Destroying the palace.

That was Alex’s goal, and Lilia didn’t have any problem with that.

Moving through the grand corridors of the palace, Alex and Lilia methodically dismantled its foundation, room by room.

Each time they neared a key structure or an important faculty, Alex would raise the crystal device, mutter, “Shatter,” and watch as the structure crumbled into dust.

The crystal was the controller. The one holding it could command absolutely anything within this area.

Yes, the prerequisite to obtaining it was to be a pure-blooded vampire, and Alex wasn’t one, but Lucian had done that part for him.

So now, the process wasn’t hard.

It was an oddly restorative process, a symbolic destruction of the past and everything that had once bound Lilia in chains of obligation. She walked beside Alex, her steps light, a content expression resting on her face.

“So, you’re seriously just going to keep breaking things without a second thought?” A familiar voice rang through the communication device in Alex’s palm.

Alex smirked, adjusting the device. “Well, Zahara, if you have a better idea, I’m all ears.”

On the small floating video panel projected before him, Zahara crossed her arms, her golden eyes narrowing. “I just thought you were more of a strategist, that’s all.”

She could’ve said that it wasn’t a good idea to destroy a well-hidden place like that, but she was sure that Alex must have his reasons, so she didn’t.

Mira, standing beside Zahara on the call, rubbed her chin, her soft cream hair falling over her shoulder as she tilted her head. “I feel like… he’s enjoying it.”

Mira felt like Alex somehow liked destroying things. She was sure she made that kind of face when doing anything related to Alex since those are the only things she enjoys.

Lilia, standing close—too close—to Alex, chuckled as well. “You know, Mira, I think you’re right. He does have a certain glee when he says ‘shatter.'”

Alex scoffed. “You all make it sound like I’m some kind of demolition man.”

“Aren’t you?” Zahara shot back, her brow raised.

“I mean,” Lilia added thoughtfully, “considering how much destruction tends to follow you, the title seems appropriate.”

Mira, hearing those words, nodded, although she didn’t get what Lilia meant since she hadn’t seen much action from Alex.

Alex sighed dramatically. “This is the kind of support I get from my own people? Maybe I should start looking for a new team.”

Zahara rolled her eyes, but there was a playful smile on her lips. “Good luck with that. No one else will put up with you.”

Lilia, who had been comfortably nestled against Alex’s arm the whole time, hummed. “Mhm. I agree with Zahara. He’d be lost without us.”

Mira nodded as well, her eyes brighter than her always blank look. “Un.”

Seeing her like that made Alex feel happy. ‘She’s adjusting well,’ he thought.

[It’s all thanks to Zahara,] Sophie added, causing him to smile inwardly.

He knew that Zahara was one of the reasons why Mira seemed to be improving at such a fast pace, and although he didn’t know what Zahara was teaching Mira, he was happy as long as the results were good.

But no matter how happy he was on the inside, on the outside he groaned, rubbing his temples. “Why do I even bother?”

The conversation continued as they moved from chamber to chamber, the palace slowly falling into ruin behind them. Alex explained the situation—Lucian’s presence, the battle, the revelation of his abilities. Zahara and Mira listened intently, their expressions serious, but neither interrupted.

“Lucian, huh?” Zahara finally said, her tone thoughtful. “I knew he was a problem, but I didn’t think he’d actually do something like kidnapping Lilia.”

Sighing, she added, “And that palace… it’s unsettling how many secrets this world still holds. The more we uncover, the more questions arise.”

“Yeah, well, I’m just glad he’s gone,” Alex admitted, stretching his arms before placing a hand on Lilia’s head. “And that we all made it through.”

Lilia smiled up at him but said nothing, simply leaning into his touch. Zahara and Mira exchanged glances, but neither commented on the growing closeness between the two.

Both of them knew what was happening. Zahara knew in detail, while Mira just knew the overview of things.

Like always, Zahara had given Alex a thumbs up, saying that Lilia was a nice girl to have as her sister even before Alex could ask her anything about it.

Mira, on the other hand, couldn’t talk to him in the dream space. He couldn’t talk to her because of that, so he asked Zahara to discreetly tell Mira about it.

He was sure Mira wouldn’t like it; after all, their relationship was still not set in stone, yet he already seemed to be taking another girl.

That was why, although he was very close to Lilia, he hadn’t done anything misleading.

“So,” Mira eventually said, shifting the subject, “what’s next?”

Alex stared at her for a while, feeling good at seeing how much she had grown.

She was talking more now, and she could tell when to change the subject as well, so without keeping her waiting, he glanced ahead, his eyes focusing on the remaining rooms and faculties in the grand structure that was once a palace. “Last few things. Then we’re done.”

…………………..

After a while.

Standing before the last remaining section of the once-magnificent palace, Alex and Lilia found themselves at the entrance of a cemetery.

It wasn’t actually a part of the palace since it wasn’t inside the palace, but it seemed to be controlled by the controller, so it must be a part of it.

From his calculations, this was probably the gate to the real trial grounds.

Clatter.

The sound made by the debris and shattered fragments of the ruins that lay behind them—remnants of the past erased from existence—were the only things that could be heard in this area now.

Alex had already cut the call; only Lilia stood next to him now, silently gazing at the cemetery with an unreadable expression.

The air was thick with the weight of memories, of things long buried both in the earth and in the past.

Alex took a slow breath and raised the device. This was it—the final step—the end of what had once been Lucian’s domain.

Lilia, who had been waiting to see what Alex was going to show her, felt that this was it. She could tell that this was the place where whatever he wanted to show would be since this was the only place left.

So she prepared herself for some kind of shock.

“Shat—”

Like before, Alex continued with the command for the cemetery to shatter, but when the command was halfway past his lips, a desperate voice tore through the silence, cutting him off.

“STOP!”

The cry echoed from within the graveyard, filled with urgency and fear.

Alex’s eyes narrowed as he instinctively stopped, his hand tightening around the crystal device.

‘There it is,’ he muttered inwardly.

Lilia, on the other hand, took a step closer to him, her expression turning sharp. “That voice…” Holding Alex’s arm, she muttered, “I thought we killed everyone.”

As if to deny her statement, from the darkness of the cemetery, something stirred.

And then, a figure emerged.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep