CHAPTER 76: DIVINE LILITH

It did.. work.

Lilith could hardly believe it, she had just rid a possessed animal of a demon. She stared down at the book, noticing that the pages were now blank. She vaguely remembered the words turning into black smoke. Had she... ingested the spell?

"How do you feel, Lilith? Any side effects? Signs of discomfort?" Lucian asked as he secured the chicken back in its cage.

Lilith took a moment to assess herself. "I feel... normal. Mostly surprised that I could do something like that, but otherwise, I’m alright."

"Very well then. I’ll let you off for the rest of the day. Even I don’t fully understand how spells like these work, so I wouldn’t want to overwork you. Tomorrow, the real work begins, and I assure you, performing magic on the prince will not be the same as removing a demon from a chicken," Lucian said with a slight smirk.

"I know. And you’re right." Lilith nodded in acknowledgment. She stood and extended the book toward him.

"The book belongs to you now. You should take it with you, I can’t keep it." Lucian said.

Lilith frowned. "Aren’t you worried someone might find it—or worse, steal it from me?" She understood the book’s importance. Leonidas had killed for it.

Lucian gave a small smile. "The book has bonded with you. No one else can use it, even if it’s stolen. And its whispers will lead you back to it if it ever is."

"Oh... alright. I’ll return to my chambers now," Lilith said, offering him a smile before turning and walking out of the cave and crypt.

Back in her chamber, she sat on the edge of her bed, staring at the book in her hands. Curiosity got the better of her, and she decided to flip through the pages, eager to learn more.

As she opened the book, a gust of wind rushed past her. The whispers began again, swirling around her ears, but Lilith ignored them and continued scanning the pages.

Suddenly, a sharp, piercing sound shrieked through the room. She cried out, dropping the book to the floor as her hands shot up to cover her ears. Her mouth hung open as pain surged through her body like lightning.

Gasping for air, she collapsed to the floor, her chest rising and falling rapidly. Tears streamed from her tightly shut eyes as the whispers intensified—this time chanting her name over and over again.

The pages of the book began to flip on their own at an unnatural speed. The writings on each page dissolved into black dust, which streamed into Lilith’s eyes, nose, and mouth. Her eyes rolled back as the dark matter invaded her.

"Divine Lilith of Avalon."

A single voice echoed around her before her eyes closed and her body went limp, consumed by darkness.

~~~

Her eyelids fluttered before she slowly opened her eyes. As she lifted her head, a pounding headache forced her to shut them again. She took a deep breath. The awkward position in which her body had been lying made her bones ache with pain.

Lilith groaned as she pushed herself off the floor and collapsed onto the bed, fingers tangled in her hair as she stared at the ceiling, trying to piece together what had happened. She let out a long sigh and shifted her gaze to the clock—it read a few minutes past midnight. That meant she had been unconscious for over eight hours.

The piercing sound. The excruciating pain. The... the book.

Lilith sprang to her feet, frantically searching the drawer beside her bed, then the bed itself. Nothing. Her eyes widened in panic as she dropped to her knees, peering under the bed—still no sign of the book.

Frustrated, she sighed and shoved her hair out of her face. Where had it gone? Had someone taken it while she was unconscious? The questions burned through her mind.

She nearly screamed when a sudden slamming sound snapped her from her thoughts. Heart racing, she slowly made her way to the window. With trembling hands, she pulled aside the curtain—and froze.

A smear of blood stained the glass.

Her breath hitched as she looked down to see the lifeless body of a bird at the base of the window. A cold shiver ran down her spine. She instinctively stepped backward, away from the glass.

That’s when something behind the curtain caught her attention.

Lilith lifted the curtain and found the book lying there on the floor. She crouched down and picked it up, hesitating a moment before opening it.

But there was no gust of wind this time. No whispers.

She flipped through the pages. They were blank—completely blank, as though nothing had ever been written on them.

A frown settled on her face. She couldn’t understand why the pages were empty—until it suddenly clicked. She remembered what happened before she passed out. The words... they had entered her.

Exhausted and confused, Lilith dropped the book back where she had found it. She made her way to the bed, crawled under the blanket, and pulled it up over her body. Soon, her eyelids grew heavy again, and sleep overtook her.

When she opened her eyes, morning had arrived. Sunlight streamed gently into the room.

She sat up, blinking against the light, and glanced at the clock—it was a few minutes past eight. As she climbed out of bed, the events of the previous night came rushing back.

Lilith walked over to the window where she had seen the dead bird.

But there was nothing there now—no bloodstains, no broken body. Just clean, clear glass.

Her brows furrowed. Had she imagined everything that happened yesterday? No, it had all felt too real to be a mere illusion. She looked around—and the book was nowhere in sight. At this point, Lilith was beginning to wonder if she was losing her mind.

But as she turned toward her bed, she noticed the book resting on her dresser. She was certain she hadn’t put it there.

Her head still throbbed, and she was too exhausted to deal with whatever game someone might be playing. Determined to get answers, she decided she would speak to Lucian.

After freshening up, Lilith made her way to the crypt, but before she could get there, she ran into Lucian and the prince walking up the stairs.