"I sense a few presences hiding. Dravien," Seraphaine said.
Dravien nodded. "Got it."
Everyone stayed silent as Dravien closed his eyes and concentrated, his ears flickering at sounds nobody else could hear.
"I count four individuals hissing on the left side of the wagon, and I count five on the right side of the wagon," Dravien said, opening his eyes.
"So, it's vampires. Damn it," Iris said.
Morvath tensed.
The wagon then came to a halt as the horses whined.
Iris flicked the reins a few times.
"The horses won't walk; it looks like we travel on foot," she said, as Selyndra scooted off the wagon, helping Iris off with a hand, which Iris grabbed.
Seraphaine then also hopped off, along with Vaelus, Eiden, Dravien, and Morvath.
Iris began taking the reins off the horses, and both animals bolted into the distance, disappearing between the dark trees.
Dravien's ears twitched.
"Let's continue. Stay on your guard," Eiden said as he began walking ahead on the road.
The rest followed.
As they walked, the forest grew denser, shadows stretching long across the narrow path. The night air pressed in around them, cool and heavy, carrying faint rustles from unseen creatures deeper in the woods. Dravien kept his ears angled outward, listening intently with every step.
After several moments, his ears slowly relaxed.
"…They're gone," he murmured. "I don't hear the vampires anymore. Not a single hiss, not a single step. They must've backed off."
The group continued forward, boots crunching softly against the dirt, the silence around them deep and watchful.
Later, they made it out of the forest, and a figure stood ahead.
Black short hair, combed back, red glowing eyes, standing wearing a black dress suit, his hands behind his back.
"Hello, Great Sages. Lord Zeth was told of your arrival. He'd like to see you all, so please, come this way," he said, turning around as he walked down the road.
He led them forward in silence, his steps smooth and unnervingly quiet. The dirt path stretched ahead beneath the moonlight, winding through patches of dead grass and scattered stones. The air grew colder the farther they walked, the night thickening around them like a shroud.
Eventually, the trees thinned, and the road opened into a wide dirt field.
There, the group stopped.
Dozens of tall wooden stakes rose from the ground, each one impaled with unmoving bodies — silhouettes hanging lifelessly in the moonlight. Their shadows stretched long across the barren earth, swaying gently with the cold wind.
Beyond the field stood a massive black castle, its spires twisting upward like jagged claws. Crimson light pulsed faintly from its windows, and a heavy, oppressive aura radiated from the stone walls.
The man in the suit continued walking, guiding them toward the castle gates.
Inside, the air was colder still.
Long stone halls stretched ahead, lit by dim red lanterns that flickered like dying embers. Tables lined the walls — and on them lay bodies, pale and motionless, as vampires fed quietly. Some drank with eerie calm, others with slow, deliberate hunger.
Every vampire in the hall paused as the Great Sages entered.
Dozens of glowing red eyes turned toward them.
Some vampires hissed softly. Others simply stared, fangs glinting in the lantern light. The atmosphere tightened, thick with hostility and curiosity.
The man in the suit did not slow.
"Right this way," he said calmly, leading them deeper into Lord Zeth's domain.
As they walked a long hall, the man turned into a room where the Sages followed.
Inside was a throne constructed from living attendants, arranged in a strange, ritualistic formation that outlined a seat. Their bodies were held in place by some kind of magic, unmoving but breathing, forming a structure that pulsed faintly with life.
A man sat in it.
He wore a black dress suit, his skin pale, his red eyes glowing faintly in the dim light. His black hair fell to his neck, and in his hand rested a long red sword, its surface threaded with shifting veins of crimson energy. The blade's tip touched the floor as he leaned on it like a staff.
"Hello, Eiden," Zeth said with a wide smile of mischief, staring directly at him.