Xavier's eyes opened slowly, the weight of exhaustion pressing down on him like chains.
"Shit," He muttered. "Where am I?"
He wasn't in the cavern anymore. The smell of blood, smoke, and goblin rot was gone. Instead, he lay on a bed—firm but clean, draped in linen that smelled faintly of herbs. A soft glow of lanterns lit the room, their light dancing across polished stone walls etched with strange runes.
For a moment, he thought he was dreaming. His chest burned, his ribs ached, and his body was wrapped in bandages. He tried to sit up, but pain lanced through him, forcing a groan from his throat.
"Easy, Master " a voice said.
Aria sat beside him, her silver aura dim but steady, her eyes sharp yet softened with relief. "You're alive, master. Barely."
Xavier's gaze flicked around the chamber. Lyra was curled in a corner, trembling, her madness drowned by exhaustion. And then he saw her—the woman who had intervened.
