Chapter 159: His Final Council

The East Basement vibrated with a constant, heavy hum. St. Celeste was awake.

The ancient temple recognized the incoming threat and stood on high alert.

The silver runes of the Primordial Pantheon covered every single brick in the room and glowed with intense, blinding light.

Lithos knelt in the dark abyss of Level -5.

Raziel felt the massive stone construct waiting in the deep through his connection to the foundation.

The guardian powered down its offensive protocols and waited for a direct command.

Raziel stood at the head of the wooden table. He looked at the faces of his team.

Four days remained on the clock.

Elector Mordecai marched down the Pilgrim’s Path with thirty elite Inquisitors, ten master sealers, and the Oracle in chains.

“This is the final plan,” Raziel stated and placed his scarred hands flat on the table.

Zorya, Lucian, Lara, Caius, and Gideon gathered around the architectural blueprint of the academy.

A jagged red communication crystal rested in the center of the parchment.

Arawn Rivers listened from his hideout in the capital.

Raziel pointed at the East Basement on the map.

“Zorya is the anchor,” Raziel ordered.

“You stay in this room and maintain the counter-shield against the Silencer artifact. If your focus breaks, the shield falls and the ancient magic dies. We lose the foundation and we lose the war.”

Zorya nodded. Her silver eyes reflected the glowing walls.

She did not show any fear, she already possessed absolute control over her unchained core.

“I will hold the shield,” Zorya promised.

Raziel moved his finger to Level -5 on the blueprint.

“Caius,” Raziel said.

“You take position in the abyss and use your Pantheon knowledge to communicate with Lithos. The construct recognizes me as the bearer of the Seventh Gift, but its mind is degraded from centuries of isolation. You direct its aggression, you use Lithos as our absolute last line of defense if Mordecai breaches the underground levels.”

Caius crossed his arms over his gray uniform. “I will guide the weapon.”

Raziel looked at Lucian and Gideon.

“You two take the surface,” Raziel commanded.

“You intercept the sealing team in the courtyards.”

Gideon leaned over the table. The boy lacked magic, but he possessed crucial internal intelligence.

“The sealers use tri-point formations,” Gideon explained to the group.

“They need three men channeling mana in a perfect triangle to pour the consecrated lead into the foundation. If you break the triangle, the sealing spell collapses and the lead turns into useless dead metal.”

Lucian spun his practice dagger in his hand. He grinned.

“We break their triangles,” Lucian said.

“We hit their flanks and we keep them moving. They cannot cast complex seals while dodging blades.”

Raziel turned his head and looked at Lara.

The young empath sat on a wooden stool and hugged her knees to her chest.

The mental strain of her expanded perception took a heavy toll on her physical body.

“Lara maintains the early warning net,” Raziel stated.

“You feel their hostile intent in real time. You coordinate Lucian and Gideon from the second-floor cloister and tell them exactly where the sealers move before they turn the corners.”

Lara took a deep breath and nodded.

She accepted the burden.

Raziel looked down at the red communication crystal.

“Arawn,” Raziel called out.

“I am here,” the Exorcist answered through the static.

“What is your status on the external sabotage?”

“I rigged the supply wagons,” Arawn reported.

His voice carried a dark, cynical tone. “Mordecai expects fresh holy water and backup suppression seals to arrive at his camp tomorrow. He will receive crates full of rotting wood and dead rats instead and trust me, It will be fun.”

Raziel processed the entire board. Every single piece had a specific target.

“I take Mordecai,” Raziel announced.

The basement went quiet.

“My objective is the total destruction of the Silencer artifact,” Raziel explained.

“I will liberate Mirael from the chains. I will fight him using standard runic magic first. If he forces my hand, I will use the Umbral Paragon.”

Lucian stopped spinning his dagger. “If you show him the corrupted magic, the Exarchs will brand you a heretic.”

“I know,” Raziel answered. “But winning the fight matters more than keeping the secret.”

Raziel looked at the people standing around the table.

He operated on seventy percent empathy right now.

His emotions felt distant and muted.

The feelings sat far away in his mind and registered as faint points of heat inside a freezing chest.

But the heat existed.

He recognized the value of these specific humans.

Lucian broke the heavy silence.

The noble sheathed his dagger and leaned against the brick wall.

“When this ends,” Lucian said and let out a hard breath. “I want a decent meal, I am sick of the tasteless stew in the refectory.”

Lara rubbed her tired eyes.

“When this ends,” Lara added. “I want to sleep for three whole days without feeling anyone else’s nightmares.”

Zorya looked at her ink-stained fingers and the silver runes flowing under her skin.

“When this ends,” Zorya stated. “I want a new workshop. I want a desk with actual sunlight.”

Gideon stared at his scarred palms. He spent his entire life taking orders from abusive masters.

“When this ends,” Gideon whispered. “I want to know who I am without someone else telling me.”

Caius stepped out of the dark corner. He looked at the glowing ancient walls of his ancestors.

“When this ends,” Caius said. “My masters will know they did not wait in vain.”

Raziel listened to their demands.

They did not ask for glory or massive political power.

They asked for basic human peace.

He felt a rare, genuine pulse of determination push back against the cold numbness in his core.

“When this ends,” Raziel spoke. His voice carried absolute conviction. “I want all of us alive to see what happens next.”

The room stayed quiet for a few seconds.

Lucian let out a short laugh. “That is very optimistic for you, Raz.”

The muscle in Raziel’s cheek twitched. He almost formed a real smile.

“I am trying something new,” Raziel answered.

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