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Akh'sha didn't answer right away. He studied Taufik's expression in silence, his deep blue eyes narrowing ever so slightly as if searching for some hidden motive beneath his calm demeanor. The tension between them seemed to stretch, brittle and fragile like a string pulled too tight. Finally, a small sigh slipped from his lips, resignation, laced with a trace of amusement.

"…Who am I to refuse GOD's request?" He said, his voice carrying a touch of dry sarcasm, the word GOD almost spat out like a joke he wasn't sure he found funny.

But instead of irritation, Taufik let out a soft laugh, the sound low and unbothered. He leaned back in his chair, the light catching on the dark crimson surface of his wine as he swirled the goblet lazily. With a casual grace, he brought it to his lips again, sipping as though his reluctant submission had been expected all along.

The firelight danced across his features, casting faint shadows that flickered like silent ghosts, and in that quiet moment, the power dynamic between them shifted, subtle, but unmistakable.

"…You've recruited Dagraha, Kania, and me. What are your plans for the Red Dragon? I heard they've been lately-"

Akh'sha didn't get the chance to finish.

Taufik suddenly rose from his chair with a fluid, almost predatory motion. The shift was so abrupt, so sharp, that it caused the wine in his glass to ripple dangerously close to the brim.

His eyes, dark and gleaming, snapped toward the palace corridor, focused, alert, like a hound catching the scent of the wind.

A hush fell over the room.

Akh'sha stiffened slightly, his words forgotten as he followed his gaze.

The atmosphere shifted. The warmth of the firelight no longer felt comforting; it felt oppressive as if something unseen had entered the space between the flames and the shadows. The corridor beyond the archway remained empty, but the air had changed.

"... Taufi-"

"Sshs~"

Taufik raised a finger to his lips, silencing him with a soft yet commanding gesture. His posture remained alert, head tilted slightly as if listening to something just beyond the reach of normal senses.

The silence stretched for a heartbeat longer. Then, slowly, he turned back to Akh'sha, his brows knitting together in mild confusion. The sharp edge in his aura dulled, replaced with a flicker of something… Bemused.

With a quizzical look, he asked,

"Are you sure your castle isn't haunted, Akh'sha?"

His tone was dry, half-joking, but his eyes scanned the corners of the room with cautious curiosity, like someone who wouldn't be surprised if the shadows themselves whispered back.

Akh'sha blinked, caught off guard by the sudden shift in Taufik's demeanor.

"…What do you mean? What are you feeling?" He asked, his voice quieter now... Measured, cautious.

Taufik didn't answer immediately. His gaze had turned distant, unfocused as if he were looking through the walls themselves. Then, his jaw tensed ever so slightly, and he murmured, almost as if speaking to himself.

"I sense my daughter… Kiara. She came out of her room on her own"

That alone seemed strange enough... Kiara never wandered without reason. But there was more. Taufik's voice dropped lower, touched by something colder than concern.

"But… There are others with her. Not guards. Not servants. Not Shasha... It's something else" He turned back to Akh'sha, eyes sharper now. "It's like they led her somewhere"

Akh'sha stood without a word, the memories of that morning rushing back to him, memories of when Kiara had said she heard something. At the time, he had dismissed it as a child's imagination… But now, that decision twisted in his gut like a blade. His face quickly lost color, the realization settling over him like a suffocating fog.

"Oh, shit!" Akh'sha cursed under his breath. His eyes darted toward Taufik, expecting urgency... Movement. But Taufik remained still, unnervingly calm, his expression unreadable as he continued to stare down the corridor.

That calm unsettled Akh'sha even more.

"Fik! What are you doing? We need to stop Kiara right now!" He snapped, frustration rising in his voice.

But Taufik didn't respond. He didn't even look at him.

Akh'sha clenched his jaw. He didn't care what kind of strange intuition or power Taufik was relying on, he wasn't about to risk his niece. He took a step forward, ready to move on his own if he had to.

But before he could take another, Taufik's hand shot out and clamped down on his shoulder, halting him in place with unexpected strength.

