As soon as he ended the call, Don stood silently, his fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white.Antonio’s words still echoed in his mind like a heavy drumbeat. He had always known that Antonio was not a man to be trifled with.Don understood the weight of the request Antonio had placed before him.If he refused, if he so much as hesitated, he would lose everything. He would never again be welcomed into Antonio’s team.Worse still, his former connections in the underworld, the team he had abandoned in the past, would hear of his defiance. And once that happened, Don knew he would not live to see another sunrise. Antonio's team has been a cover and shield for him since he joined them. The underworld team would come for him, and there would be nowhere to hide from their vengeance. He wasn’t ready for that. He wasn’t ready to fall so low, not now, not like this.So Don swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded. “I’ll go,” he whispered to himself. ---The day came

Don’s heart froze the instant he saw the fifty men emerging from the shadows, their faces twisted with menace, and their weapons glinting in the dim light of the cave. For a moment, his breath caught in his throat. Was this how it would end? Was he, Don, going to lose his life here, surrounded by the relentless and merciless, just like the men who had fallen before them? Panic clawed at his chest, making it hard to breathe.Antonio, sensing Don’s hesitation, refused to let fear take root in his men. His gaze sharpened like steel as he assessed the fifty figures advancing on them. He would not lose any more men—he had sworn it—and nothing in this world, not even death itself, would sway him. With a deep, controlled breath, Antonio summoned the extraordinary mystical strength that coursed through him.In an instant, the air around him seemed to thicken. Energy pulsed from him, like invisible waves rippling outward.The fifty men barely had time to take another step before they b

Upon leaving the inner room, Blackthorn had adorned himself in what looked like a dark cloak, woven with faint crimson symbols that seemed to pulse like veins. The garment rippled unnaturally, as if alive.His eyes glowed faintly and the room itself grew heavier with each of his breaths.“You fool,” Blackthorn hissed, his voice deeper than before, vibrating with layered tones. “You’ll soon get to know who you are fighting?”Antonio did not move. His expression remained as calm and unreadable as stone.“Yes,” Antonio finally answered, his tone low, dismissive. “I have already seen a desperate man hiding behind toys and cloaks.”The dark lord snarled and lunged forward with unnatural speed.To Don and the others, it was like watching lightning strike—so fast, so violent, that their eyes barely kept pace. But Antonio didn’t flinch. He shifted, just slightly, and the furious arc of Blackthorn’s strike missed him by a hair’s breadth. With his counter, Antonio’s fist slammed into Black

Antonio’s smile was small, almost predatory, as he crouched down until his face was level with Blackthorn’s. “Who were her parents?” he asked. “And where are they now?”Blackthorn’s eyes flicked away.His arrogance seemed to be gone, replaced by a raw, animal fear. He took a ragged breath, as if the words were sandpaper in his throat. For a moment there was silence, until finally he exhaled.“They’re dead,” he said. “Both of them.”For Antonio, the words landed like ice down his spine. Dead?The word tasted foreign and cruel.Antonio’s jaw tightened. He refused to let the bleakness settle into him. He would not accept it without seeing the path that led there. “How do you know?” he demanded. “Tell me everything. Tell me how you know they’re dead.”Blackthorn swallowed, blood bubbling in his throat.“I captured them,” he said finally. The words came out like a confession spat into the dirt. “Years ago. They were travelers—the sort of people who pass through and never belong t

The following morning, Antonio called his men, “What we need now is their specific location. That is the missing piece. I want you to use the name, Elias and Marianne Greyson. Walk alongside it, follow its trail. Search every corner up silver range in the Northern part. In every town, every archive, every registry—wherever that name appears, follow it. Question quietly, listen more than you speak. If you find anyone who carries the name or has changed from it, I want to know.” His tone dropped, sharp as a blade. “Do it quietly. Do not attract suspicion. If word gets out about this search, we could lose everything before we begin.” “Yes, sir,” one of the men said firmly, and the others nodded. Antonio waved his hand, dismissing them. “Go now. You have three days.” The men left swiftly, their footsteps echoing down the corridor until silence fell again. The first day dragged by with no word. Antonio kept himself busy, pouring his energy into planning, into other matters o