CHAPTER 142: CHAPTER 142: AMBUSH

The portal crackled with a hum before spitting William out onto a grayish valley. The air smelled faintly of damp earth and a lot of freshly cut vegetation. The sky was covered with dense clouds, and hundreds of apprentices were clustered together like cattle in formation.

As he walked towards the crowd, William began to notice something strange: many faces were familiar to him.

Too familiar.

"They’re all nobles," he murmured to himself. "And not just any kind of noble... they were heirs of ancient houses, of weighty surnames, with the same haughty, arrogant faces that had looked down on him since day one."

He swallowed and, with a simple gesture, activated his communication collar. His intuition told him that something very bad was about to happen, so he wanted to know if it was directed at him or Lia.

"Are you okay? Where are you?" he sent to Lia.

A few seconds later, the reply came:

"Yes, I’m with Dixon and the guys... but something’s wrong. They deployed us in a different zone than they said at the academy. They’re not telling us exactly where we are, but we were sent to the front line. I can see the castle we’re supposed to besiege, and I heard the defense is preparing for an all-out war."

William exhaled with relief. As long as Lia was with Dixon, he knew she was protected.

He was about to put away the collar when another message arrived, with no sender:

"Flee as soon as you can. Forget Blackwater."

His world froze instantly. His back drenched in cold sweat, and his hands began to tremble uncontrollably. That name. That promise. Blackwater.

Only Aurus knew about it. Not even Lia. No one else had ever told anyone in this world about that reward Aurus had promised him.

His hand trembled slightly, his heart pounding in his throat. He looked around, trying to find an escape route, but the place was very well planned; the portal was exactly in the middle of the camp, there was no escape.

And then, without warning, the Crimson Dragon Squadron began to move. They positioned themselves in a circle, advancing slowly, without looking him in the eyes. A tight formation. It looked like a drill, but the killing intent they emitted was no joke. The camp seemed under attack, but no one else was nearby.

William took a step back, then another. "Is it time to move? Where should I position myself?" No one answered him. When he realized it, he was completely surrounded. A shiver ran down his spine.

"Where is Aurus?" one of them asked, bluntly.

William didn’t answer.

"Don’t play the idiot. We know you’re in contact. Speak, and this all ends here."

He activated the Eye of Agimenes.

And then he saw it.

On the distant cliffs, among the ruins, there were several hidden mages. They observed from a distance with invisibility barriers. They seemed not to be part of the ambush. Or, at least, those surrounding him didn’t know of their presence.

The situation looked bad. Trying to flee was impossible; confronting them all wasn’t an option either. No matter how much he tried, he was no match for an entire squadron of a hundred mages and hundreds of apprentices. Any attempt at retaliation would only hasten his death.

"Come on, this must be just a misunderstanding. I haven’t spoken to Professor Aurus in years, I don’t know where he is. How about we talk to Director Agis? I’m sure he can speak for me."

"I see you have many arguments... But don’t worry, my specialty is making stones talk, so let’s see how tough the Demon of Black Rock truly is."

The interrogation quickly escalated. One of the apprentices pulled out a blade and, without any warning, pierced his thigh, twisting it to cause more pain.

William didn’t scream. He just closed his eyes and waited.

"I see you’re truly tough. You can continue giving him our special treatment."

With a nod from the mage, a knight approached and broke his nose with a dry punch. Another shattered the fingers of his right hand. A fourth knelt and whispered:

"I am Roderick Vaelhem’s brother... does that name ring a bell, trash?"

A knife blade slowly traced the sole of his foot. They cut his Achilles tendons. Then his wrists. Every inch of his body burned, but he didn’t say a word. He was waiting... observing.

And then William’s face finally changed; a person approached him with a wide smile: it was Algheron, the vice-director of the discipline committee, who leaned close to William’s face, making him feel the scythe of death over his neck.

"You’re as tough as I expected, but don’t worry, I have all the time in the world to play with you slowly. Let’s see how tough you really are."

After saying those words, he extended his hand and placed it on William’s head, releasing hundreds of snakes made of electricity that writhed all over William’s body, making him grit his teeth as he convulsed violently.

After a few minutes, blood seeped from his eyes, nose, ears, and mouth, while his eyes turned white, clearly on the verge of death.

A group of mages with black insignia appeared with firm steps. One of them led the way: Agis.

"Stop them!" he ordered dryly.

The torturers took a step back, but the one who seemed to lead the group didn’t retreat: Algheron Vaelhem, the vice-director of the discipline committee, Roderick’s father.

"You gave me free rein, Agis. Get out of here."

William spat blood and slowly raised his head. His face was just a mess of hanging flesh, while his entire body was bathed in blood.

"You said you owed me one, Agis," he murmured, his voice hoarse.

Agis didn’t look at him.

"Thank your master. Perhaps in hell, when you find him, you can claim it from him. This has nothing to do with you."

"I swear that what you do to my master... I will do to you a hundredfold."

Agis let out a nasal, mocking laugh.

"First, survive."

And without another word, he turned around. The squadron began to disperse, but Algheron remained with three other mages and twelve Level 3 apprentices, all bearing the same blazon.

"See, bastard?" Algheron said, drawing his sword. "Here are Roderick’s Brothers, Uncles, Nephews. And you... you are the cause of his death."

Without saying more words, they threw him to the ground, and the second round of torture began.

William could barely keep his eyes open. But amidst the pain, he thought of only one thing.

Every name. Every face. He wouldn’t forget them.