"Wait," Taufik said softly, his voice calm, but laced with something deeper. Not fear. No hesitation. Something colder.

"What are you doing?!" Akh'sha barked, his voice rising with panic. "Do you want your daughter to get hurt? Have you forgotten what I told you this morning? The voice... Kiara said she heard something! We can't let her follow it. It's too dangerous!"

His tone was desperate now, pleading. Akh'sha wasn't just worried, he was scared. For Kiara. For what might happen if they were too late.

But Taufik, still holding his shoulder, didn't flinch.

"I don't feel any bad intentions," He said quietly.

That calm that absolute certainty, only made Akh'sha angrier. He stared at Taufik like he was losing his mind.

"No bad intentions? That's not how evil works, Fik!" Akh'sha snapped his voice tight with emotion. "It doesn't start with a knife in your back. It whispers. It makes you trust it first!"

His breath hitched slightly. "I've already lost three dragonlings… And an elder. I'm not about to lose my niece... Especially not the same day I finally met her"

For a moment, silence hung between them, thick and heavy.

Taufik finally let out a quiet sigh and loosened his grip on Akh'sha's shoulder, releasing him.

"…Okay," He said softly. "You don't need to worry too much. Shasha is already with her"

Akh'sha blinked, confused. "Shasha?"

"My Maid, The one with Dragon Core inside her" Taufik's tone was calm again, but now laced with intent. "She's been trailing her since the moment she stepped out of her room"

Taufik's eyes narrowed slightly, his focus returning to the corridor as his expression turned thoughtful.

"Let's not waste this chance, Akh'sha. Let's see what's really happening. Where the whisper is coming from..."

Then, he glanced sideways at Akh'sha, a small smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

"…Don't you want to solve this little mystery too?"

Akh'sha remained silent for a moment, weighing Taufik's words. Then, finally, he exhaled. A light sigh but his eyes locked onto Taufik's with a stern, unwavering gaze.

"Okay," he said flatly. "But if anything happens to my niece… You can forget about your offer from earlier"

Taufik's expression softened just a little, a flicker of something almost hurt in his eyes, though it was quickly masked by his usual calm.

"What are you saying, Akh'sha?" He replied, his voice quiet but firm. "She's my daughter. How could I ever let something bad happen to her?"

There was no arrogance in his tone, only a weight of conviction, and beneath it, a father's fear he refused to show.

--------

In the dimly lit corridor of the palace, Kiara moved with eerie grace, her eyes closed, yet her steps were steady, deliberate. She didn't stumble. She didn't falter. It was as if the darkness itself parted for her, guiding her path with invisible hands.

Her long hair flowed behind her, catching the faint shimmer of the wall-mounted torches. There was an almost dreamlike stillness to her movements, unnatural, silent.

Not far behind, cloaked in invisible magic, Shasha followed.

The Android-Dragon Maid moved without a sound, her presence more sensation than substance. She didn't interfere, merely observed, gliding across the walls and floor like a ripple in the air. Her focus never wavered, locked firmly on her Master's daughter... Kiara.

Something was guiding the girl.

And Shasha intended to find out what.

Kiara's steps slowed as she reached the end of the corridor. Before her, stood a door, tall, ancient, and out of place.

That was the corridor Akh'sha had mentioned, the one they sealed a long time ago.

And that door…

It shouldn't have been there. It wasn't there when they passed through this hallway earlier.

Now it stood like a wound in reality... Tall, made of dark wood laced with veins of silver, and pulsing faintly with a dull red glow. No handle. No keyhole. Only a single symbol etched into its surface: a spiral, carved so deeply it seemed to shift and twist when stared at too long like it was alive.

Kiara raised a hand, still with her eyes closed, and pressed her palm to the spiral.

The air trembled.

A pulse rippled out from the door, subtle but wrong. Behind her, Shasha's golden eyes narrowed. That door wasn't part of the palace's architecture. It held no mana signature the castle could recognize. No logical foundation. No recorded enchantment.

It shouldn't exist.

And yet…

Kiara was about to open it.

....

...

..

.