Chapter 37: Chapter 37

IRIS

It was incredibly perfect. Every movement I made, every tiny gesture, was exactly imitated by the illusion.

The fake Iris brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, just as I always did. Her mouth formed into the same stunned astonishment that was now on my own face.

Even the way she tilted her head slightly as she thought—Bael had caught every detail.

I stared in fascination at my own reflection until I involuntarily reached out my hand. The moment I touched her, I felt a tingling sensation in my fingertips, and the illusion dissipated like steam bubbles.

Bael grinned at me, his eyes twinkling in amused triumph.

“Good enough for our little demon friends, isn’t it?” he asked me.

“They will know that he is not me,” I said, disappointed.

Bael laughed, a loud, hearty laugh.

“Not when your amicus is with me. His aura will overshadow mine and it will be impossible to recognize me as a fake Iris,” Bael replied.

I took a step back, only to stare once more at the deceptive resemblance of Bael’s illusion. If I didn’t know better… I’d say I was standing right in front of myself.

“We’re going to trick them, and once we get Ava, we’re all going to head straight to Antaris. They can’t follow us… the barrier won’t allow it. And we will put up a second barrier for protection! As simple as that,” Devas added.

I turned to Devas and gave him a questioning look.

“Simple? What are you talking about? We almost didn’t manage to save my amicus and were well prepared. They’ll expect us to do something like that,” I said angrily.

He rolled his eyes, snorted, and stared at me just as questioningly.

“Then you have a better idea? Brainiac?” Devas asked me.

No, I didn’t. But that idea was far too risky.

The princes of darkness would kill them all if the scam was discovered.

“All we needed was an ingenious plan to get in and out of there… without getting killed,” King Elior’s voice was firm as steel.

“Iris, I promised your parents I’d protect you. And I’m keeping that promise. We are going to save Ava… It’s going to work.”

I just nodded, but I was still worried. There was too much at stake.

Bael returned to his true form and conferred with Devas and the king. The three heads bent over the war maps as flakes crackled in the fireplace.

Avery drew me close to him. He needed to comfort himself, but he stroked my back reassuringly.

We sat together for hours, late into the night, constantly making and discarding new rescue plans. Bael, who liked to pretend that he was calm, couldn’t hide his concern.

Every time Ava’s name came up, his fingers tightened involuntarily. We all knew his whole “I don’t care” act was a mere mask.

Aidan and Inna returned towards the morning, accompanied by Jade and Noah. Their faces spoke volumes, a mixture of anger and deep sadness on their features.

“We’ve got news…” Aidan began, his voice tight as the circle around the map closed in on them.

“Did you find out anything?” the king asked.

Aidan nodded and looked at Inna before reporting to the king.

“After we collected all the important reports and testimonies, we went through each piece of evidence together,” Aidan reported as his gaze wandered back and forth between the king and Jade.

Jade’s fingers twitched involuntarily as she recalled.

“There’s still that mirror… the same one that shattered when that black cloud disappeared,” she said. Her voice grew softer, almost melancholy.

“This kind of magic…” she began thoughtfully, “has not been practiced for eons, my king. It is black magic—but it is not inherently evil. It can be used by pure beings as well.”

She nervously stroked her forearms.

“It’s called the spirit portal… a way to let your mind wander through space and time. It used to be said that you could even use it to strengthen the gates between the worlds… and pull people through.”

The king frowned, his face a mask of disbelief. They could have gotten through had it not been for the barrier.

Every word seemed to hurt him, as if he guessed the truth before it was spoken.

Aidan sighed heavily.

“The only one here who knows this magic, besides Jade…” he hesitated a moment. “…is just a single person. I’m sorry, my king, but the traitor can only be the stranger you have taken in… Silak.”

The words hung heavy in the room, like an unspoken death sentence.

“Who is Silak?” I asked Avery.

“Silak is a powerful sorcerer. Once, he was on the evil side, but he was cast out. We never found out why,” Avery explained to me.

“My father took him in a decade ago, when Silak swore allegiance to him and wanted to switch to the good side.”

“Silak is apparently connected to the princes of darkness and was the one who kidnapped Ava,” Inna added.

Our heads all turned to her.

The king’s face froze, pale. Anger welled up in King Elior’s eyes—not only at the betrayal, but also at himself.

He had been the one to trust Silak. He had allowed the foreigner to live in Antaris.

That realization burned like poison in his blood. Yet there was no time for self-reproach.

“We could not find him anywhere. My lord, he is no longer on Antaris. We are convinced he abducted Ava. He had the power, he was able to open a portal… This was never about the soul animals. He deliberately ambushed her, because he knew it would put you under pressure. The princes of darkness apparently expected you to hand over Iris to them. Or that this would be the reason for war,” Jade added.

It was never about Ava… They wanted war from the start.

Aidan recounted how Jade and Mana hurried through the chambers, followed by the other witches and sorceresses of the town.

Her hands still glowed a magical yellow and orange, having wiped every trace of Silak’s magic.

“His magic was powerful…” Jade muttered through clenched teeth. “Only together could we eliminate it completely.”

The king only nodded.

Fortunately, they realized this in time and together they eliminated it.

How powerful was he, that so many witches and wizards had to work together? How long had he been planning all this?

No wonder the princes knew everything.

Where I was… That I had regained my powers… When we went to save Alatus…

He let them know about everything through this mirror magic.

“Well, at least we know who we’re going to be dealing with. Aidan, I need you… to discuss our plan,” the king said as he sat down on his throne.

The plan was stupid and dangerous. They would find out that Bael was there as a trickster, and they would kill them all.

Aidan listened to Bael and Devas as they let him in on the plan. His expression mirrored my thoughts.

“And that’s the brilliant plan?” he asked, with a raised eyebrow.

“Well, this or we’ll send your sister to die,” Devas replied, annoyed.

Aidan ran his hand through his hair and snorted angrily.

“If the king wants us to do it this way… then there was a lot to prepare. We would all be ready. Ready to fight for Antaris… And when I say all… I mean all. All of Antaris was getting ready for a fight…” Aidan said while looking at the king.

The king nodded, taking a deep breath and glancing at Aidan.

“But you have to realize, my king… No matter how this ends, it will lead us to war,” I heard Devas say.

His voice trembled not with fear, but with steely resolve. His eyes met Aidan’s, a silent understanding between warriors.

“They’ll walk over dead bodies to get Iris in their clutches. And we? We’ll rip them out, claw by claw!” Aidan said.

An icy silence spread until Devas said with thundering certainty, “Because once they have Iris… all is lost. Not only Antaris. All of it.”

The king rose. His robe swirled up like a battle banner in a storm.

There was no more doubt in his eyes, only the implacable fire of a ruler ready to defend his world.

“Then let it be war!” he shouted.

His voice echoed through the hall like a sword being drawn from its sheath.

“Mobilize every weapon! Every warrior! All magic! Antaris will not fall… Not today, not tomorrow, not for all eternity!” he shouted.

Outside, the storm bells began to ring. The sound was no longer an alarm.

It was a declaration of war.