# Chapter 17: Crimson Peak
The forest was supposed to be quiet this time of night. Instead, the roar of aviators tore through the sky, their flashing lights cutting through the trees like blades.
Uriel watched the tele mirror, frowning. "He's fighting. You can tell by his aura."
---
"Should I end him, Master?"
Valhalla emerged from the darkness, his voice cold and steady.
Adrian didn't turn around. He just leaned back in his chair, staring at nothing in particular. "And what would that accomplish?" He shook his head. There was something almost sad in his voice. "It was a fair duel. I said what I said. The loser stays away from Eloise." A pause. "Not that she was ever mine to begin with."
Valhalla stepped closer, his expression full of something fierce and absolute. "Anyone who rejects you is a fool, Master. You gave me a second life. You showed me the truth. I serve you because I choose to. You are my god. The rest of this world just doesn't see it yet."
Adrian finally looked at him, one corner of his mouth lifting. "I'm sure the dragons need a king."
"There is no greater honor than standing beside you," Valhalla said.
Adrian's eyes darkened, his voice dropping low. "Uthean is just the start. I'm going to conquer the whole world."
---
The Vaciem brothers stood before the Thorne Council, heads bowed.
"Thank you for taking care of our brother," Uriel said. "For saving him."
Lue smiled. It didn't quite reach her eyes. "I thought you'd come looking for him, but I didn't expect you so soon."
"Finding him means everything to us," Uriel said. "But there's something bigger at stake now."
He straightened. "The Vaciem kingdom has grown strong. We're the new face of the hidden races now. The Crimson Peak is still out there, but they hide in the shadows."
Lue raised an eyebrow. "And my people? The ones who died?"
Uriel's jaw tightened. "We didn't have enough soldiers back then. I'm sorry."
"I don't need your apology." Lue's smile stayed frozen. "We survived. That's what we do."
Uriel pressed on. "The Vaciem kingdom has power to match any great nation. We want you with us."
Lue studied him. "And the boy?"
"He was never really one of us," Uriel said carefully. "He was just passing through. And now he can't go back. The invaders are worse than we thought."
"How many races stand with you?"
"Angels. Centaurs. Unicorns. Pegasi. At least thirty smaller factions. We're building something real."
"And the Crimson Peak?"
Uriel's face hardened. "They're the reason we fell in the first place. The vampires. The wolves. They sold us out. Now they've built their own army. Probably just as big as ours."
Lue glanced at the other council members. They nodded. One by one, they stood.
"It would be an honor," Lue said, "to join the Vaciem kingdom."
---
The forest clearing was the same one where Eloise had found Leron bleeding out weeks ago. Now the blood was hers.
She held his hands. They were shaking.
"When I was seven, I lost everything," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "I told myself I wouldn't get attached to anyone again. I couldn't handle losing someone else." She gripped his fingers tighter. "But I can't live like that anymore."
Leron looked at her. There was something soft in his eyes. "I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you."
He glanced up at the stars. "Do you like me?"
"A little," she admitted.
"So if I kissed you?" He turned to face her, leaning closer.
She didn't pull away. "I'd kiss you back."
She closed the distance.
From somewhere high above, invisible in the dark, a raven-dove watched through golden eyes. Its master sat alone in his room, seeing everything.
Adrian didn't move. Didn't blink. Didn't let any of it show on his face.
Somewhere deep inside, something twisted.
He closed his eyes.
"Well," he muttered to the empty room. "Loving someone means knowing when to let go."
He opened a book about kingdoms and conquests and tried very hard to think about anything else.
---
The forest held its breath.
Somewhere in the dark, something watched. Blue eyes. Hungry.
Then they moved.
A blur of fur and claws. Thirteen shapes—almost human, but not quite—burst from the shadows.
Leron turned just in time to see them coming. He raised his hand—
Too slow.
Eloise saw the horror on his face and spun around.
The claws caught her shoulder.
Blood sprayed across the moonlight.
---
*Two hours earlier. Uthean.*
The wolves came from everywhere at once.
Hundreds of them. Pouring into every corner of the seven domains. They didn't stop for anything—not guards, not walls, not magic.
The angel knights met them head-on. So did the Carter knights. Steel and fang. Light and shadow.
The wolves were shorter than the angels—barely chest-high—but there were so many of them.
House Wilbert was a trading house. They weren't built for war.
It showed.
Adrian stood at the gate, looking at the bodies. His knights. His people. Dozens of them. Not one wolf among the dead.
"Young master…"
A voice. Weak.
Christopher. Buried under three of his own men. His arm was gone. His eye too.
Adrian knelt beside him.
"Run," Christopher wheezed. "Take your mother. The madams. Just… run."
Adrian didn't move. He looked at the wolves at the gate. Then back at Christopher.
He placed a hand on the old knight's chest.
Rune Magic: Imbue Power.
Golden light spread through Christopher's body. His arm grew back. His eye too. Not flesh—light made solid.
"Valhalla," Adrian said quietly.
The dragon stepped forward.
"Kill them all."
Swoosh.
Only the wind remained. And falling heads.
Adrian walked among his fallen guards, touching each one. Four of them rose again.
"You are my judgment now," he told them. "Ragnarok."
---
*The raven-dove's eyes saw everything.*
Adrian's body went rigid.
"Eloise."
He whispered her name.
No response.
"Eloise?"
Nothing.
"FOOLS."
His mana exploded outward. The sky turned black.
Whoosh.
He was there.
Standing between Eloise and the wolves. The heads of the creatures fell before they even saw him move.
"Yggdrasil."
Roots burst from the earth, wrapping around Eloise, sealing her in a cocoon of wood and light.
Then something shifted behind his eyes.
The old fool stirred.
Xiao Long took control of Adrian's body