The atmosphere in the second-floor corridor was suffocatingly tense."I want a helicopter, damn it!" Leo roared, his bloodshot eyes bulging from his skull. "Are you deaf, you bastard?! Get me a ten-million-dollar ransom right now, you idiot!"Livia sobbed uncontrollably within the brutal grip of Leo's arm. The young girl struggled to breathe. She looked up at the man towering before her."Xavier," Livia called out, her voice shaking violently.However, the plea caught in her throat. Livia's eyes widened to their absolute limits. She suddenly registered the horrifying transformation of her brother's appearance.Xavier's blue eyes no longer resembled those of a normal human. His irises flared brilliantly, radiating an eerie light from another dimension. A pitch-black vortex swirled at the very center of his eyes. Dark, prominent veins bulged along his neck. Thick, black mist billowed aggressively from beneath his polished shoes and long black coat.The aura of darkness felt lethally opp

 The chaotic shrieks of Leo's madness gradually faded into the distance as he fled down the main staircase toward the street.Silence reclaimed the second-floor corridor of the Aristhos Manor, punctuated only by the steady patter of rain against the windowpanes.Livia collapsed onto the marble floor, her knees buckling under her weight. Her white nightgown was smudged with dust, and a trickle of fresh blood leaked from the minor cut Leo's blade had left on her neck. She gasped heavily for air.Xavier paid no heed to Leo's escape. The Devil of Wall Street shifted his focus entirely.He blurred

The marble floor of the second-floor corridor vibrated violently.Fine white dust rained down from the ceiling. Hairline fractures split the intricately carved wooden paneling around Xavier. An ancient rumble reverberated continuously from deep within the earth. Blistering heat and the sharp stench of sulfur filled the air."Boss!" Lyra called over the comms, her voice tight with tension."Report," Xavier commanded, his voice dropping low."My satellites lost thermal tracking," Lyra reported, her fingers blurring across her keyboard. "But one thing is certain, Boss. Isabella is no longer on the upper floor."Xavier narrowed his blue eyes. "Where did the serpent go?""She manipulated the situation, Boss," Lyra answered, frustration lacing her tone. "While you were occupied rescuing Miss Livia from Leo, Isabella used that window to escape. She dragged Adrian away from her study.""They cannot leave this house," Xavier stated with absolute coldness. "Our forces have the perimeter entirel

The ancient stone corridor felt freezing and suffocatingly damp. The foul stench of decaying flesh mixed with wet mud struck their nostrils. Absolute darkness blanketed the depths below, pierced only by the thin beam of a small flashlight in Isabella's hand."Watch your step, damn it!" Isabella barked, gasping for breath.The serpent woman violently yanked Adrian's shirt collar. The arrogant young man stumbled repeatedly down the slick stone steps, scraping his knees against the jagged edges until they bled."It hurts, Mother!" Adrian whimpered, weeping in terror. "What the hell is this place?! Why is there a rotting passage right beneath our house?!""Shut your mouth, you idiot!" Isabella hissed, dragging her son deeper into the gloom. "Do you want Xavier to hear us, huh?! That demon is rampaging upstairs!"Adrian swallowed hard, the hairs on his neck standing on end. The vivid memory of those glowing blue eyes obliterating the hotel lobby the night before flashed in his mind."But i

The stone walls of the bunker continued to tremble violently. Fine white dust rained down from the concrete ceiling as the iron chains atop the altar clattered loudly. Isabella stood near the altar, her breath ragged, her red dress soaked through with her own son's blood.She stared down at Adrian's corpse without a single flicker of remorse."Your purpose is served," Isabella said, her voice flat.She spat onto the stone floor near Adrian's feet, not shedding a single tear."I never loved you," Isabella continued, looking at her son's rigid face. "You were merely a tool to me. A spoiled brat who brought constant embarrassment to this family. Dying tonight is the single most useful thing you have ever done in your entire life."The tremors in the bunker intensified. Jagged fissures opened across the ancient stone walls surrounding the chamber.From within those cracks, a pitch-black liquid began to ooze. The substance defied gravity, resisting the pull toward the floor, instead vapori