it was the start of a silent war.

And she was at the center of it all.

The echo of Kael’s laughter filled the hall, marking an unsettling end.

    ˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥to be continued˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