Chapter 264: Tasked Investigation!

Albedo remained at the Academy for a while after he woke up. The Academy didn’t take chances when something unknown had laid hands on its students, so Albedo underwent a large amount of tests to make sure everything was completely okay.

So the hours passed in a quiet rhythm of examinations and enforced rest and Gwen never left his side during all of this.

She sat through every scan, every pulse of probing mana, every soft-spoken consultation between healers. When Albedo was moved to a secondary chamber for soul stability readings, she followed.

When he was told to lie still while a crystalline array hovered over his chest and mapped the afterimage of the Amethyst breakthrough, she sat at the foot of the bed, legs tucked beneath her, eyes never leaving him.

Only once did she step out, and that was to fetch Diona who had arrived breathless.

She burst into the room like a storm held together by pure relief, chest heaving, eyes wide and shining. For half a second she froze, staring at Albedo like she wasn’t sure he was real. Then she crossed the distance in three quick steps and grabbed his hand.

“You’re awake,” she said, voice trembling. “You’re actually awake.”

“I hear that’s the current rumor,” Albedo replied lightly.

She laughed, and then immediately started crying, pressing her forehead against his knuckles as if anchoring herself.

Gwen watched her quietly, expression complicated but not hostile. When Diona finally pulled herself together, the three of them sat in a fragile, peaceful triangle that felt strangely domestic for a hospital room that had seen far too much worry in the last two days.

Seraphyne arrived later.

One moment the room held only Albedo, Gwen, and Diona. The next, the air folded softly near the window, shadows blooming like spilled ink before resolving into the tall, elegant figure of Duchess Seraphyne Bloodvale.

She wore a simple black dress instead of her usual noble regalia, the fabric flowing like liquid night. Her long obsidian hair was tied loosely behind her back, crimson eyes immediately locking onto Albedo the moment she fully manifested.

Relief flashed across her face so naked and sharp that Albedo caught it even through his lingering exhaustion.

Then it was gone, replaced by her usual composed, playful calm.

“Well,” she said lightly, folding her hands behind her back as she approached the bed. “You certainly know how to make an entrance, mon cher.”

Gwen straightened immediately.

“Seraphyne,” she greeted.

“Little star,” Seraphyne replied warmly, inclining her head. “You look like you haven’t slept.”

Gwen opened her mouth to deny it.

Diona beat her to it. “She hasn’t.”

Seraphyne smiled knowingly and turned her attention back to Albedo, eyes flicking briefly over the faintly glowing sigils still tracing his arms and collarbone.

“…Mid Amethyst,” she murmured. “And stabilized. Impressive.”

“Not exactly how I planned to break through but you gotta do what you gotta do,” Albedo said.

“Oh, darling,” Seraphyne replied dryly, “That’s the perfect mentality,”

Despite herself, Gwen huffed a quiet laugh.

The healers eventually cleared him.

Not with enthusiasm, several of them made it very clear they would have preferred to keep him another day, but with grudging acceptance. The final scan confirmed no hidden backlash.

When the last seal dimmed and the final report was signed, the senior doctor sighed.

“You’re officially discharged,” he said. “Under strict orders not to engage in combat. We recommend just simple meditation and training for at least a week just to make sure everything is okay,”

Albedo smiled politely.

“I’ll do my best.”

The doctor gave him a look that made it very clear he didn’t believe that for a second and all of them went home together, each of them in their own thoughts.

Albedo wanted to speak with Seraphyne, but with Gwen and Diona here, he didn’t, as he knew what they’d talk about would cause the two of them to be very nervous, especially after he experienced something so dangerous.

Once they arrived home, Gwen relaxed visibly once they stepped inside.

“I’ll make tea,” Gwen said automatically, then paused, “Unless you’re supposed to rest?”

“I can rest with tea,” Albedo replied.

That settled it. Diona followed Gwen into the kitchen, immediately offering to help, though her help mostly consisted of hovering anxiously and asking if Gwen was sure he was allowed caffeine.

That left Albedo and Seraphyne alone in the main sitting room. The moment the door slid shut behind the girls, the air changed.

Seraphyne turned to him slowly. The playful warmth drained from her expression, replaced by something colder and sharper.

Her crimson eyes fixed on Albedo with terrifying focus.

“Tell me everything,” she said quietly.

Albedo nodded and immediately did. He told her about the layered illusions. The false portal. The recursive pressure system. The way the space reacted specifically when he deviated from the expected path.

He told her about the mana drain that scaled intelligently instead of uniformly and he told her about the way the exit hid rather than defended itself.

Seraphyne listened without interrupting, posture perfectly still. Only the faint tightening of her fingers betrayed her growing fury.

When he finished, silence settled between them.

“…They didn’t want you dead,” she said at last.

“No,” Albedo agreed. “They wanted me intact.”

Her lips curved into a slow, dangerous smile.

“That narrows the list,” she murmured.

Albedo met her gaze steadily.

“I want you to investigate,” he said. “Quietly. Thoroughly.”

Seraphyne inclined her head.

“I already am.”

He blinked. “Already?”

“Do you think it was easy for Raphaeline to find you? I helped her and we investigated together. She gave me leads to look into certain unofficial avenues that would be problematic for her to openly investigate,” Seraphyne said

“Your request simply aligns with my own intentions.”

Her eyes darkened as she continued, “Whoever orchestrated this had resources, knowledge of Academy movements, and the arrogance to believe they could cage you without consequence.”

She stepped closer, her presence suddenly immense.

“I will find them.”

Albedo studied her for a moment, then nodded.

“Good.”

Seraphyne’s smile softened, just slightly.

“Rest, Albedo,” she said, turning toward the door. “Enjoy being home. I’ll handle the monsters lurking in the dark.”

As she left the room, Gwen’s voice drifted in from the kitchen, calling that the tea was ready. Albedo leaned back into the chair, exhaling slowly as Gwen arrived, and gave him a cup of tea, relaxed as he knew Seraphyne would deal with the problem.

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